Sugar free life!

[Taz]

After reading a few books about the evils of sugar and the truth about just how bad it is for our bodies, not to mention how it is making us all fat, I decided to start making more of an effort to cut down and really pay attention to what I was eating.

Although I'm now more aware it's not really helping as I am still, like most people, an addict. Sugar is more addictive than crack cocaine and it is everywhere making it tricky to avoid unless you really want to.

So cutting down obviously hasn't worked which leaves me with one last option: to break my addiction and adopt a sugar free lifestyle!

It's not as grim as it sounds, sugar free means less than 10g of sugar a day not including whole fruits and unprocessed dairy. Fruits in their natural, off the plant state contain fibre which slows the release of the natural sugars. Milk and unprocessed cheese are also fine unless you are lactose intolerant, which I am not. The sugars I will be eliminating will be the refined kind, anything added and those that do no good.

Starting tomorrow I will be breaking my addiction. It's not going to be an easy journey and withdrawal will be horrible. Which is why I want to share it with you all. Whether you are just curious, want to try it yourself or just want to enjoy my pain, please join me here for the ups and downs of going sugar free

 

[Emmaline]

Looking forward to getting some inspiration from you Taz
All the best for your new venture

 

[Taz]

Thanks Em. I went shopping yesterday to prepare

 

[Mini]

Great Thread Taz!

Another sugar addict here to subscribe.

It's not as grim as it sounds, sugar free means less than 10g of sugar a day not including whole fruits and unprocessed dairy. Fruits in their natural, off the plant state contain fibre which slows the release of the natural sugars. Milk and unprocessed cheese are also fine unless you are lactose intolerant, which I am not. The sugars I will be eliminating will be the refined kind, anything added and those that do no good.

This is very interesting...I must start counting myself out of curiosity.

I guess Hi-fi bars even though they are high in fibre would come under the processed label along with low fat flavoured yogurts ?

Wishing you good luck Taz

 

[Taz]

Have a good look at the labels and you'll probably find they have a lot of sugar. Generally when the fat is lowered the taste goes and the only way to replace it is with sugar or sweeteners. 'fruit sugars' are not good sugars either, they are as bad as fruit juice. It really is quite an eye opener.

Welcome on board, we set sail tomorrow!

 

[tipperary]

This is something ive thought about a few times too and may well try it over the summer. I don't add sugar to anything and try as much as possible to cook from scratch but the odd jar of pasta sauce sneaks in and these have sugar. I like the odd few chips with some ketchup and this is more sugar. What I would find the hardest is not having any biscuit or cereal bar with my 4 o clock tea. Suggestions for practical solutions would be great.

 

[Taz]

Those are the habits that need to be broken by either swapping the snack or the routine. Fruit would be a good swap, or some nuts. Corn thins with whole earth peanut butter is also good.

 

[tipperary]

Those are the habits that need to be broken by either swapping the snack or the routine. Fruit would be a good swap, or some nuts. Corn thins with whole earth peanut butter is also good.

I agree about changing habits and have managed a few big ones, no coffee, no tea, no juices...they are all replaced by herbal tea and water. My "regular" wine has been replaced by a walk. No takeaways, no ready meals/convenience foods and very few jars or tins, we mostly grow our own veg and have our own eggs. It's the satisfying "crunch" of a biscuit I miss so maybe corn thins wold work...good suggestion.

 

[Taz]

Sounds like you've got this!

So here it is, day one of my new sugar free life. I stepped on the scales this morning so I have a starting point. My weigh in day is Friday.

I've been having a sugar free breakfast for a couple of months now so that's not new and I never have sugar in tea or coffee. I've brought lunch to work, firecracker rice with chicken. I also have a banana and 2 satsumas to snack on if needed.

2 main challenge areas today. First is work, I'm travelling to a place where I would usually mooch around M&S and buy something nice or other shops that sell lots of sugary delights. Not sure yet if I will try to avoid these shops or just have a look and get familiar with what to avoid.
Second will be this evening at home. Although I have cleared all my sugary treats out, my husband is not joining me with this so he has chocolate in the house. I will be strong and ignore it.

 

[Taz]

Today, while I still have lucid thoughts before the withdrawal kicks in, I'm going to have a good look at the challenge areas so I can be prepared for any possible derailing.

Shopping: we can't avoid all shops but we can choose which aisles to go down in the supermarket and which shops to go into. I'll try to avoid shopping on an empty stomach and be firm when shopping

At home: quite simply, if my husband has chocolate in the house it's his not mine. I will make sure nothing sugary enters the house if I'm likely to want it. I have stocked up on marmite cheese bites (cheese was recommended as a go to for when a sugar craving hits and I love marmite) I also have a good stash of nuts and I will keep the fruit bowl stocked up.

At work: luckily I don't work in an office and I'm mostly working alone so sweet treats from others is a rarity. I'm my own saboteur here. So the plan is to always be prepared bringing my food with me.

Boredom: the main reason people eat when not actually hungry and when the worst decisions are made. Whenever I fancy something I will do something else first and if I still want it after I will have it as long as it is sugar free

 

[tipperary]

Shopping: we can't avoid all shops but we can choose which aisles to go down in the supermarket and which shops to go into. I'll try to avoid shopping on an empty stomach and be firm when shopping

Boredom: the main reason people eat when not actually hungry and when the worst decisions are made. Whenever I fancy something I will do something else first and if I still want it after I will have it as long as it is sugar free

Two things I can completely relate to. Last week I wrote a strict shopping list and sent my son to do the shopping, it was great he only bought what was on the list. But trued it with my husband and he also came home with cakes and chocolate and wine. Looks my son will be doing the shopping for the next few weeks.

Well done, you are off to a great start.

 

[Taz]

Little victory this morning, went to the staff room and a colleague had made chocolate truffles. 3 times I said no thanks.

I think you're definitely better off sending your son to do the shopping!

 

[Mini]

Little victory this morning, went to the staff room and a colleague had made chocolate truffles. 3 times I said no thanks.

I think you're definitely better off sending your son to do the shopping!

Well done for resisting.

At work: luckily I don't work in an office and I'm mostly working alone so sweet treats from others is a rarity.

That's always the way...as soon as you decide to give up something, it seems to be everywhere.

 

[Taz]

I went into M&S and had a look at some labels. I was most intrigued by the yogurts as the full fat ones, the ones that looked much nicer, had less sugar than the low fat versions. I expected this as when they remove fat they replace it with sugar. Which actually makes us fatter! And the sugar that comes from milk is lactose and not the harmful fructose so full fat is definitely better

 

[Taz]

OK so day one is almost done, all food and drink logged and here it is....

Breakfast: whey protein shake with oats and peanut butter

Morning snacks: banana, 2 clementines

Lunch: firecracker rice with chicken

Afternoon snacks: marmite cheese, applewood cheese, 2 slices granary bread

Dinner: garlic & cheese chicken Kiev with peas and carrots

Drinks: 3l water, herbal teas , 2 coffees

Total calories: 1907
Total sugar (not including fruit, veg or milk) 6g

I've not been hungry or really felt deprived but I was 'missing' something this evening hence the extra snacking.

Today has not been too bad but I know the next few will be tough

 

[Taz]

Day two: I can feel a niggle of a headache creeping in but I'll try to ignore that. It's going to be tougher today as my body starts to realise it's not getting that sugar hit. I just have to stay strong and it will soon know who is in charge.

Having dieted in the past I'm quite used to changes in routines and menu's, having to buy different things to fit into a plan. But this, although the more natural and healthy way, seems the most strange.

I've grown up in a world where the diet industry is booming and everyone is tripping over themselves to extract the hard earned cash from us vulnerable people. Recognising our desperation, they could tell us anything and we hand over the money and lap it all up. And we all know that diets work in the short term. Sadly though, most of us also know too well that they don't work in the long term. And the biggest message we get from all of these is low fat, low calorie, skimmed, free from..... Turning most of our cupboards into housing for chemical experiments rather than the fresh good nutritious food we actually need.

The more I read into the facts about sugar and the more I educate myself about nutrition in general, the more I'm seeing that I've fallen for the con. I switched to skimmed milk because I thought it would be better for me as it had less fat. Not so. We need the good fats from milk and skimmed isn't much less fat or calories anyway. And skimmed milk has a higher concentration of lactose as there's less fat to carry it. Therefore, whole milk with all the calcium, good fats and sugars and, let's face it, better taste, is the best option.

So shopping yesterday I actually bought whole milk! And today I went to the coffee shop and ordered a latte. Not skinny. Just..... Latte. And this seems so weird after all these years of careful selection, yet it is the most natural and the healthiest way.

Who'd have thought that switching to full fat would be such a challenge?!

 

[tipperary]

Well done and I hope the headache doesn't last.
Here is Ireland we don't really have skimmed milk, milk is always full fat. You can now buy low fat milk but its not the norm.
Amazing food choices, what is firecracker rice? (I'm learning lots of new food options on this forum)

 

[Taz]

It's a packet rice by Tilda. It's got spices and peppers in it,great if you like things hot. 2 minutes in the microwave and very filling

 

[Taz]

Well today hasn't been bad, I have noticed that I may be eating a little more which is probably because my body is 'missing' something and obviously not finding it! More of an unsatisfied kind of thing.

But I'm starting strong and sticking to the foods I've planned. You may notice my diaries look very similar, this is because I feel safer sticking to the same /similar things so I can't go wrong. Only for the withdrawal period then when I'm no longer addicted I can explore food more.

I had to do a statement today for an incident that happened in work on Sunday which meant sitting in an office with people offering sweet treats. Even though I hadn't had lunch I refused every one.

A danger zone coming up: I have to take my car to the garage and they always offer coffee while you're waiting to be seen. With this coffee comes a small cake like a flapjack or brownie or shortbread. I will say no to the coffee thus removing the temptation

 

[Taz]

Day two is done. Not the most balanced food choices today as the day, around lunch time, didn't quite go as planned then I had to go out when I should've been getting dinner so I grabbed something to stop any niggling. So here's how it went....


Breakfast: whey protein shake with oats and peanut butter

Morning snacks: banana, 2 clementines

Lunch: 2 slices granary bread, marmite cheese ,applewood cheese

Afternoon snacks: marmite cheese, applewood cheese, 2 slices granary bread, mini cheddars

Dinner: chicken chargrill with peas and carrots

Drinks: 3l water, herbal teas , 2 coffees (one full fat latte)

Total calories: 1703
Total sugar (not including fruit, veg or milk) 4g