Out of control carb cravings...

stephreed11

I'm all for "everything in moderation"...but the carbs are literally controlling my life. Sounds silly, but I'm pretty sure I'm completely addicted to carbs. I plan my day & stay within my calorie goal-until around 9pm every night, then it's all downhill. I'm sure it's just turned into a habit now, but I literally start thinking about chips, chocolate, any kind of carbs, & have gotten to the point where I feel like I'm completely out of control, & end up overeating those things every night. Every night I say I'll "start over" tomorrow, & get back on track. The next night-same exact thing. I'm starting to think the only way to control it is to maybe go low carb for a couple weeks? Until I get all of it out of my system...then maybe I won't crave them & have no control with them. Until I can control myself with them in moderation, do you think that would be a good idea? Should I just track my carb/sugar intake on here & not look at calories for awhile? For those of you with experience with this, when will I know when I can start introducing carbs again without gaining weight, etc.? I'm not looking to do low carb as a lifestyle, just to break this terrible habit. I'm looking at atkins.com right now for food ideas. I appreciate any advice you have to offer!

boehle

There are some low carb cracker things you can eat.
I try to rarely eat after 6pm but tonight, I was craving some chocolate.
I walked right past it and got some carrots..
Mind over matter!!

juliapurpletoes

Carb cravings are a sign of being tired, simply put. Don't jump into any atkins or weird nutrtional plan until you incorporate more rest into your lifestyle.

Been there! Do some research on this

bjfmade

I would not keep the carbs you crave in the house or go to bed at 9

maureendonahue

Are you sure you are hungry and not just thirsty or tired? When I really crave carbs, it usually is because I am tired. However, when you have to keep going, it's tough!

Another trick is to brush your teeth. It works for almost any craving because who wants to eat with minty fresh breath?

Good luck in your journey!

caramkoala

I just don't keep them in the house. The cravings go away eventually.:ohwell:

Amy_B

I did a low carb diet for one week. The only carbs you really got were 2 pcs of fruit. I couldn't make it past that week because of my workout program, but it did help me with my carb cravings.

If you do try a diet for a week or two and that doesn't work, maybe get some healthier carbs to snack on at night....whole grain cereal, whole grain crackers, fruit.

nanodot

I''ve been there and done that.

The good news is that two weeks on a low-carb (under 100 carb) diet will make it stop. It feels so SO good to be free of it!

The bad news, is that if you start eating carbs again it will totally start again. That's because the cravings are a physical response to carbs. They raise dopamine and serotonin and insulin and lots of other happy brain juice. When the happy brain juice drops, the body demands more.

Why not try a low-carb experiment for 2 weeks, or 4. See how you feel about it.

McSnoozle

I can easily fall into the late night wanting stuff --- especially recently with colder weather. A couple of things to keep in mind:

The more or less you eat something, the more or less you'll want it. Eat processed high-carbs and you will crave them. Stop eating them and in time you won't want them. Eat more veggies and you'll begin to crave them! Etc.

Get rid of the temptations! Don't have cookies and chips and stuff in your house or, if it's there for others, explain that it's going to be put away in very inconvenient places --- and you'd prefer not to know where!

Deprivation can sometimes backfire, though, so maybe you want to "allow" yourself one "treat" per night. PLAN for it; portion one serving into a container in advance and look forward to enjoying it. Eat it slowly and savor the taste and texture. When you're done, drink a big glass of water. Then go look in the mirror and tell yourself how wonderful you are!

Another issue for me is if I have not drank enough water --- I'll be wanting to munch on something (I think) when really all I need is a big cool glass of water!

You may want to experiment with eating MORE during the day, and maybe having your dinner slightly later, so you're not hungry again.

I have found that a cup of frozen blueberries (set out for about 45 minutes to almost thaw) gives me that cold/sweet satisfaction instead of ice cream!

Try just going to bed when you feel the munchies coming on!

Hope some of these help.

_Amy_Budd

http://fitbie.msn.com/eat-right/tips/8-reasons-wheat-making-you-gain/tip/0

Here's a link to an article that goes in detail about those cravings and carb addiction. I am a recovering carb addict, and have eliminated grains from my diet. I honestly do not crave them anymore. At all. And I feel great, and am very happy to keep eating this way.

kalexander2005

I would keep an eye on calories, but make carbs your main objective. I strongly recommend atkins.com for guidance. Try phase One for a couple of weeks and see if it doesn't help. At night, I would recommend eating a few tablespoons of real whipped cream instead of junk food. I use sweet and low to sweeten it. Just a suggestion. Good luck.

thinnerjenn

I liked the suggestion to not buy it...if you dont have it you cant eat it! Also, you can get carbs from fruits and veggies. Those carbs can help you fuel work outs and such without being "low carb" (Carb does not necessarily mean grain). Although, I am a bit biased as I full Paleo. I feel great on Paleo and after a few weeks the carb cravings will subside. Best of luck to you! Remember that you are worth it and more important than the junk! Be strong!

kalexander2005

PS -- I got a book called Beat Sugar Addiction Now that has been really helpful for me. Good luck

thinnerjenn

http://fitbie.msn.com/eat-right/tips/8-reasons-wheat-making-you-gain/tip/0

Here's a link to an article that goes in detail about those cravings and carb addiction. I am a recovering carb addict, and have eliminated grains from my diet. I honestly do not crave them anymore. At all. And I feel great, and am very happy to keep eating this way.

So true! Eliminating grains is the best thing I have ever done! I gave it a try and now it has become a lifestyle. I feel so great!

mjsohm

Maybe this will help: http://trinityhealthweightloss.com/life.asp. I'm not proposing that you buy any products or even subscribe to this world view, but the video under good food very well explains the sugar/carb spike and how it can be very much like an addiction. I experience the same kind of carbohydrate cravings, and also attribute some of it to psychological stress related eating patterns, but there does seem to be more to the craving than that. In short, these folks promote a lower carb diet, but after a week of "cleansing", which I won't lie, is super hard, but temporary. After that a balanced diet and most of the carbs need to very complex, which means they digest slower and hit the blood stream at an even rate. This keeps your insulin from having these wild up and down spikes. Smaller meals more often is also one of their proposals. I lost thirty pounds doing this, but more importantly never felt better in my life. I did not really have to count calories either, in fact I was always full and losing weight. As I am getting closer to my goal weight, it seems more important now to to count cals in order to trim that last bit, and course to add reasonable excercise until my body is ready for more advanced training. Hope that is useful. You can do it! Add if you like!

AdAstra47

...I feel like I'm completely out of control, & end up overeating those things every night. Every night I say I'll "start over" tomorrow, & get back on track. The next night-same exact thing. I'm starting to think the only way to control it is to maybe go low carb for a couple weeks? Until I get all of it out of my system...then maybe I won't crave them & have no control with them. Until I can control myself with them in moderation, do you think that would be a good idea? Should I just track my carb/sugar intake on here & not look at calories for awhile? For those of you with experience with this, when will I know when I can start introducing carbs again without gaining weight, etc.? I'm not looking to do low carb as a lifestyle, just to break this terrible habit.

You sound exactly like me, my whole life up until last February. And yes, I think it's a good idea to try going cold turkey.

This depends on your metabolism, and may or may not apply to you. But some people's bodies process carbohydrates inefficiently, and because of the different hormones released, it is possible to become addicted to the carbohydrate "high" and to constantly crave them when you come down off of that (which would happen if you don't eat for a few hours before bed at night).

It really can be a physiological addiction, where your brain chemistry is altered. So first of all, don't beat yourself up about your lack of willpower. It may take a lot more willpower for you than it does for other people. That doesn't mean to give up: that just means that if you think "this is really really hard, I don't think other people have it this hard," you're probably right. But still, it can be done. All those jerks who took one look at your weight and judged you as a lazy glutton? Prove 'em wrong!

Second, I would see a doctor, one who knows about the low-carb lifestyle, and is willing to do the 3-hour blood glucose test & any other metabolic tests that might tell you the best way to handle your metabolism. My doctor was able to give me a precise prescription of how many carbs I should eat per day, based on those tests. Once I started eating the right way for my metabolism, I've lost weight steadily for the first time in my life.

And if you can get through the first few weeks, you may find, like me, that you really don't crave carbs at all anymore. I may inhale deeply at the popcorn smell from my neighbor's cube at work, but I have no problem saying "no thanks" when I'm offered any.

The most important thing, if you want to try low-carb, is to eat enough protein. Your body needs protein to sustain your muscles, but also, it needs protein to burn fat. So replace all those carb calories with protein calories. I try to eat at least 300g of protein a day while keeping my carbs at or below 25g. But again, that's what my doctor recommended for my particular metabolism. I would highly, highly encourage you to find a good doctor & have him/her advise you on the proper ratios for your body. Check out the American Society of Bariatric Physicians & see if there's a doc in your area. If you're in the E KS / W MO area, Dr. Mary Vernon & Dr. Gordon Clark have been treating carbohydrate addiction, insulin resistance, and type II diabetes for decades now using these techniques.

You can also check out the documentary "Fat Head," available on Netflix & Hulu; the Canadian documentary "My Big Fat Diet," and the book "Good Calories Bad Calories" by Gary Taubes;
http://danceswithfat.wordpress.com/2011/06/02 /calories-incalories-out-science-says-no/
http://www.diabetesnewsstand.com/vissue/vernon/titlepage.html

Good luck to you!

Cathleenr

I'm all for "everything in moderation"...but the carbs are literally controlling my life. Sounds silly, but I'm pretty sure I'm completely addicted to carbs. I plan my day & stay within my calorie goal-until around 9pm every night, then it's all downhill. I'm sure it's just turned into a habit now, but I literally start thinking about chips, chocolate, any kind of carbs, & have gotten to the point where I feel like I'm completely out of control, & end up overeating those things every night. Every night I say I'll "start over" tomorrow, & get back on track. The next night-same exact thing. I'm starting to think the only way to control it is to maybe go low carb for a couple weeks? Until I get all of it out of my system...then maybe I won't crave them & have no control with them. Until I can control myself with them in moderation, do you think that would be a good idea? Should I just track my carb/sugar intake on here & not look at calories for awhile? For those of you with experience with this, when will I know when I can start introducing carbs again without gaining weight, etc.? I'm not looking to do low carb as a lifestyle, just to break this terrible habit. I'm looking at atkins.com right now for food ideas. I appreciate any advice you have to offer!

Of course you are "addicted". You need carbohydrates to function properly.
You don't make your food journal public, so we can't see your macros or how many calories you are taking in or how often.
And you don't say anything about your activity level: if you are VERY active, you'll need more fuel.
What are your goals?
You CAN eat at night, you know. Nutrients, distributed throughout the day with proper fat and proteins will keep your energy and satiation levels consistent. Even if you are not looking to lose weight, you need to have an appropriate intake of food during the time you are awake.

AdAstra47

I''ve been there and done that.

The good news is that two weeks on a low-carb (under 100 carb) diet will make it stop. It feels so SO good to be free of it!

The bad news, is that if you start eating carbs again it will totally start again. That's because the cravings are a physical response to carbs. They raise dopamine and serotonin and insulin and lots of other happy brain juice. When the happy brain juice drops, the body demands more.

Why not try a low-carb experiment for 2 weeks, or 4. See how you feel about it.

Dang. You said exactly what I was trying to say. Using 1/10th of the words. Sigh. I need to go to bed. :laugh: :yawn:

RNMDFF

Pick a carb you like. I'll use chips as an example, either buy single serving packs or buy a big bag and portion it out in small bags. Let yourself have that and only that. What ever it is, allow yourself that one treat. If you tell your self you can have that carb and only the carb it will eventually get used to it
Good luck

McKayMachina

I find that the more carbs I have in my diet, the more I crave them. I have them set to 40% right now and I'm happy with that.

Baby carrots! That's what weened me off in the beginning. The crunch gives that starchy/carby satisfaction I needed when nothing else did the trick. A whole 16 oz. bag is 213 calories. So I would just save 213 for the end of the day and kill it! Now it's tough to eat more than half a bag most times.

McKayMachina

http://fitbie.msn.com/eat-right/tips/8-reasons-wheat-making-you-gain/tip/0

Here's a link to an article that goes in detail about those cravings and carb addiction. I am a recovering carb addict, and have eliminated grains from my diet. I honestly do not crave them anymore. At all. And I feel great, and am very happy to keep eating this way.

So true! Eliminating grains is the best thing I have ever done! I gave it a try and now it has become a lifestyle. I feel so great!

Ditto on grains. I still eat them on occasion because they are freakin' delishemz but I feel fantastic when I skip grains altogether. My BFF recommended I try it after he felt positive changes after going Paleo. I don't eat Paleo but they're certainly dead-on about grains.

angelfish24

I don't know if I can be of help but I'll tell you what worked for me. I started by just going to a gym and eating healthy. I work with a trainer once a week but what really helped me is to monitor my calories and do more protein. I prob. eat about 30 or more percent of protein. I track my calories and eat between 1300-1500 cals a day and exercise 4-5 times a week. The protein shakes like muscle milk light mixed w/ non fat milk and fruit and ice really fill me up and stopped the cravings. I also think the high protein bars like Luna Nuts over chocolate really curb my appetite. I'm not sure if it this or the exercise endorphins and eating low carbs like veggies and fruits and not white pasta or bread but the cravings are gone. Also I eat 5 times a day 300 cals at the most the the trainer says to eat a little carbs with protein. Such as a greek yogurt with some lowfat granola or some beek jerky and then a piece of fruit or some almonds and a veggie. He says the combo together is key to keep my body from burning the lean muscle tissue and eat the fat (I'm weight lifting too).
Not to say I don't have the occassional treat but I mainly eat at home and plan my meals. I'll have an occassional skinny cow ice cream or something but I try to watch the sugar as it makes me crave other things i think. Something must be working as I've dropped -50 pounds in the last 5 months.
Good luck on your weight loss journey!

TheBraveryLover

I'm curious to know how your protein intake is if you tend to eat a lot of and crave carbs. Perhaps if you increase protein that may help. Otherwise, your idea of low carbing it (100 grams or less) for a few weeks will probably do the trick.

Pronoiac

Lots of good suggestions above. Any of them could be relevant to you. I also have the 'more carbs I eat, the more I crave them' syndrome. Many people do. It's an evolutionary based drive to consume as many carbs as possible while they are available, preparing for the lean times. Since this drive to consume carbs is often serotonin related, 5htp can help balance that element of brain chemistry. Try to take it an hour after dinner but before the cravings take hold. Good luck!

Eating higher rations of protein and fiber at dinner also helps me.

stephreed11

Thank you for all of your great suggestions & advice! I really appreciate it. If i want to slowly reduce carbs/not cut them out completely at the beginning, what should my daily carb intake be? & should my protein go up? I'll be honest & say I haven't really looked at macro-nutrient numbers since I've started here, only calories. I think it's time to look at my ratios! Right now it's set to:

Fat- 57
Carbs- 234
Protein- 64

Those were automatically set by MFP. Is there a site I can go to that has ratio plans for lower carbs/higher protein, etc. so I can manually change my ratios? Thanks again!

nanodot

You can change your macros here on MFP. Go to My Home: goals: change goals: custom.

As for how many carbs you need, http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-carbohydrate-continuum/

khua0808

Though I recently began to adapt to moderate carbs (around 150 a day, all low GI, <30 sugar a day) I lived the low carb <50 net carb lifestyle for around 5 months and had great results. But yes when you are on low carb and especially in ketosis you don't miss the carb because you eat more protein. But one advise I can give you is that when you are on low carb, try to not snack on anything but protein because protein has one of the highest satiety index there is (so if you can't find lean meat snacks then do invest in protein drinks as one 50 g drink can really make you feel full).

fancydancyme

I didn't realize that craving carbs was a sign of being over tired! That sure explains a LOT! I crave carbs every night... part of it is habit but I just realized that I am usually really tired when my craving is at it's highest, like tonight. Thank you for this information. One of my goals is to get more sleep and your comment has made me realize one more reason why I need to. Thanks so much for this info!

kalexander2005

If i want to slowly reduce carbs/not cut them out completely at the beginning, what should my daily carb intake be? & should my protein go up?

I would recommend changing your goals to half the grams of carbs you currently have and increase protein by double, without changing your calories. Also, make sure any carbohydrate foods you are eating are whole and not processed, ie. instead of white flour, eat whole grain flour products, instead of white rice, eat brown rice, no white sugar at all. If you haven't noticed a difference after two or three weeks, you might want to further restrict carb intakes. I do 20-60 grams per day, and I can say honestly that I really don't have cravings. I'm losing approx 2 pounds per week on this regimen so far. You're mostly talking about cravings, so I would take the suggestion seriously about giving up grains altogether, at least for a while. You can eat very healthy on meat and veggies alone, but you will have to decide for yourself what you are willing and able to do.

sarahp86

I'm currently seeing a dietician at the moment. I'm a week into my new eating plan. I am the biggest chocolate/ carb addict going!
My boyfriend reckons I'm a junkie and even the dietician said I'm like a drug addict with sugar.
SO for the month I have cut out practically all carbs. No rice/ bread/ Pasta/ potatoes/ white bread.
For breakfast I have a 30g bowl of cornflakes and If i feel I need it, two slices of wholemeal bread a day. It has been all meat & veg and fruit.
The reason for this is so she can reintroduce carbs slowly into my diet so I'm not so dependant on them. I had the shakes for the first three days, I had a headache on day 4 & 5 and I have been very very moody!!

I'm craving foods I've never craved before and it's all about will power but I'm determined to do it. I'm on day 7 and I was told by day 10 I should feel better and stop craving these foods. I can't wait for 9th November when I go back to her and I can start eating carbs again!! If you want add me and have a look at my diary, will give you an idea of what my diet consists of. It is hard but if I can do it, anyone can!!

ajbeans

I'm all for "everything in moderation"...but the carbs are literally controlling my life. Sounds silly, but I'm pretty sure I'm completely addicted to carbs. I plan my day & stay within my calorie goal-until around 9pm every night, then it's all downhill. I'm sure it's just turned into a habit now, but I literally start thinking about chips, chocolate, any kind of carbs, & have gotten to the point where I feel like I'm completely out of control, & end up overeating those things every night. Every night I say I'll "start over" tomorrow, & get back on track. The next night-same exact thing. I'm starting to think the only way to control it is to maybe go low carb for a couple weeks? Until I get all of it out of my system...then maybe I won't crave them & have no control with them. Until I can control myself with them in moderation, do you think that would be a good idea? Should I just track my carb/sugar intake on here & not look at calories for awhile? For those of you with experience with this, when will I know when I can start introducing carbs again without gaining weight, etc.? I'm not looking to do low carb as a lifestyle, just to break this terrible habit. I'm looking at atkins.com right now for food ideas. I appreciate any advice you have to offer!

Maybe it's happening because you need more rest. Generally carb cravings happen when you're needing a quick energy fix, and since yours are happening at night, I would guess that's the problem. How much sleep are you getting? Are you getting enough water?

I know that I also tend to crave carbs more when I have sweets. If I just cut sweets out for a few days, I no longer crave them. I have never gone "low-carb," but I do try to avoid cookies and other sugary treats, because once I have them, I can't stop. Try just avoiding those things for a few days. If you get a craving, drink a glass of water and go to bed. Once you get it out of your system, it should be easier.

Good luck!