Taming the sugar monster

fittocycle · March 2019

I realize it's time for me to tame the sugar monster. The beast demands to be fed and it's wrecking havoc with my daily calories. Honestly, I think it's time to eliminate sugar for a while and let my body reset. Anyone else have success with this?

Cassandraw3 · March 2019

Yes, sugar is one of those things I find hard to moderate. And by sugar, I mean candy and other various sweets. I feel like the more I eat it, the more I crave it. Sometimes I just have to cut it out cold turkey for a while and the cravings subside.

tarcotti · March 2019

I personally think its crazy to give one whole thing up cold turkey but I have a couple of family members that have done this successfully. They have done so by not having any sugar in the house at all, which their family members have supported. Hopefully you have the same support. Something that works in our house is that mu husband will buy cookies or chips that I specifically do NOT like. Like BBQ chips or chocolate thin mints. I just eat fruit, peanut butter, and frozen yogurt and low sugar ice cream when I want a little something sweet.

AustinRuadhain · March 2019

I think this is a very individual choice.

Giving up sugar worked well for me (though that alone did not lead to magical weight loss for me). I realize that for some people, moderation works. For me, it was easier to just not eat it, and of course sugar is not a health requirement. Giving up sugar was initially challenging, but long term made it easier for me to stay on track. For a while, I asked my family to keep my trigger foods (ice cream & baked goods) out of the house. These days, those are just not things I eat, so an occasional appearance in the house is not an issue.

If elimination seems like something you want to consider, you might check out Bright Line Eating for ideas: https://brightlineeating.com/

kimny72 · March 2019

fittocycle wrote: »

I realize it's time for me to tame the sugar monster. The beast demands to be fed and it's wrecking havoc with my daily calories. Honestly, I think it's time to eliminate sugar for a while and let my body reset. Anyone else have success with this?

I'm the type of person where if I cut something out entirely, I'll want it more.

What worked for me, and might work for you if you're the same way, was to focus on a positive goal rather than negative one. The negative is "No more sweet treats", but the problem with too many sweet treats is either that they put you over your calories or they push out other stuff you need. So I focused instead on pre-logging my sweet treat for the day including the serving size to make sure it fit under my calorie goal, PLUS I prioritized hitting my protein and fiber goals. Once I built my meals and snacks around pre-logged protein and fiber, I simply didn't have the calories left for all the treats all day, but I knew I had a couple of Oreos or a weighed out bowl of ice cream waiting for me. And I found the protein and fiber (for some, fat would need to be in there too or instead) kept me satiated and not as snack-y.

Also try to figure out WHY you're eating more of these particular foods than you plan on. Boredom? Stress? Habit? Are you under-eating and you are genuinely hungry? Figuring out why will make it easier to fix.

fittocycle · March 2019

Thanks for all the tips and encouragement! Starting tomorrow, I'm going to step away from added sugar. Fruit will still have a place in my diet though!😉

magnusthenerd · March 2019

First step, I'd probably stop ascribing agency to a family of chemical compounds and stop considering saying no to them some kind of combat ordained by a higher metaphysical order that has ordained those chemicals chaotic evil, and me lawful good.
Sometimes you have a cookie, donut, or candy bar. It doesn't mean you've lost some fight that has allowed the outer dark in. It means you need to log it and check what's left in the caloric budget.

I think moralizing food like the language hints at is just setting up for failure - you're making a dietary choice into a moral failing, and no one needs the added guilt of thinking they're a moral failure for being hungry sometimes.

lapierrecyclist · March 2019

I am with you. The only thing that's been effective for me in taming the sugar monster is to cut out sweets (cookies, candy, ice cream) entirely. I also make sure I eat a salad that I like every day as part of my daily intake, with low-fat balsamic vinaigrette, and sometimes with a hard-boiled egg and bits of real bacon. Going without cookies and candy is hard for about the first week or so and then it's like magic; I no longer crave sugar. I do eat fruit when I want something sweet but fruit never makes me want to binge. Also I mostly don't eat any bread.

The other thing I do is to use a free phone app called Strides to track my daily habits. Currently I'm tracking (1) walking every day (or as close to that as I can get); (2) no sugar daily; (3) logging my food and completing my food diary; (4) no carbonated beverages. It helps remind me of the goals I have set and keeps me accountable. As it gets warmer I'll track cycling and lifting weights.

twentytwoa · March 2019

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. MFP has helped me to realise that I'm pretty good on healthy cooking and portion control, but sugary treats and soft drinks are consistently sending me over my calorie target for the day. I've had times where resisting the cravings feels impossible - I'm reluctant to use the word 'bingeing' to describe my sugar habits, but it's probably not far off.

Restricting myself to one treat per day (<250 calories) in the evening seems to help, but it's a struggle to break the habit. Would love to know more about people's experiences taming this monster!

AnnPT77 · March 2019

I don't need that kind of melodrama about eating and food in my everyday life, but I found that if I made it a point to get 3 servings of fruit daily for a while, my appetite/cravings for less nutrient-dense sweets reduced.

After a while, a lot of the low-nutrient so-called treats started tasting way too simple and sweet . . . simply not worth their calories. Eventually, I could be more flexible with the fruit servings; most days now, I just get one, maybe two, and I still don't enjoy most too-simple commercial sweets - baked goods and such.

I still eat a special dessert occasionally when I can fit it in, or a bit of good chocolate, but it's just part of well rounded eating and enjoyment these days, not any kind of craving.

YMMV.

lemurcat2 · March 2019

I also find that if I'm in the mood for a little something sweet fruit is usually satisfyling (and the more I have it the more it's really fruit that I want). There are also savory and low cal foods that I might reach for if I feel snacky (like a pickle or radish with a little salt on it).

For me the desire to eat sweet dessert type foods (other than something special on occasion) was more habit and just not eating them for a while did help some, but what helped more was simply deciding I'd stick to my calories and having satisfying meals in general and not eating between meals (which is when I tend to fall into bad habits). An occasional half cup of ice cream or good chocolate after dinner isn't an issue now. I like to have a little something after dinner, so if I have the calories also might have some fruit or cheese or nuts or unsweetened brewed chocolate -- doesn't have to be traditional dessert.

maireinzmartinez · March 2019

I’ve got a massive sweet tooth as well and it got out of hand during the holidays, therefore I had to learn to tame it. My successes taking it is not restricting it but allowing myself low calorie option sweets. Halo Top, Greek yogurt bars, dark chocolate I like 75%, 110 cal mini ice cream sandwiches, etc. keep the calories low while enjoying. I love PB2 with a scoop of ice cream!

Taming the sugar monster

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