Hints and Tips on exercise and sugar binging

[Wadestreet]

I am new here. I need help in getting out there and to move such as exercise. As of right now I am finding it hard to eliminate sugar binging. I need to act on this and hopefully work on other areas. But I need help with sugar.

[Purple_faced_woman]

Hi Wadestreet,

Sugar cravings can be hard to beat. One way to beat them is to screw up all your willpower into cutting out all sugar for a week (preferably you will ditch most processed foods, too as many of them contain sugar in various guises), maybe using carrot sticks as a replacement - they are chewy/crunchy things and fairly sweet. Then after that week add in fruit as sweet treats which you will probably appreciate a lot more once you've had a week without sugar numbing your tastebuds.

Displacement activity is another useful thing. When I want something I shouldn't have I get very restless. If I go out for a walk - even just to the end of the road and back - this can be enough to distract me until the craving has passed.

The real trick is not to buy those things, not to have them lying around the house just in case you need one - if they are there, you will eat them. Walking past them causes "willpower fatigue". For me, going cold turkey works better than saying I'll have one treat a day or a week - because if they are around I will usually end up eating them all in one sitting and feel very bad about it, and then probably dive back into sugar dependency with all those "I've ruined today - I may as well eat what I want and start again tomorrow" excuses.

One of my friends recently had an epiphany - she can just throw stuff away. You could just throw away any sugary food you have in the house and replace it with healthier food or, if you can't bear to, ask a friend to hold onto it for you on the understanding you can ask for it back any time. Because you have sugary foods, you don't need to buy them, and the sheer fact that you would have to ask for it back may put the brakes on when you get that craving, making you stop and assess why you want it.

This can be a hard path to travel at first, but give it time and it will become second nature. You can do this. I have faith in you. Everyone on this site is willing you to succeed. Good luck and let us know how you are doing.

[Wadestreet in reply to Purple_faced_woman]

Thank- you for your insight and understanding. It is so nice that someone has travelled that road to recovery that they can share there journey to help me.

[Zest Healthy BMI]

Hi Wadestreet,

Welcome to the Weight Loss NHS forum. I'd recommend reading our Welcome Newbie post to find out more about what people in the forum enjoy about it, and you can find that in the Pinned posts area (right-hand-side of the homepage, or at the bottom of the screen if accessing via a mobile device).

I can see that Purple_faced_woman has given you some great suggestions regarding coping with sugar. I'd also like to give you the link to a couple of NHS Choices pages that you might find interesting as well:

nhs.uk/Livewell/Goodfood/Pa...

nhs.uk/sugar-smart/home

I hope they are both helpful to you.

Wishing you a great week.

Lowcal

[Wadestreet in reply to Zest]

thank you everybody is so nice and ready to help me. I just hope one day I will be able to help newbies.

[Wadestreet in reply to Zest]

I like the two info sites on sugar. thank-you

[Zest Healthy BMI]

On the exercise side of things, there is a great resource here which is called 'NHS Fitness Studio' so have a look at that as well:

nhs.uk/conditions/nhs-fitne...

Best wishes,

Lowcal

[Wadestreet in reply to Zest]

Hi low cal. How do I post a message for people to see. I did it the first try on my first and cannot remember how I did it for the life of me. And where do I go for weigh ins on Friday and time. thank-you. Wadestreet.

[Zest Healthy BMI in reply to Wadestreet]

Hi Wadestreet,

If you look at the top right hand side of the homepage, you'll see a green window which says 'Write a post' so you click on that, and you can do a post for people to see. You can choose different options for how you'd like your post to be - i.e. add a photo, choose a topic to categorise your post, and decide whether you wish your post to be locked (i.e. seen only in this forum) or 'unlocked' i.e. open across the entire Healthunlocked communities.

I shall pop back in a second with a link to the Monday group weigh-in - as this is open till 18 00 on Friday 11th November 2016, so you can just click on that link, and post your weigh-in result at a time convenient to you on Friday (but before 18 00 to be included in this week's stats).

Hope that makes sense.

I'll be back with the link to the weigh-in post in a second, but bear in mind the current thread is always in the Events section (below the pinned posts) for future reference.

Here is the link:

healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh....

Best,

Lowcal

[moreless Administrator 7 stone in reply to Zest]

Too slow, as usual!

[Zest Healthy BMI in reply to moreless]

lol

[moreless Administrator 7 stone in reply to Wadestreet]

If you go to the home page, Wadestreet (the one with strawberries) At the top right of your screen, in green, it says "write a post". Click on that and follow the instructions

Don't forget to lock your thread, by clicking on "only those members of my community"

The Monday Group Weigh-in thread can always be found in the Events section, to the right of the Home Page (right down at the bottom, if using a mobile phone). It will be open from 06.30 monday, to 1800 Friday

I hope that helps

[Wadestreet in reply to moreless]

Thank you very much for the information. very much appreciated.

[Wadestreet]

thank you for the reading had a quick look. It is very interesting

[MrNiceGuy]

Gradually begin reducing overall intake of simple/refined carbohydrate, phasing out consumption white varieties of rice, pasta and bread, along with cakes, sweets and pastries, in favour of wholemeal and complex varieties (such as beans, wholemeal bread, lentils and quinoa).

In addition to maintaining a daily calorie deficit alongside increasing level of activity, a measured reduction in the consumption of sugar will be far less severe. As a result, you’ll be more likely to stick to your goal.

You can still enjoy simple sugars that treats contain, just ensure that their consumption doesn’t outweigh that of complex carbohydrate.