There was sugar sludge running through my veins. I exercise and I eat right, so what’s the harm in some sugary snacks when I feel like it? I deserve to eat sweets every day because I’m not overweight, right?
That was my mindset.
But sugar was affecting me in ways I didn’t realized. Here’s the scoop on what happened when I went 7 Days without adding refined sugars to my meals. I also swore off any packaged foods (except for Chobani Greek yogurt) that contained more than 5 grams of sugar. To get an idea of what 5 grams is like, an Arnold whole wheat burger bun has 4 grams (about a teaspoon of sugar) and serving of Jiffy Cornbread has 7 grams.
CRAVINGS
My body has been trained (obviously by me) to beg for sugar every day after lunch. Before this experiment I always gave it what it wanted while sensibly staying within 100 calories of greedy pleasure. The first two days were really difficult. The internal struggle going on with my temptation was utterly ridiculous. I felt like a hungry hyena shrieking into the wind for my next sugar fix. I was uncomfortable and on edge to say the least, but I stood my ground. God forbid how a real crack addict feels.
On Day 3 the ugly cravings let up. I used sweet fruits like watermelon, strawberries and pineapple to manage my cravings. After a few days I began craving fruit instead of chocolate and cake. SCORE!
WITHDRAWAL SYMPTOMS
Ugh. There were headaches, dizziness, bitchiness, whining beginning on Day 2. It felt exactly like coffee withdrawal, but I know it wasn’t about the coffee because I continued to drink that on my regular schedule. With zero sugar in it. Stevia does not work in my coffee – powered or liquid drops. I gave up and drank it black. Withdrawal symptoms were gone by Day 3. KABOOM!
MY PHYSIQUE
By removing sugar from my daily coffee and oats, look at how many calories I saved:
- Coffee: up to 7 teaspoons @ 15/calories each = 105 per day (735 per week)
- Oats: 5 teaspoons @ 15/cal. each = 75 calories per day (525 per week)
So far I’ve received 3 unsolicited compliments related to the slimming of my thighs, stomach, and the definition in my muscles. I noticed that my cheek bones are more pronounced like when I was younger, and my face seems brighter (which may be due to increased fruits). Yes, all of this happened in a measly 7 days.
SLEEP, ENERGY and HUNGER
I usually get 5 hours of sleep every night. This is bad. I need to get to bed earlier regardless, but with no sugar I slept sounder and felt more refreshed in the morning. My energy level has been tremendous. I ran 5-miles for the first time last week. My pace was faster than ever and I wasn’t tired at the end. I should have kept running.
In general, I am less hungry and think about food less often (which may ruin greedy my reputation). This means I’m eating less. I don’t get the 3pm Greedies anymore. This chick over here mentioned a book that made a correlation between excess sugar intake and increased hunger. I’m proof there is some merit to that. Less sugar = less hungry for me.
SELF CONTROL
The practice of resisting sugary crap all week has built me up in the self control department. This in turn has helped to me stay in better control of my eating in general, especially pre-dinner snacking. My mindless snacking before dinner has been excessive at times. It’s enough to ruin all my good fitness efforts for the day. But now, where I once felt I would go out of my mind if I did not snack before dinner, I simply wait.
I can wait now!
I have better self control and discipline, and I’m saving calories because of it.
What’s Next? LIFE AFTER THE EXPERIMENT
As of the writing of this post it’s been two days since the Experiment ended. I still have not had any sugar.
I definitely don’t crave it.
I don’t want it right now.
My eyes have been opened to what sugar does to my body. There’s no way I can go backwards now and sacrifice the increased energy and better sleep, not to mention the calorie savings.
Yes, I’ll still love extra large slices of pie, but I gotta admit it, I am changed forever.
So, it’s February of 2011. I’m wondering, how are you doing now? Still on the no sugar plan? I did the no sugar thing for one month last year. I didn’t last, sadly =\ But have you stayed on it? What kind of results did you get? I’m excited to try it again 😀
Hey, Frenzy! I am still going strong from last year’s experiment. I never went back to the way I used to eat. I know do zero sweeteners in my coffee (gah! that took awhile get used to) and I typically only indulge in a sweet treat on the weekends. Not during the week. It’s a lifestyle for me now. It’s easy. It’s a habit. The experiment laid that foundation for all of this. I really thought I’d go back to sweets after the 7 days, but after the results I had, no way! The Sugar Beast ebook is being written now. It’s a lot more work than I thought, but it’s almost finished. Thanks for checking in with me! 😉
I have tried this, no its not that easy for me i love kool aid and lemonade.
Wow that’s super impressive good for you for taking control of your health. If you have enough self control to improve your health. You can do anything you set your mind to.
I have also just reached my 7 day goal of being (processed) sugar free. I suffer from digestive issues and that was my motivation. That and the fact that I was buying Smarties and Hershey’s kisses in copious amounts. I was 14 days in on a sugar binge when my stomach pains and foggy episodes got the best of me. I was also having trouble falling asleep before midnight.
Now, 8 days later, after driving past the grocery store and resisting the chocolates in my mason jar; I am clear headed; falling asleep by 9:30; up by 7 and my stomach pains have all but disappeared! In other words, I feel great. I have also lost a few pounds unintentionally.
I recommend this to anyone suffering from feelings of fatigue, irritability and/ or frequent digestive upsets.
I am going to continue this to see how long I can go.
Thanks for sharing your story! 🙂
Thank you for sharing 🙂
I don’t even understand how I ended up here, but I
believed this submit was great. I don’t realize who you’re
but certainly you are going to a well-known blogger
for those who aren’t already. Cheers!
bricolage recently posted..bricolage