You’re not “addicted to food.” You’re exhausted. The only quiet you get all day is that first bite of hot Agege bread with butter. And every plan that “works” tells you to cut it out, so you white-knuckle for 3 days, snap on day 4, and feel like you failed. You didn’t fail. The plan did.

The problem why you’re stuck

• You’re trying to lose weight with restriction, not strategy.
• Bread alone spikes hunger later, so you end up grazing all night.
• Portion sizes creep because you’re starving between meals.
• Weekdays are chaotic; you grab whatever’s fastest (usually carb-only).

The solution — keep bread, change the rules

You don’t have to quit bread. You have to budget it, balance it, and blunt it.

1) Budget it: set a “bread allowance”

Pick 1–2 servings/day (e.g., 1–2 slices or 1 small Agege roll ≈ 150–220 kcal). Plan them on purpose—not as a panic snack. If you know dinner is rice, use your bread at breakfast or lunch.

2) Balance it: use the PFF rule (Protein–Fat–Fiber)

Bread becomes a problem only when it travels alone. Every time you eat bread, add PFF:

• Protein: eggs, sardine/tuna, chicken, Greek yogurt, beans, akara (air-fried), tofu.
• Fat: avocado slice, peanut/groundnut butter (1 tbsp), olive-oil drizzle.
• Fiber: salad leaves, cucumber, tomatoes, cabbage slaw, beans, high-fiber veggies.

Agege fix:

• Agege slice + sardine & tomato + cucumber (protein + fiber).
• Agege mini-sandwich: 1 slice folded, 1 tbsp peanut butter + banana coins + chia.
• Suya chicken in Agege with cabbage slaw and a yogurt dip.

3) Blunt the spike: small hacks that change everything

• Preload: 2 cups water + a handful of veg (or an apple) 5–10 min before bread.
• Acid shield: 1–2 tsp vinegar or lemon in water/salad dressing with bread meals.
• Move: 10-minute walk after eating blunts the glucose rise and curbs cravings.
• Cool, then toast: letting bread cool then toasting slightly increases resistant starch, shaving off some glycemic punch.
• Sleep & stress: 7 hours and a 60-second breathing break reduce stress-eating by more than any “no bread” rule will.

4) Upgrade when you can (but don’t obsess)

• Choose whole-grain/sourdough when available. If it’s Agege today, fine—use PFF.
• Swap spreads: butter → light smear + avocado; jam → peanut butter + berries.
• Add veg volume to sandwiches so 1 slice feels like 2.

5) Keep a simple calorie anchor

Weight loss still needs a modest deficit. Easiest anchor:

• Protein target: ~1.6–2.2 g/kg of your goal body weight per day.
• Plate formula (Agege-friendly):
  • ½ plate veggies/salad
  • ¼ plate protein
  • ¼ plate carbs (your bread fits here) + a thumb of healthy fat

The science in one paragraph (no fluff)

Fat loss requires a calorie deficit; you don’t need to eliminate any single food to achieve it. Refined breads have a higher glycemic index, which can increase post-meal glucose and hunger. Pairing carbs with protein, fat, and fiber slows gastric emptying and lowers the glycemic response, improving satiety and reducing later intake. Pre-meal water and vinegar (acetic acid) modestly reduce post-prandial glucose. Post-meal walking enhances glucose uptake via muscle contraction, independent of insulin. Cooling-then-reheating starches can form resistant starch, slightly lowering available carbs. Translation: structure beats willpower.

5 fast templates you can steal this week

1. Morning: 1 Agege slice + 2 eggs + peppered spinach; tea/coffee.
2. Desk lunch: Chicken suya sandwich on whole-grain or Agege + cabbage-carrot slaw + yogurt dip.
3. School run snack: 1 slice Agege folded + 1 tbsp peanut butter + apple. Water first.
4. Gym day: Tuna & avocado toast + side salad; 10-min walk after.
5. Budget dinner: Bean stew + mini Agege roll + cucumber/tomato plate with lemon-vinegar dressing.

Don’t-do list (so you stop spinning)

• Don’t stack bread and heavy carbs in the same meal every time (bread + big rice + soda = you’re hungry later).
• Don’t eat bread naked (no PFF) or standing at the counter. Plate it.
• Don’t “save calories” all day then binge at night. Plan your bread earlier, eat protein at breakfast.

If you want one rule to remember

Bread stays. Bread shrinks. Bread gets bodyguards (Protein, Fat, Fiber).
Do this for 2 weeks. Track morning weight 3x/week, average it, and adjust your bread serving size (not ban it) if progress stalls.

You don’t need to hide under big clothes. You just need a smarter plate even with Agege on it.