Monday, June 9, 2014

We're quitting sugar, want to join us?

 
First off, I know how annoying it can be for someone to tell you to quit something. I read an article yesterday and one of the suggestions was “cut out alcohol and caffeine” and I made a face at the screen, a mean face. After all, I’m the person who sees no reason not to have a cup of coffee while on a juice cleanse. Carolyn says “your cleanse your rules.” So when I started hearing about Sarah Wilson’s “I QuitSugar” book I was skeptical. I was skeptical until I read the book. It’s really, really good and gimmick free. I found Sarah's approach similar in many ways to Foodtrainers.

If you read this blog you may know I’m not someone with a raging sweet tooth. So when Sarah wrote,  “I was a sugar addict but didn’t look like one. I hid behind the so-called “healthy sugars” like honey, dark chocolate and fruit” I was surprised, she could’ve been describing me. And bottom line I know sugar finds its way into my diet and I’m curious to see how I feel without it. Plus, from years of having clients undergoing cancer treatment the line “cancer loves sugar” is a scary one to me. It’s not just about weight or mood but long-term health. And I love the idea of focusing on one habit and recently made what I feel are permanent gains in the hydration department.

So we tossed the idea around at the office and we came up with our version of quitting. We’re starting today and continuing through the end of the month (actually until we attend the Fancy Food Show 6/30 where we're professionally obligated to taste).  Here’s a summary of what’s in and out for the next three weeks.

No
  • Sweetener in coffee or tea. I realized there’s 8g sugar in a tsp. of the manuka honey I use; I only use a ½ tsp. once a day but still
  • Mints- I have these anise mints I keep in my purse, I’m anti gum for reasons beyond sugar but no gum either (keep a toothbrush in your makeup case)
  • Dried Fruit- I will miss you those raisins in my Juice Generation kale salad
  • Nutrition bars- I usually have a Health Warrior or Zing bar once a week
  • Stevia- as we say sweet begets sweet so no stevia and if you’re having yellow, pink or blue packets cut those out forever, not just the 3 weeks
  • Pops/Sorbet – so tempting in this weather but so sweet
  • Cakes, cookies, muffins or any other baked goods, gluten free or regular they're still sweet
  • Dark chocolate- this was a hard one for me to sign onto but if you're going to quit...

Yes
  • 1 fruit a day (this is different from what Sarah suggests)
  • 1 small coconut water per day (IQS informed me coconut water low in fructose) OR green juice (with 1 fruit) OR kombucha. 
  • Alcohol- we agree with Sarah alcohol has its own issues beyond sugar. However, alcohol is low in fructose. IQS suggests says wine, beer and pure spirits are ok. If you’ve read my book you know I think spirits are the way to go (sans mixers).
For the record, Sarah doesn’t recommend you go cold turkey/ cold sugar day 1.  She suggests a little time to assess where sugar is in your diet, to read labels and raise awareness. I have had the book for a couple of weeks and my “sweet-dar” (sugar radar) was heightened. Many gauges for sugar consumption are tossed around I would suggest aiming first for under 25 grams a day and ultimately going below 20 grams (approximately 4 grams is equal to one teaspoon of sugar).

Do you want to join us for these few weeks and give quitting a go? The Foodtrainers team is here for you on the blog, on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (@Foodtrainers. You know you can #TIDEI (tweet it don't eat it).  I would also suggest you pick up I Quit Sugar (and visit the website) it’s full of facts and encouragement not to mention fantastic recipes. At the start of the post I wrote that it’s not for someone else to tell you to quit something, from IQS “you’re doing this not because you have to, but because it might make you feel better. Please go gently and don’t punish yourself.” I told you this woman gets it.
Do you think about the amount of sugar you eat? How would you describe your relationship with sugar? Have you considered quitting? Read this book? Want to join us for these three weeks?
A couple of notes:

Since Sarah and I  connected, IQS read my book as well and posted some of my tips, they are doing a Little Book of Thin giveaway 
We're doing the same. If you comment here and retweet this post (or regram on Instagram @Foodtrainers) you'll be eligible. Our winner will be selected on Friday, June 13th.

27 comments:

  1. I am in! I don't have the healthiest relationship with sugar, I love it a little too much:). Will do my best to stick with your plan. Dark chocolate will be the toughest one to give up. Think they still make Binaca? :) Packing a mini toothbrush in my purse.
    Think Thin bars will have to sub for zing bars and kind bars (emergency only). Fingers crossed!

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  2. Julie-we're here to help, when tempted you can #TIDEI etc

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  3. We have talked about my very unhealthy relationship with sugar. I am going to give this a try! Zing bars and my Coconut Siggis might be difficult to give up! Lets see how this goes!

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  4. I wish you good luck Lauren .

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  5. I'm in too -- for the next 10 day until I go to LA, no sugar. Gonna be really tough to give up the stevia in my morning yogurt and pre-meeting altoids. Yikes, wish me luck!

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  6. Yay we're all in it together! Even my husband is on board. Think how great you'll feel when you leave for your trip.

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  7. thanks Ayala- I'm weird but sort of excited (and nervous)

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  8. And I love Siggis and Zing but I think this is worthwhile, yay- you know where to find me (insta/twitter) as needed.

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  9. Lauren, can you share your sugar free meals this week? My husband is also on board this sugar free experiment, need inspiration for meals.

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  10. Hi Lauren! I will absolutely join your team on the IQS trial as well. It will be lots of fun having support of each other. Chocolate and gum will be the two toughest ones for me! We can do it -:)

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  11. I can't join now, but would be interested in July, starting with one week at at time. Do you have a suggestion for an athlete that needs gu's and sports drinks to train and race. More than in past seasons, I feel that I am additicted to sugar. I don't want to give up chocolate or wine, but willing to try everything else. I just don't know how to train without sugar.

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  12. I KNOW I have a weakness for sugar. I crave it, especially during menses... I have the PDFs of IQS and want to give it a shot. I'm hoping to find more veg alternatives than the book has.

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  13. I've never had a really big sweet tooth (cheese is a different story....), and when I started doing cleanses 1.5 years ago, I took a real good look at the sugar I was eating. Since I stopped eating gluten and hardly ever do "gluten free stuff," I don't really eat sweets (or anything baked for that matter) except for the very, very occasional homemade almond flour cookie. Right now my biggest sources of sugar are dark chocolate and more than one fruit a day (usually two but not more). And I have some stevia most days, something I could really do without. Not ready for quitting sugar right this moment, but it's something I need to look at again... I'm sure your posts will be gentle reminders for the next few weeks... Maybe I'll be read then... :)

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  14. Are you cutting out siggis yogurt as well? Also is salad dressing a no go?

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  15. Siggis plain fine but not the flavors for these 2 weeks. Bottled salad dressing an LBT no no but ACV (apple cid vinegar) and walnut oil or lemon and EVOO good options.

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  16. I hear you and I am similar. I have to say because I love olives and nuts day 1 wasn't hard at all. I will keep you posted.

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  17. You're not alone, hormones can intensify things. I love IQS advice to increase good fats when trying to watch sugar: coconut oil, avocado, nuts are great options. If you are "quitting" and have questions stop by here or find @Foodtrainers on twitter. Here to help, good luck.

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  18. Randi, I would look up a couple named Iniken and Loring. I was intro ducted to them/their race. They are rowing across the Pacific ocean (3,000 miles?) without carbs/sugar. Many endurance athletes are realizing the candy ingested during workout and races isn't healthy. There are huge circles of athletes going paleo/primal. Yes, difficult as distance increases but I have to say one of the things I think about with my dream of doing an ultra- I wouldn't drink the junk again that I used to "just during races". Interesting.

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  19. of course will be updating and posting some on insta. Most of LBT meals are sugar free. We had weekday tenderloin last night, recipes in IQS amazing too the turmeric chicken (something like that) I loved.

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  20. I am game! For me the challenge will be swearing off the FAKE sugars (gums, soda, mints)...

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  21. Hi Randi,

    Lauren asked me to chime in on this Q. I'm ultra endurance athlete fueled on an organic, whole, mainly raw, real foods lifestyle.

    Real food-including drink-is so much better on the system than the artificial junk (GU's, gatorade, sport beans, etc). It's all highly processed sugar and GMOs.

    I train and race with real food: chia seeds+raw honey+raw lemon juice+celtic sea salt in water, I make my own mashed sweet potato mixture. I eat nuts, rice balls for 50/100 milers, fruit, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, etc, (Everything is organic.) I've found that my body performs so much better AND there are rarely any GI issues and other side effects that people normally experience when consuming fake products.

    Let me know how else I can help you!

    xo

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  22. I would like to try. Even though I consider myself a "healthy eater", when you take a good look, there is sugar. Will you possibly do a tips post or brand recommendations? This is a good idea, at least we are aware. Thanks,

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  23. Rachel Mount HofstetterJune 12, 2014 at 11:49 AM

    I love this! I'm going to try for 3 days to start: Sunday to Tuesday.

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  24. Yes cindy, we will be posting updates here, on instagram and twitter. Try it!

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  25. Johanne- never thought of you as a "fake" eater, ok let's do it.

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  26. please circle back and let us know how it goes, we think our criteria is pretty clear but if questions let us know. I'm 4 days in and pretty easy...

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  27. my husband uses carbopro - it's a medium chain carb w no taste you mix into water. sort of an upmarket cornstarch. w out the sugar you don't get the stomach upset. it's really helped him on his longer rides and to shorten his recovery since he's not in such caloric deficit. he's over 2 meters tall and under 200lbs.

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