sweettooth – Weight Loss Confessions

I have a confession to make. I was completely addicted to sugar and did some pretty shameless things to support my not-so-healthy sugar cravings. I’ll share a few of them with you if you promise not to judge me. Then I’ll share how I eliminated my sugar cravings because you can too!

Sugar Craving Confessions….

My daughter was probably one of the worst sleepers ever and it was all but impossible to put her down for a nap. I finally laid her down safe and sound in her crib and I really needed her to take a “long” nap and give me a break from parenting. Within a few minutes, my sugar cravings kicked in. I remembered my daughter had leftover Halloween candy in her room she had hidden from me. Crazy to think that a two-year-old was smart enough to know she had to hide her candy from her Mamma- huh? Anyways, I snuck in and crawled across the floor in the dark and not only risked waking a sleeping baby but stole candy from my precious baby girl.

I drove my son to a private school about an hour away every day for a year, which means I was in the car four hours a day minimally. I stopped once on the way to the school and once on the way home for a sweet treat. My favorite was peanut butter cups. What are yours?

And as Every Sugar Addict Knows Fake Sugar is the Most Addictive

And then there were the years and I mean years that I was determined to give up diet soda. As all sugar lovers know, artificial sweeteners are the hardest to give up. I must have “quit” drinking diet soda 100 times. Every time, I tossed all of the diet soda in the house so I wouldn’t be tempted by it. I can’t tell you how many times I found myself driving around in my pajamas, with no makeup, in a blizzard to get just one diet soda. As I blogged about in, “I Am an Addict and Completely Addicted”, I am thrilled to say I kicked that bad habit to the curb and am celebrating my seventh year of being diet soda-free.

The Worst Confession of All….

Here comes the confession I am most ashamed of….. I fed my kids sugary sweet foods more often than I should have so I could eat the sugary foods too. Ugh- can’t believe I just typed that, but it’s the truth.

So, now that I have proven that I was a bonafide sugar addict, I can’t wait to tell you about the happy ending. I no longer crave sugar – at all. Never. In fact, I think it’s kind of disgusting unless it’s chocolate :).

The Little Things I Did to Stop Sugar Cravings

I wish I could tell you that I took one magical pill and my sweet tooth suddenly disappeared but that wouldn’t be the truth and I probably wouldn’t trust anyone who claims they did. I made several small changes, saw some improvement, and then one day realized my sweet cravings were gone!

Started with Gut Health

There is a ton of research circulating the internet about how gut flora can affect food cravings. I started taking a good probiotic and alternated them out every few months. I ultimately added in gut shots which I love and blogged about in “Here Comes The Craziest Confession Yet”.

Pumped Up the Protein

There are a lot of hypotheses out there on why a protein deficiency may cause carb cravings. I’m not sure which is correct, but I know that my sweet cravings lessened when I worked toward eating 75-95 grams of protein a day. For some great tips check out my blog How I Packed 55 Grams of Protein Into Breakfast.

Magnesium

I read somewhere that magnesium can help with chocolate cravings and I was very eager to give it a try. After taking it for a few weeks I noticed, my cravings were less and my sleep, migraines, and stool had improved too!

Finally Took The Shot

As I shared in my very first blog “The Weight Loss Story Begins”, I took a weekly shot from a weight loss clinic for a few months. The shot had inositol and vitamin B in it. The inositol did wonders for my sweet and food cravings.

Inositol

When I stopped going to the weight loss clinic, my integrative physician suggested I take inositol as a daily supplement. Everyone who follows this blog knows I love my supplements. With that being said, inositol is one of my absolute favorites. It is well known for reducing cravings and balancing blood sugar. Inositol is also known for supporting a healthy mood and promoting healthy ovarian function. Just be sure to work with an integrative physician and go slow. Too much of a good thing isn’t always a good thing.

The Sugar-Free Diet

And finally, the no sugar diet. I dreaded doing this but it was exactly what my body needed to get me completely past my cravings. Funny thing is, it only took a few days of a sugar-free, low-carb diet to get completely past the sugar cravings. I’m not going to lie, the first few days were tough but well worth it in the end.

Having the right supplements in place before you attempt a sugar-free low-carb diet can helpful. Over the past few months, I have led more than 200 women through the Whole30, a diet eliminating sugar, and saw first hand that the women who took the recommended supplements from the book The Whole30 The 30 Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom (which include probiotics and magnesium) had the easiest time slaying their sugar dragons, felt the best, and were able to successfully complete the 30 days!

I wish you the best and know you can eliminate your sugar cravings. After all, if this former candy stealing, diet soda slurping, candyaholic can do it, you can too!

Cheers,

Tanya

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A while ago I was frustrated and telling a very fit friend of mine about how I had successfully lost 35 pounds and had been thrilled with the results until the scale just stuck. For some reason, I just couldn’t push past the plateau. I was expecting sympathy, instead, my friend whimsically asked me if I was eating enough protein and then quickly changed the subject.

Was I eating enough protein to lose weight…

Hours later, I sat down with My Fitness Pal app and Google determined to look further into my current protein intake and what I needed to do next. I found The Institute of Medicine recommends that the average woman, ages 19-70, consume 46 grams of protein per day. A Popsugar article suggested I eat substantially more. I reached out to a few personal trainer friends who suggested I eat even more protein and shoot for 80-90 grams a day.

Since I L-O-V-E meat, I was surprised to find I was averaging around 30 grams of protein a day. No wonder I was “hangry” most of the time, not building muscle tone at a rate I thought I should, and the scale had hit a plateau!

Meet the King of Nutrients for Weight Loss

One of my google searches declared protein as the king of nutrients when it comes to fat loss and a better-looking body. If it’s possible, this blog from Healthline was even more complimentary to my future best pal, protein. Healthline reported protein boosts metabolism, reduces appetite, and improves weight-regulating hormones.

I quickly went to work on researching ways to consume more protein in a day and decided to start with breakfast. Since I am highly intolerant to eggs, my breakfast options are somewhat limited, so I found a shake and paired it with several other healthy protein-rich ingredients.

And then I Packed 55 Grams of Protein into Breakfast

Spinach (one cup) – Love starting my day with a leafy green vegetable and this one offers about 1 gram of protein.

Avocado (1/2 an avocado) – Great for healthy fat and has 2 grams of protein.

JJVirgin Paleo Inspired Shake (two scoops) – In case you haven’t heard me say it before I absolutely love this gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, flavor-full plant-based mix with 22 grams of protein. (order here)

Primal Kitchen Collagen Fuel (one scoop) – Got to love a great source of protein that is also great for your skin, nails, joints, bones, and muscle mass especially when it has 11 grams of protein. (order here)

Silk Protein Milk (one cup)– This dairy-free soy-free milk has 10 grams of protein.

Imagine Bone Broth (one cup) – When I first read about putting bone broth in smoothies, I didn’t think it sounded very good. I quickly found out that it brings out the flavors in the other ingredients, adds a ton of gut healing goodness and 9 grams of protein.

Wow! Not sure if you were adding the protein grams up while you read, but I was able to pack 55 grams of protein into breakfast. What a way to start the day off!

Gluten - Free, Dairy Free Protein Shake with 55 Grams of Protein

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Protein Shake with 55 Grams of Protein

Is protein the magical ingredient to any diet or weight loss program?

Since I am still working on my own weight loss, I don’t feel 100% qualified to answer that question. I can tell you eating more protein on a daily basis has had some fantastic advantages:

Made Dieting More Fun – Did you just read that? Yes, I said it – Fun and dieting in the same sentence. Eating more protein has helped to lessen my appetite and provide satiety which has made dieting SO much more enjoyable.

Made More Muscle and Less Puff – Within days of eating more protein I noticed I was less puffy and firmer all around. I may have even noticed a new muscle or two!

Fewer Cravings – Protein helps to maintain blood sugar levels which means insulin release is better controlled. I wrote about this in How I Eliminated My Sugar Cravings and You Can Too! I have officially sleighed my sugar dragon and sweet tooth and know protein was a big help.

So, if you have been dieting for some time and have hit a plateau, feel “hangry” much too often, have sweet cravings, or would like to build some lean muscle and lose some puff, you may want to eat more protein. If you love delicious chocolate shakes, you’ll love my recipe!

Cheers!