Tips for handling sugar cravings. Lowering your sugar intake is among the best things you can do for your health. It can lower your cholesterol, help you lose weight, give you clearer skin, help manage type 2 diabetes and give you more energy. But cutting back on sugar can be tough, especially in the beginning. When you first cut back your sugar intake it may seem like your sugar cravings are all you can think about. Breaking a sugar habit is hard to do through willpower alone here are some tips to help you curb cravings.
Don’t keep temptations in the house.
Keeping sugary foods around the house makes breaking a sugar habit harder. Nobody has unlimited willpower, you can only say no to that chocolate bar so many times before you give in to temptation. It’s easier to say no to sweets one time only at the supermarket than to say no to sweets 15 times at home. By removing the temptation from your home you reduce the amount of willpower that you must find on a daily basis and you will set yourself up for success.
Eat more fruit
Fruit is great for satisfying your sugar cravings without eating processed added sugar. Although fruit does contain natural sugar it also has plenty of fibre which helps control your blood sugar levels and your cravings. It’s important to understand the difference between added sugar and natural sugar. The sugar I am talking about is sugar that is added during processing, cooking or before eating.
Don’t deprive yourself completely
Going cold turkey on sugar does work for a few people but for many it leads to a sugar binge. In order to avoid this binge, allow yourself to have a couple of portion of controlled sweets each week. The key to stopping at just one sweet is to focus on quality over quantity. Instead of buying a large bag of cheap sweets, just have a slice of cake from the bakery or a bar of your favourite chocolate. When you are creating a new life style you need to change a lot of old habits changing the habits are more important than depriving yourself completely.
Get some exercise
When you exercise it reduces your stress levels. This is important when cutting back on sugar because high stress levels may lead you to reach for sugary foods. The exercise doesn’t have to be strenuous to have a positive effect, even just a brisk walk can help with your stress levels and keep on track.
Learn to distinguish cravings from hunger
When you have a craving you may feel like you are truly hungry but this isn’t always the case you may be seeking out a specific food because you are stressed, board or upset. Rather than because you are truly hungry. To determine whether you are truly hungry or simply having a craving ask yourself if you could eat something like a stirfry, or veggie sticks, or an apple, or if you only want the sugary foods. If you’re answer is that you only want sugary foods then this means that there are a lot more underlying causes that we need to work on which includes your subconscious choices and habits as well as your mindset and goals.
