Lesson seven, the glycemic index. A typical breakfast for many folks is a glass of orange juice and a bagel. Sound familiar? Actually, this is an unhealthy breakfast for many of you. Now, you may be asking yourself, how could all those orange juice commercials be wrong? And isn't a bagel a grain?

Here's where I need to introduce you to the glycemic index. The glycemic index is a measure of how quickly carbohydrates break down into glucose and enter the bloodstream. If the carbs enter the bloodstream too quickly, then your blood sugar spikes. So this is a case of slow and steady wins the race. Generally, foods which have a high glycemic index are the foods you want to minimize. These are any foods with a glycemic index level of 70 or higher in contrast, low glycemic foods have an index of 55 or less, you may be unknowingly eating high index foods and causing your blood sugar to spike.

So it pays to be an educated consumer. So let's get back to the effect of the orange juice. Orange juice is full of sugar. The good news is you can balance out its effects by eating a high fiber food along with it. But without balancing out with the high fiber food, your blood sugar is going to spike. Your body will then release insulin to bring it back down.

The problem is that many times it goes too far down and then your body releases cortisol to bring it back up in an attempt to bring it back into balance. When your blood sugar is out of balance, the cravings can appear. And if you're sugar sensitive, you know about cravings. When you satisfy your craving by eating something sweet, your blood sugar goes back up and your body has to release more insulin. And this can be the start of a cycle that it's hard to get out of. So, how to avoid the cravings in the first place?

Just keep your blood sugar levels steady, not too high, not too low, or according to the Three Bears, just right. So here's the good news. By knowing the glycemic index level of the foods you eat, you can stay out of the danger zone. Simply look up the glycemic index tables on the internet to find the exact number associated with your favorite foods. As a general rule, examples of high index foods are sweets and almost anything white, white bread, white rice, white pasta, white bagels, though no vanilla wafers. Many cereals and all Processed foods.

Low index foods would be fruits, vegetables, and low fat proteins, just like your mother taught you. So here are your action steps for today. Choose one meal, plus your snacks and record the glycemic index levels of these foods. This doesn't mean that you can't have any high index foods. But keep in mind that the more you can stick to low index foods, the more likely you are to meet your weight loss goals and keep your blood sugar steady. Pretty soon you'll have a good idea of which foods are problematic, and you'll be armed with powerful information.

No stress. Just have fun with it. Shadow yourself for a week and write down every situation in which you find yourself craving a food. Then note where you are, who you're with what you're doing how you're feeling, then devise a plan B and write it down. For instance, when I'm at the movies with an I'll bring my own low glycemic bar. Instead of eating the popcorn.

Make a commitment and follow through. Because you've added and to your support team, she's not likely to plead with you to order popcorn. If your husband is on your support team, he's less likely to bring high glycemic sweets into the house to tempt you. Then make sure you're drinking enough water throughout the day. Dehydration can disguise itself as hunger. Sometimes you can derail a craving, just by drinking a glass of water for an hour a copy of the glycemic index and tape it to your refrigerator.

Find out which foods are high and avoid them. If you can't avoid them, then limit them. Baby steps are better than no steps at all. Learn to reach Admit, there'll be times when you slip because when you falter, you know, people give in to temptation at times. It isn't necessary to go cold turkey. This is your plan.

You can design it to fit your lifestyle and your needs. And then if you falter, pick yourself up and recommit. Tomorrow is another day. Remember, you can do this. list your favorite distractions. distracting yourself when you're feeling a craving is a winning tactic.

Sometimes all you need is a 15 minute distraction to derail the craving. Don't wait until you're craving the food to think of a distraction. Have a list on the counter. Be prepared. Write down your eating schedule and make snack packs. You can combine a fruit with a fiber such as an apple with walnuts Cheese and celery for a healthful and filling snack.

Remember to eat every three or four hours to keep your blood balanced and avoid sugary snacks as much as possible. So bottom line keeping your blood sugar levels steady and in balance will keep those cravings at bay. And you can do this. Here are your action steps. Make a list of the steps you plan to take to reduce your cravings. Then use these or at least one of these when you feel a craving coming on.

Let's talk about cravings because they can quickly derail your weight loss plan. to curb your cravings. You need a plan is my quote from Stephen Glenn. If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything. stand for something. You must decide what your goal is.

If your goal is to curb your cravings announce it, affirm it, believe it. Tell the neighbors, tell your spouse, get them on your team. These people can be your greatest allies or your greatest saboteurs. In the book change anything author's Patterson, granny max field and Macmillan at swit Fleur, examine the science behind what leads to successful change. Interestingly, they found that willpower was not the critical factor. Motivation, however, was extremely important.

Deciding why you want to curb carbohydrates is crucial to your success. But remember, not all carbs are bad. You want to avoid simple carbohydrates such as sugar and white bread, but complex carbs such as fruits and vegetables are good for you. So when we talk about cravings, we're talking about cravings for simple carbohydrates. Doesn't matter what motivates you, as long as it really motivates you don't adopt somebody else's should as your motivation. For example, I want to curb my cravings so my husband will get off my back about losing weight.

That's your husband's motivation. Make sure you own it, that your motivation belongs to you. So here are a few additional suggestions to help tame the cravings beast. Pay attention to when you're the most tempted to get into cravings. Yes, I know you're going to experience craving so that's a given. The important piece is your plan for how you're going to deal with the cravings when they come.

Your action step for today is to notice when you're beginning to crave a food, then notice what type of food you're craving. Don't beat yourself up for having the craving. Just notice