Skip to content

8 Things That Helped Me Break My Sugar Addiction and Lose 30 Pounds

A fat loss coach reveals a few tricks that helped improve her relationship with diet and fitness.
FACT CHECKED BY Christopher Roback

Are you struggling to lose weight? Vivian Ngo (@vivianngo) is a fat loss coach and the creator of Team Evolve, a fat loss mastery program utilizing the tools that helped her get into the best shape of her life. In her viral TikTok and YouTube videos she reveals her secrets to breaking her sugar addiction and unhealthy binge-eating habits so that she could lose 30 pounds and get into the best shape of her life.

She Struggled with Yo-Yo Dieting for 10 Years

"I thought that I would be stuck in the Yo-yo dieting, binge eating, restricting my calories, and then overeating, losing the weight just to gain it all back. I genuinely thought that I was going to be stuck in that cycle for the rest of my life because I was in it for over 10 years," Ngo says in a YouTube clip.

She Says "Nothing Worked"

Check your body shape with white weight scales, top view.
Shutterstock

"I felt like I tried everything, everything, and nothing worked. Nothing kept the weight off. And I can tell you right now that I'm sitting here today down 30 pounds, kept it off for years, and I have never felt better in my skin," she claims.

However, Now She Has Tools to Overcome It

@viviannngo_ By far one of the HARDEST habits I've ever had to break. ↴ I was terrified of getting fat that I couldn't NOT overcompensate my binges. It wasn't until I was dead set on OVERCOMING binge eating once and for all, That I knew I had to stop the restricting portion in order to stop the bingeing portion, because they fed into one another. But once you teach your mind & body that it won't be punished for overeating or bingeing, And you start leaning into kindness & compassion for yourself… SHOCKINGLY: the binges stop, too. But it's scary at first, because you're so terrified to gain weight that the thoughts of wanting to restrict are SO strong. Learning how to sit with those thoughts, but NOT listen to them is a vital part of recovery. You CAN do it, my friend. ✨ If you're READY to overcome yo-yo dieting and MASTER your emotions and lifestyle habits so you can *master* your fat loss, once and for all, feel free to visit my website and apply for 1-on-1 coaching with me: www.teamevolve.co/ #healthyeatingtips #healthyeatinghabits #fatlosshabits #fatlosstipsandtricks #weightlosstipsandtricks #weightlossforwomen ♬ Senorita(快手版) – 公豹Music

What were the tools that helped her? In another TikTok clip, she claims that "eliminating this habit" helped her "overcome ten years of binge eating."

1. She Stopped "Overcompensating" Post Binge

She explains that she would binge and then try to remedy the situation. "Overcompensating a binge by undereating/doing a bunch of cardio the next day" was the first habit she had to break.

She Had to Overcome Her Binge Eating Instead

Woman eating snacks in night next to the opened fridge.
Shutterstock

"I was terrified of getting fat that I couldn't NOT overcompensate my binges. It wasn't until I was dead set on OVERCOMING binge eating once and for all" that she discovered the second tool.

2. She Had to Stop Restricting Portions

Healthy diet plan for weight loss, daily ready meal menu. Close up Woman weighing lunch box cooked in advance,ready to eat on kitchen scale. Balanced portion with healthy dish. Pre-cooking concept
Shutterstock

"I knew I had to stop the restricting portion in order to stop the binging portion because they fed into one another," she said. "But once you teach your mind & body that it won't be punished for overeating or binging."

She Maintains She Used to Exercise Just as Much

@viviannngo_ Being consistent with working out is *not* enough to get you the results that you want: let's talk about it! ↴ If you're like me or the women I work with, your goal is to get toned meaning: you want to lose body fat, and look fit + strong without looking bulky. So you've heard that you should start lifting weights if you want to get toned, so you do – but even though you're being consistent in the gym, you're really not seeing much change in your body like you want to. Sounds about right? Here's why: ↴ Lifting weights will help you build strength + muscle which is *amazing* – but to really see a difference in your physique, You will need to lose body fat that is laying on top of your hard-earned muscle in order to really see a difference in your body. To lose body fat, you need to be in a calorie deficit, And the BEST way to ensure you're in a calorie deficit isn't just be eating healthy *most* of the time, It's by being accountable to what you're putting in your body 24/7 by weighing out your food and tracking it every day: Monday through Sunday! And if you're already quite active and being consistent in the gym, It's THAT much more important that you need to be diligent with your tracking + diet day-to-day! 🌸 If you're interested in working with me 1-on-1, check out my coaching on my website at: www.teamevolve.co/ ✨ #fatlosstransformations #fatlossbeforeandafter #weightlossbeforeandafter #weightlosstransformations #armfatloss #tonedarms ♬ original sound – Vivian Ngo 🌸 Fat Loss Coach

In another TikTok video, she reveals another important tool. She shows a before-and-after photo, claiming that she did the "exact same workouts, lifting weights, and doing incline walking on the treadmill" five days a week in both photos.

RELATED: 20 Abdominal Fat-Blasting Tips for a Flatter Stomach in 60 Days

3. She Had to Stop Binging on Sugar and Drinking

Female hands holding sugar cubes, closeup
Shutterstock

"So why do I look so different in this photo? I was eating pretty healthy, but I would have cravings at night, and I would often binge on sugar at night. On the weekends, I like to go out to eat. I would drink, and I would kind of go off my healthy eating plan. But during the week, I was eating pretty healthy. So I thought," she says.

4. And, She Had to Start Tracking Calories

CALORIE counting counter application Medical eating healthy Diet concept
Shutterstock

"In this photo, I was tracking my calories. I was weighing all of my food and logging all of my food in my FitnessPal Monday through Sunday, every single day, every single meal, I was accountable to everything I was putting my body. That was the biggest difference between these two photos here. I was eating pretty healthy some days off here, and I knew exactly what was going into my body every day," she revealed.

5. She Also Stopped Making Food "Good and Bad"

@viviannngo_ How I overcame binge eating / yo-yo dieting after being stuck for 10 years. ❤️ If you're ready to commit to your healing journey and overcome yo-yo dieting once and for all, visit my website to work with me: www.teamevolve.co/ ✨ #fatlosshabits #weightlosstipsandtricks #emotionaleatingcoach #overeating #overeatinghelp ♬ original sound – Vivian Ngo 🌸 Fat Loss Coach

In another TikTok she adds that she had to look at food differently to lose weight. "I had to stop making foods good and bad because that is why I was binge eating. I would only let myself eat high protein, veggies, no carbs. That's it," she said.

She Used to Use Eating "Bad" Food as an Excuse to Binge

Chocolate chip cookies with flaky salt on a cooling rack, homemade freshly baked cookies
Shutterstock

"And anytime I would have a food that I would consider, not high protein, not vegetables, not low carb, anything unhealthy, fast food, going out to eat a piece of candy, bite of a cookie, anything, I would use that as an excuse to binge because I would say, oh, I've already fallen off for today, so I might as well have everything that I've restricted myself from and start again tomorrow, and I will promise myself I'll be good tomorrow. I promised myself I'll be good Monday," she continued.

RELATED: 15 Quick Ways to Lose Body Fat Percentage in a Week

6. So, She Started to "Slowly Incorporate" Sugar and Fast Food

Ayutthaya,Thailand - March 7, 2018 :View in Porto Go Bangpa-in, McDonald's Restaurant in Ayutthaya,Thailand. McDonald's is an American hamburger and fast food restaurant chain
Shutterstock

"And the reason why I was so stuck in my weight loss journey is because I couldn't stop binging. The reason I was binging is that I couldn't stop restricting myself, and it wasn't until I started to slowly incorporate sugar, going out to eat burgers, french fries, McDonald's, and Taco Bell, all these things that I previously thought were horrible, so bad, so unhealthy would make me fat, it wasn't until I started to make my peace with these foods, allow myself to have them incorporate them into my nutrition plan that I finally stopped binging after ten long years, and I actually was able to look and feel my best while eating all these, what I used to think were bad foods."

7. She Also Started Planning

Young woman putting goods on counter in supermarket
Shutterstock

In another TikTok revealing "habits that helped me lose OVER 30 lbs of body fat," Ngo adds that planning is key. "Planning in advance is CRUCIAL. Deciding what I want to eat last minute almost NEVER leads me to make choices that are actually filling + satisfying," she writes.

She Plans the Night Before

Close-up Of Pen With Meal Plan Form
Shutterstock

She reveals that she plans what and when she is going to eat the night before. She also "has a game plan for what to do when I want to eat out of boredom."

RELATED: 15 Proven Strategies to Drop 2 Pounds a Week with Minimal Effort

8. She Also Takes Progress Photos

A woman at the gym takes a picture to send to friends or put on social networks and takes the picture while smiling. Concept of: network, friendship, gym, fitness
Shutterstock

Another one of her tricks to stay on track? She doesn't rely on the scale. "Use progress photos instead," she recommends.

Leah Groth
Leah Groth has decades of experience covering all things health, wellness and fitness related. Read more