The need for Sugar !

[MeLi]

Hello all,

This is my first question on SM :)

I'm a 24yo chick who ate alot of sugar and junk as a teen and i am still paying for it now!

I slowly lost the extra 10kg i was carrying around and am now focused on toning up and putting on a little muscle. Sugar is still my downfall and i'm here to try and get some help and motivation and to shift my mindframe.... i seem to be a "all" or "nothing" kind of person and most of the time i do really well - but then i have my days where i have a chocolate bar, followed by chips followed by ice cream and you get the picture....

I go to the gym 4 times a week and do cardio as well as weight training and am happy with the results - its been a long and hard journey but working out had become something i love and look forward to.

Food on the other hand is not my friend sometimes! It seems to have an unhealthy control over me where if i see someone eating a cookie and i start craving it i can walk away but will think about it for the next 2 hours until i finally give in. Once i've done that i've opened up the flood gates and i eat like a pig! For this reason, i dont ever keep any kind of bad food in my house and i dont have the control to stop myself from eating it. (This is sometimes a problem as i come from a European family and my mum is constantly filling my fridge with cakes etc, and sometimes i either eat it all in the one sitting or chuck it out...)

I think its healthy to indulge sometimes and i (sometimes) manage to stick to one cheat day a week, but even then...my cheat day turns into a binge and i probably undo the good i've done during the week. I know if i cut back on these binges, i would see the transformation in my abs i am waiting for but just can't seem to shift my unhealthy mind frame.

Can anyone help ?? - i dont like being controlled by a cookie :(

Thanks!
Mel

[swans05]

welcome Mel.

a few things you can try:

1 - when you feel a craving, have 2 glasses of water
2 - develop a food plan and stick to it..if you don't then punish yourself (tape home and away and you have to sit through it, ads and all?)
3 - tell your mum to stop bringing shit food around

the last line of your post is the main one though (unhealthy frame of mind)

[DAVA]

its the hardest thing for me too. Once i get that initial sugar hit i'm off and cant stop.

My secret (with varying success) is to not start in the first place......

Oh and giving up alcohol has help immensly

Good luck with it

[Jeffuli]

Sadly a large majority of us have the problem. On my last refeed i told myself i would eat a small bun that has a bit of butter and sprinkled sugar on it. I ended up eating 8.

[Jaiman]

My way of doing it would be, before you touch it, run far far away from the current location till you have no urge. lol.. it works though

[MO]

Meli, Welcome to Size Matters.
I can relate to the whole coming from a European family situation. God help you if you suddenly start saying "no" to mum's food after all these years! She'll think something is wrong with you if it becomes a habit, lol.
It's something that they won't understand, where a cake, pasta and bread always seem to be around the house no mater how much you try to clear it.

What has really worked for me (sugar addict here - especially chocolate) are flavoured protien shakes!
You've got to try this approach to chocolate or any sweet cravings + they're good for the lifestyle you are wanting to live now. 0 fat and 0 carbs!
Not only that, but a good chocolate flavoured WPI powder will keep you full and trick your mind into thinking you've had your chocolate/dessert hit for the day.
Mix it with a little skim milk for starters and then change to water over time.

SPECIFICALLY though, to "being controlled by the cookie", check out one of our sponsors here: "JC's Cookies".
Protien cookies without all the crap. These might be a better alternative to your binges (but not an excuse to binge!!)

Goodluck.

[Rusha]

Hey Meli. Welcome to SM.

im another who will raise their hand to chocolate addictions. Ill be doing ok then one of my kids will say stuff like 'mum can we get some chocolate icecream?' The idea will sit and fester in my head for ages until i drive it out somehow (miracle) or i just give in and hope they pig most of it. MO great idea about the protein shake. Sometimes i buy gum so i can kind of trick myself that im having a treat.

Recognise your triggers. Is it boredom, stress, chemical (sugar addiction), sadness etc etc? Once you recognise your triggers you can start to put defenses in place. Ideally anyway.....

[acejas]

Been a sugar an ex sugar addict, I can really say that keeping your sugar level too very low levels (mine was 2 teaspoons a day) and really looking at hidden sugars was the key to losing the addiction. Ive never looked back since I really looked at my sugar consumption. Its an addictive substance just like heroin and nicotine.

[swans05]

low joule jelly too is a good one

[MeLi]

Thanks for your replies everyone. Its great that there is a place you can go where people are willing to help and share their wisdom!

All of your suggestions are helpful and i will try them out (chocolate shake mmmm)

Do i have it correct in saying then, that sugar addiction comes in two types?
1. Eating sugar means you want more sugar ( acejas - Its an addictive substance just like heroin and nicotine. )
Definately my problem once i've started...
2. Emotional connections to Sugar...? (real or not)
So what i mean is that number 1 is not always present for me. I could not eat any sugar for weeks and then BAM! So i must have an emotional attachment to it as well, right?
I will definately monitor my triggers when this happens and have a shake to try and curb the craving!

Thanks everyone!

[soriminah]

For the past week I've been listening to hypnosis CDs at night when going to bed. They've been great because I'm not craving sugar...or anything else for that matter.

Another thing I do is buy cranberry juice or another juice and use it like you would cordial. That way you get a little bit of sugar which may stop the cravings in the first place, or have a few mouthfuls of juice when you are craving sugar.

[acejas]

Soriminah: I too listen to meditating CD's it makes its great. I have to disagree on the cranberry juice. ANY juice IMO is no good because of the concerntrated sugar (23% on avg for cranberry juice) I equate juice to sugar as methadone is to heroin. Extreme? Yes, but that sets pictures in my head to also help stop using sugar in any form - or more precisely - fructose.

And yes Meli you are right in two counts - well they were for me. Firstly I got rid of the addiction - and then the habit (association)

[MissFit]

My vice is peanut butter. I can do without anything sweet - but that damn peanut butter....

[soriminah]

Soriminah: I too listen to meditating CD's it makes its great. I have to disagree on the cranberry juice. ANY juice IMO is no good because of the concerntrated sugar (23% on avg for cranberry juice) I equate juice to sugar as methadone is to heroin. Extreme? Yes, but that sets pictures in my head to also help stop using sugar in any form - or more precisely - fructose.

And yes Meli you are right in two counts - well they were for me. Firstly I got rid of the addiction - and then the habit (association)

Cranberry juice is great for women...it also helps with the urinary tract.

[natacha]

Peanut butter on corn cake delicious.