Sugar: 30 grams/day?!?

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mandemonious
mandemonious Posts: 217 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm new at this posting thing---so, here goes~~>

I have been doing great at sticking to my calories goals and eating healthfully. I usually get enough fiber and protein. I usually get a little too much fat (cheese and nuts), but ALWAYS get waaaay to much sugar. Right now, at 10:35 am, I have already gone over by 2 grams. For breakfast I had 4 oz yogurt and 3 pistachio energy chunks.

I have enough of a hard time not indulging my sweet tooth with chocolate and ice cream and all of the sinful deliciousness that I ate to get myself 40 lbs overweight. How on earth to people completely cut the sugar? Seems impossible....

Replies

  • msbeavert
    msbeavert Posts: 75
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    I have the same problem. I'll eat oatmeal with fresh fruit for breakfast and I'm screwed for sugars the rest of the day. I've read alot on here though that if it's fruit/veg sugars not to pay attention and only count the white sugars. *shrugs*
  • baypathgradLyns
    baypathgradLyns Posts: 639 Member
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    I def hear ya on this one...I am always WAY over on sugar. I also read a few times not to count the sugar from fruit and veggies...
  • Amy619
    Amy619 Posts: 15
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    Hi check out skinnytaste.com theres some great sweet recipes. I made the pina colada cupcakes the other day and they were awesome. I substituted sugar with Truvia. I also recommend you try whole wheat waffles and agave syrup. It tastes good!!
  • Jade_Butterfly
    Jade_Butterfly Posts: 2,963 Member
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    Hi there. . .It really depends on what types of sugar you are consuming. . . When I was at my fittest I generally tried to not let it go above 20, but I was not including natural sugars, such as what you find in fruit. . . I was looking at processed or refined sugars. . .

    Some natural sugars you might try if you are unfamiliar with them are agave nectar, honey, truvia, stevia. . . just a few thoughts.
  • barbiex3
    barbiex3 Posts: 1,036 Member
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    i ignore sugar.& im goood.
  • beckystephens
    beckystephens Posts: 117 Member
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    The MFP sugar goals are impossible to meet if u eat fruit. DONT do that. Just make sure your sugars arent coming from refined sources.
  • krystonite
    krystonite Posts: 553 Member
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    The reason why sugars from fruits are okay is because fruit comes with the minerals and nutrients needed to digest it. Whereas with packet sugar, your body has to find the nutrients already in your body and use them up. Aside from fruits, I try not to eat anything with more than 5 grams of sugar in it. Supposedly your body doesn't recognize anything under 5 grams so there's no real harm.
  • mandemonious
    mandemonious Posts: 217 Member
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    Hi there. . .It really depends on what types of sugar you are consuming. . . When I was at my fittest I generally tried to not let it go above 20, but I was not including natural sugars, such as what you find in fruit. . . I was looking at processed or refined sugars. . .

    Some natural sugars you might try if you are unfamiliar with them are agave nectar, honey, truvia, stevia. . . just a few thoughts.

    I have stevia plants that I use fresh in my tea :)
  • rrrbecca11
    rrrbecca11 Posts: 477
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    Natural sugars (from fruits, honey, etc.) also contain vitamins and minerals and aid the body in metabolism, wherein refined sugar (white sugar, etc) has nothing to offer in the way of nutrition, nothing at all except empty calories. Try to get your sugar from natural sources but still monitor your intake.
  • mefeight1964
    mefeight1964 Posts: 88 Member
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    Glad to know I'm not alone in this! My sugar column is ALWAYS the one that's in the red, even if I didn't indulge my sweet tooth in a bad way. I've wondered too, how anyone could possibly keep their sugar intake below MFP's suggested amount. I was stunned yesterday to note that my large banana had more "sugar" (24 gm) than the bag of cotton candy I shared with my hubby last night (21 gm). Is it possible that MFP's sugar figures are incorrect? I was always under the impression that eating fresh fruit was a good thing! :noway:
  • dayzeerock
    dayzeerock Posts: 918 Member
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    Yougurt is your culprit. Yougurt is full of processed sugars, which are the bad ones. One small container of it has as much sugar in it as a Snicker's bar. Fruit is natural, unprocessed sugar, so that really isn't an issue. It's the processed stuff you should really try to limit.
  • milaxx
    milaxx Posts: 1,122 Member
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    It's not if you really examine how and what you eat. For example instead of regular yogurt like Danon, etc... I eat 0%greek yogurt . I buy the plain kind and add my own fresh fruit or sometimes nuts or whatever. Sometimes I add a few drops of real vanilla extract and add a packet of stevia for sweetness. Since the stevia is plant based and 0 calories I've saved sugar and gotten more protein. I haven;t tried those pistachio chunks but I would probably just eat a handful of walnuts or almonds instead.

    I also stay away from most fruit juices I don't make myself and even then I drink them in moderation.

    I also balance out my fruits throughout the day, keeping in mind some pack more of a sugar punch than others. I am a bit more generous on gym days knowing I will burn most of that sugar off and that the calories from working out will balance it out.

    Now some people will say if the sugar is all natural they just ignore it. I think going over on anything is not a good idea. I try to stay within the calorie limits for all my macros. Lastly keep in mind those limits are a guide and they are highlighted to bring it to your attention that you've reached the recommended amount. What you do with that info depends on the eating plan you've adopted and your own personal body. I have a history of swelling feet and ankles so I have manually adjusted my sodium levels to lower than the rec'd amount.
  • milaxx
    milaxx Posts: 1,122 Member
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    The MFP sugar goals are impossible to meet if u eat fruit. DONT do that. Just make sure your sugars arent coming from refined sources.
    No they aren't. They may be challenging, but I am almost always at or under my sugar and rarely eat refined sugars or processed food.
  • aLatz13
    aLatz13 Posts: 60 Member
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    I had the same problem when I started too. I'd eat a fruit on bottom yogurt and a cinnamon raisin bagel and be WAY over. Switched to plain bagels and "diet" yogurts and was fine. Watch out for Instant oatmeal too - Quaker is a terrible culprit of putting in 20g of sugars! When choosing cereals, yogurts, oatmeal, cookies, crackers, granola bars, try to stick to natural brands, they have less added sugars. and ignore the fruit sugars, those are good for you =)
  • milaxx
    milaxx Posts: 1,122 Member
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    Glad to know I'm not alone in this! My sugar column is ALWAYS the one that's in the red, even if I didn't indulge my sweet tooth in a bad way. I've wondered too, how anyone could possibly keep their sugar intake below MFP's suggested amount. I was stunned yesterday to note that my large banana had more "sugar" (24 gm) than the bag of cotton candy I shared with my hubby last night (21 gm). Is it possible that MFP's sugar figures are incorrect? I was always under the impression that eating fresh fruit was a good thing! :noway:

    Nope that's correct. Some fruits pack a bit of a sugar punch. Apples, oranges and bananas are very sugar heavy. Keep in mind they also deliver lots of good fiber with that sugar.
  • iamhopeful
    iamhopeful Posts: 25
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    Thanks for the great info in the posts here. :smile:
  • hpsnickers1
    hpsnickers1 Posts: 2,783 Member
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    BUT - if you are looking for weight loss you should try and limit your fruit intake. Yes, the difference between fruit sugar and refined sugar is not the sugar itself (both contain the exact same sugars - glucose/fructose) and your body will respond the same way to either one. The difference is the nutrients you get and the water content will fill you up.

    If you have an obesity problem then you are most likely dealing with some insulin resistance (or hyperinsulemia - chronically elevated insulin levels). And the sugar in fruit can screw with it.

    I wasn't overweight but I was developing insulin resistance (didn't need a doctor to tell me this. My dad in on dialysis - diabetes is killing him - and my brother was recently diagnosed - I know what was happening to me). You can be diabetic even at a lean weight although I wasn't lean. I was in the upper range of healthy. When I dropped my carbs and cut out ALL SUGAR I dropped 7lbs of body fat (and some more water weight) - and this was after I hit my weight loss goal so I did this while at a healthy, lean weight - 5'2" and 120lbs. My metabolism didn't slow down. I maintained my lean muscle mass. This was with less exercise.
    What I cut out: grains (these still become sugar in the body and they contain lectins and phytates which bind nutrients and keep your body from absorbing them), flours, sugars, milk (lactose is sugar), legumes (high-carb - turn to sugar in the body). I'm not 100% with it. I still have sugar addiction issues. But my body now uses fat from storage, converts it to glucose and and sends it to where it needs to go. I can eat and stay full for 5-6 hours (when I was eating oatmeal and fruit every morning I was weak and shaking within an hour and a half).

    For me N=1.
  • hpsnickers1
    hpsnickers1 Posts: 2,783 Member
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    Glad to know I'm not alone in this! My sugar column is ALWAYS the one that's in the red, even if I didn't indulge my sweet tooth in a bad way. I've wondered too, how anyone could possibly keep their sugar intake below MFP's suggested amount. I was stunned yesterday to note that my large banana had more "sugar" (24 gm) than the bag of cotton candy I shared with my hubby last night (21 gm). Is it possible that MFP's sugar figures are incorrect? I was always under the impression that eating fresh fruit was a good thing! :noway:

    Nope that's correct. Some fruits pack a bit of a sugar punch. Apples, oranges and bananas are very sugar heavy. Keep in mind they also deliver lots of good fiber with that sugar.

    berries are low-sugar. And nature packs a whole lot of nutrients into those tiny little things.
  • mandemonious
    mandemonious Posts: 217 Member
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    Thanks, everyone :wink:

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