Cutting down on sugar

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nicolamoonbrains
nicolamoonbrains Posts: 72 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi!

I have just been doing some research on my diet and have found I am eating over the RDA of sugar every day and I didn't realize this until now!

I eat on average between 40 and 70 grams per day sometimes more, and the RDA for a woman is 20 grams.

Is this really all that bad? I exercise 5 days a week for 30 mins (circuit training) so does this entitle me to eat more sugar?

Sugar is the hardest thing for me to cut out! What foods could I incorporate into my diet that will help with cravings?

Thank you! =)

Replies

  • downinaggieland98
    downinaggieland98 Posts: 224 Member
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    I ended up not really tracking my sugars on MFP because if I eat any fruits whatsoever, I'm over. What I do is look at where my sugars are coming from. If they are natural sources, I really wouldn't worry about it too much. If it is refined sugars, then I'd definitely cut those back.
  • AsrarHussain
    AsrarHussain Posts: 1,424 Member
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    Hi!

    I have just been doing some research on my diet and have found I am eating over the RDA of sugar every day and I didn't realize this until now!

    I eat on average between 40 and 70 grams per day sometimes more, and the RDA for a woman is 20 grams.

    Is this really all that bad? I exercise 5 days a week for 30 mins (circuit training) so does this entitle me to eat more sugar?

    Sugar is the hardest thing for me to cut out! What foods could I incorporate into my diet that will help with cravings?

    Thank you! =)


    it depends i eat what fits my macros im about to eat half a bounty hald kitkat chunky hazel nut another half kitkat chunky with cocunut and 2 pizzas with chicken on top im still on a callorie deficit slightly over by 40 calls or so but no big deal
  • 388gigi
    388gigi Posts: 485 Member
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    There's a big debate on sugar. I try to only eat sugar in the form of fruit, vegetables and natural, full fat dairy products. From those products alone I probably go over 20g a day!

    Big sugar culprits are cereals, low fat yoghurts, low fat anything really (they add more sugar to compensate)

    I recently got a book (in Australia) called "I Quit Sugar". I bought it for the recipes, but there is a lot of information in there about sugar, and a plan on how to quit it if you want to.
  • shells72280
    shells72280 Posts: 7
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    I ended up not really tracking my sugars on MFP because if I eat any fruits whatsoever, I'm over. What I do is look at where my sugars are coming from. If they are natural sources, I really wouldn't worry about it too much. If it is refined sugars, then I'd definitely cut those back.
    I agree - if your fruits are coming from natural sourced, like fruits, then I would not really worry about it. But if it's coming from processed stuff - candy bars or white bread type foods, you should try to cut down on those.

    I have the same battle - I would all my calories in a day on chocolate if I could. I try to limit myself to SMALL portions - like 3 bites each, but twice a day. Seems to be helping so far.

    Good Luck!
  • Enonoid
    Enonoid Posts: 136 Member
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    Try to cut down on the refined sugars.
  • pebbs80
    pebbs80 Posts: 102
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    I'm trying to focus more on natural sugar sources. Fruits and veggies

    If it's processed I try to keep that as low as possible
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
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    What everyone else said about getting sugar mostly from natural sources.

    About the cravings, I didn't believe anyone when they told me that if I stopped eating so much sugar, I wouldn't crave it as much. Guess what. They were right. Even artificial sweeteners will trigger cravings. I cut out diet soda (I still have maybe 1 can of diet coke a month) and I was just really careful not to eat sugary things except once in a while. It's hard at first, but you will quickly adjust. Also, don't COMPLETELY deprive yourself. When you know you are deprived, you will think about it non-stop and then have a blowout. Tell yourself that if you REALLY need that can of soda, donut, etc. you can have it. But you just have to make the decision carefully.
  • nicolamoonbrains
    nicolamoonbrains Posts: 72 Member
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    Thanks! Lot's of great advice.

    To be fair, about half the sugar in my diet comes from fruits but the rest comes from chocolate (I eat about 4 squares of dark chocolate a day), honey which I sweeten my teas with (not sure if that counts as refined sugar) and worst of all, fizzy pop and alcoholic drinks. I don't drink those everyday though (like I used too) I am trying to stop those completely.

    I will definitely try to swap the refined sugars for natural sugars! I'll be researching for some good natural desert ideas.
  • Firefox7275
    Firefox7275 Posts: 2,040 Member
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    Thanks! Lot's of great advice.

    To be fair, about half the sugar in my diet comes from fruits but the rest comes from chocolate (I eat about 4 squares of dark chocolate a day), honey which I sweeten my teas with (not sure if that counts as refined sugar) and worst of all, fizzy pop and alcoholic drinks. I don't drink those everyday though (like I used too) I am trying to stop those completely.

    I will definitely try to swap the refined sugars for natural sugars! I'll be researching for some good natural desert ideas.

    Switch to a low sugar/ sugar free dark chocolate or buy some cocoa powder and make your own chocolatey desserts/ snacks. Consider lower sugar fruits such as berries, grapefruit, rhubarb, red and black currants. Honey is sugar. yes it counts.
  • Rhonnie
    Rhonnie Posts: 506 Member
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    If you are losing the weight you want, don't worry about the total to much, just try to limit the 'added' sugars. If you get to a point you aren't losing weight (or of course if you have a medical condition) then you can get serious about your sugar intake. At which point you probably want to do research outside MFP.
  • nicolamoonbrains
    nicolamoonbrains Posts: 72 Member
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    Thank you!

    Firefox, I never thought of looking for sugar free chocolate! I tried finding some today in sainsburys and couldn't find any but I did find some in Holland and Barratts (UK) but only single bars and they are really expensive (but super delicious!) thanks for the tip!

    Thanks rhonnie thats good advice also, I think it would be an idea to carry on as I am, avoiding refined sugars, and if I hit a plateau some weeks down the line think about sorting it out properly and seeing if it has an effect!

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