My trick is to pop a piece of sugar free gum in my mouth the moment I start thinking about something sweet. The sweet flavor and chewing action help to keep my mind off of naughty little snacks.

I just make sure not to have the temptations around me. I fight the urge to buy them at all. Soon you will find that you can walk past the Skittles (or whatever your vice) and not even have to bat an eye at passing them up. As far as the craving itself goes, decide on ANY substitue that is healthy. I often go for a mini bowl of cereal. No, it doesn't taste the same, but again after some time doing the switch you no longer crave the original.

Start working out everyday and if you still have that craving by the weekend, let yourself have a treat!

Similarly to the gum trick, brushing your teeth works well too!

Wow, that was badly worded on my part, but I think you get the point.

I do one treat day a week when I can have what I want (in moderation.) But on my last one, the chocolate I had so missed wasn't even THAT great and I didn't feel the need to have very much. I can go past the sweets aisle now and not feel too bad.

My best tip for something to replace (apart from smaller meals more often) the sweet taste is the following:

Yoghurt
Mix of dried, diced fruits
Raisins
Dessicated coconut
Nuts like almonds, walnuts or whatever you like

Mix it all together, and enjoy! If Ice cream etc is your vice, putting it in a tupperware box and sticking it in the freezer for a while works really well too. Plus it's actually filling!

If I have a craving I either do the gum thing, eat a mini-pack (like the 100 calorie packs), or I put a flavored tea bag in a bottle of water.

i refuse to give up milky way darks, so i got a bag of fun size ones and allow myself no more than one a day. i still get my guilty pleasure with much less guilt.

I find that the more sweets I eat, the more I crave them. But if I stop eating candy and desserts, I just don't crave them as much. I most often crave sweets after a meal, so I will either eat a piece of dried fruit (honestly, dates and figs are like desserts they're so good) or just brush my teeth, which makes me not want the sweets anymore. Now if my boyfriend would just stop baking so much, I'd be good.

Oh, Skittles are hard to resist, especially with movie popcorn. (Yes, people. Don't knock it until you've tried it.)

All of these posts offer good suggestions.

I would suggest you also try a few things that work for me.
...Brush & floss your teeth after each meal. I hate to floss & if I go through the trouble of doing it after each meal, I'm less likely to screw up the effort by snacking. (Don't think that I don't floss. I do it once daily, at the least. I love the end result, but I hate having to do it, so this works well for me!)
...Don't keep the temptations in your house or work desk.
...If you really want it after a few days, get it, but don't buy a huge pack. Just opt for the snack sizes. A smaller amount really will satisfy you & you will not feel so guilty if you do give in.
...Exercise regularly. For some people, a side effect of regular exercise is that it will make you actually crave healthier foods. I know it sounds odd, but that's what happens to me.

Good luck!

Or try to train yourself to crave a different kind of sweet...like apples, carrots, yogurt, grapes, etc. That way you can fill up on really healthy foods that have practically no calories, and you won't be crashing later from the sugar. Also if you just can't get out of the mood for them, then remove yourself from where they are (or get them out of your home if they are there). Keep reminding yourself of your goals, learn to focus when you get the craving and breath and calm your self and tastebuds, and either grab something sweet and healthy or start to do something else to get your mind off of the craving.

Sugar free gum & lots of water!

I am a "sugar addict" as well....I eat pretty darn healthy meals, but I simply crave anything sweet. I would be the person that would say I wouldn't eat the birthday cake in the office, and then at 3pm I would be scarfing down 2 pieces. I've been trying really hard to cut back, and here is what has worked for me:

#1) I noticed that when I quit drinking diet soda with my lunch, I didn't have my massive sugar cravings in the afternoon. This has really helped!

#2) When I eat small meals throughout the day with lots of protein and produce, my blood sugar stays level and I don't get the 3pm sugar craving.

#3) The more good decisions I make, the more likely I am to stick with it, as I don't want to undo my good work with bad choices. If I am working out regularly or pass up dessert successfully, I feel proud and want to keep that feeling going.

Green Tea does wonders. I also always get sweet cravings after I eat a meal so I just suck on one Hershey Kiss and it usually gets rid of the craving. If I don't have a bag of kisses around to grab just one, I usually end up grabbing the closest sweet thing I can find (usually a muffin or cookies or something a lot more unhealthy than a little piece of chocolate!)

Whenever I start needing somethign sweet I have a Special K Crispy Bites pack! ONLY 90 CAlS!

Cut it out bit by bit.

I have replaced sweeties with goji berries.
=D

I go for sugarfree gum to curb any sweet craving. I'm actually trying to cut out sugars all together right now, they say it takes 30 days to break a habit so I'm trying to break the holiday sweets habit. My boyfriend suggested taking Sodium Picolinate to curb my sweet tooth. It hasn't gotten that bad yet but if it does, I just might!

Sugarfee gum!

i "try" to eat something like grapes if im craving sweet or soynuts with sea salt if i want something salty...
i dont always have these around but they do the trick... sometimes
right now i have lots of xmas candies leftover so they are bad news!

Water!

I am definitely a weakling when it comes to ignoring my cravings, so I...

1. Stay away from sweets and don't even taste a BITE, since I know I'll want more.

2. Chew on gum CONSTANTLY!

3. Try to opt for a healthier snack that will still provide me with the sweetness I need - a yogurt, a sweet apple like Gala, maybe a small piece of chocolate.

4. A lot of the times, I ignore the craving. Most of the time, it will go away, and if it doesn't after 15 minutes or so, I go for it!

My trick: reverse your eating schedule. Eat a dinner sized breakfast (or even eat dinner for breakfast if you can stomach it), eat a normal sized lunch and by dinner you're not that hungry anyway, so all you'll need is just a bowl of cereal, or a small salad. I saw a program about a woman who did this and it worked for her. I started doing it and I don't get cravings throughout the day because I'm full to start off the day! I haven't even really changed my eating habits otherwise.

I agree with nancita and Maichish...if you stay away from them for a while you kinda forget how they taste and the cravings stop. I find if I resume eating something...I crave it more. A

lso, I find if you drink lots of water it helps. (Dont forget to spoil yourself once in a while though! )

I also do sugarfree gum and either water or diet soda.

when I'm dieting and need to curb a sweet craving attack, I like fat-free reddi-whip- 5 calories, no fat, 1 sugar, 1 carb. You can't beat it. I also love sugar free/ fat free jello cups. obviously, everything in moderation but these help me make it through!!

I agree with nancita and Maichish and efahey...the lesser u eat sweets, the lesser u crave them...i usually crave after meals for which i just pop a chocolate candy...don't buy any temptations to keep around you...larabars, other sweet good tasting protein bars (pure protein smores) and dried fruits (with a piece of dark chocolate) help...sharp cheddar cheese also satisfies my sweet cravings

Hex that's a really interesting suggestion. It makes sense though. You are fuller, early and you have all day to burn it off instead of going to bed with a full tummy. I may have to try this out!

I love sugar-free cinnamon gum and green tea--and at the same time...I think it's a good taste combination (to me!) ha

I have my sugarfree gum OR I'll grab a protein/energy bar. Usually those are slightly sweet and cure my craving!

Dried Fruit- still sweet, and feels bad, but its good! I love dried apples, pineapples, cherries, etc.

I was eating dried fruit before I found out it averages 500 calories for 100g in some cases!!
Not good for the diet. I avoid it now.

Yeah, I agree with fluffyhelen, dried fruit isn't always the best. They are often high in sugar and not as good for you as the real thing. Snacking? I'd go for a tall glass of flavored (with Crystal Light or someother no sugar added) water. It is sweet enough for me that my taste buds are satisfied and after I drink 20 oz glass I am too full to eat anything anyway.

This might not be the best thing but I drink a little bottle of sparkling water (lime flavored) which does contain some sodium but it fills me up and feels naughtier than it is. Plus I like that it makes me burp! :S

kiwi!! it is pretty. sugary. tasty. and good for you! I consider them the perfect snack!

Okay, still craving sugar, go for peanut butter. Celery or apples and peanut butter.

I drink a cup of warm milk or cold water with fresh lemon.
For some reason, both take away any cravings.

I heard that you should eat a little protein, like a few nuts, if you're craving sugar. Craving sugar is a way your body says that it needs some nutrient..so why not go for some protein and healthy fat.

i chew sugarfree orbit, or eat a piece of fruit. and lots of water. pretty much what everyone else said

Oh, I should probably cut down on the dried fruit then... hmmm...
I find that sometimes when my brain is telling me I need something, it is just old habits haunting me, and all I need is a glass of water or something. I try to eat small meals and often, 5 - 6 times a day, as it keeps me from snacking on unhealthy things.

diet coke does the trick for me

juju, you seriously took the words out of my mouth. are you living in my body or something?

I've noticed that if I give into temptation, its harder to resist throughout the day... so I just try my best not to and it gets easier every day I don't. I just make sure I have enough snacks (fruit, protein bars, veggies, popcorn) at work so I don't make excuses to buy something fatty or sugary since I'm hungry. Doesn't always work though, I'm good at making excuses for myself

For me the key is to find something with a similar taste but in a smaller portion - instead of chocolate ice cream, eat chocolate pudding at 100 calories. Or instead of chips, eat a cup of popcorn. If I satisfy the salt/sweet craving I don't need to OD on calories.

Suckers for me!

stay away from the sugar offices and more importantly stay away from a geek's desk.

Drink lots of water - it makes you feel full so you don't have as many cravings.

eat low cal yougurth (:

Theres a few things I religiously do to help me out with cravings.
1)of course, ALWAYS keeps something healthy within reach
*2)one of my personal favourites, although a mite unorthodox in relation to sweet cravings, is sucking on ice cubes, not only does it burn calories, the cold sensation is refreshing
3)if you really need something sweet, make sure you eat something healthy before, so that you will be full enough to not impulsively eat as much, ie. eat some celery with a low-cal dip, celery is what I call a "minus" food, because it burns more calories eating it than in the celery

Sometimes if I'm having a craving I'll brush my teeth and afterwards I don't feel as hungry or craving the junk food plus its a nice healthy teeth brushing! Also a big glass of water is great too! Good luck!

just like Pringles tagline, once i pop, i can't stop.. so for me, it'd be better like: all or nothing

if you got the time, jump on tredmills or tracks, do a little exercise, it will kill your appetite

if you don't and you're the type of person who can CONTROL yourself, have a few bites of whatever you're craving, then STOP

for me, i can't

thats why i stop buying anything
i just STOP BUYING, therefore they're not available or anywhere near me.. so i can't have em.. haha

Usually when I have a craving, I go look at health/fitness websites (like FitSugar!). Seeing all of that makes me want to stay on track and makes the craving go good-bye. (As I write this, a box of doughnuts sits literally outside my office and I haven't been tempted once -- thanks FitSugar!)