bye bye sugar and flour

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  • Unknown
    edited May 2015
    This content has been removed.
  • miriamtob
    miriamtob Posts: 436 Member
    boopsiegrl wrote: »
    I have decided to give up flour and sugar foods I know that also will mean I am giving up processed food since it will be one of the culprits...Anyone out there done this and what has your weight loss success been?

    I did six months ago, gave up all grains and sugar ( even fruit has been drastically reduced). The result was better energy, clearer skin, brain fog lifted, and weight loss was icing on the cake. Let me tell you about the weight loss; it really shocked me. I lost 18 lbs in the first three weeks! It has slowed down tremendously since then, but still losing. I'm well below my pre pregnancy weight and headed towards to the weight I was at 22. Having more energy means more motivation to exercise. The biggest challenge for me is sugar begets more sugar, so when I have it I want it so much more. I don't miss my old WOE one bit; it was probably 60% carbs and I felt terrible after eating. Watch out, a lot of gluten-free packaged foods can be heavily processed with some unhealthy ingredients. With weight loss, what it comes down to is eating less calories, but for optimal health you'll want to strive for optimal nutrition and develop good body awareness so that you know which foods agree with you and which ones don't.
  • boopsiegrl
    boopsiegrl Posts: 105 Member
    Thanks for those with kind words
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,254 Member
    Hmm, an interesting concept giving up forever the things we enjoy too much.

    I haven't quite gone that way, because I was concerned that someday I might break down and go back to eating all the things I've removed from my diet. You know, crave them for such a long time that you then break down and binge on them!

    So what I've done instead, is just try and stay within my caloric target. With ZERO restrictions as to HOW I achieve that--other than, you know, achieving it!

    But, in trying to achieve that, the best I can, I've discovered that I am quite often choosing foods that are more filling and with less calories as opposed to more palatable and with more calories.

    I mean I will even eat rotisserie chicken breasts and veggies as opposed to a baguette wrapped Snickers bar, because, you know, chicken really satisfies you :smile:

    But, I certainly indulge on the more palatable stuff when I decide to try and fit it in my caloric budget. Or, probably more often than not, make do with the good enough substitutes that are more easy to fit in my budget.

    I mean I do eat hamburgers, as opposed to breaded and deep fried chicken breasts, because they actually have less fat and calories! And the Equate peanut like tasting protein bar I had today was 3.85Cal per gram as compared to the 5.86Cal per gram of a Snickers bar! Not quite the same rush; but, I can eat a greater quantity and it fills me up longer. A caloric bargain for me my friend! And about 10 minutes after eating the protein bar, I actually no longer even crave a Snickers bar...

    Let me test that.

    Snickers, Snickers, Snickers

    Nah. I'm OK.
    Definitely not getting up and walking to the store to buy one, and I didn't even have to ban it from my life.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
    Nice one pav did you read the whole thread?
  • nru1286
    nru1286 Posts: 1 Member
    So I've done this. I have binge eating disorder, and I find that my trigger foods all have a common link: grains and refined sugars. This doesn't mean that I deprive myself, though. Don't get me wrong, I have changed a lot of what I eat, and make far different choices than I did a few years ago. But for the things I really love, the things I had trouble "letting go" of, I found substitutes that made it work for me. I still bake a few things, but use coconut or almond flour instead of wheat flour, and honey or dates instead of sugar. Honey and fruit are my sweeteners of choice. I made this choice originally not just for weight loss, but because of awful psoriasis that I've experienced; I found especially when I cut out grains/flour (not rice or quinoa as much, but anything with wheat), I would have flare ups within a day of really bad spots. In the spells when I am really trying to avoid wheat grains and sugar, I find that the weight sort of melts off automatically, even if I am not exercising a lot or counting calories. Since 2012 I've lost 100 pounds, changing things up a bit here and there, but I owe much of that success to eliminating wheat/sugar from my diet. As I said, though, that doesn't mean I deprive myself; but it does mean that there may be a bit more work involved in food preparation.

    Whatever you choose to do, I hope it helps resolve or improve some lingering health issues, and that you feel better.
  • who4fan
    who4fan Posts: 388 Member
    It sounds like you need to get your blood sugar under control, pronto, not waiting until you can get your diet together. Saying that you are giving up all sugar and flour forever is really hard to sustain. There are low carbers out there that will tell you it can be done, but for most people it is next to impossible. I have tried it, and I really love meat, and I still can't stay on for more than a month or two. Good luck to you!
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    boopsiegrl wrote: »
    Again I am doing it for Health reason, I am a brittle diabetic and it soars high with the slightest carb. I take massive and I mean massive amounts of insulin several times a day and it can still go up quickly. So to live longer and be healthy I think I need to try to make this a way of life, if I want a life. Really all the discouragement and I needed someone to say it can and has been done...Thanks anyway

    You should have mentioned it in your first post. There are people who need to give up carbs, but most don't. If this is what your doctor has told you do do, good luck to you.

  • FaylinaMeir
    FaylinaMeir Posts: 661 Member
    good luck :) look into the paleo diet and joining the paleo community here on mfp, they're helpful people! I a lot of people get touchy when you talk about grains (or carbs) and I used to be one of them but I'm going on a week now of a high fat grain free diet and I feel amazing.

    People making really nasty comments should find something better to do with their time.
  • booksandchocolate12
    booksandchocolate12 Posts: 1,741 Member
    edited May 2015
    Who made nasty comments?

    Maybe the comments weren't to the OP's liking because she didn't disclose her medical condition from the beginning.
  • KimIngramVeillette
    KimIngramVeillette Posts: 1 Member
    Like yourself, I'm on a very carb restricted diet after being recently diagnosed with diabetes. I don't eat any grain, potatoes, rice and try to strictly avoid starchy veggies like peas and corn. No, that's not a recommended diet for a person with a healthy metabolism, but it is right for folks like us. My blood sugar is lowering and as an added bonus my IBS symptoms have disappeared.

    I know the advice being given here is that you'll binge due to cravings, but I've found it getting easier to resist the things that I know will make my sugar spike and my intestines hurt. I admit it's only been a few months, and sure, once in a while I have gotten an intense craving for a potato. And yes, I do miss them. But it hasn't been impossible to resist. I just remind myself why I can't have them, and have some other treat I can safely eat instead.

    We'll probably slip and fall off the carb wagon. Like any diet, any of us can fall prey to fail days. If we mess up, it's not the end of the world. Just so long as we make sure the next day to get back on track.

    Good luck!
  • brendak76
    brendak76 Posts: 241 Member
    If giving up flour and sugar doesn't work for you talk to your certified diabetes educator and endocrinoligist about how to manage your insulin more effectively. My son, mother, and I are all type 1 diabetics and we have all worked with our doctors to match insulin to what we eat. There are lots of different approaches to manage blood sugars apart from eliminating flour and sugar. As I'm sure you know it's not about the flour and sugar, it's about any kind of carbs. White rice and potatoes will spike my blood sugar more than a sandwich. However I've learned to prebolus for food to match the timing of the insulin to the spike and also weight train which does more than anything else to keep my numbers down. Pumping had also helped. Just wanted to let you know there are more options out there.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,254 Member
    edited May 2015
    999tigger wrote: »
    Nice one pav did you read the whole thread?

    No, I read the OP's post which did not mention they were diabetic. Sort of an important issue to bring up.

    Let's compare to a 20 year old who posts saying that they are giving up high intensity exercise for life. Might be important to mention they are on beta blockers subsequent to a couple of heart attacks!

    And even if the person is a diabetic, they should apply reading comprehension to what I posted and realize that "restricting and eating in moderation, moderation value=to whatever it has to be to meet health goals be those goals weight loss or total number of carbs for someone with diabetes" does NOT equal "I am never going to eat this 'whatever' again, ever"; nor does it equal "I am a type 2 diabetic and my doctor says I spike too often" which was said to me by a person at my table who ordered an omelette with hash-browns and toast, PLUS an order of french toast at Denny's a few weeks back.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited May 2015
    boopsiegrl wrote: »
    I have decided to give up flour and sugar foods I know that also will mean I am giving up processed food since it will be one of the culprits...Anyone out there done this and what has your weight loss success been?

    I imagine others have pointed this out, but loads of processed foods don't have sugar or flour, so why would it mean you've given them up. (The misuse of "processed" in these discussions drives me crazy.)

    Also, I'm assuming you mean added sugar; perhaps not.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Assuming you mean added sugar, I did that for a while (grains and added sugar) since I did a paleo-ish diet. I didn't think it was that difficult, although I didn't have a medical reason for doing it (and don't have self-control issues with grains at all and only with some sweets in certain contexts). Because I had no reason for doing it I stopped, but I would have found it doable if I'd needed to--celiacs, for example, cut out wheat. Like someone else said check out the low carb group.

    I'm a little confused about the reason for focusing on sugar and flour and not other carbs that often spike insulin, though. If you have specific reactions to these that's a good reason, but I hope you are working with a registered dietician and if not I'd suggest you ask for a referral from your doctor. Lots of the diabetics here don't cut stuff out completely and learn to eat in a way that works with their needs, so you'd want help managing your condition and not just to decide on your own that you can't not over consume things unless you cut them out.
  • Looncove_Farm
    Looncove_Farm Posts: 115 Member
    edited May 2015
    boopsiegrl wrote: »
    I have decided to give up flour and sugar foods I know that also will mean I am giving up processed food since it will be one of the culprits...Anyone out there done this and what has your weight loss success been?

    This is the original post, I was also thinking you were just trying to go flour and sugar free for weight loss not health reasons.

    Best of luck, Hopefully this will decrease the amount of unsulin you use.

  • Caletara
    Caletara Posts: 27 Member
    Wow, this thread got nasty real fast. Way to be supportive guys. I've given up flour for health reasons as well. Sugar is a little harder, but I'm working on it. It can be done. When I first gave up gluten i did notice a weight loss--which was something I had tried and struggled with previously. I also noticed that gluten does provoke an exaggerated blood sugar response in me, as well as making it very hard for me to stop eating. I get full a lot easier now.

    Give it a shot. It might help, it might not. The bottom line is you need to do what works for you.
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
    edited May 2015
    How the fark are we s'posed to make Brownies without Sugar and without Flour?

    That just doesn't work, now does it?
  • PudgyToPrincess
    PudgyToPrincess Posts: 24 Member
    edited May 2015
    I've lost 40 pounds staying away from flour and sugar. I followed the low carb, high fat diet and it was wonderful. Never hungry and sometimes even had to force myself to eat a little more during the day to hit 1,000 calories (it's not like that for everyone though, this was just what happened to me). Lots of energy, better overall mood, better focus during school. Ignore the people who question you, they have low will power if they can't NOT eat those things!

    OP, you do you. If you want to do that kind of diet, you go ahead and do it regardless of what anyone thinks. I and many other people had a lot of success with it. If it works for you, wonderful! If it doesn't, oh well. Make sure to read up on it and you make an educated decision for yourself. You'll always find people who don't agree with your choices.
  • minties82
    minties82 Posts: 907 Member
    psych101 wrote: »
    Al that deprivation of what you want does, is make you want these things even more

    No. I stopped eating all that stuff and have stopped having binge episodes. 60lbs down in 4 months.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
    How the fark are we s'posed to make Brownies without Sugar and without Flour?

    That just doesn't work, now does it?

    http://www.diabeticconnect.com/diabetic-recipes/general/1976-flourless-brownies-sugar-free-low-carb

    This is just one of several that I found by doing a search for "sugar free flourless brownies".

  • boopsiegrl
    boopsiegrl Posts: 105 Member
    Again thanks for all the support and for all those that didn't ok ! I didn't give all my medical history because I didn't know I would have all the attackers needing to know this. Just wanted to get feed back from those that did go with this eating plan. I have a diabetic specialist and dietician. So they seem to feel this will be a big start on a big win in my health. I hope we all have big success in this horrible battle we fight
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
    Annie_01 wrote: »
    How the fark are we s'posed to make Brownies without Sugar and without Flour?

    That just doesn't work, now does it?

    http://www.diabeticconnect.com/diabetic-recipes/general/1976-flourless-brownies-sugar-free-low-carb

    This is just one of several that I found by doing a search for "sugar free flourless brownies".

    Yer bonkers if you call that a "brownie".

    It's *something* ... but it ain't a brownie.

  • Ameengyrl
    Ameengyrl Posts: 127 Member
    In her second post she said she has medical problems. MFP members have a MASSIVE problem with quick snappy snarky responses.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
    Ameengyrl wrote: »
    In her second post she said she has medical problems. MFP members have a MASSIVE problem with quick snappy snarky responses.

    In most cases the response that she got was not appropriate for the question that she asked.

    She wanted to know how others had been successful at cutting sugar and flour...not opinions on whether she should or not.





  • Chewitz
    Chewitz Posts: 217 Member
    Only reason I've cut down on sugar is because of having fatty liver disease but for weight loss having sugar really doesn't matter....

    What really matters for weight loss is CICO
  • Chewitz
    Chewitz Posts: 217 Member
    Ah your diabetic

    Sorry you have a medical condition too

    Good luck
  • Crisseyda
    Crisseyda Posts: 532 Member
    You're making a great decision for your health :) I try to do the same thing. It is a lifestyle.

    No, I don't have a medical condition... but I don't want one either! There's a reason diabetes is endemic--the standard American diet!

    Since you said you take massive insulin, I assume you already count your carbs to match your mealtime insulin. I would count them, for sure, and keep them low. Maybe you could consider nutritional ketosis and regular exercise to fight the insulin resistance?
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  • Gianfranco_R
    Gianfranco_R Posts: 1,297 Member
    boopsiegrl wrote: »
    I have decided to give up flour and sugar foods I know that also will mean I am giving up processed food since it will be one of the culprits...Anyone out there done this and what has your weight loss success been?

    here is a recent study about the effect of a paleo diet for diabetes T2:
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25828624

    Anyway, since you have a medical condition, you should work with a practitioner (doctor and/or dietitian)
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