Diet Coke, Chocolate and freshly made bread are poison!

[TmWaddell1989]

I have done Atkins once before and this is my second adventure. The hardest thing for me about any sort of new diet is the rediculous cravings and mental blocks i get for the first week.

For example, whenever i walk in to the kitchen, i always open the fridge. I do not even realize i am doing it, but i open the fridge and just stare in to the abyss. It is like my muscle memory has that movement programmed in to it whenever i enter the kitchen. Then there is Diet Coke. I am certain that my body has become almost dependant on at least a litre of Diet Coke every 1/2 days. It is all i can think about. I AM EVEN STARTING TO DREAM ABOUT IT. The immense torture i feel when i subconsciously open the fridge then see a nice, chilled bottle of Diet Coke sitting there cannot be measured.

Then there are these chocolate bars here in the UK called "Yorkie Bars".I swear to God that my mind is playing tricks on me when it comes to these. I just sit at my desk and all of a sudden i can smell its destinctive smell and almost taste it, to the point where i am salivating and once again staring in to a void.

These things are like really hardcore drugs and it scares me to think that kids are eating all this stuff daily. If i (a stubborn and strong willed 18 year old man) can barely hold back from these things, then how would kids react to it being taken away... A scary thought indeed!

So has anyone else had these strange cravings for certain chocolates/beverages/foods that are forbidden? It would be interesting to see if anyone has the same experiences with Diet Coke, because that is my major weakness and i know that it is just terrible for my body but it is out of my control.

I just gotta ride this week out and hopefully my "sweet tooth" will have been completely starved.

[biogeek]

I can relate to craving Diet Coke. In fact, I would say that I was addicted to it. I EASILY drank 10 cans a day. My husband was the same way. When we would go to the grocery store, we would go through the check out line twice. The first load would be a cart full of cases of Diet Coke. We would take that to the car and then shop for groceries...but even the second trip had a few more cases, too. Pathetic and expensive!

We decided to give up our soda and all caffeine and I have to admit, it was incredibly difficult! We both suffered from horrible headaches for about a week. No medicine gave us relief. We were grouchy and miserable and probably made those around us miserable, too. However, we persevered and feel much better, healthier, and have saved a lot of money!

As for the unconscious refrigerator visits....yes, we do that, too. Still do, but not as often as before we started Atkins. I think it is just habit to find comfort in food, and most of the food & drinks are stored in the fridge. Diet Coke does not have a home in our fridge anymore and we have plenty of Atkins-friendly snacks at the ready in the fridge for when we have the munchies.

I have no idea what "Yorkie Bars" are, but I used to dream about this Scottish oatmeal cookie called "Oaties." Every once in awhile, I'll have a craving for them, but resist the temptation of going to our local British importer and getting them. It's bad enough when I go there to rent movies because they keep all their cookies and other treats at the front of the store as you first walk in and the movies are at the back! How cruel!

I think that you will find that you'll feel so much better after giving up Diet Coke and your other snacks. The money you save can go to buy a new wardrobe for the slimmer you!

Good luck in getting over your cravings! Best of health to you!

[Chicklady]

LOL. Cartons of Ben&Jerry's come to life in the freezer case when I'm grocery shopping. I'm soooo glad they aren't in my freezer, cause I'm not sure I could resist I generally don't remember my dreams, so blissfully, I don't know if I've ever dreamt of it!!

[TmWaddell1989]

Ahh, good old Ben and Jerries. I could quite happily sit there and eat 2 tubs of that cookie dough flavour one. That is why i stay away from the Ice Cream areas. The temptation is always there. I cannot bring myself to go to the same shops anymore. The main food store i used to shop at had these massive air ducts that shot the warm air from the bakers out the back in to the front door of the building. So as soon as you enter, you can smell the pastries, fresh bread and treats. It is naughty advertising. That is one of the reasons why i am not going back!

[Chicklady]

LOL. I live a couple of miles from a frito lay factory. Around 5 in the morning, you can smell potato chips frying.....a couple of miles away!! No escaping it!

[fluffyman]

Just say NO to the evil potato chips. Little crispy slices o' death is what they are. Can't eat just one - because they are addictive, just like crack.

[pattyannihilate]

Wow. I was definitely addicted to Diet Coke. When I first decided to stop drinking it (pre-Atkins), I was only able to stop by literally not going to the store. I had to have my husband go and grab things if we needed anything. It took almost a month before my cravings stopped. When I restarted Atkins, I drank some Pepsi One a neighbor gave to me, but I didn't like it. Thank the Lord! One less thing, you know?

I drink water now. Only water. Sometimes bubbly mineral water, but water nonetheless. I no longer crave the Diet Coke at all. However, if I am sitting somewhere and somebody else is drinking it - or has just opened a can - I can smell it like a bloodhound. Crazy.

PattyAnn

[Greeneggs&ham]

I can 100% relate to the subconscious action of going straight to the fridge every time I come home. I still have that happen from time to time now, after three weeks on this WOE. I have to say though that after the first week of forcing myself to drink water and avoid all artificial sweeteners, I have not had a single episode of craving sugary food. (Well, except for that one day that I indulged in a Diet Pepsi -- big mistake there!)

I agree with an older thread in that lately I have had some vivid dreams concerning eating "bad" foods, and I wake up panicking that I ruined my Induction, and it take a few minutes to remember it was just a dream! In a weird kind of way, those dreams are sometimes fun to look back on because they are often so vivid that I can recall enjoying the item without any side effects!

The only question I have for you is why do you still have diet coke in the fridge? As a husband and father to two young boys, we have plenty of sugary, floury treats in the house, but even I had to request that the family keep them out of sight for a week to avoid any chance of cheating. If diet coke is your weakness, you really need to keep it out of reach. If you are having even some throughout the day, it may be the reason you still obsess over Yorkie bars.

While we are learning to adjust to a new way of eating, I think it is also important to break bad habits. You shouldn't NEED caffeine or sweets or soda. If you think you NEED them, it's a sign of addiction, and we can't really be successful in this new WOE until we realize that WE are in control rather than the stuff we eat!

[Treece]

In our grocery store the ice cream is right across from the frozen veggies that I buy each week! It kills me! I love Ben & Jerry's.

I am still trying to get off the diet coke. I am definitely addicted, but I am making progress.