Carb Cravings..... do they ever end??
kvalmera
Posts: 129 Member
I have been low carbing since January. I joined this site in July after taking May-July off from low carbing. I always read about people saying you will eventually lose the cravings but I absolutely have not.
I completely understand my former ways of eating got me where I am but since July, I've lost 15 lbs. I seem to lose so slow now where I was losing 10-15 a month (I started at 341, I am now 295) I am only losing like 5 lbs a month now, if that and I still have SOOO much to lose! I started exercising last month, walking 2-4 times a week and that didn't help budge more loss I am just tossing around the same loss. I tried up'ing calories and I got off the last 5 but here I am, still stuck, still craving carbs and feeling very frustrated.
Is there anyone else who has never lost the cravings for carbs?
I completely understand my former ways of eating got me where I am but since July, I've lost 15 lbs. I seem to lose so slow now where I was losing 10-15 a month (I started at 341, I am now 295) I am only losing like 5 lbs a month now, if that and I still have SOOO much to lose! I started exercising last month, walking 2-4 times a week and that didn't help budge more loss I am just tossing around the same loss. I tried up'ing calories and I got off the last 5 but here I am, still stuck, still craving carbs and feeling very frustrated.
Is there anyone else who has never lost the cravings for carbs?
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For me they haven't entirely left, but I'd say subsided by 90%. I will stop by a candy dish and have a few M&Ms now and then, but I don't follow it up with a carby meal, I just go back to my regular routine. 10-20g of carbs a day isn't going to slow me that much, and I get to keep my sanity. I just recently cut out diet soda, so now the candy is my only sweet thing in an average day.0
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For me they haven't entirely left, but I'd say subsided by 90%. I will stop by a candy dish and have a few M&Ms now and then, but I don't follow it up with a carby meal, I just go back to my regular routine. 10-20g of carbs a day isn't going to slow me that much, and I get to keep my sanity. I just recently cut out diet soda, so now the candy is my only sweet thing in an average day.
97 lbs, wow!! I could only wish!! I drink diet soda, I feel like it's the only thing keeping me going. Of course at work I drink 64-96oz of water with crystal light a night. I wish I could find some balance and contentment. I push myself so hard to stay course but lately just been feeling off track in all areas!0 -
Eating low carb certainly curbs my cravings, but it doesn't eliminate them by any means. I don't think it can.
After 25 years of eating junk it'll take quite a while to unwire my brain from wanting to munch on doritos or eat a snickers.
HOWEVER. That said, even though I want these things, I'm finally learning how to resist. I'm also able to avoid bad food that makes its way into my house (darned boyfriend!!)
When I quit smoking it was easy to not grab a cig and light up physically. It was the mental part that was so hard. It took me years to not crave a cigarette and even now and again I get that little nagging feeling for one. But I learned to ignore that, just like I'm learning to ignore my unhealthy food cravings.
I've also had to learn how to combat cravings with healthy alternatives. Sugar Free Jello with whipped heavy cream is my saving grace. Luckily I can't get tired of it. I need my sweet fix!!
One of my tricks is if I'm craving something really badly, I'll look for low carb recipes that will be a healthy alternative. I mostly crave sweet stuff, so chocolate Muffin in a Minute or the 90 second cheesecake are just a couple treats I've found that keep me satisfied and on track.
I think expecting not to have cravings is unrealistic. Instead indulge a little when you need to, and the other 99% of the time find an alternative or distraction.0 -
For me they haven't entirely left, but I'd say subsided by 90%. I will stop by a candy dish and have a few M&Ms now and then, but I don't follow it up with a carby meal, I just go back to my regular routine. 10-20g of carbs a day isn't going to slow me that much, and I get to keep my sanity. I just recently cut out diet soda, so now the candy is my only sweet thing in an average day.
That's pretty much me at the moment too.
I have ice cream daily, but not much, I have also taken to having a few squares of milk chocolate if I feel the desire.
The difference between me doing it now and 9 months ago is that I'm doing it mindfully.
My metabolism and control of blood sugar is also in a much better place, I hope.
I am toying with the idea of a day of 'carbing up' (relatively) just to give my body a bit of kick, I can see the merit in it.
After this it would be straight back to framework that I know works for me though, I can see the start of carb-creep otherwise
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I think it's important to differentiate between physical cravings and emotional or mental cravings. If you are able to convert body fat to energy then you should ideally not have physical cravings. The other kind is always there to some extent but mine are only 10-20% as powerful as the physical kind. I prefer to satisfy them with a few bites of an apple and some good cheese. I'm ultra sensitive to carbs so it's easier for me to avoid the high glycemic ones.0
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I think it's important to differentiate between physical cravings and emotional or mental cravings. If you are able to convert body fat to energy then you should ideally not have physical cravings. The other kind is always there to some extent but mine are only 10-20% as powerful as the physical kind. I prefer to satisfy them with a few bites of an apple and some good cheese. I'm ultra sensitive to carbs so it's easier for me to avoid the high glycemic ones.
Absolutely, as I understand it there shouldn't be a physical need for carbs unless you are doing some intense exercise, then the body will want to burn dietary glucose as it is more easily accessed. I prefer to avoid the intense exercise ...
One way of working it could be to time the sweet indulgence with some exercise, this would help burn it off and improve insulin sensitivity. Certainly when I have my chocolate I try to at least get some bodyweight resistance in, nothing major, just some ad hoc exercises. I may be kidding myself though
It all comes down to the individual and their metabolism, as you point out.0 -
One thing I learned when I was quitting smoking using Chantix was that you can't sit around and wait for the cravings to stop. They won't. With the drug I used the smoking cravings were shorter and less frequent but I still had to power through them. Eating low carb doesn't make pizza or cake or M&M's taste bad. It doesn't remove emotions associated with food. But if you do it right it takes away hunger pangs (you're staying full on protein and fats) and you can eat little substitutions here and there to nip the sweet tooth in the bud. The rest of the time you just have to power through.
I've not smoked for 18 months but I could totally smoke two packs right now here today. I still consider myself a smoker. I still think smoking is enjoyable. But I can't smoke. I shouldn't smoke. I like not smoking. I worked hard to quit, I am not going to start again.
Same attitude towards carbs. I could eat 7 loaves of Wonderbread right now. I consider myself like a diabetic. I'm not a diabetic but carbs just don't work for my body. I gotta watch out for myself. Lots of people brag about how they eat pasta every day and lose weight. Well not me. I don't work that way. There's a lot of stuff I wish I could be doing but I don't, because that's life.
As for how fast or slow you are losing being discouraging...stop. You "only" lost 5 pounds but you didn't gain any. You exercised a bit and it didn't do anything. Well, exercise more. Exercise because it feels good and it's good for your body and your brain and helps you sleep and destresses you. It may or may not help you lose weight.
Anyway, get right with your mind. Don't expect carb cravings to stop, they won't. You have to get right with how you deal with them instead. They exist, they're out there. But they're not for you.0 -
I am three months into this and I think they are still there but not as much. Like they are ignorable more. I can easily walk away from bagels, pizza and cupcakes at work. I did get attacked by animal style fries at Inn n out last night... and about two weeks ago I got attacked my a pie made from fresh picked apples.... but I figure that as long as I walk away most of the time then its ok to indulge some of the time...0
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@ZipperJJ - Regarding smoking, if you feel the urge to start in the future then I can recommend the Allen Carr "Easy Way" book. That totally deprogrammed me from wanting cigarettes. What I don't want, I can't crave ... no willpower required.
It's worked for a few people that I have recommended it to on MFP.
I only mention it because it sounds like you have some sense of "missing out" on something and I don't think I've mentioned the Allen Carr book to anyone in this group before. Keep doing what your doing though, 18 months free is great
You make a good point about acting like a diabetic, keeping blood sugar (and insulin) in check should be a health goal for everyone, diabetic or not. High blood sugar/insulin is implicated in all kinds of inflammation and disease.0 -
I have been low carbing since January. I joined this site in July after taking May-July off from low carbing. I always read about people saying you will eventually lose the cravings but I absolutely have not.
I completely understand my former ways of eating got me where I am but since July, I've lost 15 lbs. I seem to lose so slow now where I was losing 10-15 a month (I started at 341, I am now 295) I am only losing like 5 lbs a month now, if that and I still have SOOO much to lose! I started exercising last month, walking 2-4 times a week and that didn't help budge more loss I am just tossing around the same loss. I tried up'ing calories and I got off the last 5 but here I am, still stuck, still craving carbs and feeling very frustrated.
Is there anyone else who has never lost the cravings for carbs?
My response here pretty much mirrors another reply on another thread you started (diary related)... If you are still having cravings, then you must re-evaluate the foods you are willingly eating right now. And based on what you are currently documenting, youre eating preprocessed meats with a variety of brand names. Your still having soda... for you individually, that could be a deal-breaker with your body, hence the still carb-craving alarm going off.
Get rid of the processed meats and soda... your body chemistry will thank you for getting rid of that processed food.0 -
I have been low carbing since January. I joined this site in July after taking May-July off from low carbing. I always read about people saying you will eventually lose the cravings but I absolutely have not.
I completely understand my former ways of eating got me where I am but since July, I've lost 15 lbs. I seem to lose so slow now where I was losing 10-15 a month (I started at 341, I am now 295) I am only losing like 5 lbs a month now, if that and I still have SOOO much to lose! I started exercising last month, walking 2-4 times a week and that didn't help budge more loss I am just tossing around the same loss. I tried up'ing calories and I got off the last 5 but here I am, still stuck, still craving carbs and feeling very frustrated.
Is there anyone else who has never lost the cravings for carbs?
My response here pretty much mirrors another reply on another thread you started (diary related)... If you are still having cravings, then you must re-evaluate the foods you are willingly eating right now. And based on what you are currently documenting, youre eating preprocessed meats with a variety of brand names. Your still having soda... for you individually, that could be a deal-breaker with your body, hence the still carb-craving alarm going off.
Get rid of the processed meats and soda... your body chemistry will thank you for getting rid of that processed food.
I meant to add also: you are not nearly eating enough vegetables at all.... your stalls are because you are not truly eating right, nor well-balanced..
good luck!0 -
If true, there's your trouble. Thirty-nine gm. of carb in a coke, all of it sugar, is not exactly what I think of as low-carbing. Soda is likely accounting for 99% of your cravings in my opinion. Even if it's diet soda, it could still be a craving problem for some of us.Your still having soda... for you individually, that could be a deal-breaker with your body, hence the still carb-craving alarm going off.0 -
Hi there, and yes they can.....There are many reasons why you crave the wrong kind of carbs. Are you eating enough protein? This is extremely important. Your body is deficient of something. For me it is the protein. I also found out if I drink some kind of green drink like barley green, it takes those cravings away. When we have a normal meal we should proportion the plate out in other words know how much of each item your eating. If you eat carbs first they turn into sugar and go straight for the fat cells and women have more of them then men and something to do with the enzymes in them that make it harder for us to battle those fat cells and cellulite. Eat the protein first and it goes to the muscles and is good for us. I also do a lot of research on my own health and have treated myself homeopathic for over 20 years and I know that juicing is so beneficial for you in many ways. Our bodies take a lot of abuse and it catches up with us sooner or later. As we age, our bodies become depleted in some vitamins/minerals, and other things. Our cells need oxygen and the right kind of food to give us energy and to work properly. Juice provides our cells good nutrition and we are putting "Live" food into them; where if we eat a piece of broiled chicken, it is "Dead" food because of what we do to it in the cooking process and doesn't really benefit us as well as if we had a good glass of fresh juice. It is wonderful for weight loss as well as clearing up some of those symptoms we have with runny noise, sinus, eye sight and on an on. And, No, I am not a Dr. but I have tried this and it works. Our Liver is over taxed when we eat a lot of "Dead Food" and the over abundance of junk food we westerners eat is just killing us in more ways that one. Hope this helped a bit. Keep doing something good for your body as it is the only one you get. Judy In Virginia0
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If true, there's your trouble. Thirty-nine gm. of carb in a coke, all of it sugar, is not exactly what I think of as low-carbing.
I drink diet coke, not regular coke.0 -
If true, there's your trouble. Thirty-nine gm. of carb in a coke, all of it sugar, is not exactly what I think of as low-carbing.
I drink diet coke, not regular coke.
Which like other things, is a processed food with chemicals and replacement sweetners which also contribute to carbohydrate cravings...
Its also not good for your teeth. You risk losing the enamel of your teeth within the first 30 minutes of consumption with rigorous chewing, or even brushing your teeth. Any Oral-maxillofacial Surgeon will tell you that.....0 -
I have been low carbing since January. I joined this site in July after taking May-July off from low carbing. I always read about people saying you will eventually lose the cravings but I absolutely have not.
still craving carbs and feeling very frustrated.
Is there anyone else who has never lost the cravings for carbs?
hi
you may not be craving carbs but actually craving hidden MSG! It is an addictive additive hidden in foods under the guise of:
carmel coloring - especially in brown and orange sodas!!!
"salt added"
maltodextrin
dextrose
vegetable protein
textured protein
vegetable rennent
and is always found in non organic, non gluten free soy sauce, worshire sauce, most broths, most processed foods, most processed chips like doritos and even similar organic chips with coatings....
You have to look out for MSG and the FDA approved guises and eliminate them from your diet. You will get relief in about three days. Start by reading all the ingredients in your deli meats and cheeses!
Also, stay away from protein shakes and mixes that may have the carmel coloring added (shakes, instant teas, power aids, gatorade)
and join me on facebook at get fit with coach teresa if you want more tips like this.
by the way,
I peeped at your food diary and you are no where near low enough in your carbohydrates to be in a state of ketosis where you will lose your carb cravings!0 -
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by the way,
I peeped at your food diary and you are no where near low enough in your carbohydrates to be in a state of ketosis where you will lose your carb cravings!
[/quote]
You must have peeped todays cause I decided to up my carbs and try something different. I used to eat 30g or less daily and stayed in ketosis..... but I decided to try up'ing my carbs.0
