Sugar substitute

kim75062

Active Member
So I'm still over weight and need to lose quite a bit. I'm going to try to give up sugar, again. Im also a pescatarian so my diets pretty good except the sugar.......

My biggest problem is coffee. I love coffee! I'm pretty sure I'm addicted to it and have no desire to change that. I drink about 2 pots a day. But I like my coffee strong, light and sweet, like 5 sugar cubes in a 12 oz cup sweet :) oh with flavored sugary creamer to top it off. For the most part my coffee smells like a gourmet cake pop from Starbucks.

I'm also slightly addicted to Coke, no not the illegal kind lol but there's something about a really cold can of Coke when it's 110* out here in Texas that I just can't resist! (It's probably all the sugar in it lol)

Any suggestions on how to make my coffee sweet without all the sugar?
 

pasajes4

Well-Known Member
Sugar is one molecule off from alcohol hence the addiction. The only way to give it up is to give it up. There will be a physical withdraw that can be pretty nasty. You can try tapering off one teaspoon/cube at a time/one soda at a time. You will feel so much better after you do. It was harder to give up sugar than smoking.
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
I use sucralose.

I used to drink as much coffee as you, but stopped when I started having blood pressure spikes this year. I now drink only decaf. No blood pressure spikes since I quit.

I hope you have good luck with the sugar, and that the caffeine doesnt hurt you in years to come. I feel very calm these days, something I was never used to feeling, but to be honest the peaceful feeling started before I gave up caffeine. I havent had much sugar for ages. No matter what anyone says about sucralose, to me the consequences of sugar seem much worse. I miss caffeine a little, but not sugar.
 

ksm

Well-Known Member
Any suggestions on how to make my coffee sweet without all the sugar?


How large is your coffee pot? I have a 4 cup one that husband and I use. I use about a 8 oz cup. I do use a heaping teaspoon of sugar and some creamer...but I have my cup, and then stop. Maybe at first, cut back to one cup in the morning...

Ksm
 

Jabberwockey

Well-Known Member
Can't say about the sugar myself. Personally using sweet & low in my coffee. But my suggestion would be to find a tracker to help with the weight loss. @Lil and I use myfitnesspal.com and have been having success with it. You track your intake for every meal and have a calorie goal each day. You will probably be fairly surprised at just how many calories are going into each cup of coffee. Just looked at mine and, after drastically cutting back on fixings, still using 75 calories a day on coffee. Doesn't sound like much but I've discovered just how easy it is to nickel and dime yourself where calories are concerned. Good luck!
 

kim75062

Active Member
How large is your coffee pot? I have a 4 cup one that husband and I use. I use about a 8 oz cup. I do use a heaping teaspoon of sugar and some creamer...but I have my cup, and then stop. Maybe at first, cut back to one cup in the morning...

Ksm

I have a Keurig, I drink about a dozen k cups a day at 12oz.
 

kim75062

Active Member
Can't say about the sugar myself. Personally using sweet & low in my coffee. But my suggestion would be to find a tracker to help with the weight loss. @Lil and I use myfitnesspal.com and have been having success with it. You track your intake for every meal and have a calorie goal each day. You will probably be fairly surprised at just how many calories are going into each cup of coffee. Just looked at mine and, after drastically cutting back on fixings, still using 75 calories a day on coffee. Doesn't sound like much but I've discovered just how easy it is to nickel and dime yourself where calories are concerned. Good luck!

Oh I'm very aware all my calories for the day pretty much come from liquids. When I googled the coffee I used to get from Tim Hortons (god I miss them!!! None down south) it was about 450 per lg cup 4xs a day.
 

kim75062

Active Member
Sugar is one molecule off from alcohol hence the addiction. The only way to give it up is to give it up. There will be a physical withdraw that can be pretty nasty. You can try tapering off one teaspoon/cube at a time/one soda at a time. You will feel so much better after you do. It was harder to give up sugar than smoking.

Yes I quit smoking everyone I found out I was pregnant. I had really good reason to quit so it wasn't very hard for me. Sugar on the other hand, i think will much more difficult.
 

kim75062

Active Member
I use sucralose.

I used to drink as much coffee as you, but stopped when I started having blood pressure spikes this year. I now drink only decaf. No blood pressure spikes since I quit.

I hope you have good luck with the sugar, and that the caffeine doesnt hurt you in years to come. I feel very calm these days, something I was never used to feeling, but to be honest the peaceful feeling started before I gave up caffeine. I havent had much sugar for ages. No matter what anyone says about sucralose, to me the consequences of sugar seem much worse. I miss caffeine a little, but not sugar.

Luckily I am one of the most calm people I know. I'm a problem solver by nature and don't stress out about things. I see the problem and immediately start working on a solution. I'm not a yeller and won't engage in an argument. I defuse the argument and wait until a healthy disagreement conversation can take place.

So far my BiPolar (BP) runs low naturally. I'm usually around 94/60. I have been keeping an eye on it though when I take the hubbys weekly to monitor his intake my own as well.
 

kim75062

Active Member
For today I'm still using 5 cubes. But I'm going to use half and half instead of my flavored creamer that probably has 20 grams per serving in it also.
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
My blood pressure was and usually is very low, oftem 90/60. Seriously. But Im older now (63) and caffeine causes blood pressure spikes. Never did before maybe last year.

I never thought I would quit caffeine, but now I dont miss it. I like the taste of coffee so I drink decaf. But i dont use sugar or creamer. I now use a splash of almond milk and sucralose. Its good! I try eating very healthy.
 

AppleCori

Well-Known Member
Hey Kim,

I hear you about the calories in drinks!

I love milk. Any kind of milk.

I could drink a gallon every day.

I have challenged myself to drink a bottle of water for every other drink I consume.

So, at least 50% water.

I also make myself drink at least 16 oz. first thing in the morning, before anything else. I am going for 32oz before I have anything else, as a goal.
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
I gave up caffeine completely except for one mug of very strong tea every few AMs when I really needed it to get going.

I started using caffeine in moderate quantities again because I found it helped with "brain fog" and cognitive ability. Right now I am trying to find the right balance between "properly medicated" and climbing the walls, as too much of the stuff definitely sets off the anxiety.

The balance right now seems to be two caffeinated sodas or one mug of tea and one caffeinated soda per day, and no caffeine after 4PM or I don't sleep.

Any more caffeine and I'm a nervous wreck. I also drink at least 2 liters of water per day.

I can't tolerate energy drinks, etc, and other than foo-foo, heavily caloric iced coffee drinks, I don't like coffee. Sucralose is the only artificial sweetener I can tolerate as aspartame gives me headaches and I'm allergic to stevia.
 

1905

Well-Known Member
I love coffee as well and I like it to taste like Starbucks too. I use my Keurig but I use it with my french press. Here is what I do:

2 tsp of Starbucks ground coffee in the french press with
water from Keurig

I pour it into the cup and add almond milk and half a pump of Starbucks syrup, sugar free Vanilla is my fav.

You can buy a whole bottle of syrup for 11 or 12 bucks, it'll last all year.

Almond milk doesn't have a lot of calories, my husband has celiac disease and is lactose intolerant so that's what we have and now I'm used to it. It's good!
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
I don't like vanilla except in baked goods and then not heavily. If I want milk in something, I have dairy milk. I'm somewhat lactose intolerant, but can tolerate non-fermented milk in small quantities. The only time I drink "regular" coffee is if I'm on the road and am getting tired. I'll stop at a gas station and get a half coffee/half hot chocolate, dump in an x-tra cream, and drink that as a "drug" to wake me up. More than half coffee will give me the shakes as I usually get a 20 or 24oz cup, which will usually be cold or tepid (depending on time of year) by the time I finish it.
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
I sleep much better now too. I was syarting to wake up at night and thought it was aging bit it was too much caffeine (combined maybe with aging).
 

kim75062

Active Member
I gave up caffeine completely except for one mug of very strong tea every few AMs when I really needed it to get going.

I started using caffeine in moderate quantities again because I found it helped with "brain fog" and cognitive ability. Right now I am trying to find the right balance between "properly medicated" and climbing the walls, as too much of the stuff definitely sets off the anxiety.

The balance right now seems to be two caffeinated sodas or one mug of tea and one caffeinated soda per day, and no caffeine after 4PM or I don't sleep.

Any more caffeine and I'm a nervous wreck. I also drink at least 2 liters of water per day.

I can't tolerate energy drinks, etc, and other than foo-foo, heavily caloric iced coffee drinks, I don't like coffee. Sucralose is the only artificial sweetener I can tolerate as aspartame gives me headaches and I'm allergic to stevia.


Energy drinks are probably really bad for you also but I love red bull :) I quit drinking it a few years ago after having heart palpitations constantly from it. I was drinking 2 of the 4 packs a day of red bull and drive through coffee as my meals lol it may of messed me up a little bit at the time but I got through collage while working full time, taking care of mom with cancer and double total knee replacements plus the kids and hubby :)

Now I drink rockstar fruit punch once in a while. Mainly when I don't get any sleep the night before. With how crazy my work schedule used to be I got used to only sleeping 3 hours a night.
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
Sonic had heart surgery as an infant. He stills sees a cardiologist every few years. His doctor told me that kids and adults die from energy drinks and that they are dangerous. I wouldnt touch them after talking to her about it. Coffee is a lot safer if you're tired!
 
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