Cutting Sugar?
LittleRainbow123
Posts: 7 Member
I seem to be struggling with cutting my sugar intake appropriately. I tend to be very close to on par or slightly above (with 10-15 grams) which of course, isn't ideal. Does anyone have any feasible, reasonable tricks for cutting it a bit? I've been trying to eat more fruit but that hasn't exactly been helping the sugar 
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Replies
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Do you have a medical reason to reduce sugar? Otherwise it does not matter for weight loss. I have not tracked sugar in over a year.0
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15 grams of sugar is 60 calories. You can burn that off just walking for 10 minutes. While it's fine to reduce sugar intake, one doesn't need to go to the extreme to do it. Especially since glycogen is much more easily derived from sugars than fat and glycogen is your first source of energy in physical activity.
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I eat a lot of fruits though for sugar, that's a healthy sugar there rather than anything from refined sugar, process food.0
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Sugar is not evil. If you don't have a medical reason to watch it, I wouldn't worry about it. I don't track sugar, because, I don't feel like there's a reason for me to.0
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Look at your log and figure out where your sugar is coming from now. Cut some of those things and add protein. There are health benefits to reducing sugar even if you gong have a formal medical diagnosis.0
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pollypocket1021 wrote: »
Nothing, but fruits are different from soda, and come with more micros and fiber. It makes sense to think of foods as a whole and not just sugar or macros, IMO, beyond getting enough.
This is also why I wouldn't worry about the sugar limit. Who credible says that 15% of calories in total sugar in a deficit calorie amount that has enough protein, fiber, healthy fat, and is satiating and overall a healthy balanced diet, is too much?0 -
Keeping your sugar in check is super important!! When you eat starchy or sugary foods your blood sugar spikes and then drops quickly and your body wants to raise the blood sugar again hence the cravings. The less sugar you eat the less hungry you'll feel!
Took me years of dieting and mfp to pay attention to how sugar was making me gain weight - not just from the calorie side of things, but from a mental health cravings side of things. Of course I have been addicted to sugar (yes it is a DRUG) since I was a kid - family food was very sugary, packaged. Its a hard battle, really hard to control but the less sugar you invite in the less you'll crave food period.
If you're struggling with cravings read the labels and have a no sugar day or week and tell me you don't feel better!0 -
bright_fit wrote: »Of course I have been addicted to sugar (yes it is a DRUG) since I was a kid - family food was very sugary, packaged.
Can't tell if trolling, or ...
Sugar most definitely isn't a drug, either way. That's a pretty ridiculous thing to claim. I mean, if you're being serious... I don't even...
@LittleRainbow123 Unless you need to cut it for medical reasons, or you're specifically trying a low carb way of eating, then don't sweat it. Fruits are tasty, and packed full of good stuff. Sugar won't hurt.0 -
If your goal is simply to lose weight, it isn't necessary to worry too much about sugar intake! Count your calories and make sure you aren't going over your allowance, of course - but don't over complicate it when you don't need to
I lost 40 lbs and I am now in maintenance (and actually still losing here and there!) and I was 'over' my sugar 'allowance' almost every single day.
Unless there is a medical reason to keep an eye on your sugar intake, I wouldn't worry!0 -
LittleRainbow123 wrote: »I seem to be struggling with cutting my sugar intake appropriately. I tend to be very close to on par or slightly above (with 10-15 grams) which of course, isn't ideal. Does anyone have any feasible, reasonable tricks for cutting it a bit? I've been trying to eat more fruit but that hasn't exactly been helping the sugar
I swapped out sugar tracking for fibre tracking over a year ago
I find it much more useful
but then I have no medical need to track sugar, it may be different for you
if you're not hitting your macro (specifically protein and fats) and micro-nutrients then I would suggest concentrating on upping those rather than worrying unduly about sugar content .. by hitting a widespread of nutritional vegetables, lean proteins, dairy and carbs to tastes0 -
bright_fit wrote: »Keeping your sugar in check is super important!! When you eat starchy or sugary foods your blood sugar spikes and then drops quickly and your body wants to raise the blood sugar again hence the cravings. The less sugar you eat the less hungry you'll feel!
Took me years of dieting and mfp to pay attention to how sugar was making me gain weight - not just from the calorie side of things, but from a mental health cravings side of things. Of course I have been addicted to sugar (yes it is a DRUG) since I was a kid - family food was very sugary, packaged. Its a hard battle, really hard to control but the less sugar you invite in the less you'll crave food period.
If you're struggling with cravings read the labels and have a no sugar day or week and tell me you don't feel better!
Agree 100%. I track two numbers, calories and sugar. If the sugar goes too high, even from fruit, I get overly hungry and binge. Sugar causes insulin to flood your system and insulin is a hunger hormone. Watch Dr. Lustig's videos on you-tube if you need motivation to cut sugar.
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percolater wrote: »bright_fit wrote: »Keeping your sugar in check is super important!! When you eat starchy or sugary foods your blood sugar spikes and then drops quickly and your body wants to raise the blood sugar again hence the cravings. The less sugar you eat the less hungry you'll feel!
Took me years of dieting and mfp to pay attention to how sugar was making me gain weight - not just from the calorie side of things, but from a mental health cravings side of things. Of course I have been addicted to sugar (yes it is a DRUG) since I was a kid - family food was very sugary, packaged. Its a hard battle, really hard to control but the less sugar you invite in the less you'll crave food period.
If you're struggling with cravings read the labels and have a no sugar day or week and tell me you don't feel better!
Agree 100%. I track two numbers, calories and sugar. If the sugar goes too high, even from fruit, I get overly hungry and binge. Sugar causes insulin to flood your system and insulin is a hunger hormone. Watch Dr. Lustig's videos on you-tube if you need motivation to cut sugar.
Not true -
and please - avoid Lustig on you-tube the man has been debunked, over and over again
want a killer? protein results in insulin spikes too
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Insulin is not a hunger hormone. Leptin is increased by insulin and leptin is the thing that reduces your hunger.0
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arditarose wrote: »Do you have a medical reason to reduce sugar? Otherwise it does not matter for weight loss. I have not tracked sugar in over a year.
Please stop suggesting that a medical reason is the only allowable or valid reason to minimize sugar. People need to discover through trial and error what dietary goals work best for their own body. Don't discourage perfectly valid experimentation.0 -
arditarose wrote: »Do you have a medical reason to reduce sugar? Otherwise it does not matter for weight loss. I have not tracked sugar in over a year.
Please stop suggesting that a medical reason is the only allowable or valid reason to minimize sugar. People need to discover through trial and error what dietary goals work best for their own body. Don't discourage perfectly valid experimentation.
she said "it does not matter" and it doesn't
whether it suits you is something different
people come to this site having believed the current hype and the current media hype is noooooo sugarrrrr baddddd
please stop suggesting that others have some kind of pro-sugar agenda because you have an anti-sugar one0 -
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ericGold15 wrote: »
No one said "made". He said "derived" which is a different word with a different meaning. Assuming he is talking about gluconeogenesis...0 -
arditarose wrote: »Do you have a medical reason to reduce sugar? Otherwise it does not matter for weight loss. I have not tracked sugar in over a year.
Please stop suggesting that a medical reason is the only allowable or valid reason to minimize sugar. People need to discover through trial and error what dietary goals work best for their own body. Don't discourage perfectly valid experimentation.
Avoiding unnecessary stress by tracking something that may well be pointless to track is also a valid experiment.
Personally I don't worry about carbs let alone a subset of carbs.0 -
I am skeptical, well very skeptical of Lustig, but I think it more true to say that his ideas have not been proven because of methodological errors in his work.and please - avoid Lustig on you-tube the man has been debunked, over and over again
At this point he is a fad, and fads have a way of disappearing. He is not however at this time debunked.
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arditarose wrote: »Do you have a medical reason to reduce sugar? Otherwise it does not matter for weight loss. I have not tracked sugar in over a year.
Please stop suggesting that a medical reason is the only allowable or valid reason to minimize sugar. People need to discover through trial and error what dietary goals work best for their own body. Don't discourage perfectly valid experimentation.
OP clearly and explicitly said she was struggling reducing her sugars.
IT IS NOT A GOAL THAT WORKS BEST FOR HER.0 -
bright_fit wrote: »Took me years of dieting and mfp to pay attention to how sugar was making me gain weight - not just from the calorie side of things, but from a mental health cravings side of things.
No. Sugar does not make you gain weight. Eating in a caloric surplus makes you gain weight.
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ericGold15 wrote: »
I am skeptical, well very skeptical of Lustig, but I think it more true to say that his ideas have not been proven because of methodological errors in his work.and please - avoid Lustig on you-tube the man has been debunked, over and over again
At this point he is a fad, and fads have a way of disappearing. He is not however at this time debunked.
There is enough of what he has promoted that has been called in to question for me to happily consider him debunked, or at the very least an unreliable source of any information .. which to me is debunked
it might be a simplistic approach but I'm all for simplicity0 -
arditarose wrote: »Do you have a medical reason to reduce sugar? Otherwise it does not matter for weight loss. I have not tracked sugar in over a year.
Please stop suggesting that a medical reason is the only allowable or valid reason to minimize sugar. People need to discover through trial and error what dietary goals work best for their own body. Don't discourage perfectly valid experimentation.
Right, I have no medical reason to reduce sugar yet reducing baked goods and eating at about 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30 % fat makes it much easier for me to stay in a calorie deficit.
That said, @LittleRainbow123, are you talking about 10-15 grams of sugar per day? That seems really low.0 -
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Op- unless you have a medical condition there is no need to fear sugar.
I see a lot of bad info in this thread. Please don't believe the hype. Sugar doesn't cause one to gain weight , a calorie surplus does.
Lustig is a quack and laughable, its almost asinine to talk about because I thought that was clear already to most people .
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kshama2001 wrote: »arditarose wrote: »Do you have a medical reason to reduce sugar? Otherwise it does not matter for weight loss. I have not tracked sugar in over a year.
Please stop suggesting that a medical reason is the only allowable or valid reason to minimize sugar. People need to discover through trial and error what dietary goals work best for their own body. Don't discourage perfectly valid experimentation.
Right, I have no medical reason to reduce sugar yet reducing baked goods and eating at about 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30 % fat makes it much easier for me to stay in a calorie deficit.
That said, @LittleRainbow123, are you talking about 10-15 grams of sugar per day? That seems really low.
I thought perhaps she meant over by 10-15 g.
If someone has a low calorie level they will get a low sugar goal that can be easily exceeded without baked goods (or with only small amounts of them) if you also eat lots of fruit, veg, dairy, etc. Or even not that much if you are at 45 g.
OP seems to assume that exceeding her sugar is unhealthy (she says "not ideal") which is an assumption a lot of people make from the existence of the sugar goal or the unfortunate extremist rhetoric surrounding sugar ("it's a drug!") that seems to cause many new posters to worry even about consuming fruit. Therefore, I think it's important to put it in context. The WHO and other common recommendations are based on added sugar and are because it's easy to exceed calories if you eat lots of added sugar or avoid filling your diet with nutrient-rich foods. If someone eats a good balanced diet and gets enough of other things (like protein) and isn't hungry, sugar isn't a concern, and I personally think it's a really rare person who needs to worry about sugar from fruit (probably Freelee gets too much of it, in that her diet is otherwise unbalanced).
Now, sure, if you are hungry or regularly exceeding calories and see you are eating lots of low nutrient sweet treats, cutting those down some is a no-brainer, but since people usually get that I think it's rare that that's what they are referring to when they ask about how to cut sugar unless they indicate that they are having trouble with cravings or such.0 -
LittleRainbow123 wrote: »I seem to be struggling with cutting my sugar intake appropriately. I tend to be very close to on par or slightly above (with 10-15 grams) which of course, isn't ideal. Does anyone have any feasible, reasonable tricks for cutting it a bit? I've been trying to eat more fruit but that hasn't exactly been helping the sugar
LittleRainbow123, I snooped your profile and you mentioned that you are trying to lose some weight but you are also concerned about T2D. Are you currently dealing with insulin resistance that impacts your sugar/carb goal for the day, or are you just looking for ideas to help cut back on sugar-heavy foods you tend to overeat/which lead to overeating through cravings (or some combination of the two)?0 -
LittleRainbow123 wrote: »I seem to be struggling with cutting my sugar intake appropriately. I tend to be very close to on par or slightly above (with 10-15 grams) which of course, isn't ideal. Does anyone have any feasible, reasonable tricks for cutting it a bit? I've been trying to eat more fruit but that hasn't exactly been helping the sugar
My trick is that I stopped tracking sugar, so I didn't have to worry about it. I used the default MFP settings, and focused on making sure I hit the protein macro that it set as my goal. I reached goal weight just over 6 months later, and have been in maintenance for 9 months this way.0
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