Bill was away for a night and as I drove home from visiting family, my brain started rolling. Before keto when Bill was away, I would go to the store and get a big family-sized bag of chips with some dip, some chocolate and watch something on T.V. he didn’t want to see. My usual go-to was Grease; that I love that movie is my dirty secret. The thought went through my mind that I could spend the night loading in the carbs. It was true temptation.
Temptation Is No Secret
It’s no secret that the reason I started this lifestyle was because of Bill’s health. He can’t eat carbs or his body throws so much insulin at them that his blood sugar plummets. It will make him sick and will lead to heart damage. Even now, with my own motivations, I don’t do carb-loading times when he is around because I’m not going to eat that stuff in front of him when he can’t indulge every now and then. So, it was tempting when he wasn’t home to just dive into the old habits.
There were a couple of ways I got through this temptation. First of all, I thought about how it would make me feel physically if I ate sugar and carb-heavy food. I’m now lower than my goal weight was originally and I feel comfortable with my body for the first time, well, ever. I did do a day where I ate carbs and sugar last spring, and the thoughts of the stomach cramps and the “hangover” feeling the next day have kept me from repeating that. That was one big reason why I decided against it.
There Are Other Ways
Secondly, I thought about how it would feel to tell Bill that I had gone off the rails a little. Please don’t confuse this with guilt. I would feel guilty myself, but Bill would never make me feel guilty about doing what I wanted to do. It’s more about accountability. He would ask me what made me decide to do that, and the thing was, it was an impulse, not a decision.
Koopa was tempted, but went for it!
That brought me to the next thought. This was my brain taking a quick jab at my motivation and strength in a moment of weakness. Before keto, I was simply eating whatever came my way. I would decide one morning that I would give up sugar and I would ingest a cupcake at work before even thinking about it. That has changed and I like the feeling that I control what goes into my body. That day last spring was planned and I thought about what I wanted to eat and what I wanted to do. This was not a plan; it was an impulse.
You Need to Satisfy that Temptation Somehow
So, I started thinking about what I had at home that would satisfy this craving. I had planned on roast beef wraps with Folio Cheese Wraps. I enjoy that a lot and it’s easy to quickly put together. Then I would have a coffee with cream. That sounded good. I had some chocolate chip cookies I had made with sweetener and almond flour that are my favourite treat right now. Finally, I had a couple of Keto Kups ice cream servings in the freezer I could go to if I still needed something sweet.
Before I knew it, I was home and realized I wasn’t even hungry yet. My craving wasn’t about what my body wanted; it was my brain bringing back old habits. I got in the house and had my coffee. A little while later, I made supper and had my cookies for dessert. I didn’t even eat the ice cream because I was too full.
Carb Monsters Suck
So, if you are feeling tempted by the carb monsters, here are a couple of pieces of advice. Have something to treat yourself with at home. We always have one or two things in the fridge or freezer that will keep the sweet-tooth satisfied but won’t send us off track. Have someone supporting you to help you be accountable. And finally, just wait it out some. At the end of the evening, I didn’t even want chips and dip. Once the initial craving was done, I was back to my normal, keto self.
The temptations are few and far between these days for me. I don’t get cravings like I used to and seeing other people eat sweets rarely bothers me. This was a good reminder though that the bad habits are still there and I need to be aware of the times when I’m most vulnerable to them. These are the times you need your motivators handy!
Wendy
