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Nutrition - Aug 3, 2020
- 13
- By Cassey
Hey guys!
We all know that eating sweets all the time isn’t the best habit. I mean I LOVE to indulge sometimes (right now, ube ice cream is my weakness), but I can totally tell when I overdo it. It just makes me feel tired, it breaks out my skin, and I just don’t feel my best. Sometimes it makes me sooo grumpy and I feel like I’m just in a fog. So, I try to find healthier ways to curb my cravings as much as possible.
But cravings are tough.
What IS it about sugar that makes it so hard to avoid? Why do our bodies crave it so much?!
Let’s find out!
Sweets are kind of addicting
I’m not going to compare sugar to drugs, but I totally believe that the way we crave sugar is kind of like an addiction.
Two reasons:
- Habit
- Our brains
Humans are just creatures of habit. If you’re someone who has always grabbed something sweet after dinner, it’s probably going to be tough to break that habit. The “craving” you get after dinner for something sweet happens because you’ve literally trained yourself to feel satisfied ONLY after you’ve had that dessert.
Our brains get used to these habits too, making it even harder to curb cravings for sugar. Not only does your brain looooove sugar as fuel, but it treats sugar like a reward. When we eat sugar, our brains release dopamine, which is literally nicknamed the “feel-good” neurotransmitter. It’s part of the brain’s reward system, so of course we’re programmed to want more!
So what do you do to fight the urge? A couple things.
Slowly change your routine. If you want to tame that nightly dessert craving, replace it with a different habit. Go for a walk instead and replace sugar with a different “feel-good” habit!
Give into your craving in a healthy way. If you crave something sweet, then eat something sweet! Instead of going for cookies or ice cream every night though, switch it up and eat fruit or experiment with a low-sugar dessert liiiiike vegan peanut butter cheesecake (drool), zucchini bread pudding (omg), or pink lemonade sorbet cups (PERFECT for summer).
Maybe you’re trying too hard
Sometimes when we decide it’s time for diet overhaul, we go a little too hard.
Our bodies are super stubborn when it comes to losing weight and calorie restriction. If the changes you’ve made to your diet are even slightly drastic, your body is probably going to fight back a little.
You know those memes that are like, “egg and veggies for breakfast, salad for lunch… whole pizza, 17 breadsticks and carton of ice cream for dinner” ? 😂
There’s some serious truth to those! If you restrict too much during the day, you might be setting yourself up for failure later. Basically, your body is going to DEMAND the fastest source of energy when it feels deprived. Sugar and refined carbs are that source of energy.
So to avoid this, don’t starve yourself during the day! Eat plenty of protein, healthy fats and healthy carbs packed with fiber to make sure your body isn’t moody and hangry by dinner.
Your body is trying to get your attention
Check two things – your Zzz’s and your water.
Not getting enough of either (or both) can reallllly mess with us! If you’re not feeling 100% because you’re lacking sleep or hydration, that reward center in your brain starts to ding because it wants to feel better! And what usually gives it that quick reward? SUGAR.
The same thing happens when you’re bored or stressed.
I 10000000% always get super snacky when I’m bored, and even if I start with something healthy, I always feel like I need to round it out with something sweet. Do you know what I mean?! That just comes back to that need to feel satisfied. Eating something sweet probably isn’t really the answer, but it’s what our brain knows to give us the fastest reward.
Giving in IS NOT failure
After a loooooong time of fighthing my cravings for sweets, I’ve learned a couple things.
A. Sometimes you just need to give in!
And
B. You’ll feel better if you learn what your body is telling you.
There is zero shame in giving into cravings sometimes. It’s way better than stressing and obsessing over it. But at the same time, learning what your body might really be telling you is also really helpful. So next time you crave something sweet, take a minute to think about what your body might need before you tear into that candy bar 😉
There are 13 comments posted by our users.
Leave a Reply
- Gazelle dela Pena says:
October 23, 2020 at 5:40 pm
Thanks for the tips Cassey! I grew up with such a sweet tooth that I like chocolates better than fruits. But intermittent fasting helped a lot in controlling my cravings. Thanks for reminding me though that I need to get enough sleep to better control my addiction to sweets.
Reply
- Anna says:
October 14, 2020 at 3:56 am
I love the suggestion of changing up the reward system with non food activities! There are some foods that also don’t have sugar that are worth trying as a treat. After getting off sugar, I found some products that help when I am craving sweets that don’t have any sugar. ChocZero has syrups sweetened with monk fruit and no sugar alcohols that I put on fresh fruit with coconut whipped cream. They also have awesome chocolate that my husband loves. Evolved chocolate nut butter cups are also a favorite. Zevia sodas are also sweetened with stevia only and are delicious. It’s totally viable to cut out sugar given time and changing of habit!
Reply
- Deeba Fatima says:
August 18, 2020 at 10:40 am
Hey cassey I love your workout videos… but the problem is my diet which is not allowing me to achieve my goals😟😔😔😟
Reply
- lesleyisabel says:
August 12, 2020 at 1:56 pm
so true. I always want something sweet after my meal and with my coffee.
Reply
- Jan says:
August 11, 2020 at 9:18 am
Thank you, Cassey, for sharing that because that’s the rut I’m in RIGHT NOW!
Reply
- Michelle says:
August 6, 2020 at 4:50 am
I read this just after eating my yogurt topped w/frozen berries following my dinner 😅 I always feel like I need something sweet after dinner to keep me satisfied, so I’ve been drinking a cold veggie juice w/a handful of chocolate-covered acai bits, or yogurt! Even though these are still healthier options, I don’t love that I’m literally not satisfied until I’ve had some sugar and I beat myself up over it. Thank you for this post, it was so helpful to read and is a good reminder to myself to not restrict too much during the day because it’ll just lead to more cravings later, and that I’m not the only person who feels like this.
Reply
- alexbrooks says:
August 4, 2020 at 1:18 pm
This is so true. I do pretty good balancing out my craving but during that time which is like seriously a 2 week journey for me(WTF) I find that I have cravings for sweets so much more. Its hard to ignore and sme days I’m like f* it, time for Wendy’s, chocolate, that ice cream shop down the road, and don’t forget more salt, definitely need some chips in there. And maybe cake…can never go wrong with cake.
Reply
- M says:
August 5, 2020 at 6:45 am
Lol story of my life
Reply
- Tough but Trying says:
August 4, 2020 at 8:07 am
I was doing so good eating clean. Then I started giving in EVERY time I wanted sweets (which is a lot). I’m trying to do better, but it’s hard. This has definitely helped though!
- Jeannamarie5 says:
August 4, 2020 at 4:38 am
THANK YOU! This is exactly what I needed to hear. I’ve literally crashed and had pizza and ice cream last night and the nights before had ice cream. I feel better about myself and definitely want to tackle this craving.
Reply
- Becky18 says:
August 4, 2020 at 2:19 am
This is really helpful will definitely be using some of your tips. I am glad that I am not the only one who wants a sweet treat even if you have a healthy one. : ) xx
Reply
- Emily says:
August 4, 2020 at 1:20 am
It’s interesting how our brains work like that – linking food to pleasure. I think that’s also why I suddenly feel the urge to snack whenever things get stressful at work, it’s like my brain’s way of coping with it to try and calm down! I have been trying to reach more for better snacks like fruits or popcorn, but once in a while I’ll have a slice of something nice and fully enjoy it! Xx
Reply
Anna 
lesleyisabel 
Jan 
Michelle 
alexbrooks 
M 
Tough but Trying 
Jeannamarie5 
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