mmmm..
Chocolate...
Have
you ever felt that chocolate treats play you like a marionette,
drawing you in to indulge? You know eating too much of the
intoxicating ultimate comfort food will go straight to your
fat cells, but somehow you rationalize every bite.
You're
in luck.
Researchers
say that just 15 minutes of brisk walking can reduce chocolate
cravings perhaps because exercise effects the area of the
brain that governs mood and reward.
In
what seems like it would be a torture test for those who crave
chocolate, study subjects were asked to report how they feel
when opening a chocolate bar wrapper - but they were not permitted
to eat the chocolate. Those who had completed 15 minutes of
exercise prior to the chocolate challenge had lesser cravings
than those who did not exercise.
This
isn't the first time exercise has been studied for it's potential
use as an addiction treatment. Similar studies have shown
exercise can help people quit smoking and reduce alcohol cravings.
Exercise
has many benefits beyond the more popularized tool for a body
makeover; exercise affects brain chemistry, hormones, emotions,
and perhaps all biochemistry in the human body.
Got
chocolate cravings you feel you can't beat? Exercise can help,
but you may also benefit from wrapping your head around the
idea of giving yourself some cognitive therapy. When those
craving thoughts start up, recognize the feeling, say "stop"
to yourself, and replace the craving thoughts with something
else, perhaps, "I don't really need this. I'm simply
experiencing a habitualized response that I'm going change."
Then change your action; skip the chocolate.
Repeat
the exercise and self talk enough times and you're likely
to get good at not craving chocolate.
Study
Journal Appetite
©
2008 Cris LaBossiere Rhino Fitness
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