Sugar binge cycle-need advice! page 2

[dizzyorange]

Don't have it in the house!

[Sue]

If you're obsessive about keeping carbs constantly very low, then you're setting yourself up for failure. Allow yourself to have the lion's share of fruits and whole food starches, that way your body is less likely to ache for carbs and throw you into a sugar binge.

That's just my take on things and a lot of others here would probably disagree. But look at it this way: if a few potatoes and a banana is all it takes to completely override your desire for gluten and processed sugar, then isn't that a victory?

I agree with this. If you can make this work for you more of a chance of kicking the binge cycle. You have more food choices as well if you keep the starch and fruit.

[Quarry]

Have berries and heavy cream on hand. The berries are sweet but the fat will make you feel full. Promise yourself after 1 serve you will wait an hour before eating anything else. The craving should be gone after 20 mins.

[chloesadie]

I have had a binge eating disorder for years and this last year it was spiraling out of control ( along with my wine consumption). Every other week I was on a diet that I never stuck with for more than a day. Since I have started being primal in beginning of January I have not cheated at all, nor do I have the desire. I also haven't desire to drink my beloved wine. Perhaps you need to lower your carbs and eat more fat? I eat between 20-30 g carbs and 100+ g fat. For me this is how I feel satisfied. Hope this helps

I could have written this post! With the exception of the no-cheating since the beginning of January part. Glad to know there's hope!

[Happy Paleo Girl]

I have been there with the sweet tooth binge cycle, many many times! I've been sweet craving free since after Christmas. What helped me was adding back in some safe starches, a la The Perfect Health Diet, and having a tablespoon of refined coconut oil twice a day during a 2 hour flavorless window (The Shangri-La Diet, which there is a good thread on in here). Oh, and a biggie for me - cutting out alcohol. That was a huge trigger for me to indulge in things I knew I shouldn't. Everyone is different though, so YMMV.
I'm also an all or nothing person, so it's easier for me to not allow anything "cheat-wise" at all (no gluten, no sugar, no alcohol). For instance, after 3 weeks of super clean eating, I had a glass of wine with dinner last night. It was really enjoyable, but I felt my sweet tooth start nagging me. I ignored it and went to bed.

Another thing that has helped me has been supplementing with L-glutamine, 5 grams, 3 times a day on an empty stomach. Even though I started taking it for leaky gut, it really helps with cravings! At that high of a dose, the powder form is much more convenient than the capsules. Something you might want to look into. Do a Google search for glutamine and cravings, you'll get a lot of good information.

[Sue]

Happy Paleo Girl, sounds good.

[magnolia1973]

Yes, for now, eat your fruit and starch with fat. But if you just give up fruit, you run the risk of just going nuts. A few people do eliminate all sugars with fruit and have had success.
However, it just takes time. You will fail, just start over. Each failure will become less often and smaller. It does take a while. Also, make 100% sure that you are not eating processed sugar in things like sauces etc. Read labels.

I eat more carbs and havefound the longer I have stayed on it, the more fruit satisfies any cravings for sweets. If I don't have the fruit, I crave the bad stuff.

I used to have awful sugar binges, and I have really gained control with PB but it took a good year. Like I said, now I can enjoy occasional treats. I don't keep any sweets around anymore- no ice cream, no chocolate. Only fruit. But an occasional splurge on cake or something no longer triggers more cravings.

You might also look into Whole 30. It eliminates all sugar except fruit, for a month, no 20%. That plan really brought home to me all of my issues with sugar, from the emotional component, habit etc. I came out of that understanding why I eat sugar. I came up with non food ways of handling the emotional component, for the "habit", I found fruit works just as well, so now I only eat sugar for enjoyment.... which is the very occasional amazing sweet- the best cheesecake, or a home made cookie. So I haven't abandoned sugar- it's role is just now what it should be- an occasional treat eaten as a treat- not to soothe boredom or a bad day, and not out of habit.

[Sue]

Fantastic result Magnolia.

[sarahelyse]

I cheated once (drank a Diet Pepsi - my biggest enemy) and I spend the rest of the night rooting through my pantry looking for anything that had sugar in it! I think once you get the first taste of that cheat, everything spirals downward.

I repeated this several times. (I'd like to say it was in the name of self-experimentation, but I just really wanted that pop, dammit!) Every. Single. Time. I craved sugar after I drank one! The feeling of craving that sugar and not being able to fulfill it was enough discomfort for me that I got rid of every last pop in my house. I'm not going to do it again!