I’m from the Netherlands, so the whole Corn Syrupy-thing isn’t as dominant here as it is in the US, but still…
I found a trick that works for me, since I really love sugar. My trick is not buying sweets, cakes and other sweet stuff for a pretty long period of time (like, a month or so). Come to think of it, I hardly use any processed foods at all. But that’s not the sugar-craving trick. This is: Once every 1-2 months I give in to my desire and bake my own sweets, like cake, brownies or whatever using only the stuff I pick myself. This has a lot of benefits:
- I know exactly what’s in ’em (no packets, just “real” ingredients e.g. eggs, flour, etc.)
- The baking itself is fun and highly rewarding
- I get to share the cake with friends so we have a good time together
After that, It’s keeping it low for another month or so.
I found your website after I lost weight (over 16 kgs), gained muscle mass and was looking to “boldy go where I had ever gone before”. Yes, I’ve been using huge amounts of cardio (loving every minute of it), but I realize that there’s just no way around lifting weights. Thank you for the insight.
So I picked what works for me and that are group fitness sessions with weights, e.g. Bodypump and GRIT Strengh. I know that 20 – 25 kgs (44 – 55 lbs) on a barbell might not be “lifting heavy”, but it does work for me, as does the HIIT -stuff.
Anyone else doing these around here or should I also add really “heavy lifting” to the routine?
I have identified sugar as my number #1 enemy. I think we can search for all the “hacks” we want for “healthy” sweetener alternatives. But, all you are doing, if you do that, is continue to feed the urge. Kind of like those people who need the electronic cigarettes. I try to simply eat whole foods as much as possible. Including fruit. Once you give up processed sugar for awhile, fruit tastes even more amazing. It became my “sweet”.
This is a big one for me, and I’ve always known sugar has been my problem. It is actually self perpetuating. I’ve been dealing with a sugar addiction for years now, and it has reached the point where at 2pm I will start craving sugar and can’t stop thinking about chocolate till I get some. And the more you have the worse it is. It’s like there is something in it, which stops your brain working so well, and therefore processing will power and emotion. I often find that after eating sugary food (chocolate) I find it very hard to even care about my health or my weight. It’s almost like brain fog!
The few times I’ve been able to give up the sugar for a few days, my brain gets clearer and it’s easier to stick to.
But like you said, sugar is in a lot of things, and eventually i slip up and fall back into a sugar induced brain coma where I stop caring for months. I’m working on it, but it is definitely tough.
Not sure how accurate it was, but I read an article which stated that sugar can be as addictive as heroin and that trying to beat a sugar addiction is like trying to beat a drug addiction when everything you touch is laced with drugs, or more accurately, like trying to give up smoking while standing in a room full of smokers offering you a cigarette every five minutes.