Beating sugar addiction is one of the hardest parts of transitioning to the carnivore diet (especially for women with PCOS). Sugar is highly addictive and activates your brain’s reward system, so you always want more.
When I first started carnivore, this was definitely my biggest challenge.
I had no idea just how deeply sugar had its hooks in me until I tried to quit. I found myself constantly thinking about sweets, obsessing over snacks, and justifying “little” cheats. If you’ve been there, you know what I’m talking about.
Giving In Didn’t Work
My initial strategy was to “give in” every time a sugar craving hit. When things got bad and I was really jonesing for some junk food, I’d let myself have it – for a single meal only.
I never let this go on for more than a single meal. I’d get right back on the carnivore wagon at the very next meal. I figured if I let myself ease into it, the cravings would go away on their own.
I was very wrong.
After a few weeks of this, I realized I was just feeding the fire. Every time I ate sugar, I was starting all over again trying to detox from it. The cravings wouldn’t go away as long as I kept giving in, so I had to stop giving in. I wanted to beat this.
Finding a Way Through
I had to figure out a way to get through the initial adaptation phase on carnivore. That meant cutting out sugar completely and no more giving in. Easier said than done, I know.
I knew from experience I couldn’t rely on willpower. So, I came up with a different solution that really did work for me. I won’t say it was easy, but it was definitely easier than anything else I’d tried.
And it finally allowed me to break free from sugar once and for all.
My Meat-Based Solution
I started by cooking a TON of meat – as much as I could possibly fit in my refrigerator. I had meat in the oven, meat on the stove, meat on the grill, meat in the crockpot. I cooked more meat than I thought I could eat in a week. (I’m not exagerrating.)
I made it my mission to always have cooked meat ready to go in my refrigerator. It didn’t need to be fancy. I just needed carnivore foods I could grab and eat at any time. Cold bacon, hamburger patties, leftover steak, chuck roast – all my favorites. I’d even hard-boil a bunch of eggs for variety.
Eat Until the Craving is Gone
Every time a craving for sugar or junk food hit me, I’d go the refrigerator and eat some of my prepared meat.
Cold bacon? Yes, please.
Leftover burger patty? Perfect.
Cold steak? Bring it on.
(I personally love cold bacon and hamburger patties, but I know that’s not to everyone’s taste. It’s still easier to heat up some food from the fridge than to cook something from scratch when you need it.)
I would do this immediately upon having a craving, even if I wasn’t really hungry. I wasn’t eating just to satisfy hunger at this point. I was eating to get through the sugar cravings. The most important part of this was:
I would keep eating until the craving was gone.
I didn’t care how many calories I was eating. I didn’t care if I had to literally stuff myself with meat. My only goal was to detox from sugar. I was determined to let my body and brain know that sugar was no longer an option.
And it worked! After I ate a pound of bacon, I really didn’t want cake anymore. I did this every single day until I noticed a change…
It Actually Worked!
It didn’t happen overnight, but after a few weeks, I started to feel different. My constant thoughts about sweets and junk food faded away. My body started craving meat when I was hungry, and nothing else when I wasn’t.
Food that wasn’t meat or eggs stopped even looking like food to me.
I could watch a fast food commercial on TV – which used to be a big trigger for me – and feel nothing. I could walk right past a table of desserts, and I might as well be looking at a pile of dirt and rocks. It just didn’t register as edible to my brain anymore.
I actually made it. I was no longer addicted to sugar. My physical and mental health improved, the weight started coming off, and the food noise was gone. I was truly nourishing my body for the first time (probably ever).
Why This Works
I didn’t beat sugar cravings with willpower or “moderation.” I beat them by replacing sugar with real nourishment. I ate as much as I needed, as often as I needed it.
This worked for me because I wasn’t starving or restricting. I was flooding my body with nutrients, protein, and fat, and resetting my brain’s reward system.
There were times when it was difficult, especially in the beginning. But it got easier every day, as long as I followed this plan:
- Always have cooked meat available in my fridge
- Cook large amounts every other day (or every day if needed)
- Eat as much meat and eggs as needed when a craving hits
- Don’t stop eating until the craving passes
Have you struggled with sugar cravings on the carnivore diet? What helped you push through it? Leave a comment below and let me know. I’d love to hear from you!
Good luck out there!
