Problem: Article: Let your bag of lemons sit in the freezer until they are fully frozen. Depending on the temperature of your freezer, this could take anywhere from 2 hours to overnight. Use fresh lemons for meals that you are making later in the week, and freeze the other lemons well in advance of when you need to use them.
Summary: Put the bag of lemons in the freezer.

Problem: Article: Treat every occasion as a chance to celebrate your achievement. Very competitive champions are competitive all the time. Michael Jordan was known for his ruthless games of playground pig, a kids' game. Rafael Nadal, when injured, picked up high-stakes competitive poker to keep up the competitive energy while recovering from surgery. Competing regularly is an important way to keep your competitive edge sharp. As a champion, take the time to Approach every game of checkers like the Super Bowl. Approach every day like a gift. Take the time to celebrate your victories. In an effort to appear stoic, some champions can go too far in the opposite direction, accepting their accolades with grim solemnity. Cut loose every now and then! You're a boss! Champions want to align themselves with fellow champions. Don't waste your time hanging out with people who aren't willing to put in the effort and the investment into their own success. Spend time with the greats. Strive to be part of a "power couple," a couple that supports each other in mutual success. Power couples are made up of two motivated and ambitious people. Think Jay-Z and Beyonce, or Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Power couples are made of champions. try to befriend champions from different fields than your own. It might be too difficult to be best friends with the best-ever masseuse in your town, when you're second-best. Cormac McCarthy, mega-acclaimed author, claims to never associate with other writers, preferring the company of scientists. Your mind and outlook have an incredible impact on your performance. All champions have positive, unstoppable attitudes that contribute to winning and staying on top. Think positively in all things and look for the best in the people around you. Seek to bring out that better quality in others and focus on the positives. In golf, long slumps are called "the yips," and have been clinically verified as a psycho-phsyical phenomenon related to receptive tasks, the sort of which are found in sports. The effect of the mind on the ability of the body to produce is profound, making positivity an important quality to cultivate in champions. It's important for champions to look up to winners and model themselves accordingly. How did Muhammad Ali train for big fights? How does Tom Brady like to spend his off-season? What did William Faulkner like to do for fun? Study the greats and learn everything you can about them to learn more about properly applying yourself toward your own championship. Find role models in your own field and role models in other fields to learn unexpected pearls of wisdom. Kanye West constantly compares himself to the innovative geniuses of history in interviews: Einstein, Henry Ford, and Mozart are names he constantly drops in comparison to himself, as inspirations. An old Buddhist saying: When you see the Buddha on the road, kill the Buddha. Champions want to conquer their heroes. If you really look up to your track coach, who has had the state record for 25 years, make it your goal to best it. Keep working until you do. As you climb the ladder and continue collecting championships, try to diversify your palate of competitions. What else are you great at? Where's the next challenge? A champion constantly seeks competition in all things. Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, and Russell Simmons are all hip-hop impresarios who've cultivated multimillion-dollar business empires, though they started by just wanting to be the best MCs. Now, the impact of their various businesses on style, culture, and music is enormous. They've become champions' champions.
Summary: Celebrate wins, big and small. Surround yourself with competitive winners. Be an optimist. Find champion role models. Find the next gold ring.

Problem: Article: Chewing gum can trick your brain into feeling satisfied, especially if you have a craving for sugar. Choose sugar-free gum and pop a piece whenever you get the urge to indulge in a dessert or that afternoon cupcake. Chewing gum is also a good way to keep your mouth occupied when you might otherwise want a cigarette or an alcoholic drink. If you feel like you always need to have something in your mouth, gum may be a relatively harmless way to redirect your habit. Avoid using peppermints or breath mints as a way to curb your cravings. They often contain more sugar than gum, and this exposure to sugar can make your cravings worse. Sugar will also harm your teeth. Use caution if you have a history of jaw soreness or related medical issues. Gum chewing can worsen disorders that cause your jaw to pop or click. Since the aftertaste of toothpaste doesn't pair well with the flavor of food, brushing your teeth when you get a craving is a way to temporarily put a stop to your craving. The flavor in your toothpaste can also trick your body into believing a craving has been satisfied. Carry a toothbrush and toothpaste to use when big cravings hit. Brushing your teeth too often can wear out the enamel. Don't rely on this method too many times in one day. It is common to feel hunger cravings when what your body really needs is water. If you tend to be a little dehydrated, start drinking water when you feel cravings coming on. The liquid will make you feel more full. As an added benefit, cold water will stimulate your metabolism as your body warms the liquid to body temperature. Flavor the water with a squirt or two of lemon to add some flavor and make this trick even more effective. Giving it an actual taste will make you feel as though you've consumed something slightly more filling than water. Try green tea or another unsweetened beverage if you find yourself wanting some variety. One study found that people who inhaled a peppermint scent every two hours ate 2,700 fewer calories over the course of a week. Keep a food-scented candle such as vanilla, green apple, or banana nearby and sniff it regularly. If you are a stress eater, close your left nostril and inhale through your right to reach the portion of your brain that processes emotions. You will likely reduce both your anxiety and your appetite. Food scented lotions, lip balms and other, similar products may also be useful. Try keeping a small bottle of cinnamon or peppermint essential oil on hand for when intense cravings hit. Food cravings, in particular, aren't always a bad thing. Sometimes you crave something because your body needs it. Even if it's not something you strictly need, more often than not, a little bit won't hurt. It may seem counterintuitive, but many people have fewer cravings when they indulge slightly. A small concession to your craving might prevent you from overindulgence later. Consider combining the food you're craving with something healthier. For example, if you're craving chocolate, melt some chocolate chips and dip strawberries in the melted chocolate. Eating fresh fruit with your chocolate is a better choice than having a big slice of chocolate cake. Complete restriction can lead to heavy cravings and subsequent binge eating. Indulging is not a good idea if you're dealing with cravings related to nicotine or alcohol addiction. In this case, indulging even a little will intensify your cravings. This technique can help you get through an intense craving of any kind, whether what you crave is sugar, alcohol or nicotine. Instead of trying to push the craving from your mind, let it wash over you like a wave, and imagine yourself "surfing" it. Notice where in your body you are experiencing the craving and what the sensations are like. Repeat back this information to yourself. Focus on one area and describe, in detail, the sensations you are feeling. Notice any changes that occur as you continue to experience the sensations. Repeat this process with each distinct area in which you experience the craving. Over time, you'll learn to better recognize the way you experience cravings. Doing so will enable you to cope with them until the waves of sensation pass.
Summary:
Pop a piece of gum. Brush your teeth. Drink water. Sniff a food-scented candle. Indulge a little. Try urge surfing.