I looovvve sweets! Help!

[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!

[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. 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.