Sugar-Free September
CostaRica120
Posts: 274 Member
Hi all, I went sugar-free for 30 days last September and I'm going to do it again this year. Starting tomorrow!
It was a great experience because it caused me to pay close attention to how much sugar I was really eating every day and I found ways to make substitutions. Since my last Sugar-Free September, I’ve kept up the habit of avoiding unnecessary added sugars in products like yogurt, pasta sauce and especially cereal.
Now, I'm not at all anti-sugar, and I love my sweets and treats and totally think they fit into a healthy, balanced diet, but avoiding added sugars as much as possible for only 30 days can be an eye-opening experience. And it was actually kinda fun! I hosted an early Thanksgiving dinner and even served up sugar-free pumpkin pie.
If anyone wants to join me, comment here and I'll add you to the group I started.
It was a great experience because it caused me to pay close attention to how much sugar I was really eating every day and I found ways to make substitutions. Since my last Sugar-Free September, I’ve kept up the habit of avoiding unnecessary added sugars in products like yogurt, pasta sauce and especially cereal.
Now, I'm not at all anti-sugar, and I love my sweets and treats and totally think they fit into a healthy, balanced diet, but avoiding added sugars as much as possible for only 30 days can be an eye-opening experience. And it was actually kinda fun! I hosted an early Thanksgiving dinner and even served up sugar-free pumpkin pie.
If anyone wants to join me, comment here and I'll add you to the group I started.
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Replies
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Why no artificial sweeteners? They aren't sugar.
I'd make it about four and a half hours into September, until I drink some Mio before my morning exercise.0 -
what did raisins ever do to you?0
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Just to made it harder! No, jk. I decided to quit artificial sweeteners just to try to help kill my sweet tooth. There's those theories about some potential drawbacks to artificial sweeteners (increased sugar cravings, negative health effects, whatever..), so I decided to give them up too. That's probably the hardest part for me too because I rely on a protein powder that has stevia. But it'll force me to go with alternatives (hemp protein, what's up) and that's kind of the point for me.
If other people only want to give up added real sugar that's cool, too.0 -
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I did something similar for a month in January, as well as a few weeks early last year, but I wasn't as strict about some stuff. It was nice to force myself to think outside the box a little for some extras (I did the cheese as post dinner treat thing quite often). I'm not feeling compelled to do it again currently, though, and am doing some endurance stuff where it might be a problem if I did!0
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lemurcat12 wrote: »I did something similar for a month in January, as well as a few weeks early last year, but I wasn't as strict about some stuff. It was nice to force myself to think outside the box a little for some extras (I did the cheese as post dinner treat thing quite often). I'm not feeling compelled to do it again currently, though, and am doing some endurance stuff where it might be a problem if I did!
Yeah, I like that it made me think outside my usual go-to snacks.
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P.S. The group is called "Sugar-Free September" for anyone that would like to join
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CostaRica120 wrote: »Just to made it harder! No, jk. I decided to quit artificial sweeteners just to try to help kill my sweet tooth. There's those theories about some potential drawbacks to artificial sweeteners (increased sugar cravings, negative health effects, whatever..), so I decided to give them up too. That's probably the hardest part for me too because I rely on a protein powder that has stevia. But it'll force me to go with alternatives (hemp protein, what's up) and that's kind of the point for me.
If other people only want to give up added real sugar that's cool, too.
I have pretty much given up artificial sweetener. For years I didn't understand why I had intense hunger pain an hour after eating. It's only in the past 4 weeks I realised that it was aspartame in diet pepsi causing it. I've swapped it for water and I no longer feel hungry every single hour.
I have coffee a day and I now use Stevia which is a plant based natural sweetener.
Sugar....I've given that up too. 46 days free. Though hidden sugars in foods are not easy to give up. Unless you cook everything from scratch.0 -
andrealouisecarpenter wrote: »CostaRica120 wrote: »Just to made it harder! No, jk. I decided to quit artificial sweeteners just to try to help kill my sweet tooth. There's those theories about some potential drawbacks to artificial sweeteners (increased sugar cravings, negative health effects, whatever..), so I decided to give them up too. That's probably the hardest part for me too because I rely on a protein powder that has stevia. But it'll force me to go with alternatives (hemp protein, what's up) and that's kind of the point for me.
If other people only want to give up added real sugar that's cool, too.
I have pretty much given up artificial sweetener. For years I didn't understand why I had intense hunger pain an hour after eating. It's only in the past 4 weeks I realised that it was aspartame in diet pepsi causing it. I've swapped it for water and I no longer feel hungry every single hour.
I have coffee a day and I now use Stevia which is a plant based natural sweetener.
Sugar....I've given that up too. 46 days free. Though hidden sugars in foods are not easy to give up. Unless you cook everything from scratch.
Yeah, I've definitely heard of aspartame wreaking havoc on the body! Awesome to hear that you've been sugar-free for 46 days! That's great! What effects have you noticed?0 -
Today is Day 1 of Sugar-Free September! Come join our group and let's get this going! The group is called "Sugar-Free September" and you can find the guidelines there. Let's support each other as we go through sugar-withdrawal and mourn the loss of our fav treats (oh, and let's share some recipes and tips, too!) 0
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I think I'd literally go crazy if I had to live off only savoury food for a whole month. And this is coming from someone who prefers savoury over sweet.
ETA: Not to mention I'd go insane without tea! I'm British, I need it! And I can't drink it without sweetener.0 -
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MarziPanda95 wrote: »I think I'd literally go crazy if I had to live off only savoury food for a whole month. And this is coming from someone who prefers savoury over sweet.
ETA: Not to mention I'd go insane without tea! I'm British, I need it! And I can't drink it without sweetener.
haha, you can do anything for 30 days! I would always choose sweet over savoury. I'd easily skip dinner for dessert. BUT from my experience doing this last year, there are plenty of things with sweetness that don't include added sugars. That natural sweetness comes through loud and clear once your tastebuds have a chance to adjust.
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that's the one, thnx
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Eliminating added sugars would require eliminating nearly all processed foods and restaurant prepared foods. Way too complicated for me.0
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beemerphile1 wrote: »Eliminating added sugars would require eliminating nearly all processed foods and restaurant prepared foods. Way too complicated for me.
Yeah, if you rely heavily on processed and restaurant foods, that would be tough to cut out totally! It's hard enough with home cookin'.
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No, thank you. I would go crazy and hurt someone if I tried to do that. I like occasional treats. Why make yourself crazy, craving and uncomfortable for a month if you're going to go right back to eating sugar after?
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No, thank you. I would go crazy and hurt someone if I tried to do that. I like occasional treats. Why make yourself crazy, craving and uncomfortable for a month if you're going to go right back to eating sugar after?
When I did this last year, I fortunately didn't go crazy, craving and uncomfortable! Fortunately there are plenty of foods that are free of added sugars out there! Including treats!
It did push me to find alternatives for some of my go-to products. With a little looking I was able to avoid added sugars in my cereals, ready-made pasta sauce and some other items that I buy on a regular basis. Some of those finds are things that I continued to buy all year long after my experiment It's a learning experience.
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Added sugars are good for me. I am going to cut out the natural sugars in beets...cause well, beets....blech.0
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I have changed my diet and trying not to go over 25g sugars in total. Is this ok?0
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I just ate 8 peanut M&M's
I guess I'm out...0 -
you had me at no artificial sweeteners, I like a bit of it in my coffee each morning.0
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why no dried fruit??????????
If you had such great success with it, then why didn't you keep doing it?
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well i had a teaspoon of honey in my artificially sweetned coffee this morning before i ran, maybe next year0
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Beets are delicious. Anyone who says otherwise is wrong.
I'm almost tempted, but I'm doing a tri on Saturday and need my Clif Shots. Besides I just got a new flavor of ice cream to try.0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »Beets are delicious. Anyone who says otherwise is wrong.
I'm almost tempted, but I'm doing a tri on Saturday and need my Clif Shots. Besides I just got a new flavor of ice cream to try.
ewww, you aren't my friend anymore.0 -
No alcohol ??????
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CostaRica120 wrote: »MarziPanda95 wrote: »I think I'd literally go crazy if I had to live off only savoury food for a whole month. And this is coming from someone who prefers savoury over sweet.
ETA: Not to mention I'd go insane without tea! I'm British, I need it! And I can't drink it without sweetener.
haha, you can do anything for 30 days! I would always choose sweet over savoury. I'd easily skip dinner for dessert. BUT from my experience doing this last year, there are plenty of things with sweetness that don't include added sugars. That natural sweetness comes through loud and clear once your tastebuds have a chance to adjust.
No I really can't. Maybe for one day. Y'know, if I only ate meat. But 30 days? Hell no.
I can't think of anything which is sweet without added sugar except for fruit - and the things you've said you're banning, like honey.0 -
But I need to add a bit of sugar to my homemade pizza dough so the yeast has something to eat.0
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what did raisins ever do to you?
http://www.livestrong.com/article/468530-is-dried-fruit-with-no-sugar-added-good-for-you/
...Sugar Content
As Cornell University nutritionist Christina Stark told the New York Times, drying fruit takes out the water, concentrating both nutrients and calories. In fruits, much of the calories come from sugar. "Go Ask Alice," a health advice column produced by Columbia University, labels dried fruit as a sugary snack, but notes that it is a healthier choice than most. Even without added sweeteners, dried fruits are indeed high in sugar: 1/4 cup of raisins, for example, contains 31 g of sugar.
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By way of comparison, 1/2 C of Cherry Garcia ice cream has 23 g of sugar.0
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