New to the Community

[lad61]

Hi.. glad to be joining up with others who have similar concerns and goals. I’m 56 now and struggling horribly with my weight. This is the heaviest I’ve ever been! My downfall is sweets. I’ll work my shift and eat pretty good but as soon as I get home seems like the stress from my day comes down on me and I have to have sweets. I must say I’ve made it this past week without drinking a coke! So looking forward to any advice I can get! Blessings

[Zest]

Hi lad61 ,

Welcome to the Healthy eating community. Well done for making it through the week and not drinking a coke - that's a positive and healthy change.

Have a look at the NHS Choices website for some Healthy eating ideas - this forum is linked to that website and a link is here:

nhs.uk/livewell/healthy-eat...

If you want more support on the weight loss side of things, I would recommend also joining the NHS weight loss forum (which is also on Health Unlocked).

Have a look at our Topics posts too - there are some nice recipes and meal ideas there.

Hope to see you around and about in the forum.

Wishing you a great weekend.

Zest

[Hidden]

Hi lad61,

I think Zest has given you some good advice with links, so I'd like to give you something to think about please.

When you finish your shift whats your trigger for sweets? is it relief at being at home, as in an ideal world we'd leave the stress behind when we hang our coats up. So do something that distracts you from your cravings, something simple like singing to yourself.

You could have a brisk walk around the block to breath in some fresh air if you drive home and instead of sweets buy bags of grapes these will satisfy your sugar urge and are healthy and you know all the cliches about why you should stop eating sweets so tell yourself 'In 3 months time I'll be glad that I did" And switch from coke to tea/coffee without sugar or freshly squeezed juice.

So be nice to yourself as beating yourself up over it will make you crave even more and you have to realise that you are deluding yourself about sweets as in reality they are your tormentor...your nemesis.

Another thing worth considering is buying some aerobic weights and when you're watching tv do some varied arm exercises, you will still be able to watch the telly and you will be make your heart work a little harder and tone your muscles up. And believe in your self as you can achieve your goal as the only person stopping you...is you.

Thats my 2p's worth and good luck and there's lots of healthy eating tips on here for some reason LOL.

Jerry 😊

[BadHare]

Sugar cravings are often a sign of magnesium deficiency. Perhaps try taking chelated magnesium at bedtime on an empty stomach with water only, or using a transdermal magnesium spray after your shower. A long soak in an epsom salt bath (500g for at least 20 minutes) is another good way to get magnesium, destress & relax. You should notice the cravings drop off after a few weeks, & you'll feel less stressed as it benefits good sleep & our nervous system. Try to avoid stimulants in the evening which will reduce your sleep quality & make you feel worse. Coke has more caffeine on than coffee. I avoid coffee after lunchtime as it disrupts my sleep which increases stress levels.

Sugar & coke are toxic to our good gut bacteria, & provide a the environment for bad bacteria to grow instead. Bad bacteria want feeding more junk, which causes cravings. Eating sweets & sugary food causes a sugar spike, rapidly followed by a crash, leaving you wanting more. Try swapping your evening snacks for low GI foods that will provide you with beneficial nutrition such as full fat yoghurt for probiotic good bacteria, protein & calcium, & eat this with nuts & seeds for protein, healthy oils & fibre. These foods are low GI & will help you feel full for longer as they are slower to digest. If you must have something sugary, opt for whole fruit which has the benefit of vitamin C & fibre, so causes a lower sugar spike than juice. I like medjool dates as they're as sweet & chewy as toffee, but are high in magnesium & fibre, so they're a low GI food. Dark chocolate with >70% cocoa is another healthy swap. I eat about 75-100g bar (1-2 squares a day) over the course of a week for the health benefits as well as the taste.

Whatever you do, please don't swap to artificial sweeteners as these are more toxic to our bodies than sugar & sugary coke, & another cause of bad gut bacteria.