sugar

MyrnaSolganick

The first thing I did was go over my sugar for the day! (this is my first day). I think this is going to be my most difficult challenge. What do folks here do when you want a dessert? even fruit is a sugar! Help needed...

TavistockToad

Do you have a medical reason you need to monitor sugar?

singingflutelady

Sugar isn't scary though the fear mongerings would like you to be scared.

chapiano

Yogurt mainly. The sugar content in fruit can vary, berries are lower

singingflutelady

I eat dessert and make it fit my calories

JeromeBarry1

Back to the first thing to ask: What is your self-selected weight loss goal which you chose when you set up your profile? With 40 lb to lose, are you of the delusion that you will lose it all in the 20 weeks which includes Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years?

From that, we ask, What is your mfp calorie target? Is it 1200?

From that, we answer, "Raise your weight loss goal to 1 or 0.5 lb per week and let mfp give you an easier target to hit." Most normal people aren't going to stay on track with a weight loss plan through the holidays. Those normal people who try, and you are of course perfectly normal, drive themselves nuts with stress.

LUHAN27

Dark chocolates or a piece of fruit? however, if I do want dessert, I fit it in my calorie goal.

mph323

If you don't have a medical reason to avoid sugar why deprive yourself? Plan your calorie and macro budget to include the foods you enjoy, and you're more likely to stay the course.

Sued0nim

Swap out sugar for fibre tracking

AlabamaMama224

I don't track sugar. Well, actually do, since they're already included in carb macro.

AnvilHead

AlabamaMama224 wrote: »

I don't track sugar. Well, actually do, since they're already included in carb macro.

I pay absolutely zero attention to my sugar intake other than tracking my overall carbs. As Sued0nim said, I swapped out sugar for fiber in my tracking because I have no medical issues necessitating that I track or limit sugar intake. I eat ice cream, chocolate/candy, etc. in moderation and have still managed to lose over 50 lbs. with no adverse effects upon my health, all by maintaining a reasonable caloric deficit and eating a reasonably balanced diet.

SLLRunner

MyrnaSolganick wrote: »

The first thing I did was go over my sugar for the day! (this is my first day). I think this is going to be my most difficult challenge. What do folks here do when you want a dessert? even fruit is a sugar! Help needed...

You won't gain weight going over on sugar, you will gain weight by consistently going over your total daily energy expenditure.

Food type has nothing to do with weight loss. Unless you doctor has instructed you to monitor sugar, or to do a special diet for medical reasons, then there is no reason to.

MyrnaSolganick

Thank you all so much. No, I have no medical reasons to limit sugar or carbs(other than what the program says). The holidays are not that much of a big deal for me, I have learned to make good choices and to have just a little of the things I want. @JeromeBarry, I know this will be a slow process. Unfortunately, what plays in the background for me is that many years ago I lost 30+ lbs on Weight Watchers from the end of January to June. OK, that was 20 years ago and I could be a lot more active then..the system here says I will be losing 2 lbs a month on 1200 calories.

TanyaHooton

MFP doesn't differentiate between natural sugars found in fruit, veggies, and dairy and those in processed food like pastries and carbonated drinks.

I remember when I started MFP, it was eye opening how much sugar was in yogurt. And a bagel (it wasn't even a sweet variety!) and pasta sauce, ranch dressing, etc. It's good to be aware, but the natural sugars in fruit also come with water and fiber that slow down absorption. They also bring along friends like vitamins and minerals. No fizzy drink or sweet tea or eclair does that, delicious though they are.

Think of it like a budget...you get x amount yo spend on sugar, so figure out what's worth it and just do that.

Or you can swap out sugar for fiber in you tracker. It's better to try to hit fiber, which most is us are woefully under, and stress about being over sugar.

JeromeBarry1

MyrnaSolganick wrote: »

Thank you all so much. No, I have no medical reasons to limit sugar or carbs(other than what the program says). The holidays are not that much of a big deal for me, I have learned to make good choices and to have just a little of the things I want. @JeromeBarry, I know this will be a slow process. Unfortunately, what plays in the background for me is that many years ago I lost 30+ lbs on Weight Watchers from the end of January to June. OK, that was 20 years ago and I could be a lot more active then..the system here says I will be losing 2 lbs a month on 1200 calories.

That's 0.5 lb per week, the easiest on you target to hit, and your calorie goal is 1200/day. Wow. Be very accurate with weighing and logging your food, because your margin for error is non-existent.

gonetothedogs19

singingflutelady wrote: »

Sugar isn't scary though the fear mongerings would like you to be scared.

The US government recently issued recommendations that sugar consumption be greatly limited. Do you know something they don't know, or have some particular educational background that would make me listen to you more than them.

lemurcat12

gonetothedogs19 wrote: »

singingflutelady wrote: »

Sugar isn't scary though the fear mongerings would like you to be scared.

The US government recently issued recommendations that sugar consumption be greatly limited. Do you know something they don't know, or have some particular educational background that would make me listen to you more than them.

Not greatly limited, at all -- 10% of total calories for ADDED sugar. (IMO, that's not all that small an amount. I've been way over my sugar lately due to fruit and veg, but still easily within that amount for added sugar.) That's similar to what the WHO recommended earlier, and for the same reasons -- that on average getting lots of added sugar tends to correlate with excess calories (ironically often as much from the fat in the foods that tend to have lots of added sugar, as they typically have fat too) and to come without other nutrients. This is why there's no basis to worry about sugar from fruits and veg (or if you have a calorie-appropriate and balanced diet with adequate nutrients).

If someone has enough protein, healthy fats, vegetables, and fiber, he or she probably is not eating excess added sugar.

Cahgetsfit

Sued0nim wrote: »

Swap out sugar for fibre tracking

this. I don't track sugar at all. I do track fibre though.

Sugar is not the devil.

SLLRunner

gonetothedogs19 wrote: »

singingflutelady wrote: »

Sugar isn't scary though the fear mongerings would like you to be scared.

The US government recently issued recommendations that sugar consumption be greatly limited. Do you know something they don't know, or have some particular educational background that would make me listen to you more than them.

Well, you shouldn't listen to anyone else, you should read the dietary guidelines for yourself, which discuss reducing added sugar to 10 percent. Don't read articles on the subject, go to the source: PDF of Dietary Guidelines and look on page 55. Also, Here is the link to the website where I got the guidelines from.