Kick Sugar to the Curb
I don't know about you, but I ate too much sugar in December. Ugh. I did pretty well through most of the month, but once I opened the floodgates to those treats, well, it's been hard to stop. Why? Because sugar is highly addictive. Even if you eat only a tidbit, your body craves, yearns, BEGS for more. And to make matters worse, when you quit eating sugar, you go through withdrawal symptoms that are comparable to coming off drug addiction. You can feel headachy, flu-ish, cranky, and tired. NO FUN.
Sugar is the ultimate empty calorie; when we eat sugar, our bodies have to pull from our own reserves of vitamins, minerals, and enzymes to process the sugar -- calcium is leached from your bones to process it! It also makes you feel low and dragged out after the initial jolt subsides, taxes your immune system, wigs out your pancreas, and gets stored as fat.
Phew. That's a big list of reasons why it's a good thing to get on top of those cravings. So, what's a gal to do? Here's my favorite ways to start kicking sugar to the curb:
1. Add in foods that crowd out the cravings (this is entirely possible and I've worked with hundreds of women to prove it :)...
Dark leafy greens, root veggies, alkaline foods, and the right kind of carbs all can do the trick. Join me for my 7-Day Mama Mojo Detox to do this with me!
2. Drink lots of water!
Try this: every time you crave sugar, drink a glass of water and see what happens. Miracles have been known to occur. Getting your 8-10 glasses a day keeps you from being dehydrated. This is important because dehydration (among other things) takes a lot of energy and makes your heart have to work a lot harder. And low energy causes you to reach for more...sugar!
3. Balance your plate with the right nutrients:
The right balance of protein is key. The amount varies for everybody, but making sure you're balancing your plate with protein, a healthy fat, and complex carbs goes a long way to staving off those cravings!
4. Get the right kind of exercise:
Exercise actually energizes us and makes us feel good. So often times, if we aren't exercising, we will use sugar as a substitute for that energy. And on the flip side, if you overdo your workouts or really hard you will often crave sugar...partly because a high intensity workout can deplete your glycogen supplies and partly due to the jump in cortisol, which stimulates the fight/flight response and can lead to a breakdown as well.
For me, the best way to stop eating sugar, release bloat, and rid my body of toxins (which, btw, is stored in fat) is to do a whole-foods detox!
The upcoming cleanse not focuses not only on raw, clean, sugar crowding-out foods, but also on liver and colon-lovin' foods, too! And don't worry, if you're not a fan of some of these, that's ok. (There are loads of great alternatives.)
First timers $68, repeat cleansers $35.