Day 5 Without Sugar (sorta)

So, I’m on day five of my month-long no-sugar diet, and on Superbowl Sunday, no less. A day normally devoted to excess in which I’d indulge in pizza, chips, and maybe top it all off with ice cream.

How did I do?

Today’s SuperBowl Sunday was brought to you by Turkey Burgers and a banana.

I’ve done well all week, actually. I haven’t cheated yet. I thought for sure I’d be elbow deep in a bag of chips or cookies by now, but I’ve managed to resist so far.

One slight problem, though. I THOUGHT I’d been going sugar free. Yeah, I know, bananas turn to sugar in your body, but the idea here is to avoid sugar in processed foods. One of the things I’d been indulging in is peanut butter with my banana, or a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (using all natural fruit spread which is sweetened with fruit juice, not sugar).

Just one problem, the all natural peanut butter I’ve been eating . . . it has sugar. I don’t know how I missed it before, but it’s in there. And that natural wheat bread? It has brown sugar.

THERE IS SUGAR IN EVERYTHING!

So, here I was thinking I had done so well this week, only to find out, I’d not been completely sugar free. I’ll have to hit the store tomorrow and see if there’s any sugar-free alternatives.

It’s amazing how many foods have sugar, or some variation of, hidden in the ingredient list.

So, that aside, I’ve been eating well. I haven’t tracked overall calories, and I’ve been hungry, and at times, irritable and moody, but I’m not starving myself. I’m probably eating somewhere between 1400 and 2000 calories a day, depending on the day. I want to lose weight, but I don’t want to starve myself, and risk slowing my metabolism down too much.

My wife has helped out by making a few good dishes including a turkey chili with beans, and turkey taco meat with beans and cheese. I was shocked to actually enjoy both a lot! Even the beans, which I’d always avoided in the past because they looked “gross.”

Another favorite this week has been oatmeal, the old fashioned, slow cook kind, with almond milk and some stevia.

My choice of foods was pretty limited this week, but sticking to a few dishes I liked has helped me to not cheat. This coming week, I’m gonna try a few new things and hope to find some new healthy favorites, and maybe a veggie I actually like.

No-sugar purists could pick this diet apart and probably find a few other things I shouldn’t eat. For instance, I just looked and found another hidden sugar, in the almond milk, no less. It has cane juice, which is essentially sugar in liquid form. It’s less processed, but it’s still calories. However, from what I’ve read, dairy milk more or less turns to sugar, also.

But I can’t let myself get caught up in the little things. First, I need to prove I can stick to a healthier eating diet. Then I can tinker and perfect, and maybe go vegetarian at some point (a distant goal).

My writing partner, Sean Platt, who challenged me to do this, is on a more severe diet, sticking to fruit smoothies and lots of veggies, so he’s got a tougher month than I do. However, the difference between this diet and the one I WAS ON, is a difference of night and day.

Not only am I eating better, less processed foods, but…

• I’m learning that I can limit myself and avoid the foods I used to over indulge in.
• I’m finding some self-discipline when it comes to eating.
• I’m actually taking pride in not being a slave to my cravings.

 And though Sean told me not to weight myself until the month is over, I’m already down 7 pounds.

Might it be water weight? Maybe. But I’m not gonna worry about it. I’m just gonna keep on keepin on, one day at a time. I’ll update again later in the week. If you’re joining me on this challenge, feel free to leave a comment below with an update. Or if you have some ideas for healthy snack items or ways to make veggies less disgusting, please leave a comment.