A sugar free month - anyone else fancy giving it a go?

[HearMyRoar]

I Have been thinking about giving up sugar for a long time now but haven't really felt ready. I have decided that now is the time and so am aiming for a sugar free month from the 6 january.

I figured starting with a month seemed less scary then giving it up forever and reasonably achievable... I hope :o

Still working out my rules but currently they are:

No sugar
No sugar substitutes
No processed food with any sort of sugar or sugar substitute in

So pretty simple so far. I am not giving up the carbs so still eating rice, bread, etc (I am nowhere near ready for boot camp). Also planning on still eating lots of fruit though probably not juice. All this is open to negotiations and suggestions.

Anyone fancy joining me? Go on....please... Anyone...

[Womnaleplus]

Heh, it's the name of a brand of Japanese hand cream - aka what I had in front of me when nc'ing most recently. Wasn't feeling hugely imaginative at the time!

Full fat all the way with yogurt btw, all the flavour and vitamins in the fat!

[BerylsDailyKumquat]

I don't intend to give up all carbs - just food with added sugar, and also fruit juice. I'm limiting whole fruit, but I don't usually eat masses of it anyway.

Day one off the Pepsi Max has been fine so far...

[bryte]

Can I join too? I will start from tomorrow. I feel I have become more and more addicted to sweet treats over the past few years. I'm always treating myself and can't leave a shop without buying some sweets/chocolate, often more than one item.

I'm a healthy eater in most other ways. No processed food, homemade bread, no fizzy drinks, homemade cakes and biscuits only. But it is the sweets. I even feel physically awful after binging on sweets. I'd like to break the habit.

[ShimmeringInTheSun]

Well, got to work this morning and there were several big boxes of Christmas chocs being passed around........ and I didn't have one!

I've cut out anything with added sugar, so for me that's biscuits, cakes, choccy, etc, and I honestly don't miss it. I'm still eating fruit, though just 2-3 pieces a day....oh, and lots of veg.

Am looking forward to my lamb an apple hotpot that's simmering nicely at the moment!

[Nettee]

Any Chris Evans breakfast show fans? He has quit sugar for 2014 and had Sarah Wilson on on Monday morning 1 hr 46 min into his show if you want to listen on I player.

[mulberrybag]

Day 2 evening slump, feeling the sweet cravings kicking in. .....grrrrrrr, i will not give in! Could we have the recipe for sugar free banana cake choceyes ?

[ToddleWaddle]

Day 2 has left me wanting a bar of chocolate and a glass of wine.
I will not cave in. DH mostly on board except for sugar in his coffee!

[HearMyRoar]

Hello everyone! Terribly exciting to see so many on the thread.

Also think its great that people are all doing what works for them. I started this because all the other threads that included giving up sugar just seemed too scary, either because they went for all carbs or because it was giving it up for ever. I just wanted something that I thought I could actually achieve even if it wasn't the ultimate goal. So basically this thread is for choosing whatever you think you can do for a month. Whether that is giving up all sugars or just stopping the obvious ones. After the month you can then congratulate yourself on being a winner and either continue or move up a level. Whatever you choose we shall all succeed! Hurrah! :o

I am now on day 4 of no sugar or alternative sweeteners. I am eating loads of fruit though including really brown banana in some sugar free cake/biscuit sort of things. I was awfully proud of myself today as I say in a 2 hour meeting with chocolate biscuits being passed about and manfully declined to have one... Twice! I think I deserve some sort of gold star for that awesome level of restraint. :o

[BerylsDailyKumquat]

Ooh thanks nettee I heard him mention that this morning on his show, I'm listening to the interview now. It would be nice to think I could last the year...although I'm still having cravings today!

[gingangoolie1]

inspired by everyone, and great self-restraint hearmyroar. Be proud, and take strength from it. I've had a sugar-free day - yippee - with the exception of my glass of red wine... boo. Made a vat of veggie soup, vegetable juice for breckie - am good for 90% of the day.

Thx for heads-up on Chris Evans - will listen tmw!

[BerylsDailyKumquat]

I'm struggling again today - this is day 8 for me, I thought it would be getting easier by now!

[Womnaleplus]

Hey Beryl, I hear you! I've been in to work today and had to say no to lots of tempting choc. You think you're not bothered and then bam! The craving hits you from nowhere.

Mixed day here - had a pack of salt and vinegar crisps earlier only to find out halfway through that they contained added sugar! Wtf. Ate a few more but then thought it was a damn shame to break my journey for something frankly not particularly appetising at all.

Been positively saintly with my snack just now - black olives, feta and cucumber with fizzy water.

[Womnaleplus]

Hey Beryl, I hear you! I've been in to work today and had to say no to lots of tempting choc. You think you're not bothered and then bam! The craving hits you from nowhere.

Mixed day here - had a pack of salt and vinegar crisps earlier only to find out halfway through that they contained added sugar! Wtf. Ate a few more but then thought it was a damn shame to break my journey for something frankly not particularly appetising at all.

Been positively saintly with my snack just now - black olives, feta and cucumber with fizzy water.

[Womnaleplus]

Oops

[BerylsDailyKumquat]

I'm dangerously close to eating a bakewell tart, but I'll make some tea and see how I feel after that. I think it's partly down to me doing two high energy workouts over the past 2 days, think my body wants me to refuel...

That's annoying about the crisps Womnaleplus, just shows that you have to check the label on everything!

I saw an interesting YouTube clip of the author of the Sweet Poison books (is it David Gillespie?) being interviewed for a radio show yesterday.

[invicta]

Well done everyone on your good work. So far, so good for me. The weekend will be tough for me as that's when I eat most cakes and alcohol.

[Nettee]

It seems we are right on trend this year - good to have company!

www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10559671/Sugar-is-as-dangerous-as-alcohol-and-tobacco-warn-health-experts.html

The sweet poison facebook page has loads of links and is very actively updated - I have liked it and find it is helping keep up the motivation.

Hope you are all doing ok - I have had a good couple of days eating quite protein rich breakfasts and lunches which is helping I think.

[Womnaleplus]

Thanks for that link Nettee, really interesting. I really hope this is not just a passing interest of the media, but signs of a real paradigm shift. Years of rising obesity, diabetes etc etc must surely be enough for us to collectively realise that sugar is definitely bad for us!

[sixlive]

So I gave my sugar and alcohol on the 1st January. I have not lost any weight. I'm so disappointed. How can not drinking a glass or two of wine plus not eating a biscuit/cake/chocolate once or twice a day not lead to any weight loss. I'm mystified, maybe this is what happens when you are over 40. I'm a bit disillusioned to be honest. I'm only eating two pieces of fruit a day. I didn't drink fruit juice or much processed foods beforehand.

Same happened when I did low carb for 2 weeks I lost 2lbs which I didn't think was worth the pain involved! The only other diet I did was wieghtwatchers and I lost a stone in a month (only put half of it back on two years later), tried to do it again but got bored quickly with measuring points but I think I had better get back to it.

I've got at least half a stone, ideally a stone of weight to lose. I will give it another week, I'm only eating wholemeal stuff this week and see if that makes a difference. Otherwise its back to WW for me.

[Nettee]

It is so hard not to get caught up with what the scales say and not to get disheartened. In the end you need to do what works for you.

I think the idea behind giving up sugar is that after 2 - 4 weeks your appetite should be better regulated so you naturally would be eating less of everything. Also it is supposed to have health benefits relating to diabetes, fatty liver disease, heart problems etc.

I am also trying to eat modest portions at meal times especially of the carbs and not go mad snacking on bagels, nuts and crisps - (I am sure you are not snacking like mad but just to share where I am being tempted!)

Also you don't have very much weight to lose and your diet was not that bad before so it would be a slower process. Good luck what ever you decide.

If you were bored with WW points slimming world is a bit more flexible as loads of foods are "free", also might be a bit of a change so less boring that way.

[invicta]

You may have not lost weight, but have you lost inches?

[Applefallingfromthetree2]

Bread is a nightmare, very high carbs and much of it sugar, foods like pizza will raise blood sugar dramatically. There is sugar in so many foods including vegetables and fruit. Bananas are high in sugar which is quite fast acting, great for tennis players not so good if you are less active.

Best to concentrate on calorie control and avoiding simple fast acting sugar in sweets, cake, biscuits etc but for weight loss and reduced blood sugar watch the carbs too. It's not easy.

[ProfessorDent]

Hey sixlive, a week isn't long enough imo and I think you are looking at it wrong, it sounds like you are pining for a time when you can return to sugar and it doesn't work like that. Your fat cells need to have time to recalibrate. You can kickstart weight loss with a 1km run before breakfast every other day. Of course, I don't know what else you are eating.

I have not lost any weight, for me this is about ditching the sugar craving for good and so some weight gain may even occur, tbh I am not sure that yoghurt - what I am eating a lot of with berries and nuts - is great as let's face it, it's dairy and some are allergic to that.

[Applefallingfromthetree2]

Professor -yogurt with berries contains a fair old shot of sugar, even if you have natural yogurt.

[HearMyRoar]

six I agree with the others that giving up sugar is not a quick weight loss fix. A week is just not enough. I wouldn't be surprised if I have actually put on some weight this week as I have been snacking like mad and drinking tons of water, but that's fine as it takes time for the body to adjust and settle down from the withdrawal.

The reason I am doing a month is because I hope that will be long enough to start to see some benefits, anything less then that isn't going to achieve much in my view.

My understanding of low carb is that it is the same in that you tend to get very low levels of weight loss if any in the first couple of weeks but see benefits long term.