Eating too much sugar

catpow2

Just recently started tracking my diet on MFP, and apparently I'm eating too much sugar (simple carbs). I'm not eating any refined/processed foods. Apparently I blow my entire sugar budget for the day with 4oz of Dannon Activia yogurt every morning (20g and my allocation is 25). Other foods often have small amounts of sugar, which adds up over the day--and if I have any fruit, which I always do--then forget it. Right now, I'm apparently eating twice as much sugar as I should be. I guess I should cut out the yogurt or find a different brand? Is all yogurt this high in sugar?

RyanPerry2012

I'm not sure about yogurt, but for what it's worth I just try to make small substitutions here and there to cut my sugar down. For instance I've switched to unsweetened almond milk in my protein shakes as opposed to 1% milk, which cuts 12g of sugar. Also using plain quaker oats as opposed to a pre-packaged oatmeal packet cuts 9g. These small changes add up for me, as lots of things have unexpected amounts of sugar. I definitely won't cut out fruit however, the fruit I eat is almost entirely apples and berries.

v2embee

I have my sugar quota set to 50g at the moment. That being said, I could really care less if I go over, so long as it is namely because of fruits and/or vegetables. You could always try making small substitutions (go for plain or unsweetened versions) though.

bperry83

i have the same problem! i try not to go over sugar, but i usually do. i not to worry about it too much when its from fruit. But sugar is in EVERYTHING! i just cut it out where i can. im glad you posted this question. i'm interested to see what other people are doing to stay within the range on sugar.

catpow2

Yes, I didn't realize that it's pretty much in everything--unless you make all your meals from scratch, I suppose. I'm going by the MFP default setting of 25g per day for a 1200-1400 calorie diet so I wonder if that's reasonable if most of the sugar is from fruit. I'm going to try to make some small adjustments as Ryan suggested, but otherwise, my diet is pretty healthy--lots of fruits and veggies and lean meats so I'm not going to worry about it too much.

kang73

Me too I am vegeterian and lot of fruit and vegitables. My level is 35 gm as per MFP. One apple and orahnge has more than 35gm. What to do now.

catpow2

Kang73--would you be willing to share you food diary? I'd like to see the kinds of protein you eat. I eat a lot of Morningstar vegetarian products but I'm not disciplined enough to give up meat entirely. And I'm married to a steak and potatoes guy. But, we don't eat every meal together!

Musikelektronik

Me too I am vegeterian and lot of fruit and vegitables. My level is 35 gm as per MFP. One apple and orahnge has more than 35gm. What to do now.

Nothing. There's absolutely nothing wrong with the sugar in fruits and vegetables.

Unless you have some kind of diabetic condition or something, I don't really see why the amount of sugar you consume really matters, assuming that you're eating a balanced diet. Sure, if you eat 8 chocolate bars per day to get your 1,600 calories, that's a problem because of all the nutrients you wouldn't be getting. But other than that scenario, who cares?

Also, keep in mind that MFP is a computer program. Don't follow its advice too blindly.

castaliavt

I stopped tracking sugar after I went over every day because of plain greek yogurt and fruit. They're both healthy and I don't have high blood sugar, so I stopped tracking sugar.

EmmyLou1253

This conversation was very helpful to me as i was stressing about the same. I do need to cut back but I will not worry about the natural sugars in my diet through plain Greek yogurt and fruit ( it is smoothie season for me). Thanks!