Need to lose 2 stone - addicted to sugar

[Thecatgotmytongue]

I need to lose 2 stone and I'm definitely addicted to sugar, I eat lots of chocolate and sweets.

I've zero willpower, but really want to lose weight. I've followed a low carb diet before, but don't know if I can manage now. My weakness is comfort eating and the last year has been extremely tough.

Anyone like to join me for motivation? Maybe we can exchange recipes, ideas? Weigh in together?

I'm 12 stone 3 and would like to get down to 10 stone 7 or less. I'm 5'7 and 51 years, so age is not on my side!

[stressedandalone]

But I'm still free from refined sugar.

May kill someone later for cake ...

[KindDogsTail]

800 kcal is quite extreme though I agree The CatGotMy Tongue.
I think it could be too low too and possibly leave you hungry. Too much exercise too soon could do the same. People seem to be making very nice food with it though, that they are enjoying a lot and feeling full after eating it, so maybe you could do it with more calories or not actually count calories at all and avoid the whole diet business. Just see it as extra special, nice food.

If you read some things about the general principles and then eat enough of the even-blood-sugar promoting foods through out the day - starting, incredibly importantly, with breakfast, then not missing meals and snacks, you should be fine.

Chromium is supposed to help against sugar cravings too.
Artificial sweeteners like aspartamine may cause cravings.

[KindDogsTail]

Stress
I've just been prescribed anti depressants by my doctor as I'm very close to a breakdown Have you been offered counselling too to solve the causes of your depression?

If by any chance you have been living on sugar and carbohydrates, especially perhaps for comfort, this can physically drain your body of nutrients and lower your serotonin and lower your vitamins, brain function immune system and energy. Then it is a vicious circle with reaching for comforting foods. So eating small meals throughout the day that balance your sugar could help against your depression too.
Also B Vitamins, Vit D3, Vit B 12 if you do not eat meat, Magnesium, Zinc, Omega 3 oils getting out in day-light.

[stressedandalone]

Kind no, no offer of counselling. Was going to marriage counselling as breakdown of marriage is one of the issues, but the counsellor was expensive and didn't say or suggest anything. We tried several sessions, but all agreed we were getting nowhere. But the main problem is living every day in huge amounts of pain and being expected to hold down a job with lots of responsibility, care for disabled DD, and my parents, and the cats and H getting to come and go to suit himself and then getting depressed that I'm not the fun loving young thing he married anymore

[KindDogsTail]

no, no offer of counselling.
I am very sorry stressedandalone your life sounds so difficult.
I do think anti-depressants should never be offered without counselling.
You have every reason to be depressed and you do indeed seem to have the world on your shoulders. I wonder if you would dare go back and ask for counselling? You would probably be made to wait, but I think GPs are supposed to offer it.

I was not sure if the pain you mentioned is physical or mental, as meaning the pain of your break-up.

If you are caring for a disabled child and your parents too, is there any where to ask for help? I am not knowledgeable about this, but perhaps if you posted somewhere else on Mumsnet experienced people might have ideas.

[stressedandalone]

My pain is very much physical, my back has apparently worn out and is unfixable. I take pain killers like smarties. H has pushed me to try ADs in the hope he will be able to live with me better if I'm less stressed

[stressedandalone]

Cat. I feel like I've hijacked your thread with my moaning. Sorry!

Losing weight will help me be able to exercise and strengthen my back. So hopefully I can reduce my meds and be in a happier place. And the highs and lows of sugar addiction are not helping....

Going out with work tonight so will be hard to stay on the wagon!

[Thecatgotmytongue]

stressed not at all. So sorry to hear you're having such a difficult time. Which anti depressants have you been given? I've taken a few different ones over the years...

I've not eaten much today, but what I've eaten wasn't particularly healthy due to rushing around and no time to stop and eat, grabbed crisps and a little chocolate Hopefully the fact I've not eaten anything else will mean I don't pile on weight anyway.

[stressedandalone]

Cat. I've been given Sertraline. Not taken any yet as I want a drink tonight!

[KindDogsTail]

TheCat
I hope you won't mind too much if I suggest that, if possible, you would make it much easier to stop craving sugar of you did eat much, much more, starting with breakfast. This would not mean you gained weight. It is sugar that causes weight gain, but if you get hungry that will be the first thing you long for. Even the crisps are saturated fat and sugar in the form of refined carbohydrate an alternative snack when you were so rushed would have been plain nuts. You need to each a great deal more to stop having sugar.

[KindDogsTail]

StressedandAlone
It must be terrible to have the back pain.
You seem to be doing the right thing seeing if you can get help, and seeing if you can cut down on sugar to help yourself too. In my opinion it would be worth going back to the doctor and asking for counselling too.

[stressedandalone]

I had pudding

But tomorrow is another day....

[Thecatgotmytongue]

It turned into a terrible day .. Lots of chocolate and crisps and cornflakes ... I need to get a grip! I hate the way I look, like some fat old woman . This has to stop!

Thanks kind, I know you're right, it's just difficult .. I don't have stuff in the house. Can you give me a sort of shopping list? Stuff I should have ...

[stressedandalone]

Cat i think we are climbing back on the wagon together.... I only had a small glass of wine (and to minimise calorie intake supplemented with vodka and gin)

Have started the morning with lucozade for breakfast I don't drink much now because of my pain meds, so I am very very very fragile this morning. I have a fun meeting first thing too

Unsurprisingly I forgot to weigh myself this morning.

[stressedandalone]

Cat I'm better at breakfast than other meals because DD needs a big nutritious breakfast or she suffers.

In the house I always have
2 min microwave porridge
Cornflakes
Wholemeal bread
Cheese
Bananas
Other fruit (the fridge fruit plastic pots, pineapple, peaches, oranges)
(Lacto free) milk

I'm not saying this is a perfect list as it is restricted to things DD will eat (she is very fussy) but if I keep this in we eat big breakfasts and both cope with the day better.

Kind can you add anything else we could add to our repertoire?

I keep a bag of mixed nuts on my desk at all times. I used to eat loads of them but now I count them and eat 10 at a time. 10 nuts is plenty to fill me up. They are fantastic for mornings like today when DD has had cereal, bread and cheese milk and fruit, and I have had lucozade and codeine. When I stop feeling queasy they will hopefully stop me turning to the sweet stuff.,

[Quiero]

Sorry to go against the grain of what everyone is saying but I'm not convinced low carb dieting is the right thing for you. One thing I've learned from 20 years of dieting is that pretty much all diets actually work - if you can stick to them. Eating in a way you don't enjoy or struggle to manage just won't work.

If you prefer rice and more carby food, something like slimming world might work better for you, or just good old fashioned calorie counting. This way you can still have rice and chocolate within the limits and might not find it so hard.

I know cutting out sugar all together is the ideal but sometimes in the short term you just have to do whatever it takes (within reason) to get the weight loss started. Once you start losing weight, your will power and motivation increases and it becomes easier to choose healthier options.

Every time you fall off the wagon you are damaging your self esteem. Don't start until you know you have a run of a few days where there are no special occasions. Think about what you are going to do, plan and buy food ahead of time. If you are buying chocolate, buy it in small individual packets so you're not having to walk away from half a packet of something. You will be able to do that eventually - just not yet

Good luck, you can do it

[Thecatgotmytongue]

Thanks quiero, I understand what you're saying, and I'm tempted ... But sadly having chocolate in the house at all just leads to eating too much of it, it seems. And my self esteem went ages ago

stressed, I have lots of cereal in the house too for dd, cornflakes, muesli, porridge ... I've been eating cornflakes this week, but they are honey nut cornflakes, so loads of sugar.

Sorry you're feeling rough. I ended up having a glass of wine too last night, I was really stressed, as I'd been sorting things in my new house and keep coming across problems! The letting agency are useless! I'm getting really stressed about it.

I like nuts too, but find it difficult to stop after a few - as with anything.

[Thecatgotmytongue]

Having said all that, low carb isn't working for me either at the moment.

I've just had porridge made with half lactofree milk half water with a tiny sprinkle of sugar for breakfast and lunch.

Dinner will be the rest of the chicken with salad.

[StickTheDMWhereTheSunDontShine]

Make the porridge with all milk. The milk is the filling, nutritious bit.

Agree with Quiero. I think low carb diets are great in principle and they work because the people that they work for find them easier to stick to because they feel less hungry.

Not for me, though. I do best with small portions of complex carbs - muesli for breakfast, Jersey royals in their skins, brown rice, seedy wholegrain bread and so on. I want to gnaw my own arm off if I've had a meal heavy in white rice, no matter how initially filling it was. I also avoid snacking on fruit because that makes me hungrier, too.

I just keep going with nuts, too, given half a chance. Much safer to weigh out 25-30g and put the packet away. And log it in MFP while I'm eating, so I'm not tempted to grab a few more because I'd have to weigh them, again!

[Thecatgotmytongue]

I thought the milk would be too carby! Next time ...

[KindDogsTail]

TheCat:
I am not sure if there is any food you can't eat. Presuming there is not, and you are not following a particular diet such as no carb:
Protein
Eggs
Plain full fat real yogurt
Milk,
Cottage Cheese
Feta
Cheddar (for small snacks at a time)
Halloumi
Tofu
Quorn (chicken pieces, mince, sausages can all be used in recipes)
Seitan
Pulses, in tins or cartons to be quick, these have some carbohydrate too:
lentils, black beans, chick peas any.....
Houmous
Brown rice protein powder (to boost protein by mixing into somethings if you have no time)
Hemp Protein powder (the same)
Ground Linseeds
Olive oil/walnut oil/hemp oil
Large bags of nuts say almonds (to eat as part of snacks, say 10 per snack)
Chicken, other meats if you eat them
FIsh, including tinned tuna or sardines (massive protein)

Complex, fibre filled carbohydrates
Real porridge oats or quinoa flakes (not those ready pots ideally)
Whole grain Brown rice
Whole grain brown bread or rye bread (if you are not gluten intolerant and do not get puffed up with gluten)
Ryvitta
Oat cakes (both as above if you are not gluten intolerant)
Any leafy vegetables - lots
cauliflower
Courgettes
sweet potatoes
Small potatoes with skin (don't eat loads)
Lemons (large packs)
Berries (frozen are cheap and convenient)
Small apples tangerines grapes (in moderation)
(PIneapple, ripe bananas, loads of grapes will be a bit too sugary)
Drinks
Herb teas so you do not have to have too much caffeine
Water filter so lots of water tastes nice
(longing for alcohol at the end of the day s something on its own, may be hunger speaking)

Try to be a little aware to see if you can approach getting 60 -70 grams of protein per day. Vegetables can have it too like spinach and broccoli have a lot, even a slice of good bread does. Try to see the food as special and delicious and something to add not something to cause anxiety. So if you want a little white rice and a few chips don't get stressed over it so long as you have predominantly lots of leafy vegetables and enough protein. (At least half a plate worth of leafy vegetables, just over a quarter roughly of protein)

Breakfast examples:
Two eggs and a piece of brown bread toast.
A small bowl of porridge made (with milk?) and with a tablespoon of seeds
(You can make your own raw mixture the night before and leave it in the fridge)
Yogurt with two tablespoons of protein powder (Hemp is a slightly raw taste, brown rice less so) mashed berries and some linseed.

Snack examples:
A handful of nuts, possible with a small tangerine or small apple.
Houmous on ryvitta or an oat cake
A tablespoon of Cottage cheese on the same
Some protein powder shaken up in some water and a little bit of fruit juice
Worst case scenario a high protein low sugar/sweetener bar like Atkins might make (but a lot of those commercially made bars are very fatty, very sugary including 'health' ones) or a "Bounce" ball
Some protein powder shaken up in some water and a little bit of fruit juice

At cafes - something less sugary to drink like plain coffee small or medium with some milk, rather than the syrups or chai latter etc
and many now sell plain nuts (ideally plain as raisins look small but add a lot more sugar) An apple. A sandwich. Some cafes now have high protein small meals like two hard boiled eggs, or endame beans,)

Lunch :
I am not sure if you are out at work;
Bought sandwiches may be more bread and spread than protein so check.
Could you make something to take?
Ready made soup, like Covent Garden you can bump up with half a tin of lentils per serving)
A tin of lentils/other olive oil and lemon juice, salt and pepper.
An omelette and vegetables (you could take a pice of two egg omelette cold) Cold vegetarian sausages
A piece of cheddar and a small apple
Cottage cheese and two green pr red pepper halves
An avocado with olive oil and lemon juice, salt and pepper
At home
a tin of sardines on a piece of toast with
salad;

tea
Have another snack and a hot drink

Dinner
This could be anything just following having a protein and vegetables as the main thing with a little complex carbohydrate (or white if you want it very much)
Puddings
Yogurt with some fruit

If you long for a treat, if you can wait to have it after your protein dinner,
it won't have such a crash then crave effect as if you have it as a snack alone when you are already ravenous. Ian Marber says try to have 80% of the high nutrient food. If you find you occasionally have a bit of something else that is not something to get upset about.

If you eat like this your blood sugar swings and cravings should calm down.
YOu should find you have good energy and stop feeling hungry.

Every now and then there are some people who find it easier to never have anything like rice or potatoes ever at all rather than to have some. Most people seem to get on best by having a bit though.

Ian Marber takes this more general approach I have outlined above.

Michael Mosely is very low carb but that is for people with diabetes
Joseph Collala has no sugar/carbs at all but vegetables and protein

[Thecatgotmytongue]

Thanks kind, that's really helpful!

I don't eat soya really, so I'll give the Quorn a miss. I try to avoid dairy, but have lactose free milk.

Lentils and beans and similar set off my ibs, as does cabbage, broccoli, sprouts ...

You mentioned protein powder .. Does this really help, where would I buy it, can I get ready made ones for ease, is it dairy free?

If I go out I tend to have caffeine free cappuccino - I have no caffeine at all. Otherwise I drink black decaf coffee. I don't like the smell or taste of water, even filtered, so don't drink it.

I don't like fish much, especially not sardines, but I eat chicken and other meat sometimes.

Again thanks for going to the trouble of writing that all out for me.

[KindDogsTail]

TheCat
The protein powder can't be a substitute for food - that would be a bad idea and it does not taste nice on its own. It is just a help. The kind I mentioned Hemp and Brown Rice has no dairy. (Whey protein would as it is derived from milk). There is also Pea but it might be like pulses for you. You can get it at health food shops like Holland and Barratt. It seems expensive but it lasts a long time (if you don't try to use it to replace food)

Quorn has no soya in it at all. It is something else altogether. Here is something from their FAQ but it does have some dairy.
The majority of Quorn products contain a small amount of egg white, and most also contain milk ingredients, they are not suitable for vegans. In October we will be launching a Quorn Vegan range which vegans can enjoy
So after October they will have something for you.

I think you need to base your high protein food around meat and fish if you do not eat pulses and you do not eat dairy. You would actually get masses of protein from them. Then if you can eat nuts and seeds they are good.

I take it you do not eat eggs?

Choose leafy vegetables that you can eat and have plenty and have some whole fruits. (Orange juice is so sugary it's like a coke so only have a little say with water if you need to make a protein drink taste better).

Your IBS may improve. Watch out for artificial sweeteners as lots of them give terrible IBS symptoms like stomach cramps and wind.

As you do not have dairy or soya or pulses, or and you don't like fish, you are left with chicken and meat, nuts and seeds, and whole grains; and vegetables and whole fruits.

Have you tried boneless white fish? It does not taste so fishy.

M&S have some ready meals called Fuller for longer which have the right amount of protein in balanced by other things, so you could see if you like any of those from time to time.

Good luck.

[Thecatgotmytongue]

I don't mind white fish like plaice, just not oily fish. I eat salmon too.

I do have some lactose free milk and a little hard cheese. I don't mind omelettes occasionally, not keen on egg alone though.

Is the protein powder meant to fill me up?

I'll look for the m&s meals, might be handy for when I'm in a hurry.

I avoid artificial sweeteners at all times, I don't trust them.

The only fruit I tend to eat are berries and peaches/nectarines.

I'll have a look at Quorn, I just presumed it was soya based.

[StickTheDMWhereTheSunDontShine]

For cafe coffees, a cappucino is definitely a better choice than a latte. You still get a nice satisfying milky drink, but it tends to be strong coffee, topped up with steamed milk, then a little of the (sometimes sweetened, but not much of it) coffee powder and tends to be less than half or even a third of the calories of a latte. It's nice if you want a fix of something that feels substantial. For chains, pret and Caffe nero do darker and more bitter, less sweet and milky cap than Costa. Pret also offer the option of skimmed or soya milk.