Sugar... I feel like such a mug!!!

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lindseydodd408
lindseydodd408 Posts: 11 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So been doing the calorie counting thing again since this March. Been on and off the wagon a couple of times but generally doing ok. More recently however weight loss has slowed, so I hit the internet for some inspiration. Stumbled across the "I quit sugar" stuff and now I feel like such an idiot.

How do food companies get away with putting so much sugar into our food?!?!? and how on earth did I not realise?!?!?!?!

It's like I was so busy looking at the calories I didn't see anything else beyond that or consider that not all calories are equal.

So now I've been reading more about how sugar is used in our bodies and I feel certain that this is why I became so overweight. Here I was preparing food thinking it was healthy, but because I work I use a few short cuts and where there is a short cut some idiot has added a load of sugar... I'm so angry at myself for being so stupid!!!

Now I don't know what to do... I went shopping yesterday and ended up buying food that resembles being on Atkins... but surely replacing sugar with fat isn't going to be any better for me... AAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!

Can we all go and protest at the supermarkets until they stop messing with our food?!?!?! Anyway anyway anyway, thanks for letting me rant. x

Replies

  • jr235
    jr235 Posts: 201 Member
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    I really noticed this with my daughter when she started eating. Because she wasn't having any added sugar her taste buds were completely different to mine. She would happily sit and munch on a bowl of totally plain yogurt while I was throwing sugar and salt all over the place!

    I don't trust much prepackaged food. It has waaaay too much sugar and salt. Instead I try to cook most of my meals from scratch. When I manage to do the appropriate prep on the weekends its so easy. When I leave it until the last minute its horrible and I go back to the box or take away.

    I even measured out all the salt and sugar I was using once. Even adding what feels like quite a bit of salt to my food is no where near the amount of salt in a single prepackaged food.

    There are a lot of resources on the web for prepping freezer meals for the week. What works best for me is instead of prepping the entire meal I prep components of lots of meals I enjoy, and then its easy to just throw them together. Many of them can go in the crockpot in the morning. Just don't put frozen meat in the crockpot! Let it defrost first!

    All in all I do think its calories in vs calories out, but I find myself being satisfied with much less when I do home cooked food, and I really think that's a result of becoming used to less sugar and salt.
  • __Jamie__
    __Jamie__ Posts: 109 Member
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    Isn't it a pain in the *kitten*! One of the first things I picked up was that too much energy (calories) results in your body storing excess supplies as fat. Refined carbs from processed foods like crisps are the worst form. Sugar is possibly the worst carb of all! Whether it's coming from a processed ready meal that's been packed full of preservatives & crap, or a banana. The sugar found in fruit falls into the "complex carb" category, but it's sugar nevertheless, so I try to avoid bananas seeing as they're the highest sugar containing fruit.

    It took me a little while to realise that not all carbs are equal... Choosing a ready made, small, low calorie pasta meal from somwhere like Tesco that's made up of pure sugar over a mountain of roast beef with with twice the calories would be silly seeing as the beef is almost all protein lol that's a stupid example but hey!

    It's not that hard to eat less sugar though. I work & all that but I manage it ok.. You may have to change what sort of meals you have but once you've done that it's easy :)
  • lindseydodd408
    lindseydodd408 Posts: 11 Member
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    Thanks guys, just needed to get that off my chest! Just when you think you're a reasonably intelligent person, you read something that makes you realise how stupid you are! Not a nice feeling!

    I do cook at the weekends and freeze, but I was cheating with ready made (full of sugar) sauces and spices. I will find some recipes for the jars and packets I was opening ;-) If anyone has any suggestions for how to make low calorie bolognaise sauce, tikka masala, chilli con carne and fajitas (all minus the sugar) I'd be most appreciative.

    I so want to buy a crockpot, but have to wait until I move house, current kitchen is tiny.
  • athenasurrenders
    athenasurrenders Posts: 278 Member
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    It is frustrating, but you are not stupid. A stupid person doesn't do research and change their approach. You were just uninformed.

    My trick for things like chilli and bolognaise - at the end of the week I cook and blend up all the bits of leftover veg in the fridge and then add tomato passata or tinned tomatoes until I'm left with a thick reddish sauce. I freeze it in small amounts, then when I get it out I add a handful of spices as it re-warms and I have a super-healthy really tasty base. A little curry paste and some low-fat coconut milk and it's tikka masala. Some spices for a chilli. Some basil, oregano and black pepper and it's a pasta sauce. The veg add a lot of bulk for very few calories (if you like you can just blend half and leave some chunky veg in, but my family are fussy eaters so they have it smooth). Since the sauce is pretty thick I can get away with adding less meat if it's something relatively high-cal like ground beef or lamb.

    Ours usually contains mushrooms, spinach, carrot, squash, onion, and tomato but really I throw anything in and I've never had a bad batch.
  • bumblebums
    bumblebums Posts: 2,181 Member
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    Sugar is fine in moderation if you do not have diabetes or insulin resistance. Just make sure that you are getting sufficient levels of other nutrients, and you can have sweets occasionally. If you pay attention to getting enough fiber and protein while keeping carbs to a certain limit, your diet usually changes qualitatively, too. Have a look at this:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets
  • lindseydodd408
    lindseydodd408 Posts: 11 Member
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    Thanks for the replies, that post about macro targets has blown my mind!!! I've now adjusted my targets based on TDEE and giving low carb a go until I'm closer to goal, then I'll slowly re-introduce whole grain carbs. It's nice to have a bit more to eat!

    My brain is trying to tell me that I need a cheeky packet of low cal crisps or small chocolate, but it can get stuffed!!! I didn't get this big by depriving myself, my body has had more than enough sugar for one lifetime ;-)
  • aliceclutz90
    aliceclutz90 Posts: 151 Member
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    You're not stupid. Special K and the like market their foods as healthy and trap innocent people with good intentions. If you don't know what you're looking for, which most people don't, then you'll fall into their trap. I hate the companies that con the public like that!

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