Craving Sweets

Hi All, Anyone out there have sweets cravings? What do you do to stop them? I have been having this problem for awhile now and it is the one thing I wish had gone away after surgery. I am PO 7 months and have lost 116, which is wonderful, but I am so afraid that I am going to screw this up -- BIG TIME!! Each day I try to have a sweets free day and each day I fall short. Now sure, I don't eat as much as I did pre-surgery but still, I'd like not to eat any at all. I see the scale has slowed down a bit and that scares me too. Work is where I have the hardest time, because people keep chocolates out on their desks. When I walk by it's too easy for me to grab one or two and keep going. I have noticed my cravings are much worse when I am having a "bad day" or when I am bored with what I am working on. If anyone has any advice or insight, I am all ears. Thanks ~ Christine 364/248/???

Christine, I would like to hear what others have to say as well becuase I also have a sweet tooth though it has gone away most of the time since surgery BUT there are days when I just crave sweets. What I do is chew gum, I have a least three different flovors going on at one time in my bag. I chew as many a day as I need to help. I do not by the SF candies because I am just worried it will put me right back onto the bad habbits! I also got some of those power crunch bars from bariatriceating.com which they are great for the sweet tooth and by the time I am done with the bar I am saying ICCKKKKYYY to the sweets. It has some good protein in them as well. I also got some SF cookies from there as well but try to keep that to only a couple times a month so I do not go back to my old ways. Scary stuff but it seems to be helping and working ok for me. Some days are better then others I have to say. Keep me posted... ~Hugs~ Debra P

HEY CHRISTINE... im sure we all battle this at one point or another ..... i find my worst time is just before TOM, PMS. WHAT i use now to combat that is I freeze a power crunch bar triple chocolate with fat free cool whip between and i feel like im cheating my WOE but im not. I do find the more carbs i eat...the more i crave. SO i work my hardest to keep those carbs down and avoid the sweets that trigger us to want more and more and more. EVEN the sugar free products trigger us to eat and eat! ITS a good thing for the manufacturers of the foods but not for us trying to combat these urges and loose weight. I guess our tool and this far out now requires WILL POWER! I havent really eaten sweets since the surgery but a bite of cupcake on christmas eve....so i have sweets in control and only use power crunch bar or sugar free chocolate puddings when im craving! ITS hard but we can win! GOOD LUCK! lisa

I keep thoes 100 cal. oreo thin crisp packs around....I don't eat them but every once in a while when I get a craving but they aren't as bad as the ice cream my kids have in the freezer..lol. Stress is a killer for me..I'm trying to get into the swing of going for a quick walk instead of thinking about what I can eat at thoes times. The only thing I have on my side is too much sugar makes me feel yucky....so I remember that everytime I see sweets. You are doing great....keep up the good work! ~Issy 360/232/???

http://www.healthinharmony.com/sugarcravings.html L-Glutamine Many sources indicate L-Glutamine seems to reduce the craving for sugar and carbohydrates. I take approximately 2 grams (in powdered form) with each meal. When I took about 500 grams (in tablets) before each meal it didn't seem to help. It comes in powdered form, which is easiest to sprinkle in a cranberry/applesauce/tomato/ or whatever mixture you prefer. It has a taste to it, but is more bitter than anything else. Best Wishes. ps: I also take 1 gram of vitamin c at least twice a day. Some people also indicate that PECTIN (think apples) will help reduce sugar cravings... Just don't eat simple sugar (cake/etc.) Because it INCREASES sugar.

EAS makes a protein bar called Advant Edge. It comes in several flavors but the best in my mind is the chocolate chip brownie. I get mine at Sam's Club but my health club sells them as well. I would think a good health food store would have them. A 2.12 oz bar has 21 grams protein, lots of vitamins and minerals, 7 grams fat and 1 gram sugar. I find it very satisfying with a good sweet chocolate kick and it can substitute for a meal. Cut one up into small trick-or-treat size pieces and have them for snacks. Have a great day. Rich

Thanks Everyone! You have given me some great advice and ideas. I know I can do this, but somedays the sweets get the best of me. I try to eat other things thinking they will help to alleviate the craving, but most of the time that doesn't work either. So I figure, better for me to have a piece of candy or two instead of eating and eating since nothing else seems to satisfy me. But the power crunch bars, esepcially with the FF cool whip and the 100 calories oreos may work and I am going to try them. Thanks for the support! Christine

I have been having a terrible sweet tooth lately. I can't say that I have behaved perfectly, but what we have been doing is cutting up a honeydew melon, a cantaloupe, and a pineapple--then throwing a bunch of seedless grapes in. We keep it in a big container in the fridge. Anytime the sweet tooth hits, we head to the fridge to get some fruit. Dipping it in the rasberry sugar free yogurt from Dannon is really good too. Watermelon and peeled apple slices are great. Fuji apples are probably the sweetest out there and the kids eat them up along with us. Hope this helps.. -Cheri

Hey Christine, You might want to consider keeping some of South Beach protein bars handy. I have had these as meal replacements when time is an issue. And these are the only bars I like (so far.) Peanutbutter and chocolate flavors are really good, I did not like the strawberry yogurt flavor. But these are sweet and tasty. Right now I have the Peanut Butter bars, here is the info from the Nutrution Label: Per bar Calories 140 Fat 5g Carbs 15g Protein 10g So this might not be for everyone. But if you are looking for something sweet & crunchy this may help. Laura 300/188/?

Laura, Thanks for the suggestion. I haven't tried the South Beach bars yet. You are probably the 3rd or 4th person who has mentioned how much they like them. I'll have to buy a box this weekend when I grocery shop. Thanks ~ Christine 364/248/?