We have all heard this before. As teenagers from our school coaches who would constantly belt out the proverbial “no pain, no gain” concept, this ridiculous idea that unless we exercised like crazy people, we would not likely see the benefits of our effort, and then from family and friends commenting on our lack of success in weight loss. “If there is a will, there is a way” we were told, or in other words, the reason we were overweight was simply because we just didn’t really want to lose weight.

Yes, we have heard this before. Statements such as: "You willpower is the ideal fat burner!". And with the passing of the years, these ideas have reinforced themselves into our subconscious mind, making it increasingly difficult to get thinner, fitter, and healthier.

Talk to any weight loss doctors who were once overweight and successfully lost their excess weight and fat, and chances are you’ll be told that food cravings and weight gain are not always the result of a lack of willpower.

How about that for an eye opener! Most of us who are chronic dieters have one thing in common then. We are not short of willpower (feels good just writing this again!) and likely suffer from a metabolism that produced too much insulin due to an addiction to carbohydrate.

You are a carbohydrate addict if:

1. You are hungrier after breakfast and before lunch time then if you had skipped breakfast all together.
2. You are tired and sluggish after a large meal (particularly in the afternoon)
3. You have been on diet after diet and have as much weight to lose (or even more) as when you started.
4. You want to eat when you are bored or tired
5. You feel that you are not satisfied, even after a meal
6. You find it harder to lose weight then when you were younger.

If you answered “yes” to any two of the above six question then you are mildly carbohydrate addicted. You are moderately addicted if you have answer “yes to three to four questions, and you have a severe carbohydrate addiction if you said “yes” to five or all of the above questions.

So what do you do if you need to reduce your insulin level? Limit your carbohydrate intake to one meal a day.

Remember: Carbohydrate rich food include breads, grains, cereals, ice cream, milk, yogurt, fruit and juices, luncheon meats, pasta, noodles, rice, snack foods, sweets and starchy vegetables such as beets, squash, carrots, zucchini, corn, tomatoes, peas and potatoes.

Craving reducing foods include red meat, poultry, cheese, tofu, oils, fats, dressings, non starchy vegetables such as Brussels sprouts, greens, peppers, lettuce, asparagus, broccoli and mushrooms.

Of course it doesn’t hurt if you take a fat burner supplement.