Cutting out sugar

cecilia0909

Anyone have any good tips for cutting back on processed sugar?

I am finding that I have a real problem with processed sugar and eat way too much of it. I am hoping by cutting it back I can get back to having a normal amount for sweetness if that makes sense. Even in my coffee I put way too much flavored creamer and sugar when I really starting measuring it so today I didn't have any and to get my caffeine I had a Diet Pepsi. Normally I don't drink diet soda but I don't want a horrible headache from no caffeine either and I dislike tea.

Any tips or success stories are very welcomed!
Thanks in advance!

TallyNick

Start weaning off the additives in the coffee. I liked mine extra light and extra sweet. Now I drink it black for the caffiene, which I hope to reduce as well. This has translated into less taste for other sweets such as candy, cake, etc. Once you are get used to the 'real' taste of things without added sweeteners you get used to it and anything that is 'too sweet' actually becomes too much to eat/drink very much of anyway. Hopefully this works for you as well.

CallieM15

I did low carb a couple times, and did really well. But I noticed that I really missed fruits. So I think cutting out processed sugars make more sense.

I never had a probaly with diet sodas, although I made sure to drink a lot of water on days I had diet soda. Things will taste a lot sweeter as time goes on when you cut out sweets. I could eat like 90% dark chocolate, and taste it "sweet".

Good luck!

ElizabethRoad

I originally started MFP to get a handle on my sugar because I believed it was responsible for making me feel terrible. I was eating sweets, feeling good for a little bit, then crashing, and eating more sweets to feel better again. To me it was easier to just stop eating sweets, stop drinking soda, completely. Only for a couple of weeks though, until I felt like I was safely out of that cycle. Now I am able to have sugar in moderation. If you find it too hard to cut it out completely, some people say they have had success with tapering off their use of sugar. I think you will have to figure out what will work best for you individually. Good luck!

rml_16

I have a sweet tooth, but it can't tell the difference between fruit and a packet of white sugar. My "dessert" is usually a fruit smoothie:

1 banana
1 cup blueberries
1/2 cup raspberries
1/2 cup blackberries
1 T Peanut Butter & Co. Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter
Ice
Top with a dollop of LIGHT whipped cream

I'll also have a little bit of Green & Black's 85% cocoa dark chocolate. It tastes like chocolate cheesecake and is very rich, but dark chocolate has less sugar than milk and some health benefits, as well. Those two things cut my sugar cravings and now I barely crave desserts at all.

cecilia0909

Thanks! I am planning on (and hoping) that the less sugar I take in, the more sweet things will taste. I used to take my coffee with just a splash of cream and a tiny bit of sugar but now I am like a crazy person when it comes to processed sugars.
I do plan on eating fruit though- I normally have at least an apple and some berries every day.

angelew

Try a natural sweetener...like stevia or erythritol. You can still enjoy a little "sweet" in your coffee but you are avoiding all the chemicals found in artificial sweeteners.

empc

Increase your intake of water. When a craving hits, go for the water or something like fruit with natural sugars. Play the 15-30 minute game with yourself. When the craving hits, tell yourself you will wait 15..20..30 minutes. If its still there, have a limited size of what u r craving. Go for a walk or do something active.

This is the advice given to me. Lastly, I have recently been checking for advice on the web. There is info on there about vitamins, supplements you can take to decrease your craving. I just started taking them last week so can't comment yet on them. If you want to try that route, let me know. Will send you names.

Onesnap

check out www.snackgirl.com for some natural snack ideas that are lower in sugar.

Also, don't fill in the real sugar with an artificial one. There's no fooling your body when you're craving something sweet.

Onesnap

Start weaning off the additives in the coffee. I liked mine extra light and extra sweet. Now I drink it black for the caffiene, which I hope to reduce as well. This has translated into less taste for other sweets such as candy, cake, etc. Once you are get used to the 'real' taste of things without added sweeteners you get used to it and anything that is 'too sweet' actually becomes too much to eat/drink very much of anyway. Hopefully this works for you as well.

1 cup/day (black) is great for diabetes prevention and is a great source of antioxidants. Stick to 1 for the health benefits.

Onesnap

Try a natural sweetener...like stevia or erythritol. You can still enjoy a little "sweet" in your coffee but you are avoiding all the chemicals found in artificial sweeteners.

Careful though. Stevia right from the plant is 100% natural. Truvia is advertised as natural but it takes 40 chemical compounds to make it. Do your research before taking something that is advertised as natural but is actually anything but.

Pollywog39

So, you don't make it very clear - are you just worried about too much sugar in your beverages, or are you eating a lot of sugary things, too?

If it's just in your beverages..........well, I like coffee with flavored creamers. I've been using the Fat Free Vanilla from International delight - a tsbp is 30 calories and 5 gr sugar. For me, that doesn't sound like much!

Since joining MFP, I have not been craving pop - and I don't do diet pop ever - but missed the bubbles. I like the calorie-free sparkling water, and sometimes I'll mix a little juice or sweetened tea with it. A LOT fewer calories, and a bit of sweetness.

The less you eat of sweet things, the less they appeal to you.

cecilia0909

It's both- I know I add too much creamer and sugar to my coffee for starters. And I try my hardest to not replace things- like using anything "sugar free" or "fat free" cause I feel it's just giving up one bad thing for another BECAUSE I use way too much of it.

And then on top of that I eat too much sugar as well.