Hi Everyone,
I have been breaking out a lot lately and feeling really bloated so I decided to limit my sugar intake, I saw a lot of people doing a no sugar challenge and wanted to give it a try myself!
I felt like eliminating sugar from my diet could help me with those issues. Plus approaching the holiday season I wanted to give my body a detox so I can indulge in unhealthy meals and sweet treats later on. I decided to exclude all foods with added sugar and artificial sugar but keep fruit and natural sweeteners like honey and maple syrup. And my goal was to do it for a week!
Added sugar is found in many unexpected things. Ketchup, ranch, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, most of the sauces and salad dressings all the things that basically give flavor to your meal, pretty much all the snacks and not to forget all the yummy drinks.
It wasn’t an easy experience! And also the fact that I picked Thanksgiving week added an extra torture 😦 I had to say no to cocktails, desserts and traditional meals.
This is a roundup of my experience, but I also have a video on my YouTube channel with initial reactions and honest thoughts.
I start my day with a cup of coffee that I sweeten with brown sugar, but substituted with organic maple syrup over this week and honestly it was perfect. Way healthier alternative to sugar and considering switching to it in the long term . I prefer eating savory breakfast so the rest of the morning was easy, avo toast, eggs, I just switch the toppings on the toast and the style of the eggs and I can have it every. single. day!
Lunch was a bit different and harder to manage. I eat my breakfast around 11 so for lunch I am on the go and either grab a protein bar or a smoothie, but this week threw me out of my routine. I had to plan in advance. I love picking up food from Whole Foods but now with the pandemic situation they don’t have the buffet style setting anymore where I could mix and match myself. Now the food is packaged so it added a bit negativity to my experience.
Had to say no to pizzas, pastas, sushi all kinds of glazed fish, bowls with marinated chicken and all the stuff I actually wanted. I mainly had hummus with veggies, salads with lemon juice and olive oil, plain chicken. But I was trying to eat more at home where I can control the ingredients.
Dinner was pretty easy too since I cooked and prepped it myself. I had limitless options. Grilled chicken , fish, steak all with just salt and black pepper, sautéed veggies, rice, mashed potatoes, salads with white vinegar and olive oil, these are just examples of how simple and versatile dinner with no sugar can be.
My biggest issue was sweet cravings. I always thought I don’t have a sweet tooth but the cravings I had proved me wrong. I had to fight the desire for chocolate cake or donuts with dates and dried figs making sure they didn’t have any added sugars. Some people experience less cravings after cleaning out their bodies from unhealthy sugars but it wasn’t the case with me . Plus a week is probably not enough to train your body to a new lifestyle.
I did see a difference in the way I felt and looked though. Didn’t have any new breakouts, my skin was clear and more radiant , the bloating was reduced and my abs became more visible YAY! I was energized and felt lighter, probably because the bloating was gone. Didn’t lose any weight but my waist got smaller and more defined.
This whole new experience for me was all worth it and maybe in the future I will do it again. I won’t turn this into a lifestyle though because I believe in balance diet and I don’t feel good when I deprive myself. Having a sweet treat doesn’t really affect my healthy lifestyle in a negative way as long as I do it with moderation. But a sugar detox once in a while won’t hurt me!
Thanks for stopping by,
Iva
Ivelina Angel 