Sugar... WTF

Without taking into consideration the days I stress eat with lots of sweets, I am always going over my sugars! Even if I think I am doing really well. Are the expectations of MFP just crazy low? For instance, today I ate gluten free oatmeal with aguve and that was 22 grams, my goal is 29. Any fruit or pretty much anything else I eat is taking me over. Anyone else having this problem?

Replies

  • jessmart83
    jessmart83 Posts: 283 Member
    I always go over my sugar! I do eat a lot of fruit, so I just watch my added sugar intake.
  • TravelDog14
    TravelDog14 Posts: 317 Member
    I don't count the naturally occurring sugar in fruit as bad.

    Plus sugar isn't one of the macros I track as I don't eat cakes, cookies or tons of processed food.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Don't worry too much about fruit and dairy sugars. Worry about the added stuff.
  • Barbellerella
    Barbellerella Posts: 1,838 Member
    I took it out of my food settings.. No point in looking at it for me.
  • I set my sugars at 84 and I almost ALWAYS max. For example, today my only real sugar sources were my coffee, no sugar added/100 calorie fudge bar, 16 oz of Honest Tea (16 g sugar), and a 6 oz yogurt, and I'm over by 45. I have no idea what a realistic number to put down might be. I realize the natural sugars (like fruit) are a separate category, but nutritional labels don't distinguish between natural and added sugars.
  • Lyssa62
    Lyssa62 Posts: 930 Member
    if eat an apple and banana I will go over....so I too just try to avoid extra sugar and think I will see the benefit of the fruit sugar. I make sure that my overage in the sugar is still in and under with my total carbs ( if that makes any kind of sense)...I have heard people say though that the sugar limit on here is really low.
  • kalle9
    kalle9 Posts: 10 Member
    I do think its a bit low, but not off by too much.

    The standard I've been led to believe is a good one is 10% of your calories divided by 4. MFP shorts my sugars by a few grams so If i go over a bit I'm not terribly worried.

    It also really depends on where those sugars are coming from. I tend to not worry about the 6 grams from the 2 cups of zucchini I had for dinner, but I eat fruit in moderation. Certain dairy is really high. Agave is a better sugar but still a sugar. If you blow past your number daily and find you have problems loosing weight, it maybe something to look into cutting.
  • akrnrunner
    akrnrunner Posts: 117 Member
    I'm always over too... Might need to take it out as well... I probably would've already if I had know that was an option! i try to eat as clean as possible so I'm out of ways to fix it really.
  • I rarely eat processed sugar (exception was a gluten free brownie i had to day) but was always going over on sugar. Why? Because i eat fruit.

    If i had a habit of eating processed sugar and no fruit then i might be concerned but because it's mainly fruit, i changed by goals to 50g.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    manage you macros (in this case carbs) unless you have a medical condition or other specific reason to manage your micros.
  • pineygirl
    pineygirl Posts: 322 Member
    I just stopped tracking it. It was so hard to not go over and I was missing fruit. I drink a cup or two of milk plus eat a lot of veggies. My salad alone has like 8g sugar in it from the peppers and tomatoes. Add in a glass of milk and one piece of fruit and I'm over. and I hardly eat any added sugar.

    I am at risk for diabetes and have what my father had before he developed it (reactive hypoglycemia) but it only acts up if I have something really sugary with no other food.
  • jennaworksout
    jennaworksout Posts: 1,739 Member
    sugar refined or natural is in so much...fruit, veggies, ....meat and eggs I swear are the only things with out sugar lol....however, I eat moslty veggies and rare fruit, no bread or dairy, so my sugar is somewhat low
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    I took it out of my food settings.. No point in looking at it for me.

    This right here. Ignore it completely or don't track it at all. It has no bearing on your weight loss
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    Sugar is a subset of carbs. Unless you have medical condition, there is no need to track it separately.
  • I go over my sugar every. single. day. by a few grams. I don't even eat a lot of foods with refined sugars, either. My oatmeal is very low in sugar, and so in my plain greek yogurt, but then I eat a freakin' banana and that is most of my daily sugar right there. (14 grams for a medium banana) I also eat veggies often, so there is sugar in those, too. I just don't worry about it much anymore since I know I am not eating a ton of junk food and the majority of my sugars come from fruits and veggies. It's still frustrating to see the red numbers, though. Haha
  • Shadowknight137
    Shadowknight137 Posts: 1,243 Member
    I track my sugar to make sure I go over it.

    Any day I'm not 75% or more over my sugar goal means I had a bad day. :'(
  • YoungDoc2B
    YoungDoc2B Posts: 1,593 Member
    There's no reason for you to even be worrying about sugar
  • AJ_Pete
    AJ_Pete Posts: 863 Member
    Totes cray.
  • UsaJewels05
    UsaJewels05 Posts: 229 Member
    I go over my Sugar and Protein almost every day. I would not stress over it if, most of it is natural sugars like fruits, etc. If it is way over you might want to change a few things!
  • janadecker
    janadecker Posts: 34 Member
    I'm always over on my sugars. I don't eat refined or processed sugars, besides the occasional cheat day. I don't even pay attention to that macro on MFP. I do, however, watch the amount of fruit I do eat, as that is what makes those numbers high. I don't stress over it though.
  • Ncage1974
    Ncage1974 Posts: 4 Member
    I can tell you i feel different that a lot of people. I'm with the low carb camp. I don't follow a strict low carb (especially since i'm running and it kills me) but i think carbs are the evil in the traditional american diet and not fats. I do try to keep my carbs as low as possible though. For example for breakfast i generally will have 2 eggs, sausage, and 1 tortilla. So its my opinion that you should try to keep them in check. To be honest i don't pay attention to fats/protien (just as long as my protein is enough and it always is). I just pay attention to primarily how many carbs + calories i eat.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I can tell you i feel different that a lot of people. I'm with the low carb camp. I don't follow a strict low carb (especially since i'm running and it kills me) but i think carbs are the evil in the traditional american diet and not fats. I do try to keep my carbs as low as possible though. For example for breakfast i generally will have 2 eggs, sausage, and 1 tortilla. So its my opinion that you should try to keep them in check. To be honest i don't pay attention to fats/protien (just as long as my protein is enough and it always is). I just pay attention to primarily how many carbs + calories i eat.

    No one macro is inherently evil. Just manage your macros and calories to a level that is in line with your fitness and nutrition goals.
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
    I don't count the naturally occurring sugar in fruit as bad.

    Plus sugar isn't one of the macros I track as I don't eat cakes, cookies or tons of processed food.

    OOOOOOOOOOhhhhhhhhhhhh! is that what macros are? the options that you can set MFP to keep track of for you? the sugar, iron, carbs, fat, sat fats and all that stuff? all this time I thought people were talking about some mysterious green veggie seaweed or spirulina type substance.
  • JessHealthKick
    JessHealthKick Posts: 800 Member
    if you are buying oatmeal in a microwaveable bag, it has added sugars. Get raw oats and add your own honey to it. ANYTHING processed has just too much sugar!
  • Docmahi
    Docmahi Posts: 1,603 Member
    Without taking into consideration the days I stress eat with lots of sweets, I am always going over my sugars! Even if I think I am doing really well. Are the expectations of MFP just crazy low? For instance, today I ate gluten free oatmeal with aguve and that was 22 grams, my goal is 29. Any fruit or pretty much anything else I eat is taking me over. Anyone else having this problem?

    probably just natural sugars in fruits - i mean if you aren't eating sweets, I wouldn't worry about it - I am a firm believer in not stressing in sugars from fruits
  • LeeDahlen38
    LeeDahlen38 Posts: 152 Member
    I don't log fruits. In my book Fruit Sugar "doesn't count." It's a natural sugar. I'm more concerned with refined sugar. I eat 1-2 pieces of fresh fruit daily.