I looovvve sweets! Help!

[Brandi]

I have been the same wieght for years. I bike alot and I am always moving. Drives my dh crazy cause i can barely sit for two minutes (a bit of ADD I think). I would love to loose some weight. I am 5'3 144 pounds and I am 38. I eat fairly healthy. I don't eat alot of prossesed foods or junk food. But I lovvvvvvve cookies and some chocolate. I know that is the reason I can never loose anything, because of my sugar intake. I don't pig out, but I eat to many I am sure. What can I do to curb my sugar habit? Besides not buying any. What can I eat that won't make me crave it so much? I used to smoke so i know how addictions can go and I think this sugar thing is one of those addictions.

[CyclChyk]

As much as I wish I could offer you some magical words that would allow you to "have your cake (cookies) and eat them too" I can't. When I gave up smoking everything went downhill....

The only thing I have found that helps me is my state of mind. No diet; no "I'll allow myself one miniture snickers or two cookies a day" works for me. The only thing that worked is when I accepted in my mind that I was tired of being fat was I able to control my habits and not waiver. Before, I wasn't ready so I made all kinds of excuses for just one more cookie; or a scoop of ice cream. Stayed fat for 6 years......

Its a mindset. Plain and simple. When you REALLY want to stop the bad stuff, it will happen. Until then, you will find a dozen reasons why it won't....

At least that's how it is for me. And not buying it at all is probably the best way to start. You opting not to "not buy it" makes me think you aren't ready to stop. But thats just my 2cents.

[Veronica]

Have you considered that maybe you are the weight you should be?

Weight is just a number on the scale.

V.

PS There is no magic. Change comes from within. If you feel you need to stop eating sweets, you have to make it happen.

[Bikingmomof3]

I was going to post something very similar to what V posted. She did a much better job. :)

[Grog]

I agree with V and BMo3.

With regards to chocolate: keep buying it, but try the 85% stuff (potent!!) and one truffle here and there. At $1 a piece, you won't eat so many, but they'll be even more satisfying than the other stuff.

I'm not sure how it happened, but I used to be a cookie-monster and generally I love sweet too, but the more I exercise (especially running) the less I feel like it. I'll still fall for a half-baked dark chocolate cake, but I might be tired of it after 5-8 bites. That works especially well if I also increase my vedgetable intake. Go figure...

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Definitely get some "medicinal chocolate"- the strong kind they sell in gourmet bars nowadays that says it is at least 75% cacao. This stuff is STRONG. If you eat one or two little squares, you will feel like your sweets cravings are suddenly totally satisfied. Try it instead of a bunch of fatty cookies!

[chickwhorips]

i am fighting with the same problem. since i moved up here i've put on a couple of pounds and my body looks completely different (yes part of that has to do with the fact that i now own a mtb and i run) but i have that same sweet tooth.

i also have to fight with a bf that can eat anything. i sometimes (most of the time) see it as unfair that he can eat anything he wants including 2 twix a day and not gain anything. :mad:

i am coming to the conclusion that my body is happy at the weight that it is, i haven't gone far away from this weight in a long long time. also, i've been trying to enjoy a small sweet now and again, not again now. its helping, but its that first week you have to get though that tough time. its not easy. i'm here for ya if you need someone to work though it with.

[Dogmama]

I've been told over & over that if you quit entirely, eventually you will not have a craving for sugar. I did quit awhile back and found it to be true. But, then the afternoon slump at work - somebody p*ssed me off - I'll "just have one" - and I was off to the races again.

I really feel like crap when I'm eating sugar. So, I'll be interested in seeing what others have done. I suppose I'm looking at cold turkey again...sigh...

[mlove]

If it is any consolation, I eat chocolate every day. I am 5'2" and weigh 140 pounds. That said, I wear sizes 6 and 8, down from size 16 (I used to be much heavier). Even though my weight is higher than the chart recommends, all the exercise--biking, running, gym workouts--have made all the difference and I feel good and am much healthier. I do eat really good, expensive chocolate, which is much more satisfying. My DH is happy eating generic semi-Oreo type cookies and other sweet stuff that I don't like. So there is no extra temptation. If you stay fit, your weight shouldn't be a problem.

[DeniseGoldberg]

Have you tried buying a sweet where one piece satisfies you? I'm with Grog & Lisa on this one - I find that a small piece of good quality dark chocolate is enough to give me my chocolate fix. If I have a lesser quality chocolate I could eat the whole box - but quality stops me at one piece. My current favorite is Hershey's Extra Dark (which I discovered after finding that the Cadbury Premium Dark Burnt Almond that I fell in love with in Canada isn't available in the states), with Dove a second choice. (Oh, and I do mean one piece not a whole bar! The Hershey's & Dove chocolates that I both mentioned come in bite-sized bars / pieces).

If I find that there is something (in the sweet family) that I can't stop eating - I don't buy it.

--- Denise

[RoadRaven]

To satisfy the sugar craving - how about dried fruit and fresh fruit??

Still sugary, but more filling and satisfying (both physically and psychologically)

[Offthegrid]

Sorry I'm coming in on this one kinda late. I got serious last month about trying to lose weight again. I track every single calorie that goes into my mouth.

I used to binge on cookies -- and not just 3 or 4 but the entire box at once, so you know I had it bad. But I haven't had a single cookie or donut since sometime in September, I think. My cravings for them are MUCH, MUCH less. I do have Ghiradelli squares (one) once in a while, but they aren't as sweet, so it's much tougher to binge on them. Oh, and I drink chocolate soy milk pretty often, too.

I'm not swearing off sweets forever. In fact I don't even tell myself I can't have them. But if I know for the 200 calories in ONE cookie I could have an entire bowl of oatmeal; or a chicken breast; or a small baked potato, it makes me think really hard about my food choices.

If you can get through 3-4 weeks without, I think you'll find your cravings much less.

[rocknrollgirl]

It took one week for my craving to stop. I made a cup of herb tea after dinner and had an orange instead of cookies, and it took one week for that to become the new routine.

Ruth

[Brandi]

Soooo many good suggestions! Thank you! I am going to try thr rich chocolate idea. Fruit has never done it for me
I like fruit for breakfast and a snack but to satisfy that deeo urge for the rich smooth..... ahhhhhhhh!:eek:

[uk elephant]

I am very much a sugar addict too. Mmmm.....chocolate, candy, cake. And most of those suggestions have never worked for me. Dark chocolate is yummy, but I still crave more chocolate 5 minutes later. Fruit is tasty, but unfortunately goes very well with chocolate or as part of a cake. And cutting cold turkey only lasts for a few hours max. I guess I just don't want to quit enough to really try. The only thing that has almost worked for me is excercise. I find that when I get home from a good work-out I crave something healthy like fruit or salad or other real food. Doesn't last long, but it's a start.

[Dogmama]

And cutting cold turkey only lasts for a few hours max.

"Mmmmm, cold turkey & chocolate sauce" (she says in the Homer Simpson voice)


I found some carb free dark chocolate at Trader Joe's. It seems to work better because it doesn't kick off that sugar craving in me. The actual chocolate doesn't compare to a truffle, but it is better than nothing. Anyway, that's my latest.

[Brandi]

I am very much a sugar addict too. Mmmm.....chocolate, candy, cake. And most of those suggestions have never worked for me. Dark chocolate is yummy, but I still crave more chocolate 5 minutes later. Fruit is tasty, but unfortunately goes very well with chocolate or as part of a cake. And cutting cold turkey only lasts for a few hours max. I guess I just don't want to quit enough to really try. The only thing that has almost worked for me is excercise. I find that when I get home from a good work-out I crave something healthy like fruit or salad or other real food. Doesn't last long, but it's a start.
Living in the uk would kill me! Your chocolate is better the ours I think. We have a store here that has a lot of real Cadbury chocolates including cookies and what not that are all from the uk. So yummy. And they started careing my favorite from down under called Tim Tam's. Baaaad! But sooo goood!

[uk elephant]

Chocolate here is definitely better than the American stuff. There are exceptions of course, but good chocolate in the US tends to be on the pricy side in my experience (from living in the midwest for almost 10 years). One time a shop in Champaign, IL had a sale on their imported chocolates. 10 bars for $10. I stopped by in the afternoon (the shop was just a two minute walk from my office) and bought 10 bars. Two hours later they were somehow all gone. Not sure how that happened, but I had a reputation among my friends ever since for being very good at devouring chocolate.

[Xrayted]

It is hard not to indulge, isn't it? I'm doing so much better now that I've been biking and exercising again. Not nearly the cravings I once had. (I'm a MAJOR chocoholic) So, if I don't buy it, I can't eat it.

My main problem is that I work with a bunch of women who think it's their civic duty to bake everyday and bring it in to share. I kid you not, every single day since I've worked at my hospital, the counter top in the breakroom has been full of cookies, cake, candy, chips... and it's all devoured in one day. There's completely new stuff everyday. Then they sit there eating Lean Cuisine lunches complaining about how they can't lose weight and they're on such and such diet now. Please understand, I have no problem with people eating that stuff or being on WW. They are great programs. We all need them from time to time. I fully support anyone doing them.

I have a problem with those who sabotage themselves and blame it on everything else. I live in an area where they can't have a meal without tons of starches, butter and carbs in it. Don't get me wrong, I love that kind of comfort food too, but I limit it to what I my hips and thighs can safely handle. Geez, I actually get harrassed for losing weight and getting fit.
There is a real obesity problem here in Amish Country. We actually have 3 local hospitals that do gastric bypass surgery. Harsh surgery. People die from them all the time. And there's a long waiting list to get it done.

I'll admit, I p*ssed more than a few of them off last Monday when I finally had enough of them cracking on me for riding the metric over the w/e. "Well, some of us don't have the time to just go riding around like a child." *Ahem.* I'm usually pretty quiet around work, but that was the one that set me off. I let them know, point blank, that they could start getting healthier by just not stuffing their pie holes (and everyone else's) with all that junk. Moderation, dears, moderation. (There's not even enough room to make a cup of tea on that counter.) I also told them that they don't have to spend hours working out to get into shape. Every little bit counts. (Not one of them exercises.) I suggested bringing in fruits and veggies as snacks instead of cookies. You'd have thought I shot their dog. I've been getting the cold shoulder ever since. I guess I'm too honest for them.

So, I just try to stay out of the breakroom most of the time. Too tempting. One lady did come to me on Friday last week to talk about how I stay away from the sugary/starchy stuff and what I cook. (But she pulled me aside into a room because she didn't want the others to hear her. :( :confused: The peer pressure there is at high school levels.) I'm bringing in some recipes that I think she'll like and I cooked and brought her a lunch Mon and Tues. She couldn't believe how good it was. (I am a pretty good cook. ;) ) I also took her up to Physical Therapy to talk to Bill about some easy-to-start-with exercises. I gave her a Pilates book too. We'll help her find what's right for her. One less person in the ICU I think.

Good luck everyone in your quest for a healthier body. Having a little indulgence every now and again when you need it is ok. Just don't fall down the rabbit hole. It's a hard climb back up.

X.

[sandy45]

dh and i have been trying to eat better. and we have been doing really well for the most part...we slip every once in a while when we are both too tired to do anything. but, i have a huge sweet tooth too. so what i found is welch's makes some fruit snacks...they are gummy and fat free with 80 calories. i have found that at lunch i have a small pack from the box. it will give me my sweet for the day. and on those days were you just need more. i have a piece of dove chocolate...i only keep one or two around so i dont over do it. also making your own brownies...but using apple sauce in place of oil and using only egg whites. is healthier and still gives you our chocolate. those are a few things i have found. but if i have the fruit snacks at lunch i am normally good for the rest of the day and dont need anymore sweet.

[paigette]

I have a problem with those who sabotage themselves and blame it on everything else. I live in an area where they can't have a meal without tons of starches, butter and carbs in it. Don't get me wrong, I love that kind of comfort food too, but I limit it to what I my hips and thighs can safely handle. Geez, I actually get harrassed for losing weight and getting fit.

I agree with you for the most part, but being from a "Southern Comfort Food"/Tex-Mex state, I notice that a LOT of people here don't realize what they are eating is bad for them, it's a cultural thing.

For instance, I'm a half breed (Czech & Mexican) and had previous co-workers tell me they didn't understand why I wouldn't eat tortillas. Mind you tortillas are just lard, flour & hot water...but because my co-workers did not see it as "fast-food" they thought it was fine.

So I can see why you got pissy with your coworkers, but at the same time, it's entirely possible they really don't realize what is good for them.