Combating sugar cravings

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leeds230
leeds230 Posts: 46 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Sugar seems to be my worst enemy, I have such a sweet tooth. How can I curb/combat this? I don't each much fruit - I do like strawberries, peach & mango but don't eat them regularly enough I.e. they're not a daily addition to my diet, I tend to eat them when I feel like it. I equally don't eat vegetables other than carrots, potatoes & parsnips. Potatoes are a definite regular as they accompany nearly every meal in some form. Parsnips & carrots are, as the fruit, not a regular addition. I think this is just a matter of habit & a bit of laziness in that I just don't make the effort to put them on my plate.

My question/query is not regarding fruit & veg but how to curb my sugar cravings to aid my weight. I'm approx 5 ft 2 & when I weighed myself last Monday I was 198 3/4 lb, so technically obese going by BMI.

I'm looking to do a Leslie Sansone challenge from tomorrow, if I can keep up with it, and am going to try and limit chocolate in my diet (I often give in to buying sharing bags if they're on offer & rarely manage to open them without eating the whole bag!) How can I curb sugar cravings or at least replace chocolate with something sugary but more healthy? I've tried dried fruit (mango) but don't like it.

Replies

  • rtp_slg52181
    rtp_slg52181 Posts: 73 Member
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    Eat fat!
    I have noticed if my fats are too low for a few days I find myself hitting the sugar hard.

    Stay hydrated!
    Sugar is a carb and helps the body retain water. If you are habitually dehydrated you may feel an intense desire for hi carb food to help your body store every bit of water it can.
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
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    Eating your veggies may well help you combat your sugar cravings, as you will be getting a few carbs with lots of nutrients. Try some of the green ones and the purple ones. Try roasting them or adding cheese on top to get you started.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
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    I agree that the fewer sugars/carbs you eat, the fewer cravings you are likely to have. I eat very few carbs and almost no foods with sugar, and my sugar cravings are basically nonexistent. A great feat since I used to have a soda or pop everyday to feed my cravings.

    For me, a little bit always leads to more. I am much wealthier and applies with none, although the first week with low carbs and no sugars took some willpower. After that it has been easy.

    Others will ell you to have your treat, just moderate the amounts and frequency.

    Do whatever works for you. Good luck.
  • verptwerp
    verptwerp Posts: 3,659 Member
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    For ME ...... I go cold turkey for several weeks ....... I give up most sweets (soda, candy, baked goods, etc, etc) and most fruits, except hard fruits such as apples & pears. After the first week or so, my cravings go away. Remember, I said this is for ME. You need to learn what works for you, through trial & error. Best of luck !
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
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    verptwerp wrote: »
    For ME ...... I go cold turkey for several weeks .......

    Cold turkey is my strategy as well.

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,981 Member
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    sunparakeet wrote: »
    Don't do dried fruit. It's loaded with sugar and is generally worse for you than dried fruit.

    When I get a sugar craving, I have a lightly sweetened cup of hot tea. Or sometimes I use Splenda which is zero calories. Chewing gum helps! Or (this may sound weird) I will get a little spoonful of honey and lick it off slowly. It's so good, and so sweet that it's almost gross. Always ends my sugar craving :)

    I used to be pretty big on sugar and carbs. I have since cut way back. The less you eat, the less you want it. And your tastebuds will start to recover as well, once you cut back on the sugar. You will find that most sugary stuff will become too sweet, and lightlly sweetened or sugar free stuff tastes awesome again.

    Same for me. The less added sugar I eat, the less I want.

    I changed my macros to 40 % carbs, 30 % fat, and 30 % protein and concentrate on protein. Eating this way eliminated the sugar cravings. I'm sure that exercise helped as well - I get the high from exercise that I used to get from sugar.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,981 Member
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    leeds230 wrote: »
    (I often give in to buying sharing bags if they're on offer & rarely manage to open them without eating the whole bag!) How can I curb sugar cravings or at least replace chocolate with something sugary but more healthy? I've tried dried fruit (mango) but don't like it.

    If you reframe your thinking from price per bag to calories per bag, you will find that these bags are too expensive for your calorie budget.

    I buy Ghiradelli semi-sweet chocolate chips and weigh out 15 grams / 70 calories at a time. If I eat them very slowly - not chewing, allowing them to dissolve in my mouth one at a time - I am totally over wanting chocolate by the time I am done.

    Dried fruit is very concentrated in sugar and I do not recommend it. I do eat apple or berries every day.

  • leeds230
    leeds230 Posts: 46 Member
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    I've tried eating apples, pink lady for their sweetness, but I just don't like the texture.
    Noted re. dried fruit & calories per bag.
    Exercise is something I need to work on as I don't do it often enough. I spotted Leslie Sansone is doing a walk challenge from tomorrow for 21 days so I'm hoping to give that a go.

    Thanks all for replying xx
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    Increase fats and protein. Eat lots more carrots and parsnips. Eat macadamia nuts, sunflower seeds, peanuts,
  • burtnyks
    burtnyks Posts: 124 Member
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    I third the cold turkey. And eating a protein + fat will help also. Sometimes if I have a bad sugar craving I eat a hard boiled egg and it surprisingly helps. I always keep them on hand now. :-)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    Well what I did when I started was drinking protein shakes to help with the cravings.. and plain Greek yogurt with berries. I think for one month? Then I started adding protein bars, then I started binging on sweets and decided to learn moderation... Some days I don't even have anything sweet, some days it's just 100 calories worth, some days it's 300, some days more, but I still lost the weight I wanted to lose. But yeah, I exercise 1 hour a day in average to get extra calories.

    I mean, some people do fine just quitting cold turkey, personally I enjoy them too much to give them up forever, and obviously it didn't work because when I had the opportunity to indulge, I went way overboard. The whole 'the less you eat it, the less you want it' thing just hasn't been true for me at all. Sure, I'm pickier about my sweets, but I still love them...

    That's a bummer that you don't like apples though because they work really well for me. How about oranges? They have a lot of fiber and are surprisingly filling as well. Or Greek yogurts are great too (I buy the flavored fine most of the time at this point). And honey roasted nuts.

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