I used to have the most insane sweet tooth. Seriously. At night especially, I could not get enough ice cream, brownies, cookie dough, a combination of the three, maybe? But when I developed my 80% Habit Foods eating strategy, something unexpected happened: my sweet tooth changed. It didn’t go away, and I hope it never does - what is life without dessert? But within a week of relying on Habit Foods for meals I didn’t share with others or ate on the fly, my favorite sugar-rich treats suddenly became TOO sweet really fast. I began being satisfied with fewer and fewer bites of them.
And guess what? When my clients tried the approach, the exact same thing happened. The sweet things you are used to eating will suddenly become too sweet, 4-5 bites in. Check in with yourself somewhere around there and decide if you really need/want any more of it.
And here’s an interesting fun fact to remind yourself when you’re faced with your next batch of cookies or hot fudge sundae: after the third bite of your dessert or treat, your brain has released about as much dopamine (your pleasure hormone) as it’s going to for that particular food at that particular eating time. Anything after three bites or so becomes more about chewing and swallowing than giving yourself a food hug. So enjoy three bites and call it a day!
Wanna see for yourself? Download my AND/life app (free) and start a trial (you can always cancel). Set up your Habit Foods, get food suggestions based on your preferences or goals (or choose your own from the library - every recipe on the AND/life app is only comprised of Habit Foods). For 5 out of 6 meals per day, stick to either the suggested recipes or your own made up Habit Food- only ideas. Within 3-7 days, you will most likely notice that sweet foods are too much (and also that you’ve lost a pound or two or at least FEEL considerably leaner).
BTW, here are my top 5 favorite “sweet, but not TOO sweet” snacks. All but the ice-cream are Habit Foods:
1 square of dark chocolate dipped in all-natural, unsweetened nut butter
Full-fat coconut or vanilla yogurt with one spoonful of nut butter or a 5-finger pinch of crushed nuts
2 bites of full-fat ice cream from the pint (not frozen yogurt which is full of sugar without much fat to keep your blood sugar from spiking)
Apple sandwiches (apples slices with nut butter)
Berries and nuts
Enjoy!
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