How To Stop Carb (and Sugar) Cravings On Keto

#SugarBalancedLiving

Starting out on keto alone can be challenging enough, but especially so when constantly fighting carb cravings threatens to ruin your keto diet. Whether it’s a yearning for nachos, pasta, beer, or even sweets like ice cream, your carb cravings are a common enough occurrence for even the most experienced keto eater. Let’s go on a deep dive to learn what’s causing your intense cravings, what cravings stages there are, and how to stop them!

What Is A Carb Cravings On Keto?

When you start on a ketogenic diet, your pre-keto body is in a state of operating on sugar, carbs, and processed carbs for energy.

Basically, when you eat a meal that is high in carbs and sugar - like a bowl of macaroni and cheese, or a white bread sandwich - you will see a spike in your blood sugar levels, and in turn, your pancreas will send out an insulin shot to deal with all this glucose (sugar) floating in your bloodstream. This type of eating, if done excessively can lead to constantly high blood sugar and insulin levels, and this is not good news.

Sugar isn’t a good energy source, at all.

When your diet is overwhelmingly made up of processed refined sugars, carbs, and junk foods, your body is constantly experiencing high blood sugar and insulin levels. This leaves it constantly stressed, leading to an increased risk of:

• Insulin Resistance

• Weight Gain

• Heart Conditions

• High Blood Triglycerides and Low HDL

• Type 2 and Pre-Diabetes

• Obesity

• Skin Problems

• Hormonal Malfunctions (Low-Testosterone, PCOS, Severe PMS, Etc)

• Cancer

When you begin a keto diet, your goal is to use your previous consumption of carbohydrates, (including the negative processed sugary carbs that you have been used to) for energy until they are all ‘used’ up. At this point, you hit ketosis and your body now transfers over to only burning fat by making ketones, which will become the new fuel source for your body and energy needs.

It only makes sense that as you transition to burning fat by eliminating carbohydrates, your body will naturally go through some intense and powerful cravings.

Your brain’s chemicals and body’s functions are going to be searching for their normal source of quick energy, in the form of processed, starchy foods, or maybe sweet sugar.

These carbohydrate cravings will most often manifest by feeling:

• an empty feeling in your stomach and an intense yearning for foods in the carb group

• a lack of energy,

• headaches,

• thirst,

• irritability,

• tiredness,

• and even anxiety and feeling a little down.

Usually, it is said that once you get in ketosis, your carb cravings will fade and your body will start to get used to running on fat and ketones - and maybe even prefer it.

But for some, this may not be the case. Sometimes, either unintentional mistakes, or issues in getting your body to run on ketones, can prevent your carb craving freedom, and you get the sense that you just can’t make it through the carb withdrawal window - leaving you feeling frustrated.

Also, here’s the thing: you may be doing everything right. Many of us, without knowing it, are in fact suffering from a deep-down emotional reliance on food - particularly sugar and refined carbs - hand in hand with processed sugar addiction. (more on that in later)

While it may sound crazy, the struggle with cravings is real… not just a joke to be thrown around on memes… it's a REAL situation that needs to be supported.

Luckily, I’m here to help you identify what’s causing your carb craving roller-coaster and I'm going to show you the steps to implement to fix them - whether you’re pre-keto and need help with easing carb withdrawal symptoms, or are on keto and need help finding your footing with stopping pasta or candy packed craving dreams!

Keto Cravings: If You’re Craving Both Healthy And Unhealthy Carbs?!

If you find yourself craving all kinds of carbs, from healthy carbs like brown rice, whole-wheat cereal, quinoa, seeded whole grain bread to refined carbs like scones, pasta, and cornbread, do not despair! This could be down to easily solvable keto mistakes and stumbles or withdrawal symptoms that just need some actionable hacks and tips to ease them.

Don’t worry if your cravings have been feeling like an endless fixation and/or are more centered around refined carbs and sweets, we’ll talk about what's behind those and preventing them in a little later on.

For right now, I'm going to show you how to stop common keto mistakes that could be leading you to ruin your keto diet.

1. Not Drinking Plenty Of Water

I’m sure I sound like your mother when I tell you this… please be sure to drink plenty of water.

Next time you’re hit with an insatiable craving for a sub sandwich with crusty bread, try drinking a glass of water. Not only is water filling, but most people share the common mishap of mistaking thirst for hunger.

Because the average signs of minor dehydration are very similar to hunger, if you’re not careful in listening to your body, you can easily take that tired hungry feeling for thirst.

This is especially common, considering it is not difficult for your body to become dehydrated and for you to start seeing “grumbling” symptoms. A 1-2% drop in normal fluid levels is enough dehydration for ‘hunger’ effects to start forming.

Also, staying hydrated and drinking plenty of water is another great way to improve digestion and help your body absorb nutrients better, which again leaves you less likely to have cravings. Because when your body is getting the nutrition it needs, it will run more effectively, reducing hunger.

What I'm saying here is stay hydrated. Optimal hydration is usually drinking about one gallon of plain filtered water a day or 8 cups of 8 oz. glasses of water a day.

2. Do NOT Starve Yourself

No, you don’t have to starve yourself to lose weight or be healthy.

While it may sound like common sense not to starve yourself, most people (esp. women) associate diets and healthy eating with having to excessively reduce the amount of food that they eat.

This is simply not true.

When your body experiences a drastic cut in calories, your body starts to believe that it is being starved. This will lead to cravings, hunger pains, and weight retention or gain.

Point is, let go of all preconceptions about quantity and be sure to focus on the quality of the food you’re eating! On keto, the goal is to eat high-quality fats and non-starchy veggies.

3. Stop Limiting Carbs Too Quickly

As you start on your keto journey, your pre-keto goal is to cut your carbohydrate intake to about 25g per day, cutting out all sugars and refined carbs completely.

When you start the keto diet, there are two approaches you can take. Either you could start day one of your goal carb macro set by going immediately cold turkey on carbs, or you could track your normal pre-keto carb intake and gradually cut 50g of carbs per day until you reach your goal.

With the average carb intake clocking in at 325 grams of carbohydrates a day, most people will opt for going cold turkey, especially since its the fastest way to reach ketosis.

However, slashing your carbohydrate intake drastically can be a very hard shock for your body to go through, particularly for the female body due to hormones.

That's why it may be easier to reduce carb intake gradually. While the ‘easing’ method may mean it takes longer to shake off withdrawal cravings, going slowly will make the process happier on your body and mind. Plus it only takes longer because of the time it takes to wean yourself to your daily carb goal.

4. Check… Check… And Check Some More On Your Macros

Adjusting your macros correctly is probably going to be one of the hardest long-term hurdles you’ll have to face while on keto. Adjusting your macros is a chore, and if adjusted incorrectly could trigger long term carb cravings.

If you eat too much of the wrong macro, you may see weight gain and negative physical symptoms like tiredness, hunger, or even headaches.

Be sure to keep an eye on your macros and if you keep experiencing craving, try recalculating your macros using a keto tracker and pay specific attention to the carbs you’re eating.

Don’t get lazy… always track your food intake, because it is so easy to get too comfortable and fall into that all to the common trap of eating too many carbs and obstructing the fat for fuel process.

Of course, it’s extremely unlikely that you’ll correctly configure your keto macros right when you first start. So, don’t beat yourself up at the beginning if you get it wrong.

5. Be Sure To Not ‘Cheat’ Or Get Lazy

A craving will not disappear because you succumb to its temptation. You’ll only make the cravings even more intense, their hold over you stronger, and as you keep feed into them, the more impossible they become to satisfy.

If you’re still giving in to cravings or having cheat days right now, they’re never gonna go away, especially when on a diet like keto. Just one cheat food has the power to destroy weeks of hard work and can even put you through keto flu all over again by ruining your body’s level of adaption to burning fat for fuel, especially when in earlier days of keto.

Of course, if you do fall off the wagon, don’t fret so much - everyone makes mistakes. Go straight back to eating keto foods and keep moving forward.

And… if you keep finding yourself wanting to cheat or cheating, it might be time to look at the root cause. For example, you could have struggles with emotional eating, boredom, or even a food addition. This is what we’re going to talk about next.

If You’re Craving Only Unhealthy Carbs or Keep ‘Cheating’?!

If you find yourself only craving pizzas, pastas, crusty bread rolls, and muffins, or keep cheating then I have something serious I want to quickly talk to you about, a Lil’ word to the wise for you.

When you find yourself on keto and feel like you’re doing everything right, yet you still find yourself glancing with overwhelming cravings at a pic of pizza on Instagram, this could have nothing to do with keto but rather can be a response to your emotional state, stress, and/or be a reliance on sugar - carb addiction, aka sugar addiction.

Yes… you can be addicted to food, especially foods that act like sugar in your body, just like refined carbs like pizza, white bread, chips, and pastries do.

Yeah, you heard me right.

Sugar, junk food, refined carbs, and other foods that act like sugar in your body, are even more addictive than cocaine.

A study in 2007 found that 94% of rats tested would rather choose artificially sweetened water over cocaine (after being sensitized to the drug).

In a study conducted by David Ludwig and his colleagues at Harvard, it was shown that foods that raise blood sugar (or act like sugar in the body) even more than table sugar such as white flour, have a high glycemic index, and trigger a region in the brain “nucleus accumbens” which is the area in the brain that is ground zero for a drug abuse addiction.

Just take that in for a second… certain foods are literally addictive.

Trust me, I’ve had first hand experience with sugar and junk foods. When I tried keto, I meticulously tracked and followed along with the diet, yet I couldn't stop yearning for my old favorite foods like pasta and sugary frappes from Starbucks. I felt miserable… why was I constantly craving and crying over food, and why was keto not working?

Long story short – as you’ve already guessed I was able to narrow it down and come to the conclusion that it was my sugar addiction. I had a reliance on sugar and junk food… because of its addictive qualities, my brain made me feel like I needed it for joy and happiness.

This addictive draw from sugar, junk food, and refined carbs could very well be the reason why you can’t stop cheating on your keto diet or can’t stop with these endless cycles of cravings.

And… since eating sugars and carbs triggers our brain’s “happy” chemicals that make us feel rewarded or comforted, those seemly innocent cravings could also be a form of self-medicating when you’re sad, worried, bored, or lonely.

BUT,  since I've been through it myself, I can help and support you in creating a better relationship with food and breaking sugar and junk foods hold over you.

By implementing these quick, easy, effective, and actionable steps that work on both mindset and food connection into your life, I can assist you in saying goodbye to that food nightmare roller-coaster:

Craving Breaking Step #1: Find Out The Intention Behind The Action?

A great tactic to break your brain’s strong connection to junk foods and fulfillment is to simply take a pause.

When those nasty ol’ thoughts of junk food start to arise and you get that intense desire to eat, stop what you’re doing, pause, take a moment and ask yourself what the craving actually is. Did something, in particular, set it off?

For example, ask your craving the following:

• What emotion am I trying to numb?

• If I eat this will I truly enjoy it or will I feel hollow?

• Is this what my body needs?

• Will this ruin all my hard-earned effort to get into ketosis?

• Do I want or need this?

• Will I feel shame or guilt after eating this?

Triggers can be external or internal, ask yourself questions:

• When are you likely to want to break your keto diet and eat something that is no good for your body?

• What types of food do you crave and when?

• What situations make it hard for you to stay balanced and control your cravings and eating behaviors?

Taking a deep dive into what that craving is and working to identify whether it is good or bad before you even consider that craving, should help you break those positive connections you have formed with junk foods.

Of course, you’re going to be in the early stages of tackling your emotional connection and addictive draw from sugar and junk foods. So, you may find it more difficult to quite authentically understand your thoughts and emotions in a moment of cravings. Therefore, the second part of this step is to begin journaling and keep a food diary for at least 7 days - writing down what you eat and how you felt at the time.

Keeping a journal or notebook, tracking thoughts, emotions, and eating will allow you to get a better understanding of your patterns. As you go back through what you’ve written, you’ll notice certain things keep coming up.

Identify those behaviors and what was triggering you.

Many a time, a craving is more than just the addictive qualities calling you in, and you may uncover stress, anxiety, and burnout causing you to emotional eat - perhaps coming from your relationships, work, money, health, or from events or traumas from your past that have you caught in a stress loop, zapping your energy and keeping you stuck. It’s time for you to take action to resolve them.

This is why identifying all your stressors in your life, particularly unhealthy lifestyle patterns and behaviors, and then focusing on shedding your mind of conscious and sub-conscious negative habits, attitudes and patterns triggering it, is such a huge part of The Stress Reset Course© because it’s SO IMPORTANT for clearing them for good.

Working towards learning to recognize your triggers for cravings should help you stop sugar’s addictive cravings in its tracks, by helping you prepare and acknowledge it before it happens, letting it fade before it even happens.

Once you have tracked your patterns, from there you can prepare ahead of time for that craving trigger by finding an action to take the moment that intense craving hits you. Replace it with a healthy comfort like calling a friend, taking a walk, or even a positive food action like whipping on your apron, putting some music on, and making something keto and healthy to eat that you can feel proud of and positive about. Check out my Recipes Section for some yummy inspiration. I’ve got plenty of yummy… yum… yum, keto options!

Craving Breaking Step #2: Mindful Activities

Using meditations and breathing exercises, as a consistent weekly practice to reprogram those negative food addictive signals and emotional eating episodes and urges in general, and doing them specifically when you have an intense food compulsion come over you to curb and inhibit them are two incredibly effective techniques.

When an impulse is triggered (aka cravings for donuts or pizza) following through a meditation or even some simple breathing techniques is a quick and effective way to send firm commands to your body’s addictive food signals: ‘NO’ by outsmarting your reptilian brain.

You’ll be interrupting the thought and desire to eat by being mindful, getting you to slow down, and take several good, deep breaths.

You could also try something more physical like exercise, yoga, tai chi, or even acupuncture or and massage.

I personally have been hitting HASfit Youtube channel because they have such a huge selection of different types of exercise and different lengths, and come across and down to earth, nice people. I also love to do a Bikram video from youtube. (sorry, I know its without the heat) My two favorites are Dr. Espen Hjalmby 60 min Hot Yoga Class + Guided Meditation, and then 30 Minute Hot 26 Yoga Class - Hot Yoga Asheville for a great overall stretch, and calming the mind.

If you’re not already familiar with it, mindfulness is a practice that involves being fully focused on the present moment and bringing awareness to your thoughts and feelings. If you want to read more into how mindfulness works, check out this blog post.

Mindfulness has even been shown to enhance weight loss, promote healthy eating habits, help break food addictions, and even produce better examination performance. It’s why I created an entire Mindfulness Library within my Sugar Balance + Wellness Circle membership community of ‘how-tos’, tools, exercises and challenges, not only to teach it but to keep it up as a super effective method to build and maintain mental resilience and calm no matter what life throws at you.

Craving Breaking Step #3: Reflect Inward

By now you’ll be noticing a theme: mastering control over your mind is mastering control over your cravings.

Your goal for this step is to become acutely aware of your appetite and its various types of hunger levels and cravings, linked and based around your thoughts, emotions, and what your body’s real needs are.

I want you to be able to meet your “cravings” with more understanding rather than guilt or shame and not only be able to ask yourself whether its to do with emotions (like we talked about earlier) but get to know your body’s signal. Sometimes a craving is just a completely normal response from your body, asking you to bring some balance back.

Sometimes your food addiction will tell you it’s something sugary or refined carb-filled that you need when sometimes it's disguising a certain macro/micro-nutrient need. For example:

If A Craving Is Very Sweet:

Let's say you can’t stop dreaming about candy and gummy bears? This could be a sign of blood sugar irregularities, hormonal imbalances, stress, or sleep deprivation. In this case, if you want to learn more about this type of craving click here.

If A Craving Is For Chocolate:

Sometimes a chocolaty craving is the body’s way of trying to restore its magnesium levels to normal and this is particularly true for women, who, because of there menstrual cycle lose magnesium, a mineral found in… you guessed it cacao. In this case, you can either take a magnesium supplement or try eating something with 100% pure cacao. I actually have a fabulous sugar free dark chocolate chunk recipe you can whip up here. (BTW they’re keto-friendly)

If A Craving Is For Salty Food:

A yearning for salty snacks like chips and pretzels can very well be caused by a lack of electrolytes, especially sodium. This is especially true for those of us who live in a hot climate or who exercise. In this case, make sure to stay hydrated with plenty of water and maybe even snack on some unsweetened salted nuts.

Basically what I'm saying is getting to know your human body is smart! While a craving is usually down to mental state, if you listen to all your signals both mental and physical you will know what you need.

If you fall into craving trouble, hit a rough moment or day reflect, and start again. Remember, you can decide how you want to react and how you want to feel, work it through, and start fresh. Be kind, be patient, and be compassionate to yourself.

Craving Breaking Step #4: EFT

An incredibly powerful tool to help you outsmart those pesky cravings is via the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), also known as tapping.

Essentially, the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is a type of acupressure focused around the psychological state of mind, that you apply to yourself on different meridian points, and that can be done anytime and anywhere.

This tactic is backed up by science for its effectiveness and works by helping to easily connect you with your craving for a particular food while tapping on the meridian points, which makes it possible to release or lessen the intensity of a craving.

If you seem skeptical, no worries, when I was first introduced to it I was a bit skeptical too – but after giving it a chance, I can’t stop recommending it!

Here is a link to my video on how to do EFT that you can follow along with.

Alright… you’ve made it… yippee!

I know that we’ve had to cover a lot, but I bet you now just have so much more confidence and are ready to take on your keto lifestyle, with a clearer and better understanding of your mind, body, and connection to food, especially addictive foods like refined carbs or sugars.

Whether you’ve been making unintentional keto mistakes, needed help with carb withdrawal cravings on pre-keto, have issues getting your body to run on ketones, or have realized that you suffer from emotional reliance on food particularly sugar and refined carbs, or even processed food and sugar addiction, I know that if you follow the steps needed to address your struggle from this post you will have the tools to follow along a road to happy keto success.

If you were fighting carb cravings on keto? No more carb craving roller-coaster for you! You now have to steps to implement for carb and sugar freedom. We’re going to show your body who's BOSS!

Do you want extra support?!

I know that sugar addiction (carb addiction) can be a very hard struggle for many. I certainly know this to be very true… since when I went on my journey to defeating sugars and junk foods holder over me, I went through a tough time. But I crushed it, I did, and you know what… I came out on the other side of the tunnel, so much happier, healthier, and feeling like I'm living my best life, and I didn’t even have a system or support back at that time.

Now you know why I am so passionate about raising awareness for sugar addiction and reliance.

For this reason… I'm here to help… and I’ve put together some really useful extra help and support cutting back sugar for good.

Check out my FREE ‘Ultimate Guide to Crushing Your Sugar Cravings’ Downloadable Guide.

Get started on effortlessly breaking your sugar reliance/addiction for good with help + support. AND, most importantly, while maintaining a healthy balance between your mind and your body - because low-sugar living shouldn’t feel like deprivation.

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It’s your turn!

What cravings do you suffer from most on keto?

Let me know in the comments or on Instagram @itsisabellem using #SugarWithIsabelle!

That’s it from me, 👋

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