Now for me, this was indeed the most difficult part of the Ketogenic diet. Quite frankly, this part is still a work in progress and I have yet to overcome this nasty, tasty, sweet glory, that has a spell over me. Damn you, SUGAR! Oh, and Milk Chocolate! This is my kryptonite!
In a Previous Life
Let’s backtrack, shall we. Every time at the checkout area, those candy bars, I swear, were calling my name! I knew that I shouldn’t eat them, and they were terrible for me, but anytime I left my house to go to a store, especially when I was by myself, I would buy one and eat it in the car before returning home. This way, no one saw me eat it, AND no sharing required. I had that sweet chocolatey goodness all to myself. Now, I bet you’re thinking that I would nibble slowly as to savor every single morsel. NOPE, not me! I would gobble it up as fast as I could to return home without the smell of chocolate or peanut butter on my breath. This would require me to drive home a little slower or possibly take the long way to have enough saliva in my mouth to mask the smell of chocolate.
As you can tell, this is still a struggle, although I have not had a regular full-size candy bar in months, I still sneak small bites here and there. This is certainly an area that still causes major setbacks!
Avoid These
Okay, so let’s look at what to avoid. I know the last two articles about fats and vegetables talked about what foods to add. This one only refers to what foods to avoid. Let me tell you the carbohydrates that you can have are simple: the vegetables that were in the last article and NONE of the vegetables that are underground.
Let’s face it sugar is in nearly every packaged item that you consume at this point! Sugar, Corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, agave nectar, honey, and a host of other names for sugar that you didn’t know even existed. The University of California San Fransisco gives us 61, that’s right, 61 names for sugar.
Real Struggle
Some people on a few weeks of Keto have no trouble avoiding the sugar. In fact, some people lose their taste or cravings for sugar. This is still not the case for me. I have been doing Keto for over a year and I struggle every day.
Say, no to sugar. Say no to breads, pasta, potatoes, and any other starch. This is a must in order to get the full benefits from this way of eating.
Some Tips
One of the things that I do to avoid these temptations is to NEVER have them in the house. With teenagers in the house, it is quite difficult, but doable. I look at the weird magazines in the checkout line instead of the chocolate bars. I find some reasonable substitutes. Swerve is a brand of sweetener that is natural and measures like sugar with a 1:1 ratio. Stevia is a plant and is the purest in a liquid state, but when it is granulated there are added sweeteners. Some strong Keto People are against it all together, but I say “You gotta take things slowly.” About any sugar substitute is better than plain old sugar.
However, my most important advice for someone who has trouble saying “No” to sugar and chocolate is to eat simple meals with fat. One of my favorite and easiest treat is to take a few tablespoons of heavy whipping cream and whip it up with some stevia and flavoring. This will satisfy your sweet tooth. Be patient with yourself and start things slowly.
