The “how to stop eating sugar” dilemma is something that a lot of people struggle with. Giving up sugar seems like something you should commit to, right, since after all you want to be healthy and fit — or even ripped.
Both speaking from my own experience and so many people who I’ve talked to that struggle with this dilemma, it seems like when you try to tell yourself that you can’t have sugar or sweets at all, that creates this weird binge-avoid-binge-avoid cycle.
So, when people ask me for suggestions on how to stop cravings for sugar, here’s what I tell them works best from what I’ve learned.
1) Stop telling yourself that you can’t have it and instead tell yourself that you can have it, you just choose to have it on Saturdays and Sundays, for example.
2) When you do eat sugar, don’t make a big deal of it in your head. Eat it, enjoy it, and move on. The biggest culprit behind “not being able to stop from eating sugar” is being super hard on yourself and stressing out about eating it and how bad it is for you.
A little bit of sugar isn’t bad for you. It’s when you beat yourself up about a little bit of sugar, that leads to a lot of sugar (binge), which is the problem. By the way, when I say binge, I don’t necessarily mean eating a whole family size package of Oreos, I just mean the slippery slope of continuing to eat more sugar because you think you’ve already screwed yourself by eating some sugar.
3) Just take it one step at a time and don’t think that you have to totally remove sugar from your life forever. Just do a little better than you did last week, then next week do a little better than this week, and pretty soon your cravings for sugar will be less, and you will not eat it nearly as much as you used to, and you also won’t even think about eating it as much as you used to, because slowly it became less a part of your life and your habits/thoughts/cravings are different.
4) This totally goes against what a lot of the media and researchers will tell you, but… just stop reading all of the studies and research and articles about how bad sugar and [insert whatever other foods here] is for you. It’s really not that helpful!
You know what you should eat (whole foods, lots of veggies), and reading that stuff just makes you feel worse, not to mention what is right/wrong and bad/good seems to change every week so they have something new to write about…
Just eat lots of veggies, feel good about the healthy stuff and when you eat the piece(s) of chocolate, let it go and know that tomorrow is a new day and in the grand scheme of things, if your goal is to be healthy for the long-term and feel awesome, then feeling guilty and getting down on yourself isn’t going to help.
So, those are my thoughts. Do you have anything to add?
Share in the comments section below and tweet, Facebook, email this blog post to a friend that you think might need to hear this too.
Click here to easily tweet this post!
image by stevendepolo
For more on this topic, check out ROCK Your Dream Body.
Print This Post
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Thank you, Thank you, THANK YOU for posting this article, especially now.
I have been down that path of completely beating myself up for loosing will power and caving into a sugar craving. I was not succeeding under the “all or nothing” mentality AT ALL. I would feel like such a weak person for loosing will power, and then came the “well you already messed up, so why bother” mentality – it was such an awful cycle to break.
Once I did cut sugar out, in a healthy way (the it’s perfectly OK once in awhile mentality) – I did find that once I went back to the sugary foods I once LOVED – I could only eat maybe a couple of bites before I started feeling sick to my stomach, it was just too much. So now, just a little goes a long way.
I’ve been having a personal war about what to do with myself and my kids this time of year. I remember such fond memories of baking with my own Mother this time of year, and I have so much fun doing it with my own kids. But I don’t want all the left over product around in the kitchen either. So I was really struggling with the “do I give up tradition, and family time because of sugar?”. But I just want to thank you, because until your article I was undecided. I have now decided that I WILL keep up with tradition and happy times, eat a little of it; and give the rest away to friends, teachers, the postman – whoever, because I know I can’t have that stuff around the house.
But sugar isn’t going to stop me from creating memories with my children, thanks to this article! Thank you!. =)
Hi Chenay!
You are so not alone. I think this is a common struggle among people who are learning how to make healthier choices and are transitioning into a new, healthier lifestyle. It’s important not to hold yourself up to some standard of perfection because the reality is, you don’t have to be “perfect” in order to be healthy (and happy). Being your healthiest self is a life-long process of trial and error, where you just keep getting better and better and more and more clear about what your healthiest, happiest life looks like. So, the more you can give yourself a break and the time to figure out what works best for you (without being super hard on yourself when you have those moments when afterward you say, oh boy that was not a good idea, the quicker you get to that place where sugar cravings and the mental battle just fall away).
I have been there too regarding the holidays and healthy eating vs baking Christmas goodies etc, because for me, baking with (and for) family and friend equals love, plus I really love eating holiday goodies too.
But when I decided that it was okay that I love of sweets, I also developed a love for finding new ways to make old favorites with other ingredients that made them taste good, but had more whole food ingredients, i.e. using bananas or dried fruit as sweetener. One of my favorite cookie recipes is now this one. That being said, I’m not afraid of a semi-sweet chocolate chip white flour cookie either.
I’m so glad to hear that this was helpful. I’m planning to write more on these sorts of topics soon.
Sheila – that’s my new goal, to increase my healthy recipe knowledge; and what/how to sub out the yucky stuff with the yummy healthy stuff. As a somewhat novice, it’s hard to know what works, so that’s why I really appreciate all your recipe posts! =) I’m really excited to try the pumpkin bread one you recently posted, and I’ll have to try the cookie one too! Thanks for sharing these, and keep ‘em coming! =)
We’re so glad to help, Chenay! Let us know what you think of them once you try them.
Hey Shelia!!!
Been a while..but back to needing your great “middle of the ground” words of wisdom! Please more posts like this:)
Will do Tracey! Glad to have you back.
Sheila, As usual you are right on! Living in a extremist state is a certain way for us to set ourselves up for failure. Thanks for reminding us that a few sweet rewards can be an empowering component of a sound nutritional plan! : )
Yes, the secret to long-term weight loss is being happy with what you get to eat.
Sheila:
This post couldn’t have come at a better time for me. I appreciate all the recipes that LIVEWELL 360 shares on how to still incorporate the tasty treats we love into a healthy, yet delicious way. I am usually an ALL or NOTHING person, but your words have helped to bring a little more balance into my life. I am slowly startin to realize that it is ok to indulge a little every now and then and just get right back at eathing healthy whole foods again. It is the deprevation that destroys me long term because I too love my chocolate. Thank you for always being so insightful and for sharing your journey with us all.
Denise
Yay, my favorite words to read: “This post couldn’t have come at a better time for me.”
You said the key word Denise–deprivation. The bottom line is, if ya feel deprived, you’re not going to be able to sustain what you’re doing long-term. Period. I went through it too. For a long time I was suuuper strict and it got me to where I wanted to be at that time, but since then I’ve learned more about what works best for me. And I found out that I could have a great body and enjoy foods the foods that I love to eat.
It’s not about the sugar or the cookie or the chocolate, but rather about the guilt and deprivation attached to eating it when you think you shouldn’t.
Finding ways to eat whole foods the majority of the time, while incorporating and ENJOYING foods that are not part of your usual meal plans but sometimes you just want to eat ‘em, is the trick/balance/sweet-spot (pun intended) to long-term healthy living AND maintaining a kickbutt body to boot.
With the holidays coming up I thought it might be helpful to link to the Holiday Food Stressin’ Podcasts I made back in 2008. These are the basic guidelines that I follow regarding holiday eating.
I can so relate! I’ve been on a yo-yo cycle of self loving and self loathing for years. When I flip my ‘ who cares’ switch the I binge as if I’m never going to see sugar again. Its the most depressing cycle I’ve ever known, far worse than caffeine or other addictions I’ve had. Your informations seems most balanced of all. The all or nothing does not work. After failing for so many years I now know that! Ho hum, I’m going to try the middle path and do the best I can, knowing its about progress not perfection. I’ve learned of late to trust myself completely and know what works best for me after some 45+ years and to stop listen to the rubbish that other people tell me about what works for them, or media’s latest find or the nect best thing…Here’s to a happier, healtheir me! Thank you for your guidance…
Frances you are a superstar! Thank you so much for sharing your story. Cheers to a happier, healthier you. We know you are going to ROCK IT!
This is soooooo my personality! Thank you for the advice! So needed around this time of year too!