Our bodies are truly amazing, aren’t they!? They know when to go to sleep. When to wake up. How to keep our temperature steady. Our hearts don’t miss a beat and our lungs don’t miss a breath. If we’re wounded, it repairs itself and it breaks down food to turn it into nutrients and fuel to survive. It’s constantly adjusting itself to make sure we’re living to our fullest.
So, when people start to experience cravings, they view it as a sign of weakness. However, often it just means it’s a sign from our bodies saying it’s not getting something it needs to stay in balance.
The next time you’re experiencing a craving, ask yourself “ What is my body trying to tell me?” Here are 5 reasons your body may be craving something.
- Lack of Water
- Staying hydrated is extremely important for our bodies to function. A lot of the time when you think you need to eat your body is really just craving water. Try having a glass of water before you dive into a bag of chips to see if you’re really craving the chips or if you were just thirsty the whole time.
- Seasonal
- Our bodies often crave food that is in accordance with the seasons. In spring you may want lighter foods like leafy greens and citrus. In the summer, people tend to want more colorful / vibrant foods and ice cream. In the fall bring on all the soups and all the grounding foods. In winter, people tend to want more hearty foods like meat and potatoes.
- Lack of Nutrients
- If the body has inadequate nutrients, it may start to produce cravings. In my other blog post, I talked about how the craving of chocolate could actually be that your body needs magnesium.
- Hormonal
- When women experience menstruation, pregnancy or menopause they tend to have fluctuating testosterone and estrogen levels which may cause cravings. Stress has also been shown to alter hormones which promote cravings.
- New Changes
- Any big change you make, especially if it’s a dietary change, isn’t going to happen over night! Sometimes your body may want to revert towards old habits because they are familiar and comforting. If this happens, be patient with yourself and realize that even if you did go off track for a moment you don’t need to completely throw in the towel!
I hope this helps you navigate why you may be having those pesky cravings! If you’re still not sure how to overcome them, reach out to me so we can schedule a free 20 minute call to work through some of the root causes.
