[rainlips]

I cant keep myself away from sweets!!! I dont by them but if they are around I am always eating!!! I dont know what I can do to avoid them, any ideas? Please help me!!!

[almostheaven]

If they're around, hide them, cover them, grab an apple for the sweetness of it, and it'll help fill you up. Drink a lot of water, stuff yourself with water so that you have no room to indulge. Besides, after that, you'll spend so much time in the bathroom, you won't have time for chocolate.

But remember, chocolate in moderation is actually supposed to be GOOD for you. Don't completely deprive yourself of it. I often buy one small piece when I can get it in small doses so I'm not tempted to overdo it, and still get my taste fix.

[rainlips]

Thank you for the help! I just decided to start watching what I eat and I never relized how much sweets I do eat...lol. You have done a great job loseing weight!! Any little "secerts" you have I would love to hear!!! Thank you again

[meowies]

Sometimes people give me sweets like chocolate and cookies. I don't like eating them often, so I rarely buy them for myself. However if they are just laying about, then I'll eat way too many!!! Sooo, if they are freezable, I put them in the freezer. It's hard to eat frozen things, and if I actually want one, I have to wait for it to thaw! By the time it actually thaws I don't even want it anymore usually. If I can't freeze it, I eat one or two, then throw the rest away. I know I don't want to eat more than two because I feel sick and gross. So freezer or garbage is the only option for me.

And at work... It's hard, but when I want to take some sweets, I make myself a warm cup of tea, coffee, or herbal tea. The herbal tea is sweet tasting natural and fills my craving! Then I forget about the temptations

[Kery]

It depends on what you mean by "when they're around".

Sweets and chocolate during a party or in a buffet are hard to avoid. Apart from not keeping close to the table and making sure to keep busy in other ways (discussing, looking at photos with people, whatever...), I unfortunately don't have any tricks to share in that regard. I wish I had! I'm also of these people who tend to eat just because the food is in front of them, and it sucks.

Sweets at home because someone has given them to you as a gift... Well, I know it's not very polite, but what I do in this case is just keep 1-2 to get a taste, and throw the rest away. Between 'being polite' (for whom? Nobody will even see if you ate all the chocolates or not...) and gaining on unwanted pounds, my choice is done. Or if wasting food is really a downer, you can always bring them at a party/friends'/the office, so that they're dispatched between many people and not left in your pantry for you alone.

[Kriss]

Heeyy! Rainlips,
I love chocolate too. I love sweets and all de bad stuff! But they are really bad for me and hard for me to control so I feel ya!

However Nestle chocolates puts the calories for their chocolate bars right on the front of the package so you can indulge . I bought an Aero bar the other day. It had 6 sections for 160 cals so I gave half to my daughter. I had myself a little treat. It was good at the time. I am not thrilled that I did it but I enjoyed it and I didnt buy others that were way worse.

Also if you buy a nice quality dark chocolate a little goes a loooong way. The intensity is so worth it and you will find you dont want a whole lot. You could make yourself a lovely treat by shaving less than a teeny square over fresh raspberries or strawberries. Use a cheese grater or bring it to room temp and make some tempting chocolate curls with a knife over the berries. This is way yummier, sexier and satisfying than candy bars or drugstore junk.

Dark chocolate is supposed to be an antioxidant and an aphrodiasiac among other things! YAY!

To stay away?? well just stay away. Someone else wrote drink water. It does keep you busy !lol and helps your remember why you are doing this.And later you can have a treat on your terms.

Good Luck! Loose the weight in 2008! Happy New Year! Kriss

[almostheaven]

When someone gives me chocolate, I take it to work or something. Get other people to eat it, but not me. LOL I'll indulge in a piece or two, otherwise I may be tempted to pig out on it later if I don't allow myself some pleasure in it.

When I go out to eat and they have these desert menus on the table staring me in the face, I immediately toss a napkin over it. Otherwise, I often break down and get a desert. If I cover it before the meal, I forget about it. And if I don't and still crave the sweet, I get fruit at those places that have it, or I stop at the book store and pick up one Lindor chocolate truffle, since they sell them individually.

I start by not bringing candy into the house, and by trying to avoid places that have it, then by trying to hide it or take my mind off of it when it can't be completely avoided. If it's on display at your office, try avoiding that section of the office, or ask if it can be moved elsewhere. If your family has to have it in the house, ask that it be kept in a cabinet you never look in. I do this with hubby's food vs. mine. We have separate cabinets and separate shelves in the refridgerator. And his stash of chocolate covered cherries is locked away in the center cabinet of the coffee table.

Until he forgot and left them in the accessbile drawer of the table and our two year old was found stuffing one in his mouth and mumbling "daddy's chocolate!"

[zoerba]

It may sound funny, but eating a peice of cheese will also curb a sugar craving. Who knows why?

[Tealeaf]

I found a good way for me to deal with chocolate cravings. I invented "Chocolate Goo". Just mix an 8-oz low fat (or fat free if you can stand the stuff) cream cheese with the sweetner of your choice (I use splenda) to taste and a couple or three tablespoons of dutched cocoa powder. It tastes rich and decadent, like I'm really digging into something sinful. I usually just need to eat about half an ounce or so to satisfy the chocolate craving. It's not crazy high in calories, and in moderation isn't a bad food choice (calcium for the win!)

I'm the type that if I bring home chocolate, it *will* be gone within two days. But for some reason I can be moderate with this stuff, perhaps because it tastes so rich. But I can see it being a trigger food for some, so beware of that.

[Mel]

Usually, I just mentally label it "NOT MY FOOD" and ignore. That works about 95% of the time. The problem starts if I have a little. Little turns into a lot...but I can pretty quickly pull it together and go back on plan.

When I was in my serious losing phase, I think I actually had more control. I would buy very good very dark chocolate and ration it out a bite a night. A very small bite

...not my food!

Mel

[tamaralynn]

I'm the same as you and I'm a binger when it comes to chocolate. Lately I've been buying the Cadbury 100 cal bars. Keep them in the freezer and when I want one, I don't feel so guilty eating it.

My friend makes Dark Chocolate dipped strawberries OH YUM! and keeps them in her fridge.

[aksuzyq]

Chocolate is my weakness, I know this. If it's in my house, I'll eat it. I'm trying those slimfast chocolate shakes, they seem to satisfy my chocolate craving and make me feel full. Granted, they're not as tasty as a hershey bar with almonds, but they're better than broccoli!

[rainlips]

Thank you for all the great ideas! I found that I am better off to not have any! If I start I cant stop soo I am trying to not start. good luck with the sweets

[JayEll]

I'm with you, rainlips! There are some foods that I just can't have around or I eat them--so they have to go, at least for awhile.

Jay