Making 2016 Your Best Year On Sugar by Joan Kent, PhD

Making 2016 Your Best Year On Sugar
by Joan Kent, PhD

For a long time — starting way back when everyone else recommended low-fat diets and pushed the low-fat, high-sugar products that led the U.S. to an obesity epidemic — I’ve been cautioning against sugar consumption.

No one wants to hear that message any more, it seems. Maybe they never did. So I’ve decided to go in a new direction and suggest ways to help you stay stuck on sugar. Here are 7 tried-and-true tips, culled from actual client reports, to keep you stuck.

1. Keep sugar on hand.

Buy candy, cookies, pastries, cakes, breakfast bars, and more. Buy them for the kids. For a treat. For your spouse. For company. For special occasions.

Keep one or more of the items in plain view at all times. No worries; you won’t eat it – except maybe as a “fast breakfast” or a between-meal snack.

2. Carry sugar with you.

Grab a bar as you run out the door for breakfast on the go. Keep granola bars in your car “for energy.” Keep one or more bars in your gym bag for “quick energy” before a workout.

Buy a bar at the gym for a post-workout meal — OR buy chocolate milk or a recovery beverage.

3. Buy large sizes because they’re “better value.”

Keep them at home. Put a Costco-size tub of ice cream in the freezer so your 4-year-old can have a tiny scoop occasionally.

No worries; you won’t eat it.

4. Buy holiday candy as soon as store displays appear.

There’s no shortage, ever. Valentine’s Day candy is available in January. Easter candy will appear in March, Mother’s Day candy in April. Halloween candy shows up in August and leads to that downward slide into the rest of the year.

And take advantage of the candy sales right after a holiday. Super-low prices, great value. No worries; you won’t eat it.

5. Find the loopholes.

Fruit doesn’t count. Fruit juice doesn’t count. Anything sweetened with fruit juice doesn’t count. Agave syrup isn’t sugar; neither is maple syrup. Dried fruit and trail mix are healthy.

Blame your high triglycerides on meat or oils in your diet, and cut down on them.

6. Use the 5-a-Day principle.

Remember that “5-a-Day” slogan? Get your 5 mostly – or completely – from fruit, and skip those pesky vegetables.

Fill a bowl with fresh fruit and keep it in plain view in the kitchen. Always out, always visible. Reach for fruit frequently — it’s just like eating vegetables, but tastes a lot better.

7. Don’t log your food when trouble strikes.

Many research studies have shown that logging changes the way we eat, and for the better. If you find yourself eating sugary foods, immediately stop logging so you can keep eating the troublesome foods.

Over the years, these methods have worked well for keeping clients of mine stuck on sugar. If I think of more ways you can keep sugar front-and-center in your diet, I’ll be sure you let you know.

In the meantime, accessibility is key. Keep it around, keep it visible, keep it plentiful.

No worries; you won’t eat it. Yikes.

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Irony aside, if you would like help with sugar issues or another aspect of your nutrition, I’m dedicated to providing that. Please visit the Coaching page and request a Food Breakthrough Session. It’s free, and there’s no obligation.