There will always be an excuse to indulge in sugar! “It’s hot! I want a sweet refreshing drink, or it’s cold I would love a hot latte.” “It’s my best friends birthday, how could I not eat cake?” The list goes on and on with daily activities that could derail your progress. You don’t have to let sugar control your life or your choices; you need to learn how to control those pesky little cravings.
KNOW WHAT IS SUGAR AND WHAT IS NOT…
We all know sugar by the name sugar, but there are many different names and different forms sugar comes in. It shows up in the most unexpected places, in your yogurt, in your “healthy” juice, even in things that aren’t supposed to be sweet like bread. Reading the food labels and educating yourself on the different kinds of sugar will definitely help you avoid the different types. Here are some more commonly known aliases. Here are a few tips to live a healthy lifestyle:
Avoid the following:
syrup (such as high-fructose corn syrup)
cane
maltose (sugar made from grain)
sucrose (common table sugar; made from fructose and glucose)
molasses
caramel
juice
dextrose (form of glucose)
malt
honey
agave nectar
lactose (natural sugar from milk)
fructose (natural sugar from fruits)
glucose (product of photosynthesis)
LIQUID SWEET STUFF
Okay we all know soda has sugar, but if that is the only drink you think you need to avoid you are wrong! Without the fiber in whole fruit, fruit juice is just sugar. This is where reading the labels will save your sugar intake. You would be surprised how much sugar those “from concentrate” drinks have in them, and don’t get me started on lattes and coffee drinks, unless you are very specific on your order, they will add a ton of extra sugar.
STOP LOOKING
Don’t tease or torture yourself. Looking or just having a taste of something High in fat, high calories, and high in sugar will intensify your cravings. There are many different things you can do to satisfy a craving other than indulging or binge eating sugar. Try to snack on low calorie and low carb snacks to help your cravings return to normal. Also not starving yourself will help with the craving, when your blood sugar level spikes is when your cravings go out of control.
OUTSIDE THE SWEET STUFF
Even if you’re not eating that sugar packed chocolate chip cookie doesn’t mean you’re not eating sugar. The dressing you put on your salad today was loaded with sugar, crackers, pasta are all foods that aren’t supposed to be sweet but still have sugar in them. Once you get to a point where you are not eating as much sugar your body will get used to the lower intake of sugar and the cravings will be much easier to control.