Sometimes I get asked how do I maintain my healthy lifestyle with sweet cravings?
First of all this was definitely the biggest obstacle I had to overcome during my journey. One of my biggest hacks to satisfying my sugar cravings was finding healthier alternatives to the refined sugar products that I love the most. This did not come easy! I didn’t one day just wake up & crave an apple with peanut-butter over a Reese’s cup. I had to retrain my mind, my tummy, my emotional connect with food. I will warn you that I’ve been changing my lifestyle for nearly 4 years so getting to this point takes time, dedication & focus but change does come eventually.
I’m not perfect, I love myself a Reese’s cup or four every now & again but I can honestly admit that this is a rare occurrence & I believe this is due to the fact that I have found a love for natural sugar & more nutritional dense alternatives. My body is now accustomed to these foods which means I now crave fruits, nuts, dark chocolate, peanut-butter, & my homemade chickpea cookie dough – recipe here: http://www.activewithella.com/raw-protein-cookie-dough/. As my lifestyle evolved so did my taste buds & I love knowing I am supplying my body with food it thrives off in a positive way. I find that when I eat refined sugars I crave more which can end up with a very heavy sugar hangover but by including natural food swaps into my everyday diet I don’t feel the need to over eat.
The most important thing about finding these food swaps is you must seek out the ones you love & enjoy to eat. If you enjoy eating a pink lady apple over a royal gala then you must stick to the pink lady, have it at easy access & you will probably start to crave it more. In turn you have found yourself a healthier afternoon snack & by adding a tablespoon of peanut butter, you’ve got yourself a substantial sweeter option to satisfy that 3:30pm slump.
Other alternatives I love include:
* A frozen banana instead of an ice lolly.
*Vegan chocolate smoothie over a milkshake.
*Dark or vegan chocolate over milk chocolate.
* I love Aldi’s RAW bar options instead of a dairy milk bar. Yes the calories may be similar but the ingredients are whole ingredients which I can easily pronounce. To me that’s a much better option!
So, that’s how I manage to maintain my healthy lifestyle with sugar cravings. I hope you have found this post helpful. Please feel free to comment below if you have or if you have any healthy sweet options for me I would love to hear about it!
Until Next Time, Ella xxx
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