Ever run into a person who drinks coffee all day long? Maybe they cap the afternoon off with a 5-hour energy drink on top of it!
You get energy.
But it’s like using a short-term solution repeatedly to get the energy you want. First you need one. Then another. And another. And another. And another…
Eventually, when you stop sugaring yourself up, you crash.
And crashes suck!
So you’ve made the decision to curb your sugar intake. Don’t go to the opposite extreme and flee from every kind of sugar imaginable.
You’ll only make yourself miserable. And eventually you’ll cave in and consume as much sugar as you can again.
Some sugar is okay. But if you live on the stuff, you’re overdoing it. You get restless and irritable without it. You have high energy bursts and times where you feel like a slug. Not the most pleasant way to live.
If you’ve tried and failed to reduce your sugar intake before, then consider using these tips to make a long-lasting change:
- Add More Protein and Fruit to Your Diet
Fruit has sugar. Protein keeps you full. Combine the two, and you have a perfect recipe for curbing your cravings from even happening.
This may not eliminate them all. But it could make your life after sugar much easier.
You can eat protein-rich foods like peanut butter, cottage cheese, milk, any kind of meat, nuts, and many other foods. You could also eat protein shakes with a side of fruit too.
Eating food without processed simple sugar doesn’t have to be a miserable nightmare. - Do Things That Naturally Boost Your Happiness
Serotonin, the hormone that naturally makes you feel happy, can be raised through a variety of activities. When you raise your serotonin, you have fewer sugar cravings.
Diet, exercise, vitamin B6, massages, getting sun, and taking time to just relax and destress all increase your serotonin levels naturally. - Simply Don’t Keep Sugary Foods Available
If you like coffee or cookies, and you have a coffee maker along with all the ingredients, and you also have a cookie jar full of cookies, you’ll cave in eventually.
If others in your household don’t want to conform to this sugar-reduced diet, keep those things out of sight. Have someone else hide them. When things are out of sight, you forget about them.
Of course, the ideal is not even having them in the first place. The harder it is to get sugary foods, the less likely you are to eat them. Have your spouse hold onto your credit cards and cash for a while if you need to.
Curbing Your Sugar Intake Isn’t Easy
Look, we can give you all the tips in the world for reducing sugar cravings. But if you’ve been eating sugar like a maniac for years, your body’s going to react with more cravings initially.
The shock of not having sugar sends your body for a loop. The first 48 – 72 hours can be tough.
But when you learn you can get all the energy you need from vegetables and an all-round healthy diet, without the devastating crash afterwards, you’ll find you’re glad you no longer crave sugar.