Always over in the Sugar department...

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syouell1
syouell1 Posts: 5
in Food and Nutrition
Hey All

I am having some troubles balancing and thought I would throw it out there to see if anyone is experiencing the same. I feel like no matter what I am eating throughout the day, I always seem to be over in my sugar category. Even when I have had what I see to be a great day in every other category, my sugars are always over. Soemtimes yes processed sugars, but even days where fruit or yogurt etc is the culprit im way over...

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  • SJLS2013
    SJLS2013 Posts: 149 Member
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    MFP doesn't distinguish between natural and processed sugars. Unless you're eating all processed sugars, which you're not then don't worry about it. Most people I've seen have removed the sugar counter from their diary.
  • dinaconesetraya
    dinaconesetraya Posts: 6 Member
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    I've run into the same problem, but I need to watch sugar, due to borderline diabetes. I have pretty much taken out bananas and yogurt, due to their high sugar, which I know is probably not good. I can tell by taking those out I am always low in other vitamin areas. I haven't found a solution, either.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
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    Sugar is just a carb. As long as you're eating enough fats and protein, your carbs/sugar aren't particularly important unless you have a medical issue that requires carbs/sugar to be monitored.

    However, it should be noted that fructose and sucrose can only be stored as liver glycogen and not muscle glycogen. The liver can hold 100-120g glycogen so anything more than that will be converted to triglycerides. As long as you still have a calorie deficit this will even out. Just try to make most of your carbs glucose and not sucrose or fructose. Fructose in particular has been shown to decrease exercise performance, increased likelihood of gastrointestinal distress, and increase perception of exertion.

    Here are some studies:
    http://www.setantacollege.com/wp-content/uploads/Journal_db/the effects of glucose....pdf

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3592616


    As long as you're under your calorie goal, you'll lose weight. Some people find that sugar (even from fruit) causes them to have more sugar/carb cravings so keep that in mind.

    For information on setting your macro target, read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/911011-calculating-calorie-macronutrient-needs?page=1#posts-13821336
  • syouell1
    syouell1 Posts: 5
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    thanks so much for the info everyone, i apprecaite it :)
  • lpina2mi
    lpina2mi Posts: 425 Member
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    Sugar was a bug-a-boo for me to bring down to my low target. I have a a chronic inflammatory disease that can be aggravated by sugar consumption, so aiming for 30g a day was halving what I was consuming in healthy sugars (lactose in milk, fruit, granola, small amounts of wholefood sweetners, et cetera). It took about 6 months--but without tracking it on MFP I would have never known.

    So now that your are seeing it--that was your step #2. Step #1 was deciding to monitor it. Step #3 will be identifying ways to reduce your daily sugar in ways that can become your happy forever diet.

    Can you halved your added sweetners in your beverages and other? Can you eliminate hidden sugars in some brands of: peasnut butter (no-stir means added sugar), salsa, bbq sauce, mayonaisse, pickles, granola, bread, yogurt (this is a big one--go plain add vanilla extract) etc,? Can you substitue sugar snacks with ones without? Can you pace your sugar, so that the same day you have a smoothie is not the same day you eat pancakes or have a gelato?

    This slow steady and mostly painless way has prodded me to further reduce my sugar intake slightly. It is blueberry season (a favorite fruit) so I am happily eating more while the season lasts, but I am also not eating bananas at the same time.

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