Beating sugar addiction

gracienkaidens_momma

I need some advice, tips, and maybe a few book suggestions on how I can overcome my addiction to sugar and junk foods. I am getting better at not eating fast food but I still constantly crave chocolate and sugar. When I do eat healthy and low-sugar, by the end of the day I am so exhausted an drained and my body screams "feed me sugar!" Oh it's terrible. I've hardly seen any results from my hard work at the gym due to my poor eating. I need someone to share the hell out of me when it comes to eating poor. I have diabetics in my family and I know it's genetic so please someone send me something that will help me buy and eat healthier before I hurt myself in the future.

Grokette

The only way to Beat it is to Yield to it..........Just like the quote in my signature.

Sugar addiction is no different than any other addiction, such as alcohol, caffeine, drugs, etc..........

To get ride of it, you have to stay away from it and remove it from your life.

Moderation is not going to Beat the addiction.

kilo_2006

I try to find lower sugar alternatives to wean myself off the candy....I like semi-sweet baking chocolate chips, mix them with some nuts and you get your sugar rush without eating too much, and they make desert flavoured yogurts now (I think the Source ones?) that are only 35 cals a cup and they are sweet, and might help curb the sweet tooth!

Good luck! I still struggle with this one, but you can do it!!!

R_is_for_Rachel

i'm a total sugar addict too, it's my biggest problem. You probably want to try and eat more G.I foods that release sugar slowly. That way your body doesn't tend to crave sugar as much -that's what i'm finding anyway. I'm trying just to eat dark chocolate too, as i find i don't want to scoff the whole bar. Good luck

hikingmonk

A few book suggestions.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345469585/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-
1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0345425588&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0CM415K9QWEVP9528WYT

http://www.amazon.com/Sugar-Addicts-Total-Recovery-Program/dp/0345441338/ref=pd_sim_b_8

http://www.amazon.com/Potatoes-Seven-Step-Stabilize-Cravings-Recognize/dp/0684850141/ref=pd_sim_b_8

From past experience, the first few weeks are the worst. After that, my body stopped craving sugar so much and I felt a lot better. Unfortunately any sweetener (real or fake) pushes me into the craving mode and I fall off the wagon, but at least I know that now.

Just focus on replacing/improving one meal at a time. Make a new habit then move on to the next. For me it was coffee with tons of cream and sugar to tea with less cream and sugar, then green tea with nothing added. I did it in steps. Still a struggle at times though.

tiffanymariebrock

I know how you feel! I've been eating the 100 cal packs but I know they still have more sugar then what should be allowed. I have been eating chocolate rice cakes and I just love them! They make you feel full and they give you that chocolate taste you want. You can see the mini chocolate chips on them. Only problem is you have to like rice cakes. They have a lot of great flavors!

inktink

I used to be the absolute worlds worst about buying a candy bar -every single stinking time- I went to the grocery store, gas station, or hell, anywhere that sold them. Once I started using the MFP app on my phone though I really realized how much sugar I was putting into my body and I cut WAY back.

To help ween myself I would buy bags of fun size or mini candy bars and keep them in the freezer. Whenever I wanted one I would get it, and because it was frozen it took longer to eat and satisfied me more than the 250 calorie monsters I was woofing down daily. If it wasn't enough sometimes I would go back for one or two more but it really helped me cut back. My favorites are milky ways and twix- really anything with caramel because it freezes pretty friggen hard I tried doing it with mini reeses cups (my FAVORITE candy!!) but they didn't freeze too hard and a day later the whole bag was gone Lol.

Also a half- to a full serving of a sweet cereal can be helpful. They tend to be lower calorie (and I'm pretty sure lower sugar). I like chocolate cheerios and Cap'n Crunch PB.

bluebird321

There are lots of books on "sugar". I recommend "Sugar Shock" by Connie Bennet if you need motivation to quit.

Remove processed sugar from your diet and stick to low glycemic foods that release sugar into your bloodstream over a period of time -- instead of all at once.

Getting adequate protein and eating nutrient dense meals has helped me with cravings. Keep trying and remember that everybody is different.

MandiPandi757

GUM is my friend (LOL)! I keep gum with me at all times and everywhere I go. Like "Extra" gum. They come in all different flavors. When I get that sweet tooth coming on and I really want to reach for something sweet, I pop a stick of gum in my mouth and walk away. I'm a huge "sweets" person and love all things sweet. The gum has helped me so much. I keep some in my purse, in the car and in the house. "Extra" makes these dessert type gums and they come in Strawberry Shortcake, Mint 'n Chip, and Key Lime Pie. They are wonderful and taste like your eating the real thing. I've also gone to the sugar-free candies, chocolates, and pretty much everything elso sugar-free to help with the sweet-tooth.

hpsnickers1

It takes about 3 weeks to break an addiction (the craving might never go away). I have an intense sugar issue. I still fight it. If it is out of sight I'm fine. If it's there I almost can't help myself.

And what kind of exercises are you doing? You aren't that overweight. Do a lot of cardio - combined with a calorie restriction - and all it will do is slow down your metabolism and your body will fight to protect your fat reserves. So it will eat into your lean muscle mass and you will lose more of that thus slowing your metabolism.

Get started on some weight lifting (use cardio as a supplement). Use weights heavy enough to get in 12-15 reps to fail (lose form). This is for lean muscles. For size: 8-10 reps to fail.

There is one link in my signature: "Relatively light and trying to get leaner". It's a long, long post but has a wealth of info for leaner people trying to lose some body fat. Notice I didn't say lose weight. You will have to push aside the scale. All that is is a number. It doesn't tell you about your body composition. I hit my weight loss goal then started P90X (just the weight lifting part so far). My weight hasn't moved much but my body fat has dropped (on my belly finally!!) and my lean muscle mass has increased.

You can also find info at www.bodyrecomposition.com. There are all kinds of articles.

And I love this site (it's a smaller one):

http://www.hussmanfitness.org/html/TPAdaptation.html (please ignore that he seems to be talking specifically to "no-carbers". This applies to all)

Working With Your Body - The Basic Strategy
By John P. Hussman, Ph.D.
All rights reserved and actively enforced.


The goal of this site is to help you to transform your physique by walking you step-by-step through everything you need to know about exercise physiology and nutrition. I know that a lot of you have “tried everything,” and because there are so many approaches that have failed you, there's a real risk that you'll quit again and again if you don't see results immediately, or if you don't fully understand why your fitness program should work. Worse, there may be some missing pieces in your program, which could lead to slow progress even though you're hard at work. My hope is that this information will help you to stay on track - to turn effort into results - and to reach your goal.

Want to change your physique? Start by realizing that whatever shape you're in right now is your body's way of adapting to the lifestyle you're living. It's your body's attempt to survive. So the strategy is simple. We're going to give your body a very specific “environment” – a particular mix of activities, nutrition, and recovery – and your body is going to adapt by becoming leaner, stronger, and healthier.

Every change you throw at your body triggers a response. The problem with many diet and exercise programs is that they can accidentally encourage your body to defend fat, shed muscle, increase appetite and even lower its metabolism. The key to fast results is to know exactly which actions will cause your body to adapt by becoming fitter.

Maybe you've tried before to get in shape. But for some reason, you didn't get the results you wanted. If you're like I used to be, you've repeated that cycle year after year to no avail. Maybe you've failed so many times that you think of yourself as a “special case.” You've started to believe your entire metabolism consists of a little turtle on a treadmill. You wonder whether you've got the fat gene. You're convinced that no matter how hard you diet, your cells can still be seen eating Twinkies when viewed under a microscope.

Look. You're not a special case. Even if you had the fat gene (common among Pima Indians but rare otherwise), you'd only be burning 50-60 calories a day less than anybody else. Even if you've been diagnosed with a metabolic difficulty such as diabetes or hypothyroidism, you can still be successful with proper medical support. Most probably, other approaches failed you either because they were missing important pieces, focused on the wrong things, or produced results so slowly that you just gave up. What you need most is good information. You're in the right place.
The law of unintended consequences

Your body is an amazing feedback system aimed at balance and survival. Humans are at the top of the food chain because they are able to adapt to their environment. Every action produces a reaction. Every change in its environment triggers a survival response. It's important to keep that in mind when you plan your fitness program. If you treat your body as an enemy to be conquered, you'll produce unintended results.

For example, if you severely cut off the supply of food to your body, it will defend itself by slowing down its metabolism to survive starvation. The body will shed muscle mass the same way that you would throw cargo from a plane that was low on fuel, and it will reduce its thyroid activity to conserve energy. The body will also actually defend its fat stores. In anorexia, muscle loss can be so profound that fat as a percentage of body weight actually rises. Extreme carbohydrate restriction also causes muscle loss, dehydration, and slower metabolism, which is why even successful Atkins dieters can have a significant rebound in weight after they stop the diet (don't worry – the advice on this site will prevent that from happening).

As another example, if you put your body under stress through overexertion and lack of sleep, it will respond by slowing down, reducing muscle growth, and increasing your appetite for junk food, carbohydrates and fat. If you feed your body excessive amounts of sugar and quickly digested carbohydrates, and it will shut off its ability to burn fat until those sugars are taken out of the bloodstream.

This website will show you how to work with your body to quickly produce the changes you want. In order to do that, you need to take actions that push your body to adapt – to build strength, burn fat, and increase fitness. You need a training program, not an exercise routine. You need a nutrition plan, not a diet. You need a challenge, not a few good habits you usually try to follow except when you don't.
Setting the right goal

John Dewey once said that a problem well-stated is half-solved. If you want to reach your goal, you have to define it correctly. See, a lot of people say “I want to lose weight.” Well, if losing weight is your goal, go on a no-carb diet. You'll lose a lot of weight – some of it will be fat, a lot of it will be water, and a dangerous amount will be muscle tissue. You'll lose weight quickly, but you'll slow your metabolism and gain fat more quickly once you go off the diet. Trust me on this. I've been there, done that.

The problem is that you've set the wrong goal. If you want to look better, have more energy and enjoy better health, the goal is not simply to “lose weight.” The goal is to improve your fitness level and body composition. That means losing fat, improving your aerobic capacity, training your strength and defending your muscle tissue. You can't do that with a no-carb diet. You will do it using the approach you'll learn on this website. Trust me on this one too. I know what it's like to feel fat, tired and helplessly out of shape. The whole point of this site is to help others avoid that, by sharing lessons that I had to learn the hard way.
Ready to change?

Right this minute, your body is the way it is because it has adapted to the lifestyle you've thrown at it, in an attempt to survive. Ever seen the directory at the mall with the little red arrow that says “you are here”? Well, fitness is the same way. You are here. You can't start anywhere else. So be kind to yourself. Don't beat yourself up. Don't worry about how much there is to do. Change your self-talk from “My body is my enemy” to “My body is my partner.” Accept where you are right now as the starting point, and start moving.

Changing your body requires more than just “going on a diet” for a few weeks. If you want to change your body, you have to make some changes to your lifestyle (which requires some discipline, but isn't as hard as it sounds). If you create the right environment, your body will adapt to it by becoming leaner, stronger, and more energetic. You can do this.

Quierstina

I'm not necessarily addicted to sugar but I do like sweets. To satisfy my desire for sweets I eat fruit. Seems to work for me. I'm not avoiding sugar or sweets all together but I find I'm eating them far less than I use to and getting moderation under control.

hpsnickers1

GUM is my friend (LOL)! I keep gum with me at all times and everywhere I go. Like "Extra" gum. They come in all different flavors. When I get that sweet tooth coming on and I really want to reach for something sweet, I pop a stick of gum in my mouth and walk away. I'm a huge "sweets" person and love all things sweet. The gum has helped me so much. I keep some in my purse, in the car and in the house. "Extra" makes these dessert type gums and they come in Strawberry Shortcake, Mint 'n Chip, and Key Lime Pie. They are wonderful and taste like your eating the real thing. I've also gone to the sugar-free candies, chocolates, and pretty much everything elso sugar-free to help with the sweet-tooth.

Gum actually makes me crave it more. My body thinks it is going to be getting something but then nothing hits the tummy and the cravings kick in.

raychybabe

I was addicted to sugar properly - I'd think nothing of several chocolate bars and a can of redbull for lunch at work - not to mention about 6 cuppas a day with 2 spoons sugar in, full fat soft drinks, craving sweets and stuffing my face with fizzy cola bottles in my car (i had so many wrappers in my door it was embarassing).

I've just switched to splenda because i love tea so much, and although that was noticeable to first, i dont notice it now, and its automatic. They are 2 cals per spoon rather than 20 cals per spoon, and sugar free. I use sweeteners at work in my handbag in case i go out, and then splenda on porridge, cereal etc at home.

I've swicthed to diet coke, which I always hated before, which gives me enough of a sweet fix at work, but without calories (pepsi max is better as its sugar and calorie free but still very sweet).

You can get sugar free sweets from chemists and health food shops which are designed for diabetics, if you just need a quick "hit" but dont overdo it as they cause diarrhoea!

raychybabe

yeah snackajack type rice cakes are wicked - i used to think they taste like polystyrene but they're actually nice! the caramel ones are only 47 cals each, and taste sweet enough to stave off my craving for a 250 calorie kitkat or similar.

farmgirl88

I beat my sugar addiction with James Duigan's 14-day detox in his book "The Clean & Lean Diet."

The first day or two were pretty rough... the five-year-old in my head kept screaming "I want chocolate! Why can't you give me something sweet to eat? You're so mean to me! GIMME SUGAR!!!!!" But I kept going (thanks to the support of my hubby). And now, 14 days later, I can scarcely eat an apple slice without it tasting too sweet to me... I'd rather have some carrot sticks or a handful of almonds.

I agree with those who've posted above that they only way to beat your addiction to sugar is to avoid sugar completely... just as an alcoholic completely avoids alcohol.

Also... if you want some further motivation as to why you should RUN from sugar... read this article:http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17Sugar-t.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&ref=general&src=me
and check out the video "Sugar: The Bitter Truth" on YouTube

tkslp

Bump for later

gracienkaidens_momma

Thank you all! This is some amazing information! I really appreciate it!

gracienkaidens_momma

I just purchased both "Potatoes Not Prozac" and "The Sugar Addicts Total Recovery Program." I hope these two books will help shed some insight on why I eat the foods I do and why I crave certain foods at certain times. Thanks again for your suggestions. I'm about to watch "The Bitter Truth about Sugar- Short Version" on youtube!

Painten

The only way to Beat it is to Yield to it..........Just like the quote in my signature.

Sugar addiction is no different than any other addiction, such as alcohol, caffeine, drugs, etc..........

To get ride of it, you have to stay away from it and remove it from your life.

Moderation is not going to Beat the addiction.

Doesn't yield mean to give in?

lodro

I had to get off the stuff cold turkey. But I don't regret that I did, because for me it was the only way.

Crystel22

I also have this craving and I have kids. I don't want to completely take this away from 2 of my kids, but it is so hard when it's in the house. I was doing good when I started MFP, but once my sons birthday hit, it has been down hill from there, which was the 1st of February. I only have 5 more pounds or so to lose, but I feel that this sugar craving is holding me back. I also do alot of walking and jogging, but still nothing. Any suggestions for me?

Let me know how those books are and if they help out at all.

Thanks and feel free to add me as a friend if you would like.

maserati185

I'm going to recommend checking out "The Belly Fat Cure". I've lost 24 lbs. using it as a starting point. I did not buy all of the whole food store products it suggested, just followed the advice within and bought food at my local grocery store. The key is to come up with foods that are healthy, that you also like to eat and make it as available as possible. You can expect to have the withdrawal symptoms you speak about, but after that, it really does get easier... or at least it did for me... and have read of the same for others. Took me a solid 3 days to get better control, then another 2 weeks or so to really feel a difference, but only 1 week to see weight loss. I switched out my milk, chocolates, yogurt, cereal, etc. for better, lower-sugar options. Best of luck!

KareninCanada

I just purchased both "Potatoes Not Prozac" and "The Sugar Addicts Total Recovery Program." I hope these two books will help shed some insight on why I eat the foods I do and why I crave certain foods at certain times. Thanks again for your suggestions. I'm about to watch "The Bitter Truth about Sugar- Short Version" on youtube!

Those are the two I would most recommend. I started out with her book "Little Sugar Addicts", reading it for my daughter, but I resonated SO much with what was in it that I moved on to her adult books. She has a website and forum as well - www.radiantrecovery.com - and some email lists that are topic-specific.

gracienkaidens_momma

I have noticed I'll eat stuff with sugar in it without even thinking twice. It's such a natural thing to me anymore. I'll do it especially when I'm stressed. I hate it! I hope I can soon stop it and change my horrible ways!

humanskin

I used to be seriously addicted to sugars. I'd have like 6-12 sodas in a day, a super sweet extra large coffee drink, candy (like high-test Skittles and other junk), and would be constantly shoving chocolate in my face in some way shape or form. Now, I never drink soda, avoid all candy, rarely eat chocolate (and when I do, it's in a small tasty quantity), and only have regular coffee with cream and no extra sweetener.

How I did it, was I started by cutting back. 6 sodas became 2 a day which eventually became 2 a week, and then not at all. I started bribing myself with the sweets -- do this and you get to eat a little bit of that that guilt free -- and eventually, the reward wasn't worth it. As I was cutting back, I came across some information about how it might not actually be ME craving the sugar, rather an overgrowth of candida albicans yeast.

Once I got to a point where I didn't feel like I was losing my mind without sugar, I started a detox program for candida. After about a week, I felt great and had no more cravings for sweets. Of course, chocolate is good and I enjoy it from time to time but I don't CRAVE it.

So... maybe this could be something worth looking into for you?
Especially if you feel like it's not you controlling your urges anymore.

dkbrummitt

I am a sugar addict too. The pull is especially strong when I am stressed. When I am stressed i more or less forget to eat, then when i remember the first thing i reach for is sugar, sugar, with a little sugar sprinkled on top.

I really had to wean my self off of it. starting w/ simple stuff like... making my coffee w half sugar half splenda..., using splenda in my oatmeal. Then when i was comfortable cutting sugar in the simple things, I took a deep breath and stopped cold turkey for about a month. I think the only sugar i had came from fruits, veggies, and my protein shakes.

After a while, i allowed myself a coke zero, and it was like ambrosia from heaven. i no longer notice a difference between regular and diet. More importantly, i can make it past the Panera's display case without any real temptation. Though, I still have to avoid Krispy Kreme when the Hot sign is on.

gracienkaidens_momma

I have heard of candida. I never ever drink soda unless I am at the movies and I have to have a small serving of cherry coke. I don't go to the movies that often though ;-) My main cravings are for sugar and bread. Definitely sounds candida-ish.

whateverittakes27

I'm a complete sugar addict. If I have one sweet thing, then it sets me off eating sugar for months at a time until I muster up the strength (surrender to a power greater than myself) to stop again.

I've recently been really struggling with sugar consumption, so as of tomorrow I'm a sugar-free zone and working out again.

I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired.