Sweets Addict...

I make them fit.

EquestrianLark135 wrote: »

Do I just go off the micros and macros that mfp gives me? I don't know much about that...

That's a good place to start. Eat your vegetables, and you can adjust protein and fat up if you need to in order to make you feel more satisfied.

Once you find your sweet spot, it's pretty easy to meet all your goals and have something sweet if you want. I fit sweets in pretty much every day.

A little bit of something a day won't ruin it so long as it fits your macros and calorie goal. I guess wen you don't allow yourself sweets and wait for anoter day for it, your body wants it more? Same goes for me!
Which is why I treat myself to a cookie from subway for lunch almost everyday haha, or I have fruit! Since you're addicted to chocolate, why not get those fun size portions of m&m's or snickers bars and have it for dessert after dinner? That's what I used to do!

Try to make healthier sweets. There are tons of recipes out there. I like to cut up strawberries and throw in a few chocolate chips so I still get my chocolate fix but it's not as calorie heavy as a whole king sized candy bar. Having sweets sometimes is ok, too.

I was the same way and I would always leave some room for sweets (chocolate) at the end of the day. But then I thought about it and realized it was more of a habit, comfort thing, a way to close my day, a reward... for what I didn't know. Habits can be broken. I mean there's a big difference between being hungry and just having a craving. Anyway.. I hear what you're saying. Just try to find a way to make it fit. I recently went to a 100% (whole) plant based diet and have to say after a couple of days not only don't I crave sweets, or anything for that matter, but the mere though of it kind of turns my stomach. I tried to have a sweet last night and it just tasted like chemicals.

Since chocolate is my favorite type of sweet, I've switched to large bars of very dark chocolate. I find out how many calories are in each square of the bar and I fit it into my day by only eating a square or 2 a day. I can fulfill that craving on less than 100 calories of a bar, and a bar lasts me for many days.

Since it's super dark chocolate (56%, 70%), it also has all those antioxidants everybody loves talking about. And surprisingly - fiber! Who would have thought that cocoa beans have fiber in them?

CooCooPuff wrote: »

Definitely! I enjoy something sweet almost everyday.

If you hit your micros and macros on a regular basis, a little "junk" food won't ruin your health.

+1

I love sweets and chocolate, so I factor that into my daily calories. I have 4 squares of dark chocolate most evenings at 125 calories.

I leave approximately 300 calories at the end of my day to fit in chocolate or ice cream. If I hadn't done this, I would have freaked out and quit long ago.

Emma, you can eat your sweet treats no problem. You might try finding some sweet treats that don't have any sugar cane in them, though; I suspect that is your real problem. Sugar cane can be addicting...not for everyone, but it sounds like it is for you. There are lots of yummy alternatives, and I have found many treats and recipes that use other sweeteners so I can satisfy my sweet tooth without eating sugar cane. Just something to think about

Chocolate and me...oh the love affair (I need to get out more). If I have enough calories, I'll have some, if not, then I won't. If I'm really craving it, I'll have a little bit to curb the craving regardless, because I know I'll crack and binge. Try and cut back, not cut out, that's where you often see people having problems and they start binging as soon as they 'allow' themselves a little. Some people can, some can't.

I found buying individually wrapped squares, or breaking the bars into serving sizes and packaging them, works best so that I'm not tempted to just keep dipping my hand into a bag. Also the darkest chocolate I can stand (around the low 60' at the moment) because for me that is a really strong chocolate and I don't want as much of it. If it's too dark, it's just too bitter and I don't WANT to eat it.

JmeJinxx wrote: »

I pre-log my meals and make something sweet fit in my calories and macros every day. I get to eat a bar of dark chocolate every night and still see a loss weekly. You may need to make healthier swaps during the day to do it but for me it's worth it.

Exactly

I learned how to just kill two birds with one stone using non-fat plain Greek yogurt. Take some non-fat plain Greek yogurt and add in some artificial sweetener. I like Truvia best. Then you can mix in some kind of flavoring. My gotos are lemon extract, almond extract, peppermint extract, or vanilla extract. You can also add in things like instant coffee or light chocolate syrup for the base. Then you can throw in measured amounts of fresh or frozen fruit, chocolate chips, nuts, etc. It makes a great and filling dessert that can also help you meet your protein macro for the day if you struggle otherwise to do so.

I also love using nf Greek yogurt instead of whipped cream for strawberries and cream. I toss the fresh strawberries in Truvia and then in another bowl, mix non-fat Greek yogurt with vanilla extract or bean and Truvia. I then put the mixture on top of the berries and it is so good and low cal and high protein. Sometimes, some light chocolate syrup for good measure. I'm so stuffed after eating it, ugh, don't want anything else.

senecarr wrote: »

EquestrianLark135 wrote: »

Hi, my name is Emma and I'm addicted to chocolate.

I've always been addicted to sweets and specifically chocolate... so I decided to cut it down to a small sweet on Tuesdays and Thursdays and a "big" (bakery) sweet on Sundays. Well that's not working out.

On days where I'm not supposed to have sweets, that is my mindset. "YOU CAN NOT HAVE SWEETS" Well then I want it and crave it more. so I end up giving in and then hating myself for giving in.

So... If I eat well all day, and have calories leftover... Is it OK to have a cookie or candy bar or something like that as long as I don't go over my calories? I'd like to not eat sweets every day but seriously... I can't give up sweets. There's no way.

Any suggestions or tips are appreciated, though. Getting frustrated and stressed.

For once I have very good news for someone who started a thread titled addicted - you can totally fit them.
In fact, there is some studies and a lot of anecdotes that affirm the issue you were having: restricting a food completely leads to obsession over the banned food, which leads to cravings and over consumption later.
At the end of the day, your body turns most of a candy bar or a piece of fruit into a lot of the same stuff: molecules of glucose to use for energy. What your body really responds to is the number of calories - the difference between how many you ate and how many you used throughout the day has to come out of it the body's fat stores.

And just for completeness - this doesn't mean nutrition and eating whole foods has no place - even though you could lose weight eating nothing but candy if calories are under control, it would not likely be the healthiest way to live one's life.

@senecarr I've seen the anecdotes here and am interested in seeing the studies. (Not giving you a hard time; genuinely curious.)