“No Sugar” update

So, what’s your favorite sugary treat? Vote here! 

This month, I decided to give up sugar. My husband has also joined me in my venture, so it’s nice to have support. I’ve realized it’s easier to say no, or just acknowledge that there is cake, cookies, brownies, doughnuts, etc. and label them as off limits. Then I grab for fruit or other items because I need some sweetness in my life! Through this experiment, I realized that when I have a small amount of cake or cookies, I just want more because they’re so good and satisfying.

The month was off to a great start for the first week and a  half. Unfortunately, recently things have not gone exactly as planned. I’ve done well at social occasions and with temptations at home and at work. In fact, it’s been easier than I thought to say no to cake at work. During both of the two weeks that I’ve been doing this, at work we were celebrating birthdays (and you know that means lots of cake!) And, to all of this, I said no.

So, what was my downfall? Actually, it was unintentional. Earlier this week, I was sick with a virus or some other bug. I grabbed for soup that was going to make me feel better. In my zombie-like stupor from my cold/virus, I picked up some soup from the grocery store that contained sugar. It wasn’t only that. My throat was sore and I needed to be able to communicate with patients in my career as a speech pathologist, so I grabbed for the *gasp* cough drops! Even the “all natural” cough drops contain honey at the very least. Many of the regular ones have sucralose (yuck!)

I certainly don’t feel like I cheated in any way. I am still continuing for the rest of the month. I do really have a craving for a piece of cake or to bake something with pumpkin in it (’tis the season!) In fact, I’ve already bought some cake batter cookies from Costco to celebrate the end of my “No Sugar September.” Also, my husband found that Trader Joe’s make pumpkin Joe-Joes! Yes, pumpkin Joe-Joes, Trader Joe’s brand of oreos!! So excited to try them. Here’s a pic of my soon to be treats so you can drool with me!

I won’t be continuing the no sugar sentiment into the month of October because it will be my first anniversary with my husband. To celebrate this occasion, we will be getting cake from Charm City Cakes. It’s going to be the same flavor as our wedding cake from there! I’m so excited to have pear spice cake again because it was so good the first time!

No Sugar September

Ever since I was little I’ve always been a sugar fiend. I would always try the latest confections and candy treats. If there was a new candy advertised on television, you could be sure that I was one of the first to try it.

This mentality continued into my teenage in adult life. Anyone who knows me knows that cupcakes are one of my all-time favorite foods. Desserts were often a typical part of my daily routine. However, I started to realize that after 30 minutes of consuming sugar, I would feel extremely tired. Several repetitions of this pattern made me realize that it was definitely sugar that was causing these ill-desired effects.

I’ve been wanting to try to revise my thinking about sugar, so I decided to do a no-sugar September. I am still eating fruits, but avoiding sugar, high fructose corn syrup, honey, artificial sugars etc. To prepare for this expedition, I made the most of a few days before enjoying desserts and other sugar-laced foods: creme brulee, candy, and chocolate chip cookies, trying not to go overboard.

I’m on my 6th day and so far have made some observations:

1) Fruit makes a good dessert. In the evenings, instead of grabbing for cookies, I’d enjoy an orange, berries, a banana, or other fruit. Eating fruit instead of desserts has made me be more mindful of the wonderful sugars I am eating in the fruit.

2) It’s amazing what foods have sugar in them. Some foods are hard to find without sugar. I was recently searching the bread aisle for sugar-free and corn syrup-free bread. I looked through the whole aisle and was about to give up, when I found one without sugar, corn syrup, and high fructose corn syrup. Foods like beef jerky, nacho cheese chips, cheddar cheese bratwurst, and many others unexpectedly have sugar in them.

3) Social events are a bit harder, but being prepared is important to successfully navigating a party or pot luck. My husband and I are on a getaway with several friends. As mentioned above, there are many sugar-laced foods that you wouldn’t necessarily expect, so it’s been important for me to be prepared. I made sure to bring plenty of fruits on the outing so that I would have a sweet treat if cravings set in.

All in all, it’s not extremely difficult, but is definitely taking some self-control and reading the labels for me to stay sugar-free this month. Anyone else have any sugar-related experiences? I’d love to hear them.