How to ween yourself off sugar?

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  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
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    facepalm.jpg
  • Shr3dded
    Shr3dded Posts: 232
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    All these excuses to keep eating high amounts of sugar.

    Acquire Self-Control
    Don't feed on Sugary Sweets
    ???
    Profit


    That was easy eh?
  • Joehenny
    Joehenny Posts: 1,222 Member
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    Hmm that's a tough one. I'm not the biggest fan of sweets actually, but I am sure this is just like any other bad habit. You don't get rid of a habit, you simply replace it with a positive one. You have to question why you always turn to sugar. Is it really the taste or is it something else? It could be something associated with the sugary foods and not the actual foods you crave. That was me and alcohol, I didn't crave it, just the social interaction I had with friends while ingesting it.
  • nikilis
    nikilis Posts: 2,305 Member
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    Also check out "I Quit Sugar" by Sarah Wilson. It's an 8-week program that eases you in a little more gently.
    I'm impatient, so I picked worse withdrawal symptoms and a quick program over the gentler, longer one.

    (You also *might* be able to find it at a cheaper price than 21DSD)

    Don't buy this crap. Be your own person and just stop eating the sugary junk food.

    withdrawal.

    tumblr_mb76haMcjy1qk4naao1_400.gif

    Okay, cut the B.S.

    You may not agree with my choices, and that's fine. Please stop making fun of them-- that's just plain rude.

    Now I see why people hate these forums. I was just trying to help.

    im asking you seriously. sugar withdrawals? for real? come on.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
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    im asking you seriously. sugar withdrawals? for real? come on.

    For real. Headache, mood swings. It lasts for a maximum of five days, I believe. The first time I quit sugar, I went through this.
  • Charlottesometimes23
    Charlottesometimes23 Posts: 687 Member
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    I don't understand why anyone would want to cut out sugar altogether. Making something forbidden surely increases its desirability.....and don't get me started on Sarah Wilson. She has zero credibility in my opinion.

    The animal/sucrose addiction studies are interesting. I'm not so sure that they translate so well to humans though because rodents prefer sucrose and sweetened liquids over cocaine (even when addicted to cocaine). This particular aspect does not translate to humans. The other thing is that rodents show similar 'addictive' type behaviour to fats and other foods. I do believe in food addiction in humans, but it's a grey area regarding 'sugar addiction'. ( I haven't provided links because there are many and, is anyone really interested? :wink: )

    I agree with the posters who say that it's a matter of exercising some self control. I don't agree with trying to cut out all sugar though. I don't think it's sustainable or necessary.

    My motto is that if you like something, enjoy it in moderation.
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
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    go cold turkey. 3 days no sugar no carbs. first two days excitement takes over. 3rd days the worst. 4th day easy street. every day's easy after that assuming you don't have to start over when you eat a complex carb, too many "good" carbs or have some sugar.

    you must at this point be aware that it's in almost everything. dressing, mayo, ketchup, unexpected places.
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
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    im asking you seriously. sugar withdrawals? for real? come on.

    For real. Headache, mood swings. It lasts for a maximum of five days, I believe. The first time I quit sugar, I went through this.

    for real, real. I used to have to quit ALL sugar on a previous diet. it was no joke.
  • andyisandy
    andyisandy Posts: 433 Member
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    Unless you have diabetes or another medical condition, there is no reason to track or limit your sugar intake. Sugar is a carb. Track your overall carbs.
    Qft
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
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    Unless you have diabetes or another medical condition, there is no reason to track or limit your sugar intake. Sugar is a carb. Track your overall carbs.
    Qft

    yeah i agree with this.
  • SarahSmilesCA
    SarahSmilesCA Posts: 261 Member
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    Replace sugary sweets with fruits or stop falling prey to your own mind and urges and do it the easiest way possible..

    Here it comes..

    Just don't eat that crap anymore. You need to make the decision for yourself if a few minutes of sugar satiation is worth keeping you from your final goal.

    It's that easy.

    This is a pretty straight forward reply that I totally agree with. Sugar is addictive, at least for me. I know people say not to say food is clean or bad, but I do not agree. White sugar is NOT food. It is a process additive that was never in our original food chain, and to me a chemical that acts like a drug in my body. The more I have the more I want.

    I can have SOME per day. Like 30-40 grams. But it is a constant battle to keep it under control and the best way I have found to keep it under control is to just reduce my intake and on some days just avoid it all together....

    It is a mental thing. If it is a trigger for you then avoid it.
  • lisabinco
    lisabinco Posts: 1,016 Member
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    what do you do to prevent overeating sugary junk?
    One day at a time, I do without sugar of any kind. Ever. It's basically cocaine for me. Once I start, I have to kick it all over again. Nowadays, I just simply stay away from it. I remind myself how crappy I will feel it I eat it. If it's a really bad craving, I will promise myself that today I won't eat it, but maybe tomorrow I will. Then I don't. One day at a time. Just like AA. The longer it's absent from my body, the easier it gets to stay that way. Craving only happens when I add sugar back in, so I have learned (the hard way) that the easiest thing is to not eat it. Period.
  • kaylabrose
    kaylabrose Posts: 71
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    Go cold turkey. Don't have any for three days, then after that you'll be fine.
  • Isagenixbody
    Isagenixbody Posts: 16 Member
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    Stevia - I love it! I never use sugar now.
  • lisabinco
    lisabinco Posts: 1,016 Member
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    Okay, cut the B.S.

    You may not agree with my choices, and that's fine. Please stop making fun of them-- that's just plain rude.

    Now I see why people hate these forums. I was just trying to help.
    Agree. I just put in my two cents and move on. The OP can hopefully sift the wheat from the chaff, so to speak.
  • Lupercalia
    Lupercalia Posts: 1,857 Member
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    It's addictive, but I was a major sugar monster and didn't need to "ween" myself off it or invest in a program to teach me to stop eating sugar. I just stopped eating it when I changed my diet. The first week was pretty blah, with a couple of truly hellish days, but following that I was fine.

    The key is really stopping ALL sugars for a period, including fruit, sweet potatoes, artificial sweeteners, etc. You can add things back in gradually here and there when you feel you've got some control over yourself.
  • 1223345
    1223345 Posts: 1,386 Member
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    I found I could not wean myself, I had to go cold turkey. The weaning backfired because having just some small bit, made me go searching for more. I just have to avoid it altogether.
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
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    Don't think of it as weaning yourself, make it cold turkey, else it's too easy to rationalize backsliding.

    I've tried this a hundred times in my life and it has never worked. I SLOWLY made changes to my diet in order to form the habits successfully, and IMO that is what has prevented backsliding.

    I used to have 2 donuts every morning (yup!!) but I reduced it to one, then one every other day, then one per week, etc. I did this with other sugary things too (cereal, granola bars, candy). I still have a treat every now and then! If I said I was never going to have a sugary snack again, I would go about a week, crash and burn, and eat 5 snickers bars.
  • 1223345
    1223345 Posts: 1,386 Member
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    im asking you seriously. sugar withdrawals? for real? come on.

    For real. Headache, mood swings. It lasts for a maximum of five days, I believe. The first time I quit sugar, I went through this.

    Me too. It was not pleasant. If course, I did not do a total sugar detox, just the refined stuff, and I did lay off of fruit for the first week, but after that I did go back to fruit.
  • socioseguro
    socioseguro Posts: 1,679 Member
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    Hi, I'm arenkel, and I'm a sugar-holic.

    I actually just started the 21 Day Sugar Detox, which basically cuts out sugar (yes, including fruit) and grains completely. It's available as an ebook for $21 at balancedbites.com (I was debating forking over the cash, and I gotta say, it seems worth it). The program has a Paleo feel to it, with lots of meat and good fats and very little carbohydrates.

    I'm only on Day 2, so I'm having a rough time of it right now, but my goal is to kick processed sugar OUT of my life! I want to get to the point where all I want for dessert is one piece of fruit.

    A lot of people compare sugar to a drug, and honestly, it is. I think the best way to kick the addiction is to simply cut it out for a few weeks and let your body adjust to functioning without massive amounts of sugar. It's not easy, as I'm finding, but I think it'll be worth it. (Check back with me in 19 days and we'll see, haha)


    I quit having processed sugar cane without buying any book.
    It took me a while. I just decrease my intake a little at a time for 3 months, allowing my body to get used to a "lower dose" and then lower the intake another notch. It took me 12 months from 4 tsp of sugar with my tea to zero. It was worth it.

    I also avoid processed "food" with sugar or "High Fructose Corn Syrup" or Sucralose or any sugar substitute.
    I eat raw or frozen fruit, in moderation.

    Good luck in your journey

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