I gave up sugar for 30 days!
Anyone who knows me, knows I LOVE my sugar.
There’s just something about that not–so-good- for-you sweet treat that makes everything feel better. The thing with me is that my love for sugar went beyond the odd sweet treat now and then. By the beginning of 2020, I was eating junk food like I’d just gotten dumped every single day and my health was beginning to suffer. So I decided to get on top of this sugar addiction and quit sugar for 30 days.
Now that might not seem like a hard thing to do, just stop eating sweet treats for 30 days right? Not quite. Before I started this ‘no sugar diet’ I did some digging on Youtube, Google and anywhere else to find out exactly what I had in store for me. What exactly would I have to give up? What are the different types of sugar in foods? What should I be looking out for on food labels?
After binge reading and watching all the various sources of information, I found out a few important things of note:
I would be giving up all things with ADDED sugar, any foods with naturally occurring sugars were fine to eat. All other foods with sugar added to them were off limits.
There are many different types of added sugars, all of which I would have to give up. This ranged from normal grain sugars to honey to sweeteners like xylitol.
Reading food labels would be extremely important.
After gathering all the information I needed, I went into my kitchen and got rid of all the foods with added sugar so I wouldn’t be tempted during my first few days of sugar withdrawal. This included bread (I know!), juices, some spices (crazy, right?), cereals like cornflakes and muesli, honey (I was used to adding it to my tea and oats) and salad dressings. I had to hold my beautiful loaf of bread tight and say a special, heartfelt goodbye to it.
The next thing I did was plan my meals. This was super important for me because I lead a very busy life and I was more likely to impulsively eat things full of sugar entirely due to lack of time and planning. I still stuck to my morning routine of oats but instead of adding a dollop of honey to my bowl, I’d sweeten it with fresh fruits. Any salads I’d have for lunch were eaten without dressings like vinegar and caesar dressing because those are packed with sugar. My usual after lunch snack of crisps was off bounds as most crisps were seasoned with some type of sugar. Any meal I made for dinner would be full of whole foods with no processed foods whatsoever. I also had to give up alcohol as it does, unfortunately, have added sugar.
The first week of this diet was challenging. I had sugar cravings ALL THE TIME. I would sit and fantasise about red velvet cake with whipped cream. I asked myself several times why I had volunteered to torture myself. I did notice however, how much more focused I was. My concentration span really improved and I didn’t have any episodes of mind fogginess during the day like I did before. I also had a lot more energy. I’m used to feeling constantly tired from when I wake up to when I go to sleep, but since quitting sugar, my energy levels stayed constantly high throughout the day.
The second week was a breeze. My cravings completely vanished, my energy levels were at their peak and my skin had started to have this glow about it. I took several selfies to commemorate the change. The third week was when the sugar cravings came back in full force. I think my body had thought I was joking about quitting sugar and by the third week it had realised that I was serious. It was far from happy. I managed to power through those cravings though and make it into the fourth week. I did also notice during the third week I was on my period and that probably didn’t help with the cravings but the reduction in sugar intake actually helped my cramps and PMS symptoms.
By the fourth week I was feeling great, I had lost 3 inches around my waist and my skin was looking AMAZING. I had absolutely no cravings for sugar and by the end of the 30 days I decided to keep some of the changes I had. I don’t add any sugar to my oats or my tea, I haven’t had a drop of alcohol in 3 months and my taste buds have completely changed so the sweet things I would have drop kicked someone for before, taste too sweet for me now.
If anyone is thinking of trying this no sugar diet, go for it! It changes your life for the better.
Sincerely,
A former sugar addict.
