5 Fave Ways to Kill Carb Cravings & Kick Sugar Addiction

Cause of Cravings
Carbohydrate cravings can result from a complex myriad of causes, many of which are inextricably linked. In short, cravings are a result of imbalance(s) in the mind and/or body. Emotional, hormonal (it’s that time of the month), not enough sleep/leptin resistance, low levels of serotonin and/or endorphins) and/or gut bacteria imbalances.
​
This is why the solutions are not as simple as just removing sugar and processed food from your diet. And when it comes to overcoming our addiction to sugar or most things for that matter, it is not about willpower. It’s equal parts correcting the underlying imbalances and changing our behavioral patterns. One, without the other, will not create sustainable change.
​
Check out my recommendations below for a quick fix for carb cravings, then explore the five steps and other tips for kicking the addiction to sugar. Explore more by clicking on the  pink links.

Quick Tricks for Killing Carb Cravings  
These are my latest, fav go-to solutions for nipping a craving in the moment:

-Drink 1 packet or 1 tsp. of CALM magnesium in 12 oz filtered water. Take 500 mg 2 x a day ongoing for optimal health. 

-Take 1 tsp of Glutamine or open 2 capsules under the tongue.  I can't overstate the role magnesium and glutamine play in my MBR program protocols. Take the time to click on the links to learn more and for my specific Glutamine dosage recommendations. 

-Peppermint Essential Oil - place 2-3 drops on the tongue 

Eat a low-carb+protein+fat snack: 8 sprouted almonds or walnuts or a package of Justin’s Regular Almond Butter (keep those in your bag at all times for emergencies), a whole avocado with sea salt (the ultimate perfect snack protein/carb/healthy fat-wise) 1 tsp crunchy sunflower butter (similar to peanut butter but MUCH healthier).

---

Sugar is a Toxic Drug. It is 8 x more addictive than cocaine. 

“Eating sugary foods, and even salt (hello chips!), (study) increases the production of endorphins in our bodies. Endorphins are basically opiates that make us feel relaxed. And when we eat carbs, our bodies makes more serotonin, the feel-good hormone. So when we eat these foods and experience this feeling, we want more—similar to the way drug users get addicted to narcotics. In fact, a recent study shows that sugar can actually have a more intense feeling of reward than cocaine (study).” - Kris Karr
 
Your body can burn sugar for energy...or it can burn fat for energy. Which would you rather?  It’s a no-brainer, right?  Make the below five changes and your body will begin to burn fat more efficiently, you’ll lose excess weight, have more physical and mental energy, and your mood(s) will stabilize.

My Fav Tried and Tested Solutions for Kicking A Sugar Addiction
Here's how to make the process a wee less painful:) ​​

1) Ditch Sugar for Stevia or even better, Monk Fruit Sweetener

• Rip the sugar band aid off fast: Take ALL processed food and all sugars out at the same time. Replace with the below food reco's. Be ready to feel not-so-great the first two days but hang in there! Easiest way to rip the band aid off is to do  a 3-5 Day Chef V or other mostly liquid healthy protocol/cleanse which has yummy shakes, green drinks and delish soups and is delivered to your door. 

 

• Don’t ditch your coffee. But do make it bulletproof. If you drink coffee, keep your ONE coffee in the AM throughout the week. This is not the time to detox from that as well:)​

 

• Avoid Alcohol: At least for the first seven days. It helps to cut out alcohol the first week you’re trying to ditch sugar. Alcohol interferes with sleep and we need our Zzz’s.  Alcohol can cause a spike and then a drop in blood sugar, which leads to more cravings and weakens even the strongest resolves.

 

• Keep total intake of sugar below 25 grams per day. If you limit your fruits to those lowest in carbs and highest in nutrients: avocados (healthiest snack food ever!) ginger and lemon (use lots in your green juices) you'll find it almost effortless to keep that gram and carb count down.   

 

• Ask for help if you need it. My Mind Body RE BOOT is one way to guarantee your success. ​

---

2) Hydrate

Hydration is the Mind Body RE BOOT Program's third Healthy Habit.  Your muscles, joints and organs, (including your brain), cannot function optimally without it.  Your overall hydration can be tricky; even the healthiest people I know do not get enough fluids resulting in backaches, moodiness, sluggishness, late afternoon and other unnecessary cravings.

Proper hydration is not just about having enough fluids, it’s about having the right mineral balance. And many of us are magnesium deficient. See my suggestions below for best ways to hydrate and remember this rule of thumb:  You need to drink approximately one-half your body-weight (lbs) in ounces each day.  
​
Best ways to hydrate:

• Make your AM coffee or tea sustainable high energy by adding one tablespoon of MCT or Coconut Oil.  Avoid caffeine after 11:00 a.m.
• Sip my fave healthy gut beverage: Add the juice of ½ lemon + 1 tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar + 2 drops of liquid stevia to your water and sip it throughout the day.
• Add 250-500 mg CALM Magnesium to 12 oz water 2 x day.
• Replace your afternoon chocolate my tasty tonic: Add 2-3 drops of Peppermint Essential Oil and 2-3 drops of  Dark Chocolate Stevia to tea temp water.
• Consume 24 ounces of green juice/blended green drinks daily: Replace your 2nd mid morning coffee and your mid afternoon snack with the best nutrient-dense beverage: it hydrates, you get mucho more fiber, vitamins and minerals than in a salad and it keeps ya from overeating at your meals. There are SO many options when it comes to getting or making your green juices these days. Here's a blog of mine that will give you some guidance. And stay tuned, I'm coming out with my latest fav green juice selections, November 7th! Join my blog mailing list to stay current. 

---

3) Eat a Low-Carbohydrate (20-100 net carbs) Diet rich in  protein, high fiber veggies, beneficial fat and probiotic rich foods 
In short, net carbs are total carbs without fiber (the indigestible portion of plant foods). The reason to use net carbs (aka available carbohydrates) is because it is widely believed that dietary fiber doesn't affect blood sugar and our body cannot derive any calories from it. The most important factor in successful weight loss on a low-carb diet remains its appetite-suppressing effect.

Clean Proteins

Listed in order of my preference for staying healthy while being humane.

• Avocados
• Wild  salmon or mackerel. Never, ever eat farmed fish. Ever. 
• Organic free-range chicken   
• Free-range organic eggs from pasture-raised chickens
• Raw, organic cheese from grass-fed, humanely raised, happier cows
• Grass-fed beef from humanely raised cows

---

Fiber From Green Things and Sprouted Nuts
35-40 Grams Per Day
Start consuming more high-fiber foods, 
Fiber helps you stay fuller longer. It also supports detoxification by helping waste move through the body. And it can also reduce candida symptoms in your body. Candida is a major cause of sugar cravings.

Just a few of my highest fiber favs. 
​

• Avocados - Perfect little food: healthy fat, protein, fiber, low carb...
• Sprouted almonds/walnuts
• Artichokes
• Okra
• Acorn squash
• Brussels sprouts
• ​Peas

---

Get  Your Healthy Fats In
 

• Oils: Coconut Oil, Olive Oil, Grass-fed butter. When you're eating a low carb diet, quantities are not as important. But stick to 3-5 tablespoons a day . 
• Avocados: Yea, again! Snack on avocados with sea salt and lemon, or add them to your salads or your shakes.
• Sunflower Crunchy Nut Butter 1 teaspoon makes a great snack. to quell a sugar craving and it tastes like peanut butter but is healthier.  Or have 8 Sprouted Almonds, or Walnuts make great snacks. 

---

Add Sour or Probiotic-Rich Foods to Your Day
Sour, Probiotic-rich foods like apple cider vinegar and fermented vegetables are sour because of the good bacteria found in them. They help fight off and reduce candida in your body, which helps reduce sugar cravings.

• Apple cider vinegar on salads or make above reco'd tonic
• Fermented veggies: Sauerkraut, Kimchi (LOVE Mothers)
• Brine-cured olives
• Salted gherkin pickles
• Raw cheese

---

4&5) Breathe/Practice Mindful Awareness//
Manage Stress
 
I’ve combined tips 4 and 5 because they are both forms of “meditation” and stress management. So often we reach for something unhealthy not because we truly want it but because we want to feel better emotionally right now! We’re sad, angry, frustrated, exhausted, stressed...right? And it’s a habit we’ve developed over time to just reach for something crunchy, salty or sweet...high-carb. It’s so easy because very often there’s a bowl, or a bag, of that something within reach:)

Unmanaged, or unchecked, emotions cause conflict externally or internally, and sometimes both. By internally I mean, repressing our feelings.  Not validating and dealing with our own feelings can lead to illness. Sometimes very serious illnesses. At the very least, it can lead to emotional eating.

In truth, a person or a situation does not have the power to make us feel  stressed. It’s our perception that does that.  How we choose to react to a given person, a situation...whatever it may be, can either cause conflict and more stress.  Or not.  It’s up to you. Yeah, yeah, you know...but I had to say it.

So if we don’t learn how to calm the mind and manage our emotions effectively, we will never kick the sugar addiction or achieve optimal wellbeing.

The first and easiest recommendation on this list is also the most powerful and it can be used anytime, anywhere. The others are great, too :)

Deep Breathe whenever you are feeling tired, stressed or anxious:

• Close your mouth, sit up tall, relax your shoulders
• Inhale 4-6 counts through your nose
• Exhale a full 4-6 counts
• Repeat for up to 20 minutes
• Just one round lowers the blood pressure, calms the nervous system and quiets the mind.
• Carry your fav essential oil around so you can pop the top and inhale. Orange and lavender are my fav, mood go-tos.  But peppermint, as mentioned above, is excellent for a quick lift, too.

---

Practice Mindfulness Awareness
By practicing this one, simple exercise you can change your brain, the way you react to difficult people and emotions. You can change your stress response. But you need to practice every day for 60 days to rewire the  neural pathways of your brain, and the way you habitually respond. As with physical exercise, you don’t get results from just doing it once in awhile, it’s requires real dedication and consistency for true change.  

Mindfulness Practice For Dealing with Difficult Emotions.

1. Deepen your breath to 6 count inhalations and exhalations through the nose.
2. Acknowledge the thoughts, feelings and emotions that come up and label them: anger, sadness, fear, etc. Never good or bad.
3. Avoid getting caught in the story around the emotion. Just feel it, notice where you feel it. Remember that without the story. the emotion only takes 90 seconds to run its course
4. Avoid telling yourself that you should not be having this emotion/experience.
5. Stay attentive inside the experience. Watch the emotion the way you would watch a child play, with that same kindness and curiosity.
6. Remember that you are not your emotions as you continue to practice your deep breathing.
7. Remember it is not the emotion that is the problem, it's the way we choose to react. Make some notes if possible on triggers, etc. Pat yourself on the back for not reacting.

---

Helpful Apps & Programs:
 
Nom Nom the Paleo
Keto Calculator
Keto Diet Food List-What to Eat and Avoid
Mind Body RE BOOT App and Program
Change is hard. And changing the way we eat, the way we deal with emotions and the way we manage stress are the hardest changes of all because most of us have been doing what we’re doing for a long time, right? Let me know if you want some help getting started and getting through the first and most challenge phase.