Seven days Sans Sugar
Hey there everyone. In case you missed it, my previous post introduced a seven day no sugar cleanse that I was trying out in order to curb my sweets cravings and try to nip any little bits of candida overgrowth I may have had in the butt. That means seven days, no added sugars, no artificial sweeteners, and even no fruit sugars. One week later...
I did it! I was pretty diligent about cutting out sugar 100%. Given that I am a Type 1, juvenile onset diabetic- the kind you get when you’re young, not from being unhealthy or overweight or eating too much sugar etc-, there were several instances where I HAD to have sugar because my glucose levels had dropped too low from my exercise and I needed something to rebound quickly. This occurred twice during my week of the cleanse, was only to rebound my blood sugars, and did not involve eating sweets, but rather taking glucose in its base form...so no cookies, candies, cakes, donuts, etc.
Throughout any given week, I tend to think of yummy foods that I can make for dinner and I try to alter them slightly so they are healthier than usual. Of course this week during my sugar cleanse, I had the cravings for several meals that have sugar in the sauces....so, rather than ruling them out completely, I got creative. I was able to come up with some great alternatives this week for sugar free chicken sloppy joes and sugar free orange chicken. Check back for those recipes next week! (*Sugar free orange chicken recipe is currently posted on my instagram @e_mamma, if you wish to see that sooner)
So, how did it go? Well, the most successful part of the whole thing is that my sugar cravings have gone way down! I can’t tell you how much I used to think about sugary foods and drinks. I have gotten used to drinking my coffee with plain cream and don’t miss the sweet in it anymore. I also don’t think about cookies on the daily, nor do I browse through dessert images dreaming up what I can make for dessert for the next several days. YAY FOR NOT ALWAYS THINKING ABOUT SUGAR!
Some of you may ask: “Well, what is wrong with artificial sweeteners like stevia or erythritol? Those don’t affect blood sugars and have little to no calories anyways.” Well, fake sugars can actually cause you to crave sugar even MORE than if you only had regular sugar. Why? That is a great question.
While there’s nothing wrong with these sweeteners now and again, these sugar alternatives still trick the brain into thinking it’s getting its sugar fix. In reality, the body isn’t receiving any actual sugar to process, it triggers your brain to seek out MORE sugar to try to fulfill what your body thought it was getting. Therefore, the lack of real sugar is causing an increase in cravings. It is a vicious cycle of tricking the mind and satiating the craving on the short term, but not actually satisfying the body’s expectation of sugar in the long run. By eliminating these fake sugars from my diet as well for seven days, I noticed a huge difference in my cravings.
A key to helping my body adjust and lowering my sugar cravings was to fuel it with complex carbohydrates to ensured I had enough energy to keep me going throughout the day. Oatmeal with unsweetened almond milk, protein powder, and chia seeds for breakfast; a salad with whole grain toast, quinoa, or brown rice, along with a good amount of protein and healthy fats for lunch; and whole grains as my starch with protein and veggies for dinner.
In addition, as I mentioned in the previous post, I have been utilizing my DoTerra GX Assist to help clean my gut (3 days left until I incorporate my PB Assist to replenish healthy gut bacteria), and Slim & Sassy essential oil to help curb my cravings and assist my body with detoxing.
I did it! I was pretty diligent about cutting out sugar 100%. Given that I am a Type 1, juvenile onset diabetic- the kind you get when you’re young, not from being unhealthy or overweight or eating too much sugar etc-, there were several instances where I HAD to have sugar because my glucose levels had dropped too low from my exercise and I needed something to rebound quickly. This occurred twice during my week of the cleanse, was only to rebound my blood sugars, and did not involve eating sweets, but rather taking glucose in its base form...so no cookies, candies, cakes, donuts, etc.
Throughout any given week, I tend to think of yummy foods that I can make for dinner and I try to alter them slightly so they are healthier than usual. Of course this week during my sugar cleanse, I had the cravings for several meals that have sugar in the sauces....so, rather than ruling them out completely, I got creative. I was able to come up with some great alternatives this week for sugar free chicken sloppy joes and sugar free orange chicken. Check back for those recipes next week! (*Sugar free orange chicken recipe is currently posted on my instagram @e_mamma, if you wish to see that sooner)
So, how did it go? Well, the most successful part of the whole thing is that my sugar cravings have gone way down! I can’t tell you how much I used to think about sugary foods and drinks. I have gotten used to drinking my coffee with plain cream and don’t miss the sweet in it anymore. I also don’t think about cookies on the daily, nor do I browse through dessert images dreaming up what I can make for dessert for the next several days. YAY FOR NOT ALWAYS THINKING ABOUT SUGAR!
Some of you may ask: “Well, what is wrong with artificial sweeteners like stevia or erythritol? Those don’t affect blood sugars and have little to no calories anyways.” Well, fake sugars can actually cause you to crave sugar even MORE than if you only had regular sugar. Why? That is a great question.
While there’s nothing wrong with these sweeteners now and again, these sugar alternatives still trick the brain into thinking it’s getting its sugar fix. In reality, the body isn’t receiving any actual sugar to process, it triggers your brain to seek out MORE sugar to try to fulfill what your body thought it was getting. Therefore, the lack of real sugar is causing an increase in cravings. It is a vicious cycle of tricking the mind and satiating the craving on the short term, but not actually satisfying the body’s expectation of sugar in the long run. By eliminating these fake sugars from my diet as well for seven days, I noticed a huge difference in my cravings.
A key to helping my body adjust and lowering my sugar cravings was to fuel it with complex carbohydrates to ensured I had enough energy to keep me going throughout the day. Oatmeal with unsweetened almond milk, protein powder, and chia seeds for breakfast; a salad with whole grain toast, quinoa, or brown rice, along with a good amount of protein and healthy fats for lunch; and whole grains as my starch with protein and veggies for dinner.
In addition, as I mentioned in the previous post, I have been utilizing my DoTerra GX Assist to help clean my gut (3 days left until I incorporate my PB Assist to replenish healthy gut bacteria), and Slim & Sassy essential oil to help curb my cravings and assist my body with detoxing.
I want to remind everyone how important healthy eating is in combination with exercise, sleep, supplements, and fun! Balancing work and play can be really difficult these days, but by being aware of what we put into our bodies, we are taking care of ourselves and are in turn much more capable of handling the stresses of day to day life, while also being able to make a game plan for the fun days off ahead of us. Indulging is also important. This “no sugar” thing does not mean I am trying to stop eating sugar, but rather, is my way of helping myself lower my sugar cravings, because I KNOW how out of control they had gotten. One of the best parts of doing this “cleanse” is that I now have much lower cravings for sugar and I don’t think about it all the time, and I have been able to help myself along on my way to leaning out.
While I don’t believe in the scale or measuring tapes, (because my goal is not to look a certain way or weigh a certain number) I did take before and after photos of this process to see how much progress I could make throughout this cleanse. Here’s my progress! And while I wasn’t expecting much, I was excited to see I leaned out a bit in the waist. Remember, any progress is good progress. Whereever you are on your fitness journey, keep after it. Dedication to whatever your goals are, is a way of life.
If you are interested in learning more about my routines, the way I eat, how I stay fit to keep doing all the badass things I love doing, and how I incorporated oils into this cleanse-and how I incorporate them into my daily life-, reach out to me here or DM me on my instagram feed @e_mamma.
Don’t forget, check back next week for my sugar free recipes for my favorite meals from the week.
Love,
Emma
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