Kill Your Sugar Cravings with these 11 tips in 2020 and begin the journey to Healthier You.

When you’re trying to get FIT and HEALTHY one of your biggest challenges to do this will be:

Pardon my French here, eating low value nutrition foods aka “CRAP” loaded with sugars, high fat, salt, highly processed pretty packaged foods.

So what can we do to stay healthy?

This can be really hard, especially when you are juggling work, home, short lunch break. It is easy to just go to the supermarket aisle and pick the wrong stuff. It does not make it easy to know what to choose, as often packaging can be misleading, advertising is aimed to get into your emotional state, feelings. The sugar loaded foods take prime spots in the supermarket, easy to be reached and picked. Frankly a psychological warfare.

Maybe you just got that negative comment from your boss or spouse after all day hard work, and it does not feel fair?

Am I right?

All you want to do is feel better…

I’ve been there. So one of the easiest things to do, you reach for  a chocolate, ice cream, any other comfort foods, but this is short lived. Sugar does raise your serotonin levels and this hormone gives you that “feel good” factor but it also raises your dopamine levels and too much of it is linked to obesity, addiction,  mental health conditions such as anxiety, schizophrenia. Excess sugar will also disregulate your body  blood sugar levels putting you at risk of developing diabetis. Sugar depleats your body from nutrients, as it carbs your appetite, your gut becomes affected as sugar stimulates overgrowth of yeast. Meanwhile the feelings are still berried in you and your progress just got stalled by sugar, which frankly is not good for you.  If you keep regularly reaching out for sugars, you add inches into your waist, your self esteem and confidence level can affect you in so many ways.

Well…

What if I told you there is something you can do every day that can help you and it does not cost you a subscription in the gym, sign up  for a diet plan?
Remember me saying earlier that advertisers are reaching out to your feelings, creating psychological warfare to get you reach for that chocolate bar, pavlova, ice cream, that ready meal? Let’s reverse and use their weapon on ourselves.

1. Advertise in your MIND all the good foods and how these help you to get healthier and fitter. Visualise how you gaining that vital energy, feeling happy and healthy at the same time whist you reaching out for your fresh fruit and veg. When we make strong association that certain foods are not good for us, our brain starts to believe in this. The primary role of your brain is to keep you safe, so you won’t get hurt, that’s why you want to work on your mindset and amplify the association of healthy nutritious foods versus packaged pretty pictures, sugar loaded waffles.

2. Good foods give you “ENERGY” to tackle the day with ease… boosting your immunity, helping to get rid of toxins and inflammation that’s weighing you down.
Good foods puts your body into a “REPAIRING” state helping your body to repair at a cellular level and optimise the nutritional uptake from what you put into your mouth, delivering the much needed nutrients and keeping you happier and healthier.

3. Keep it simple, drink water infused with fresh ingredients rather than sugary fizz. Did you see the experiment what happens to a coin when submerged into cola for extended period of time? Well imagine this is your stomach we are talking about. How do you feel about it now? You are paying for your body to work harder to process all that sugar or other diet free stuff. Reach out for your orange and some mint. Infuse it in water and add some soda water for bubbles if you like.

4. Create a simple breakfast, lunch , dinner and snack menu for the week first. Only once you created your menu head to the shop and stick to your list. Only buy and make a shopping list of ingredients that will support you to fullfil that menu.

5. Learn to and apply strategies to “DEAL” with occasional stressors and cravings. Build some breathing excercises to your routine. Distract your body with excercise, which will help you combat stress and loose some inches. If you are overtired the body will create a craving for a quick energy source, to counteract exhaustion. Instead of having a sweet, get plenty of sleep and move your body as it’s proven by research that excercise boosts energy and diminishes your chances of needing  to reach for quick sweet fix. After all, you are reaching for that chocolate bar either out of habbit or you were triggered by unpleasant event.

6. Learn to recognise these moments and “REPLACE” the old habits that do not serve you with the new ones, healthier ones. You will be significantly better off.
This will help you make healthier choices, and over time if you practice, you can do this all day long with ease. Reward yourself having self care, me down time with an amazing mocktail and a juicy berry parlour.

7. Treat your plate as a rainbow. The more colourful the plate, choosing the veriety of salads, veg, meats for example salmon beautiful orange tint, beef dark red, duck, tofu, and so on, the more likely you are eating healthy. Use herbs in abundance and spices that will make your food taste diliscious. Herbs are packed with nutrients.

8. Make your own salad dressing, it is simple to do and you are in control what you add to it.

9. Have one binge day a week if you fell you to have a day for naughty foods. This is a “Non Negotiable.” Once you choose that day, stick to it. You may notice that whilst your awareness of what and how you eat increases, even on your binge day you start making healthier choices of what to eat.

10. Request your mineral and vitamin levels check with your GP. Research indicates that low vitamin D impacts on appropriate functioning of insulin which is responsible for keeping our blood sugar levels in check.  Low levels of vitamin A are also linked to diabetes. Magnesium and chromium is involved in converting  glucose into energy, regulation of  insulin and dopamine. A deficiency in magnesium can show as  intense sugar craving. Zinc is also needed  for insulin and glucose usage. Lack of iodine can contribute to weight gain. Increase your protein intake to carb sugar cravings. Have naturally sweet veg such as carrots, bell peppers, fruits instead of processed sugar. I lost 10kg  over time whilst being pregnant just by cutting out processed sugar without following a diet, by actively choosing nutrient rich foods. Foods high in protein are also high in glutamine, an amino acid that  is a building block of  healthy functioning gut, immune system, help us to recover from illness.

11.  Keep a journal of what you eat. This will help you to review progress you are making. When you write things down, you can see it black and white with CLARITY where you are and you can begin to write action points what you need to do next and  how are you going to get there.

Hope with these few simple tips you’re ready to maintain good health.
Alicja x

Do you agree? Share your thoughts in the comments below!