sugar withdrawal experiment

[Pedal Wench]

I've been having some success with my postponing technique. Although I crave the sweets, I make a cup of green (decaf) or chai (again, decaf) tea, with the deal that if I still want the sweets after I finish the tea, I can have it. So far, by the time I finish the tea, I've completely forgotten about the sweets.

Also, if you absolutely have to have something, I use the caramel or chocolate flavored Viactiv calcium chews. Gets the craving taken care of while getting my daily dose of calcium.

[DebW]

I completely quit sugar and most processed foods for a couple years in my early 20s. Still eat very little of them and don't have a taste for them. The thought or smell of a donut or cannolli can almost turn my stomache. I don't like chocolate, so guess I'm lucky that way. If I do eat dessert, it's probably a homemade pie that I made with the amount of sugar I wanted to put in it (about 1/2-2/3 of the recipe). I do enjoy ice cream but don't have it very often. And I'll occassionally make myself tapioca pudding because it's sweet but not too sweet. Also, I love cranberries and haven't figured out how to eat them without some sugar (not too much sugar, they must still taste tart).

[HappyAnika]

I'm way late on this thread . . . Just wanted to share that I too am a sugar addict. About 2 years ago I realized that I could probably loose some weight if I stopped eating my "something sweet" after dinner every night, so I quit cold turkey. It was so incredibly difficult for the first 2 weeks, I thought I was going to have to check myself in to a rehab center. I should mention that I'd read that if your body is getting what it needs, it will stop craving the things it doesn't need, so I tried this theory. I made a concerted effort to eat well while trying to kick the sugar, and it worked. After about 2 weeks the cravings started to subside and the pure habit of eating something sweet after dinner started to fade. (I agree with Pedal Wench, I found tea to be very helpful in warding off the cravings, and it was something to have after dinner). This was liberating in that I finally felt I had control over the sugar, not that it had control over me. For the first time ever I was able to pass up the cookies at work.

Once I was in control, I let myself start eating it occasionally. I know this may sound sad, but truly life for me would not be as enjoyable without cake. I absolutely adore cake. So its not that I don't ever eat sugar now, I just have it when I think its reasonable, like if I rode 50 miles that day and something presents itself that looks tasty, I'll have some. So its an indulgence, not a habit anymore. Right now I have leftover Halloween M&Ms in my desk drawer. They'll stay there until the day I feel like I should eat them, whereas before, I would've just eaten them because they were there, because they would be calling to me.

[RoadRaven]

Just another aspect of sugar, solveig...

My partner tried cutting all sugar he reasonably could from his diet in an effort to control cramping - he had read about it in one article and thought - why not, I'll give it a go.

No added sugar, occasional desserts, rare biscuits, no cakes... this, for him, equalled no cramping after races, TTs or long (100-150km) training rides.

Me? Afraid I won't give up the chocolate...

[Grog]

Me? Afraid I won't give up the chocolate...

Dark chocolate doesn't have much sugar.....