sweets

In article <[email hidden]>,

Ronda said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.
So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach cramps.
I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet cravings
will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

ronda

Just do it. The level of sweetness in processed junk foods is so
concentrated, so unnaturally strong, that it's almost like a drug for some
people. We get so acclimated to overly sweet foods that real, natural
foods start to taste bland in comparison. If you cut out the sweets, after
a while the flavors in other foods will start to stand out more, and your
former favorites might even become _too_ sweet. This doesn't just work
with sugar. A similar thing happened to me when I did not eat salty food
for 3 months. After that 3 months, the first time I had a fast food french
fry (something I used to even add salt to!) it was so salty it hurt my
mouth and I couldn't eat it. After being on low-carb for a while,
bellpeppers, onions, and carrots started to taste sweet to me, and the
first time I had a bite of corn it tasted like candy.

--
Michelle Levin
http://www.mindspring.com/~lunachick

I have only 3 flaws. My first flaw is thinking that I only have 3 flaws.

Ronda said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.

stay fat, then. it'll be easier.

You don't have the mental capacity to give low carb any chance of success.

--
You take stupid to a new level. -- MFW

"Ronda" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and
candy. So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach
cramps. I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet
cravings will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

ronda

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.

Then you're not ready.
LCing since 12/01/03-
Me- 5'7" 265/159/140
& hubby- 6' 310/188/180
http://f2.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/lcer09/my_photos

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.
So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach cramps.
I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet cravings
will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

Hi Ronda, welcome to the group!

You might want to avoid any sweeteners ending in "tol". These are sugar alcohols
that often cause digestive upset with many people. Splenda is a good sweetener
that is usually very well-tolerated. If you find that you like it, you can order
Sweetzfree (a liquid, 0-carb sweetener) from http://www.sweetzfree.com to cut
back even more on carbs.

The first couple of days can be hard while breaking cravings, but after that, you
will be ASTOUNDED at the sudden drop-off of cravings for sweets and other carbs.
Really, if you've been a slave to carbs in the past, it will seem like a MIRACLE!
You can manage without sweets, etc., for 2.5 days, right? After a couple of
weeks (assuming Atkins), you can even add some fruit back in. In the meantime,
you can make a dessert from cream cheese, Splenda and cocoa powder that's tasty
(just don't go overboard on it). You can also have some sugar-free Jello with
whipped cream (if Aspartame (aka NutraSweet/Equal) is a problem for you, you can
make your own with gelatine, water, sweetener and unsweetened Kool-Aid (Google
this group for recipes).

Make sure you drink plenty of water and take a multi-vitamin. Also, make sure
you are getting most of your allotted carbs from veggies. You don't say which
plan you are going to be on, but if it's Atkins, you are allotted 20 carbs/day
during Induction -- don't skimp thinking it will be more effective -- not only
would that NOT make a difference, it could HINDER your progress, so go for the
20.

Once you make the decision to do it, then DO IT. If possible, get rid of ALL the
high-carb foods you have in the house so that they are not around to tempt you --
besides, you'll need more space to store the GOOD foods. If you stumble, pick
yourself up and start over again rather than using it as an excuse to binge. I
post helpful low-carb tips every Sunday. Just Google for "Saffire" in this group
and you'll see the posts.

There are a lot of helpful, supportive and inspirational posters here -- there
are also a few [censored] (as with ANY newsgroup). It doesn't take long to tell
the difference, so just filter out the [censored], blowhards or consistently
annoying posters. Ignore JC der Koenig -- he'll be along to lamely insult you
and try to break your spirit any second now if he hasn't already.

--
Saffire
205/147/125 - 5'1.5"
Atkins since 6/14/03
Progress photo: http://photos.yahoo.com/saffire333

"Ronda" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and

candy.

Quoted message said:

So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach

cramps.

Quoted message said:

I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet cravings
will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

Listen to Saffire. You can pretty much ignore the negative comments from the
usual local idiots. It's hard to believe, but after a week or two your
desire for sweet stuff will be about nil. Those things are very addictive,
but if you tough it out for two weeks you can break the addiction. It's
amazing how it works.

As for the sweeteners, you don't specify which ones you have tried. The
symptoms you describe are typical of sugar alcohols (common in many low-carb
products and diabetic no-sugar products), much less common with the
non-nutritive sweeteners such as aspartame (Nutrasweet), sucralose
(Splenda), etc. You should try the various non-nutritive sweeteners one at a
time and see if they give you symptoms. Try stevia extract, too, as it can
be handy for certain uses, particularly drinks.

Above all, do get hold of one of the good low-carb diet books, such as
Atkins, and read it. There is also a large amount of information available
on the http://www.atkins.com website, all free. The more you learn about
this way of eating the more apt you will be to be successful at using it to
improve your health and lose weight.

HG

Thanks for good sense as usual, Hannah. Just a little to add.

An exception in the 'ol's is 'glycerol', also called 'glycerine'. It's not
really an 'ol', for reasons too technical for me, but it may work for you
if the other 'ol's don't. It's a plant product, not a synthetic. It also
has a special property of not raising blood glucose when you eat it, as
it's already in a form that can go straight into storage. So it can't set
off an insulin / hypoglycemic reaction (which can cause hunger and other
bad effects). It will probably eventually release some carbs, but slower
than ordinary sweeteners. It's sometimes recommended for helping people get
through the 'sugar cravings' stage when they low-carb for hypoglycemia.
It's often sold with the cosmetics in a health food store or pharmacy, and
very cheap.

Another supplement that sometimes helps with sugar cravings is glutamine.
It's cheaper in bulk than in capsules.

Re stevia, there's quite a difference between the processed powder and the
natural dried leaf. I don't like the powder but do like the leaf. Soaking
the leaf in water makes a liquid sweetener if you want one. I just crumble
the leaf fine and sprinkle it into things.

I also found that once I gave up most desserts, suddenly other foods
started tasting very sweet: raw carrots, 'sugar snap peas', coconut milk,
regular milk, cream.... Spices like cinnamon and cardamom make a good
'candy' with nut butters or cream cheese etc.

Good luck,
Skinny

http://www.lowcarb.ca/tips/tips010.html
balanced article on sugar alcohols

http://www.mendosa.com/netcarbs.htm
Dr. Atkins and the vendors of low-carb products are correct that not only
fiber but also glycerin and polydextrose have little or no effect on blood
glucose. The story with sugar alcohols, however, is different. One of the
most commonly used sugar alcohols, maltitol and its syrups, does have a
considerable effect on blood glucose. Two sugar alcohols, erythritol and
mannitol, have no effect, and four others have some effect.

Calorie comparison

4.3 calories per gram glycerol/glycerine
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=calories+per+gram+of+glycerine&btnG=Search

4.0 calories per gram white sugar
http://www.google.com/search?q=calories+per+gram+of+white+sugar&sourceid=opera&num=0&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

3.0 calories per gram hydrogenated starch hydrolysates
2.6 calories per gram sorbitol
2.4 calories per gram xylitol
2.1 calories per gram maltitol
2.0 calories per gram isomalt
2.0 calories per gram lactitol
1.6 calories per gram mannitol
0.2 calories per gram erythritol
http://www.psha-inc.com/guai-support/sf/FAQ-HypoglycemiaAndLow-carbDieting.htms

Glycemic Load (ie, effect on BG level soon after eating)

18 for Honey (Canada)[GR]
11 for Maltose[GR]
10 for Glucose/Dextrose/normal sugar[GR]
7 for 99% Malitol product[GR]
5 for Lactose[GR]
2 for Fructose[GR]
1 for Xylitol[GR]

0 for Glycerol/Gylcerine[M]
0 for Polydextrose[M]

Sources:
[GR] GI /GL tables in THE NEW GLUCOSE REVOLUTION, p. 319
[M] http://www.mendosa.com/netcarbs.htm

Hannah Gruen said:

"Ronda" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and

candy.

Quoted message said:

So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach

cramps.

Quoted message said:

I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet

cravings

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

Listen to Saffire. You can pretty much ignore the negative comments from

the

Quoted message said:

usual local idiots. It's hard to believe, but after a week or two your
desire for sweet stuff will be about nil. Those things are very

addictive,

Quoted message said:

but if you tough it out for two weeks you can break the addiction. It's
amazing how it works.

As for the sweeteners, you don't specify which ones you have tried. The
symptoms you describe are typical of sugar alcohols (common in many

low-carb

Quoted message said:

products and diabetic no-sugar products), much less common with the
non-nutritive sweeteners such as aspartame (Nutrasweet), sucralose
(Splenda), etc. You should try the various non-nutritive sweeteners one

at a

Quoted message said:

time and see if they give you symptoms. Try stevia extract, too, as it

can

Quoted message said:

be handy for certain uses, particularly drinks.

Above all, do get hold of one of the good low-carb diet books, such as
Atkins, and read it. There is also a large amount of information

available

Quoted message said:

on the http://www.atkins.com website, all free. The more you learn about
this way of eating the more apt you will be to be successful at using it

to

Quoted message said:

improve your health and lose weight.

HG

Ronda said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.
So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach cramps.
I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet cravings
will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

If you aren't committed to succeeding, you *will* fail.

If you can't give up those things that are making you overweight, you
can hardly expect to lose weight. There are no magic fixes. If you get
diarrhea from the various substitutes then you are consuming too much of
them.

Getting fit does not mean finding substitutes for everything negative in
your life and continuing as normal, it means making an effort, showing
self-control and imposing limits on your indulgences. You are probably
wasting your time if you are not starting with the determination to
avoid the foods that are a causing your problems.

Regards

David

--

To email me, please include the letters DNF anywhere in the subject line.

All other mail is automatically deleted.

LCer09 said:

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop
and candy.

Then you're not ready.

I disagree. It's not required that you believe it will work, only that
you're willing to honestly do it right and give it your best shot without
cheating. When I started Atkins 3 years ago I didn't believe it would work
at all. I didn't think I could ever lose my taste for bread or candy. But I
followed induction to the letter and I was more than pleasantly surprised.

Now if I could just commit to exercise the way I commit to eating I'd be all
set.

Ronda said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and
candy. So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and
stomach cramps. I can't believe that if I can get past the initial
stage my sweet cravings will be nil. Any suggestions before I take
the dive??

ronda

My suggestion is to not go into it trying to find substitutes for your
trigger foods. Save the artificially sweetened snacks and stuff for later
on. You may even find you've lost your taste for them. Stick to eggs, meats,
fats, and low carb veggies and fruits and you'll be amazed.

Ronda said:

I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.

sweeteners - try splenda and erythritol. People tend to have good (or
no) reactions to those.

sweets - make your own with the above. There's a recipe for cream
cheese ice cream out there that's almost to rich even for me, and
Myra's cheesecake is popular.

chocolate - there's a recipe for that too.

pop - waist watcher's uses splenda, everyone here that's tried it
likes it.

candy - either make your own, or substitute nuts if you can.
Sometimes, it's not the content, but the packaging, that you're
addicted to. Avoid candies with maltitol, some have erythritol which
should be safe.

Splenda

"Ignoramus25550" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ronda said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and

candy.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach

cramps.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet

cravings

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

I gave up all sweeteners 1.5 years ago, do not miss them, and am
enjoying slim life to the fullest. Just one data point.

My suggestion is that it is much easier (at least for me) to never eat
them than to waffle and consider them a "forbidden treat" etc. Much
simplier from a mental sanity standpoint, rather than
schizophrenically consider them "bad food" and "reward" or "treat" at
the same time.

--
223/172.9/180

I think once a person is in a good place, mentally and physically - you
shouldn't look at those foods as forbidden or as reward. Both are extreme
views. Sweets & junk food are something that should be very limited, if
consumed at all. If you just can't tolerate them, then they should just be
avoided. If you can tolerate them occasionally -fine. But it isn't a
"reward".

You have obviously done very well on LC and have found what works for you,
that's great. For myself I have found that as long as I don't have tempting
stuff in the house - even LC cheesecake ( LOL ) I can do well and very
occasionally go off plan for an ice cream sunday with the family and only
stall a little. I usually only do this trick at that certain TOM anyway, and
have only done it 2 or 3 times!! The craving don't return for me at this
point. Also i have found I don't have the gusto for eating the sweets or
junk food that I did in the past so I don't go nuts. I can also tolerate an
ice cream sunday better than a pasta meal at this point. Strange.

JoAnna
176/146/120

"Ronda" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.
So far any artificial sweeteners I try give me diarrhea and stomach cramps.
I can't believe that if I can get past the initial stage my sweet cravings
will be nil. Any suggestions before I take the dive??

ronda

Yep, make this your mantra:
MEAT NOT SWEETS

Got that?

It worked for me. This was something I discovered just in the first
week of my own low-carbing, and it works for me even now when I have
to go back to LC after being off plan.

Whenever you get a craving for sweets, stuff a small amount of
something with protein and fat in your mouth instead. A lot of people
frown upon processed meats, but dry salami works for me (whereas
things like chicken, turkey, etc don't).

It does work. And if you're starting Atkins, *do* follow the "high
fat" aspect of Induction; don't be squeamish. Eating higher fat in the
beginning really does help and will "get you over the hump".

Replace the sweets with something your body will get nutrients from,
not with another "trigger food". Eventually, your craving receptors
will rewire themselves.

Don't eat anything that even "resembles" your trigger foods,
regardless of what's in it, even if it's Low Carb, until you've been
underway with LC for a while.

You could also replace the sweets with a "behavior" if you think that
your craving is in part psychological. Sometimes when it's p
sychological, what you're craving is a certain type of sensory
stimulation. Go for a walk outside, for instance, when the weather's
nice. I keep brightly colored shiny things, luscious colored velvet
scraps, scrapbooks with pictures, cards, etc in bright colors, that
I've collected... I call the books my "eye food".

And no sweetmeats. LOL

--
Cheri

Quoted message said:

Yep, make this your mantra:
MEAT NOT SWEETS

Quoted message said:

LCer09 said:

Quoted message said:

Okay, I'm about ready to take the LC plunge. I have been reading and
studying, I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop
and candy.

Then you're not ready.

I disagree. It's not required that you believe it will work, only that
you're willing to honestly do it right and give it your best shot without
cheating.

If you aren't ready to give up all that junk, you're not ready to honestly do
it right and give it your best shot.

LCing since 12/01/03-
Me- 5'7" 265/159/140
& hubby- 6' 310/188/180
http://f2.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/lcer09/my_photos

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I don't know if I can give up my sweets, chocolate, pop and candy.

sweeteners - try splenda and erythritol. People tend to have good (or
no) reactions to those.

sweets - make your own with the above. There's a recipe for cream
cheese ice cream out there that's almost to rich even for me, and
Myra's cheesecake is popular.

chocolate - there's a recipe for that too.

pop - waist watcher's uses splenda, everyone here that's tried it
likes it.

candy - either make your own, or substitute nuts if you can.
Sometimes, it's not the content, but the packaging, that you're
addicted to. Avoid candies with maltitol, some have erythritol which
should be safe.

Oh good lord! I *never* would have been successful if I had started Atkins
while simultaneously plotting ways to somehow get away with eating the [censored]
that made me fat in the first place. This really works for some people?

LCing since 12/01/03-
Me- 5'7" 265/159/140
& hubby- 6' 310/188/180
http://f2.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/lcer09/my_photos

(LCer09) said:

Oh good lord! I *never* would have been successful if I had started Atkins
while simultaneously plotting ways to somehow get away with eating the [censored]
that made me fat in the first place. This really works for some people?

If it's a choice between finding substitutes and NOT DIETING, which is
better?

Besides, some folks eat habitually, and if they can replace trigger
foods with non-trigger foods for those habits, all the better.

And who knows, maybe after a week or two the OP just won't be hungry
any more, and won't need the sweets!

(LCer09) said:

If you aren't ready to give up all that junk, you're not ready to
honestly do it right and give it your best shot.

Unless you're like my wife, who's LCing because she *has* to, not
because she *wants* to, and so substitutes are part of maintaining a
"quality of life" on a diet she's stuck with forever.