Unlike sugar storage, fat storage is unlimited! So to work off the empty calories consumed from sugar alone, on average, you would have to hold a plank for two hours, do 30 minutes of constant push-ups or do 358 pull-ups! Is the sugar worth it? I think not—especially because sugar is void of all nutrients, does not satiate your appetite and actually leaves you hungrier!

Consuming too much sugar can also make your brain feel foggy, cause you to gain unwanted body fat and deplete you of energy. It’s time to get educated on the effects sugar has on your health and cut it out of your diet for good!

Sugar Addiction Is Real!

People joke about being addicted to sugar, but it’s actually a real struggle and not a joke. Added sugar provokes the release of dopamine, which is a neurotransmitter that works within the reward center of your brain and plays a crucial role in your feelings of hunger and pleasure.

Consuming high amounts of sugar leads to high amounts of dopamine being released, which then provides you with a feeling of amazing satisfaction. But if you consume sugar on a regular basis, your brain grows accustomed to this constant sugar satisfaction and begins to “need” this sweet taste to continue experiencing this feeling. When you continue to feed your brain its “needed” sugar, it then begins to require more and more to gain that same reward. This is due to your dopamine receptors becoming desensitized from all the sugar, requiring more dopamine to be released and an actual addiction begins.

Sugar, Insulin and Fat Storage

It is important to note that all sugar is not processed in the body the same way. When discussing added sugar, we are talking about processed, refined sugar. When you eat refined sugar, it goes directly into your bloodstream and causes a huge spike in your blood sugar. This causes insulin to then be released. The job of insulin is to remove excess sugar from the blood, store it in the body and keep blood sugar levels in check.

When excess sugar hits the bloodstream, you experience the well-known “sugar high” effect, where you feel extremely energized for a short period of time. This causes an overestimated amount of insulin to be released, removing more sugar than necessary from your bloodstream and causing the classic “sugar crash.”

When you experience the crash, your body thinks it “needs” more sugar, so you eat more sugar, and a vicious circle begins. Some like to call this the sugar roller-coaster. Naturally occurring sugar from fruit, meanwhile, is mixed with fiber and does not affect the body quite the same way. Fiber slows down the digestion process, resulting in the naturally occurring sugar being able to enter the bloodstream slowly and keeping blood sugar levels in balance.

Insulin is also a fat-storing hormone. While it is a necessity for proper functioning of the body, when in excess it becomes harmful. Insulin triggers a fat storage enzyme and, at the same time, represses the enzyme responsible for the breakdown of fat. Therefore, you are shutting down the fat-burning process when consuming refined sugar.

As explained above, excess sugar consumption causes insulin to remove too much sugar from your bloodstream, resulting in low blood sugar. When this happens, a stress signal is sent to the brain and your brain reacts by releasing cortisol, your stress hormone. This is bad news for you because cortisol energizes and increases your appetite, leading you to eat more than what your body actually needs.

Sugar Is Hiding Everywhere!

When it comes to becoming healthier and fitter, sugar is your greatest enemy in disguise. While some people know they are sugar addicts, others might believe they don’t have a sugar tooth. The truth is, sugar loves to sneak its way into our food any way it can. Food you consider healthy, and food that is not even supposed to be sweet, can be packed with this devious additive. So where is all of the added sugar hiding? Everywhere! Here is a list of common foods with shockingly high amounts of sugar:

• – Pasta sauce (Ragu), ½ cup – 12g
• – Yogurt (Yoplait strawberry), single serving – 27g
• – Granola (Nature Valley), ½ cup – 14g
• – Breakfast cereal (Raisin Bran), ¾ cup – 19g
• – Oatmeal (Quaker apple cinnamon), single-serve package – 22g
• – Baked beans (Bush’s), ½ cup – 15g
• – Trail mix (Emerald Breakfast On the Go) – 17g
• – Jam (Smuckers), 1 tbsp. – 13g
• – Maple syrup, ¼ cup – 47g
• – Fat-free salad dressing (Ken’s Steak House) – 13g
• – Vanilla almond milk (Silk), 1 cup – 13g
• – Tomato soup (Campbell’s On the Go) – 20g
• – BBQ sauce, 2 tbsp. – 15g
• – Energy bar (Cliff Bar chocolate chip) – 21g
• – Applesauce (Motts), 1 snack cup – 19g
• – Fruit cup (Dole), 1 snack cup – 18g
• – Jello, ½ cup – 19g
• – Soda, 12oz – 40g
• – Iced tea (sweetened), 16oz – 44g
• – Sports drinks (Gaterade), 1 bottle – 21g
• – Vitamin drinks (Vitamin Water), 1 bottle – 32g
• – Vanilla latte (Starbucks), 16oz – 32g

5 Steps to Kick Your Sugar Habit

Now that you know the effects sugar has on your brain, body and health, are you ready to kick it to the curb for good? If so, follow these five steps!

1. Read food labels. Sugar is hiding everywhere in your diet! Foods you think are healthy, like many yogurts, sauces, dressings, protein bars, oatmeal and coffee drinks, are packed with sugar. Never assume a food is healthy and sugar-free and always double-check the food label.

2. Eat whole foods. Even processed foods that do not contain sugar quickly break down into sugar. Avoid processed foods that will promote fat storage by consuming as many fresh, whole foods as possible. Whole foods will stabilize your blood sugar, decreasing your sugar cravings. Plus, no need to read the labels on whole foods—sugar can’t sneak its way into them!

3. Detox your kitchen. Look at the food labels on the items in your pantry and refrigerator to find where sugar is hiding in your diet. Toss out the items that are packed with sugar to help you successfully drop the sugar!

4. Buy unsweetened. Choose unsweetened options of foods like yogurt, oatmeal, coffee and plant-based milks. You can always sweeten them yourself with natural sweeteners like honey or stevia.

5. Go at least 21 days without sugar. Your brain can actually be addicted to sugar. The more sugar you eat, the more sugar your brain “requires” to feel satisfied. To break your addiction, go at least 21 days without eating sugar, no matter how much you are craving it! The longer you go without sugar, the less your brain “requires” it and the less you will crave it.

Top Tips to Battle Your Sugar Cravings

1. Drink more water. When you experience a craving, chug a glass of water before eating. Thirst is commonly confused for hunger, leading dehydration to be a common cause of your sugar cravings.

2. Combine protein, healthy fats and fibrous foods at each meal. This powerful combination will stabilize your hunger hormones and keep you full and satisfied for hours without causing any sugar cravings!

3. Eat more fat and less carbs at breakfast. A high-fat breakfast will help avoid  a blood sugar spike first thing in the morning, which can also prevent a sugar crash later and a roller-coaster of cravings throughout your day.

4. Don’t skip meals! Skipping meals leads to a drastic drop in energy. When your energy levels drop, your blood sugar levels drop as well, causing your brain to think it needs more sugar. Plus, when you are overly hungry, your willpower can weaken and it’s much more difficult to say “no”!

5. Cook food at home. When you prepare your own food, you are able to control all of the ingredients you use, making it much easier to drop the sugar.

6. Cut out the alcohol. Alcohol lowers your blood sugar, leading your brain to believe you need sugar to maintain normal levels. It also negatively changes the way sugar and carbs are metabolized in the body. Plus, most alcoholic beverages are jam-packed with sugar.

7. Reduce stress. Stress triggers hormones that increase your appetite, leading to dangerous cravings. It’s easier said than done, but decreasing your stress levels will simultaneously decrease your sugar cravings.

8. Get enough sleep. Lack of sleep causes a domino effect of chemical reactions in your body, altering your hormone levels and increasing your sugar cravings! And when you are sleep-deprived, you are much more likely to lack the willpower to say “no” to those cravings.

9. Eat fruit! There is a difference between processed sugar and naturally occuring sugar. Your body processes sugar from fruit more slowly due to its fiber content, so it doesn’t cause the same spike in blood sugar as processed sugar. When a sugar craving hits, grab a piece of fruit and enjoy the sweetness of natural sugar.

10. Ditch the fancy coffee. A Starbucks vanilla latte has 32 grams of sugar! Buy and brew your own vanilla-, caramel-, hazelnut- or mocha-flavored ground coffee beans. Mix together coffee, ½ cup of unsweetened plant-based milk and stevia to taste for your own homemade delicious version!

11. Avoid soda. It is a sugar trap!

12. Drink fruit-flavored herbal tea. Sugar craving setting in? Brew a cup of tea and sweeten it with stevia for a guilt-free sweet taste. Use two tea bags for a stronger flavor. Drinking tea also helps to keep you hydrated and not confuse your thirst for hunger.

13. Add a teaspoon of cinnamon. Try sprinkling cinnamon on coffee, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, apples and protein shakes. It has been shown to help control blood sugar levels.

14. Fight sugar with fat. Add more fat into your diet to overcome your sugar cravings. Healthy fats fuel the body, stabilize your blood sugar levels, cut hunger and keep you full and satisfied for hours.

15. Work out! Being active for at least 30 minutes every day reduces your sugar cravings.

By Chelsea Morrow

We all have health and fitness goals, whether it be reaching our ideal weight, defining our abs or simply feeling better in our own skin. And, we all know eating our favorite treats is not going to get us there.

This leaves us staring at the cookie jar while we angrily rip away at our celery sticks, attempting to stay disciplined. It’s a serious struggle! How are we supposed to enjoy our lives with a constant battle going on inside our heads?

Guess what? Being healthy does not equal deprivation, and deprivation certainly does not equal being healthy! Instead, you can fuel your fitness goals while continuing to enjoy your favorite treats.

The key to establishing lifelong healthy eating habits is finding the right balance. Rather than depriving yourself of foods you love, learn how to incorporate nourishing ingredients into them. With our best healthy baking substitutions, healthy never tasted so good!

Swap avocado for butter

Take in a fraction of the calories and nourish your body with a better source of fat by using our favorite healthy baking substitution! Swapping butter for avocado is easy by simply using half a cup of avocado for every one cup of butter your recipe calls for.

Benefits of avocado: Avocados are an amazing superfood and should be included in your diet for overall vitality! From boosting your weight loss, digestion, and vitamin absorption to promoting healthy skin and hair, why wouldn’t you make the swap?

Swap honey for sugar

Processed sugar (white sugar) is our enemy and is highly addictive. It not only increases our body fat but also heightens are appetite and sugar cravings. Ditch sugar now by making this awesome healthy baking swap! According to Kitchn, there are a few rules to follow. For every 1 cup of sugar your recipe calls for, use ½ cup honey instead. Slightly reduce the amount of liquids added to compensate for honey’s wet consistency. For best results, add ¼ tsp. of baking soda for every cup of honey added.

Benefits of honey: Enjoy honey and reap the benefits! Honey boosts your energy and memory, wards off infections and allergies, clears your skin and helps you sleep. Although honey has amazing health benefits, it should still be consumed in moderation.

Swap unsweetened applesauce for oil

Just because it says vegetable doesn’t mean it’s healthy. Vegetable oil is chemically altered, heavily processed and linked to heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity. No thank you! Say goodbye to vegetable oil and hello to unsweetened applesauce. Easily make this healthy baking substitution by using a 1:1 ratio when baking.

Benefits of apples: The abundant health benefits of apples help you and your body function flawlessly. Eating apples helps you ramp up your weight loss and digestion, as well as increase your intake of fiber, antioxidants, vitamin c and other essential vitamins and minerals.

Swap flaxseeds for eggs

Take a break from animal products and turn your recipe vegan by using flax eggs. Make a flax egg by combining one tbsp. ground flaxseeds with three tbsp. hot water and let sit for five minutes. One flax egg is equivalent to one egg.

Benefits of flaxseeds: Feel fuller with flaxseeds! They are filled with fiber and expand in your stomach, leading to a decrease in your appetite. They also are an amazing source of omega-3 fatty acid, helping your muscles recover and get stronger.

Swap almond flour for white flour

Avoid unwanted body fat by making almond flour a staple in your baking! White flour is heavily processed, stripped of all vitamins, nutrients and fiber, leading it to be absorbed directly into your bloodstream. This rampantly spikes your blood sugar causing an increase in fat storage. Yikes! Let’s make this healthy baking substitution by using a 1:1 ratio. For best results, add in an extra egg (or flax egg!).

Benefits of almond flour: The best benefit of almond flour: It is gluten free! Not sold yet? It is also protein packed, low carb, and an amazing source of dietary fat (helping you burn more fat!).

Swap cacao nibs for chocolate chips

Cacao nibs are chocolate chips in their natural state, raw and much less processed. While chocolate chips are packed with toxic ingredients, cacao nibs are overloaded with numerous health benefits. Enjoy the wonderful crunch and rich dark chocolate flavor of cacao nibs, guilt free.

Also, try swapping cacao powder for cocoa powder.

Use cacao nibs and cacao powder interchangeably for chocolate chips and cocoa powder when baking.

Benefits of cacao: Need an energy booster and mood enhancer? Eat cacao! This superfood will also increase your fat burning, stabilize your blood sugar and provide you with important antioxidants.

Swap coconut cream for heavy cream

Coconut cream and heavy cream contain the same amount of fat, so why bother making this healthy baking substitution? Not all fats are created equal and while coconut cream boosts fat burning, heavy cream initiates fat storage. Make the swap by refrigerating a can of coconut cream and use as if it were heavy cream.

Can’t find coconut cream? Easily make your own! Refrigerate a can of full-fat coconut milk overnight, drain the separated coconut water and scoop out the remaining cream.

Benefits of coconut cream: Enjoy coconut cream, not only for the delicious taste, but also for the numerous benefits. Coconut cream replenishes electrolytes, improves digestion, raises energy levels, builds muscle and burns fat!

Enjoy the foods you love and stop depriving yourself now! With these healthy baking substitutions, easily turn all your favorite baking treats into nutrient-dense superfoods!

Learn more about developing a healthier diet here.

Chelsea Morrow is a certified personal trainer and yoga instructor. After a six-year career as a professional figure skater, she now works at Burn Boot Camp HQ on the Marketing team and is passionate about educating all of Burn Nation about fitness, nutrition, and a positive mindset. Chelsea is also the author and mastermind behind The Blueprint, Burn Boot Camp’s weekly newsletter. She loves doing yoga, meditating, rock climbing, her dog Yogi, and eating Mexican food.

Kristie Lengel

Late night snacking is one of the number one poor eating habits in America today. Whether you reach for cookies and milk after dinner, a bowl of popcorn while watching your Wednesday night sitcoms, or a handful of M&M’s from the dining room candy bowl, it all adds up!

These late night snacks increase your blood sugar before bedtime, which in turn can cause you to store body fat as you sleep. Ask yourself, are you eating due to hunger or habit?

The majority of poor eating requires behavior modification, not just a “diet plan.” So let’s talk about a few things that can be done in order to prevent that late night binge!

1. Step out for some air

Before you head to the kitchen for that late night snack, first step outside for some air. Maybe even take the dog for a walk around the block once or twice before you choose to eat something. A combination of the fresh air, time to think, and endorphin production might change your mind about that sleeve of Oreos.

2. Change the type of snack

The problem with late-night snacking is not necessarily the time of day you’re eating, but how the food you’re eating is broken down in the body and how your body reacts to it.

Let’s break it down. The carbohydrates you eat break down as sugar in your body and insulin kicks in to bring your blood sugar down. Your insulin will remain high as you sleep due to your sugary treat, which tells the body to store body fat. If you spike your insulin before bed, you will essentially be storing fat while you sleep!

So if you must snack, choose something that’s low in sugar, contains a sufficient amount of protein (>10g), and has a good source of fat. The combination of fat and protein will satiate you without increasing insulin production. Walnuts are a great choice, for example!

3. Eliminate mindless eating

I just mentioned that walnuts are a great evening snack to munch on to cure that late night craving, but keep your serving size in mind! Did you know the serving size for walnuts is only a quarter of a cup? It’s easy to eat over a full cup of walnuts if you’re paying more attention to the TV than how big your handfuls are!

A cup of walnuts has over 800 calories in it, which could be half the necessary calories in your daily diet. In order to prevent mindless eating, do not keep snack containers and bags next to the couch while you’re snacking. Instead, make sure to measure out a serving size of your snack in the kitchen, and only make one trip!

4. Avoid skipping meals during the day

Whether you feel hunger or not throughout your workday, your body requires fuel in order to function properly. If you don’t supply your body with enough energy to work efficiently, you will, in turn, crave high caloric foods later in the evening.

This is your body’s feedback mechanism to make up for what it lost. So don’t skip meals during the day! Set alarms on your phone to remind yourself to eat so you can prevent that late night binge. Don’t let the day get away from you!

5. Avoid sugary foods

Did you know that sugar is highly addictive? The same sensors in the brain are signaled when eating your chocolate ice cream as would be signaled if you were to inject illicit drugs into your system!

Sugar triggers the reward center of the brain, leading the body to crave even more and experience withdrawals when trying to eliminate it. Remind yourself of this vicious cycle before choosing a sugary treat!

Remember, healthy weight loss or maintenance is not putting yourself on a diet. It’s all about behavior modification and making healthy lifestyle habits for a long and healthy future!

Kristie is the Head Trainer of Burn Boot Camp Bluffton (South Carolina). She graduated from Hofstra University with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Exercise Physiology and a minor in Psychology. She brings her expertise to Burn by taking both a lifestyle and behavioral approach to health and fitness, focusing on helping her clients improve their health behaviors in their everyday lives. Kristie has helped hundreds of people lose thousands of pounds and maintain their new healthy weights. She is super excited to educate and inspire Burn Nation to be healthier and happier for years to come!

My mission is to have researchers look back in 20 years and ask “How and the heck is Lake Norman the most fit region in all of the United States?” I’ll tell you why, because you (being a mom) are the leader of our community and you are a part of something special.  Educating you and providing you with useful content, workout videos, tips and tricks is my way of saying thank you for being part of the “Fit Mom’s Forever” community. Your greatest thanks can be to pass the message along! Make a change in someone’s life by reaching out and letting them know you care. Doing this we can learn as a group, grow as individuals, and become fit forever! Our Fit Mom’s community is growing  by numbers every single day thanks to you. Always remember a little passion goes a long way!

I challenge you to reach out to someone today and let them know you care. It can be as subtle as a text message or as passionate as a surprise visit to their home. You have someone in your life that you love and care about who maybe isn’t the most healthy person. Don’t force it upon them, just simply let them know you care. If you don’t know what to say…here is an example…”Hey, (friend) I was reading this blog and it made me think of you. Just thought you might want to know some substitutes for that chocolate you love!” A little passion and caring goes a long way!…Here are some GREAT way’s to keep that calorie count down and your sweet tooth happy!

Sweet Tooth & Salty Substitutes

Chocolate

Leave it: Hersey’s Bar (45 g) – 210 calories, 110 calories from fat: Fat 13 g – Carbs 26 g – Sugar – 24 g – Protein 3 g

Love it: Carob (45 g) – 70 calories, 32 from fat: Fat 3.5 g – Carbs – 8 g – Sugar 4 g – Protein 2 g

**FACT – Carob is a fruit that comes from the Carob tree. This legume is found is very high in fiber and calcium.  Carob also has therapeutic uses. It is known to halt serious cases of diarrhea in adults, infants, and animals. One French physician successfully reversed kidney failure with carob.

Ice Cream

Leave It: Haagen-Dazs Chocolate Peanut Butter (1/2 cup) – 360 calories, 220 from fat: Fat 24 g – Carbs 27 g – Sugar 24g – Protein 8g

Love It: Stonyfield Farm Organic Nonfat Frozen Yogurt (1/2 cup) – 100 calories, 0 from fat: Fat 0 g – Carbs 20 g – Sugar 18 g – Protein 4 g

**FACT – All ingredients are organic and contain zero preservatives and additives.

Chips

Leave It: Doritos (1.75 oz) – 275 calories, 110 from fat: Fat 12 g – Carbs 32 g – Sodium 297 mg – Protein 4 g

Love It: Mediterranean Baked Lentile Chips – Sea Salt (1.75 oz) – 110 calorie, 25 from fat: Fat 3 g – Carbs 19 g – Sodium 180 mg – Protein 4 g

**FACT – This

Peanut Butter

Leave it: Jif Creamy (31 g) – 190 Calories, 140 from fat: Fat 16 g – Carbs 6 g – Sugars 2 g, Protein 7 g

Love It: Almond Butter, Raw, Creamy, Unsalted (31 g) – 190 Calories, 150 from fat: Fat 17 g – Carbs 6 g – Sugars 2 g – Protein 8 g

**FACT – Almond butter has 26% more Vitamin E, 3% more Iron, and 7% more Calcium than peanut butter. It’s higher in magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and antioxidants.

Bread

Leave it: Aunt Millie’s Deluxe White Bread (2 slices) – 140 Calories, 15 from Fat: Fat 1.5 g – Carbs 28 g – Sugars  3g – Protein 4 g

Love It: Ezekiel 4:9 Bread ( 2 Slice) – 80 calories, 5 from fat: Fat 1 g – Carbs 15 g – Sugars – 0 g – Protein 4 g

**FACT – Ezekiel Bread has 18 amino acids (building blocks of protein) while seed fed chicken only has 12.

LITTLE SIDE NOTE

Did you know that your body metabolizes (body’s method of processing food) sugar directly into body fat? Take a look at this picture and make sure you think about this  next time you have a Diet Coke!

I hope you liked this! Pass this onto friends, family members, co-workers, and neighbors! Make sure you let someone know you care about them! If you are amazed like I was by this picture let me know your thought by commenting below!