How ‘Biggest Loser’ Host Banishes Cravings

Biggest Loser host Alison Sweeney is not immune from junk food cravings – she can’t get enough of popcorn, Diet Coke and Coke Zero.

The married mom of two, 33, opens up about how she balances her healthy — and not-so-healthy treats — during a Zyrtec Liquid Gels Race Against Your Allergies event held in NYC.

“I love popcorn,” she admits to me. “It’s so good. It’s salty and fills you up. The smell of it makes your mouth water. I love popcorn. But I like the real stuff. I don’t like the microwave kind or movie theater kind. I like the kind you make yourself, and it’s air-popped and light. I don’t like it when it’s too oily.”

But that’s not all.

“I know soda is really bad for you, and I know Biggest Loser trainers Bob and Jillian can’t stand for me to admit this, but I have a diet soda once in awhile,” she says. “They’re adamantly opposed to it, so I try to not have it. I used to have six sodas a day – diet soda. I go for Diet Coke, and now I love Coke Zero, but oh my God, I shouldn’t even admit that. But I don’t have it that often. Once in awhile, I treat myself to a Coke Zero.”

How does she hold herself back when she feels the need to indulge?

“I’m like everybody else – certainly stuff is tempting,” she tells me. “But ultimately, I weigh the calorie count and decide whether it’s something I’ve allowed for in my day, and ultimately if it’s worth it.”

For Alison, portion control helps satisfy her sweet and salty tooth.

“I’m actually pretty good at tasting stuff,” she says. “If I see someone made cookies or made my favorite –red velvet cupcakes or cake or whatever – I’m actually pretty good at having a bite of it because I love it. I can taste it, but not have the whole piece.”

She continues, “I’m pretty good at that, but some people aren’t. You have to figure out what you’re the best at. For me, if I’m tempted, and I want it, to just have one bite, and satisfy that sense, and then I can go about my day and feel like I fulfilled that craving. If I deny it, I’ll end up eating twice as many other things to try to fill that gap. But that’s something that works for me. If you’re the person who would sit down and eat a pint of ice cream, you need to not have that ice cream in your house.”

Here's my pic with Alison:

Pick up the OK! on newsstands now for Alison’s What I Ate Today feature and Biggest Loser diet story. The cover line is Brad and Angelina/“Wedding For The Kids.”