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7 Tips to Help You Beat Your Sugar Habit
by Alice Osborne
Information Courtesy: Connie Bennett of SelfGrowthTest.com
  We talk about it often because it is the #1 saboteur to overall health, weight included. MANY of you are telling us you feel like an incurable sugar addict with zero will power, so we felt the call to address the issue again (and will continue to do so until we have this thing under control).
 The true-life stories we’ve heard and the research we’ve done has a common theme: “After kicking sweets, I felt reborn!” Who wouldn’t want that feeling? So let’s go for it—together. Here then, is some motivation to get us started—the negatives to eating sugar/processed carbs—the non-sugar-coated scoop.
If we continue to over-indulge in these nutrient-lacking foods, science says we’ll:
Pack on the pounds
Sap our energy
Become unfocused
Undergo Jekyll-Hyde personality transformations
Jeopardize our love life
And possibly develop hypoglycemia, insulin resistance or diabetes.
If, instead, we choose quality, fiber-filled carbs, we will:
 Peel off excess weight
Increase our energy
Concentrate better
Boost our moods
Maybe rev up our libido
And possibly reverse our pre-diabetes
Pretty promising, eh? Here, then, are 6 tried-and-true tips and tactics to help you “just say no” to quickie carbs:
 1. Adjust your mindset – and pronto! Before you can begin to make better dietary decisions, you need to totally change your thoughts. Toss away the negatives: “Oh, boo hoo, I could quit sweets!” Instead, dwell on the positives: “I’ll feel so great by kicking quickie carbs.” Now fill your mind with pleasant, powerful images. Visualize yourself easily turning down low-quality carbs and becoming a happier, healthier, sweeter you. See yourself in charge instead of enslaved.
 2. Watch yourself like a lab rat. Get real by keeping a food journal. Jot down what drives you to simple carbs, when you clamor for them, where you eat them, why you want them, and how you get them (i.e., do you stealthily drive across town in the middle of night to buy a carton of ice cream because you need it?) Journaling can be potent preparation for stomping out your sugar habit!
 3. Power up with PFF. Pump up the protein (such as fish, chicken, tofu, legumes and lean meats), fill up with fiber (vegetables, fruits and whole grains), and embrace healthy fats (olive oil, flax seeds, avocado, extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil, etc.) – consuming them all in moderation, of course. These three dietary changes alone can help moderate your blood sugar levels, take the edge off your appetite, keep you feel satisfied longer, and provide needed nourishment.
 4. Relish the goodies provided by Mother Nature. Learn to savor the flavor of fresh, natural, wholesome, colorful, nutritious, preferably organic vegetables and low-sugar fruits. Next time you yearn for something sweet, enjoy a few tasty cherry tomatoes, a chunk of red pepper, or several fresh strawberries. Yum! (Nibble on some protein at the same time to keep your blood sugar stable.)
 5. Begin with breakfast. Always start your day with a healthy meal – you know, something like a veggie-filled omelet with a piece of orange or a small bowl of slow-cooking oatmeal. Many research studies show that breakfast eaters concentrate and perform better. If you skip that vital first meal of the day, you’re setting yourself up for overwhelming sugar cravings. (Many nutritionists and physicians I interviewed often emphasized the benefits of breakfast.)
 6. Develop a kick-butt attitude. Abandon that woe-is-me stance! Tap into your inner strength instead. Even if you’re furious with yourself for having eaten nutrient-poor foods for so long, use that anger to reinforce your “I-can-do-it” attitude. Because you can! Now go for it and trust in your ability to succeed.
2009 CAN be the year we enjoy a sweeter life without refined sweets!
Copyright © 2005, All Rights Reserved, Connie Bennett, www.SugarShockBlog.com and www.SugarShock.com, A Sweeter You, LLC. © Copyright by SelfGrowth.com, Self Improvement Online, Inc.
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