HOW to Curve My Dessert after Lunch Cravings.. I'm NEW!!

Hi, Im New... Im 24 and 198 pds 5'3.. I can lose 4 pds but then I gain them back. After lunch everyday I want something sweet, and eat bad bad things, Does anyone know what to do to curve the cravings..I work out about 3-4 times a week, but im getting frustrated with no results.. I feel better, just no results..

Try fruit for dessert

Sugar free jello chocolate pudding is my favorite! There's very few calories and it serves as a desert and chocolate fix.

BG

chocolate chip rice cakes?  I like them, they actually have tiny chocolate chips, which are enough for my chocolate/sweet craving.  

I save my diet pop for dessert.  A&W root beer and cream sodas are low in harmful tooth-decaying acids and are very sweet for diet pop.

Hi there!

Maybe the results just haven't reached the scale yet.  Seems like I will be really good on calories and working hard at the gym and nothing - but then, several pounds at once.  Or down a size in my clothes.  Just keep trying to make your good eating habits permanent - you wanna lose the weight S L O W L Y.

Get the bad bad stuff out of reach.  JUST SAY NO! I bought the 100 calorie snack packs of oreo crisps, teddy bear cinnamon grahams, and peanut butter cookie crisps.  I also like the pudding - and I like skinny cow fudge bars.  Gotta have your fix, make sure its not too many calories and not much fat.  I also like frozen lemonade bars.

I second the fruit. I have it almost every day, and now that I'm used to it, I save some room, so I never go over cals. Just pick really nice sweet fruit. I find apples arent very desserty. But try rockmelon/cantaloup which is also super low cal, or blueberries, frozen. The other thing is frozen grapes. Or frozen banana, mashed up.

If you're more of a sweet tooth for hot desserts, thats ok too. Chop up an apple into small cubes, skin on and microwave until soft. Add some cinnamon, and if you want splenda (really not needed) and away you go. Hav ethe occasional treat -  add some museli or even bake the apple pieces, like a pie. I also micowave/grill bananas. Yummy

I third the fruit! :o)

It's amazing how satisfying an apple can be when you want something sweet, pineapple too!

I agree it takes a lot to try and curb that sugar craving after lunch. I made a deal with myself.....Every friday night is desert night. I can have ice-cream/ chocolate/ cheese cake...anything I want. So most times I can deny myself the sugar with the hope that I will have lots of it on Friday night with my husband. Luckily...my husband is a sweetheart and he has agreed to work with me....so I can stick to my deal. Now on friday....I do have the dessert but when I have that ice-cream...it doesn't feel as good as it should have felt. But anywaz... it was my craving and I fulfilled it on Friday night. It works for me.

During the week-

1) a quarter glass of Orange Juice (w/ lots of pulp). It will be about 50 cals max. Never tried to measure it though.

2) Sometimes, Unsweetened applesauce helps. Its not too sweet but feels really light to eat. So each cup is about 60 cals.

3) Bunch of black grapes.


Once in a while (maybe once in 15 - 20 days) I do treat myself with m&m's or a musketeer's bar. Most might disagree with this...but I don't like to crave or deny myself of some snack indulgences. Just have it in small proportions. Just make sure you don't finish the whole thaing at one go :)

Keep strong!!

sugar free jello! 5 calories a cup so you can eat like as much as you want! :)

or diet pop, its sweet and the bubbles fill you up so your cravings slow down.

or if you like coffee or tea... just use splenda for sweetness, and warm water makes you feel full so you will also stop craving.

I often want something a little sweet after dinner, so I know what you are talking about!  I do different things depending on my mood.  I have one Dove Dark chocolate promise; only 42 calories and it curbs my chocolate craving.  I might have one hard candy mint, around 10 calories, and it lasts a long time.  I eat fat free pudding, which is 90 calories.  Or I eat a few dried apricots, which are sweet and nutritious, but packed with calories, so watch your portion size.  Having a little something sweet is perfectly doable, but there's a big difference between a mint, and a big slice of chocolate cake!

oh....i am a sweet girl!!  i like my coffee then...i use a cream and a sweet and low...however, if this doesn't do it....the jello sugar free chocolate pudding is WONDERFUL!!!  and only 60 calories!!

Have you used the CC Tools to determine your caloric needs?  Are you logging your food (all of it)?  Have you read the articles in the CC library to educate yourself about nutrition?

There's a lot you can do to curb cravings and you've already gotten some great tips. 

Good Luck to you, and we hope to see you here often.

I always eat dessert at least once a day, but it always fits into my calorie budget. If you want dessert, I think you should eat it, within reason, of course. Steer clear of trans fats, obviously, and keep portions reasonable; don't eat any dessert until you know exactly how many calories you will be putting away.

An easy way to control the dessert is simply to share it with a friend / coworker / family member, etc. You get your sweets and look like a sweetie for sharing :-)

I also like the idea of at least trying fruit as a dessert (at least some of the time). Mangoes are incredibly sweet and are good for conquering sugar cravings. They are about 105 calories per cup and loaded with vitamin A.

I try not to eat too many artificially sweetened desserts just based on my own experiences. When I eat real desserts, including fruit as a dessert, I feel much more satisfied for a longer period of time than when I eat something sugar-free.

Recently discovered Yoplait Light Thick and Creamy and I love it!  Only 100 calories and it has the texture of custard!  Plus it's high in calcium.  (Might be a little high in sugar for some, tho.)

Try brushing your teeth, or having a piece of minty gum. A lot of times I think we crave dessert because it tells us "the meal is over." Having gum after a meal is another way to give your body the same signal.

If you still crave something sweet one hour later, then go ahead and have fruit or a small low-cal dessert... just watch it because a lot of the low-cal stuff is crammed with sodium (like those pudding cups... yikes!!)

I like to have a sugar-free Livesaver mint after lunch.  Sometimes I go crazy and have TWO.  Heh, at 8 calories each it doesn't affect my calorie limit at all.  If you suck on them instead of crunching them then they last quite a while and make you feel like you are having more.  Anyone who keeps mints around should switch to the sugar-free anyway, since sugar is so bad for your health and teeth.  I think they taste even better than the full sugar ones!

I have discovered two fabulous finds - sugar free jolly ranchers and Yoplait Light & Thick Key Lime Pie flavoer.  The jolly Ranchers taste just like the real thing and the yogurt - yummmm!  I kept expectnig to taste a little graham cracker crust - which may not be a bad idea (to crumble a graham cracker on top)!

I also understand that if the "light" options don't satisfy then you are still left craving.  I have found that a pack of M&Ms are about 240 or 260 calories.  That may seem like a ot, but if you stretch it over a couple of days, it will satisfy AND not kill you counts for the day!

Finally, a summer favorite - strawberry shortcake.  I have been making it with sugar free shells or angel food cake, sugar free glaze and fat free whipped topping.  You have to watch your counts during the day, but you can get a pretty good size portion for only 200-300 calories AND pretty low fat too!

I like eating a handfull of raisins and almonds after lunch. It's crunchy, sweet, natural, and loaded with vitamins with no harmful fake sugars as many of our diet drinks and snacks have today.

I have found that drinking water during the day also helps. I have a sitting job so I am keeping a water glass next to me all day, as soon as I drink one, I get up and fill up another one. i even started drawing lines on a sticky note next to the computer. I make sure to have 6-7 glasses of water within 8 hour period and that keeps me feeling more full. Also, I am trying to make it a routine every nite to cut up a container of fruit and take it with me in the morning for the afternoon snack.