Day 7 - Breaking that Sugar Cycle!

I don’t know about y’all, but this topic is difficult, because it can easily tie GUILT & FOOD together. This is a thing that I battle every day and strive to works towards removing from my mind and giving to the Lord. Instead of creating this good vs bad mentality with food, I encourage you to approach it from the angle of moderation. Know what is going to fuel you to be your best you, and don’t let Satan steal your joy when you treat your kids to ice cream cones after school. Don’t let guilt eat at you and be a part of your life!
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I thought that this was a super interesting article that talks about how food guilt actually leads to less weight loss! Check it out here: https://buff.ly/31Apd98
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One final thought before we jump into today’s topic… I wanted to share this really awesome resource with you from Lysa TerKerust called Made to Crave. Lysa is the president of Proverbs 31 Ministries, and wrote this book to go hand-in-hand with whatever eating approach you choose. It’s a devotional and study about craving Christ and making Him the center of your health journey, when we live in a society that is very food centered. If you wanna learn more, be sure to sign up for their free 21 day email devotional series here: https://buff.ly/2XRyOWP
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⭐️What is a sugar craving?⭐️
A food craving is an intense desire for a specific food. This desire can seem uncontrollable, and the person's hunger may not be satisfied until they get that particular food.
Some experts believe food cravings last only about 3-5 minutes.
Every person experiences cravings differently.
Cravings are often for junk foods and processed foods high in sugar, salt, and fat.
Food cravings can be something that prevents you from hitting your health goals.
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⭐️What happens to your body during a craving & after you satisfy it?⭐️
Taken from: https://buff.ly/2MR79EJ
Why do you get a rush when you eat a midday candy bar?
👉The sugar in it – (those a simple carbs!) -- is quickly turned into glucose in your bloodstream.
👉This causes your blood sugar levels spike.
👉Your body needs to move glucose out of the bloodstream and into your cells for energy. To do this, your pancreas makes insulin, a hormone.
👉As a result, your blood sugar level may have a sudden drop.
👉This rapid change in blood sugar leaves you feeling wiped out and shaky and searching for more sweets to regain that sugar "high” resulting in sugar cravings.
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The more you repeat this cycle, the worse it can feel and wreak havoc on your body!
❌You might eat more calories & overeat (and they could be those empty calories we talked about!)
❌Extra sugar may be stored as fat in your body
❌It impacts your hormone levels
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⭐️What causes sugar cravings?⭐️
❌Not eating enough protein or fats to balance the carbs… protein as we talked about last week takes longer in your body to break down. What it also does it that it slows the release of sugar into your bloodstream and creates more of a balance to help prevent those sugar spikes and crashes that eating only carbs can cause!
❌High carb diet (remember, all carbs eventually break down into sugar… that’s why moderation, even if they are complex carbs, is good for your body!)
❌Eating a lot of Simple Carbs (sugars)
❌Mineral deficiencies
❌Calcium, zinc, and magnesium imbalances
❌Excessive stress, which increases your insulin levels
❌Depression or mood swings (sugar intake increases serotonin levels in your body, serotonin which is a hormone that regulates mood, makes your brain feel happier temporarily and leads to craving that feeling brought on by sugar)
❌Not getting proper sleep
To read more about these effects and factors, check out this helpful article: https://buff.ly/2MR79od
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⭐️So how do you know if you might be addicted to sugar?⭐️
⛔️You get cravings despite being full
⛔️You eat a lot more than you planned to
⛔️You eat until you feel excessively “stuffed”
⛔️You feel guilty afterwards, but may repeat these things often
⛔️You make up excuses that “justify” your eating habits
⛔️You hide eating from others
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⭐️How can you kick the sugar cravings?⭐️
Typically, it takes a few days of intentionally not intaking sugars, simple carbs, etc. to help “reset” your body. The first few days may be difficult, but once you make it to the other side your cravings will go down significantly! It’s so incredible how our bodies are designed to work and how quickly your body will adjust if you just hang tight and KNOW that change is possible!
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✔️If you make small, simple changes to your diet, it's easy to keep them up. Start by eating more fruits and vegetables.
✔️Drink extra water.
✔️Check food labels, and pick those that don't have a lot of sugar.
✔️Cut out a little bit of sugar each week. After a few weeks, you'll be surprised at how little you miss it.
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Here are a few additional things that you can do to help manage those cravings!
⭐️Exercise
⭐️Eat More Protein
⭐️Fill up on Fiber
⭐️Try a Stick of Sugar-Free…