Am I on a sugar free diet?
Friday, 8 June 2012 
5 Comments
A comment to my recent protein pancake post said “Are you still on your sugar free diet? I seriously don’t know how you do it…”
Answer:
No. I am not on a sugar free diet. I am just avoiding eating most types of sugar and plan on doing so for the rest of my life.
Why do I do it?:
I like living a life free from (chocolate) cravings. I like living a life free from blood sugar fluctuations that mess with my running. I like living a life free from being bloated.
How do I do it?:
Reducing your sugar intake it possible when you find out what works for you. I have found out that moderation does not work for me – eating one cookie makes me want to eat 10 more. The only approach for me is total abstinence from things that I know cause me to overeat and crave for more.
It probably sounds tough (and maybe a little bit crazy ;), but who do I want to be in control of my life – me or food? :)
The good this is that there are sweet things that I can eat that do not make me binge – fresh and dried fruit, yoghurt, unsweetened cocoa powder in hot milk, unsweetened peanut butter with apple, Nakd bars of pressed dates/cashews/cocoa, etc.
As for sugar replacers, I stay away from honey, maple syrup, agave nectar and all artificial sweeteners. Mostly because of all the reasons listed above – they make me want to eat more than I should and also – they taste too sweet for me now that I’ve been ‘sugar-free’ for over 5 months.
I do, however, use stevia and xylitol once in a blue moon. Both are naturally derived sweeteners and do not mess with blood sugar levels like other sweeteners do.
Have I lost any weight?: One of my friends asked me that the other day and the answer is: no.
But I have lost 8cm from my waist due to not being bloated and my body fat % has gone from 26.5% down to 25%.
And now for the fun bit -
What do I do on a really hot day when everyone else is eating ice cream?: I have a WheyHey!
It’s an ice cream made from whey protein, xylitol, skimmed milk powder, NON hydrogenated vegetable fat (i.e. the good kind of fat) and some natural emulsifiers like xanthan gum.
A 150ml tub of WheyHey has about the same amount of calories and fat as the same quantity of good quality vanilla ice cream BUT it has no sugar and 22.5 g of protein from whey! (that’s a lot of protein, by the way, a boiled egg has less than 7g).
I have to say that the chocolate one is not my favorite but both strawberry and vanilla taste great – sweet but not sickly sweet, cold and creamy.
Now all I need is an actual hot day* :)
P.S. WheyHey is stocked by Holland & Barrett.
*The weather here is awful at the moment.
8cm!!!! I’m impressed!
The ice cream looks good, will def try!
XX
You are so good. I have now officially decided to try to be more happy and not to worry about my weight. It actually seems to work. I don’t snack any more,
Oh so glad I stumbled across you on Love All Blogs. I follow my own diet which I’ve honed over the years. A variation of low sugar, low carb, clean eating. No more feel dizzy and faint from hunger as your blood sugar spikes and falls. No need to count calories and I eat loads with no weight gain :-) x
I still have to watch the quantity of food I eat, but I’ve only done the no-sugar thing for a few months, maybe as my body settles into this new routine my weight will stay stable without me having to think about my food intake too much.
Ok, I’ve resisted enough. I read and re-read your sugar pages. I’m inspired.
I’ve done nearly five months with no alcohol, I’m going to take the plunge and drop the refined sugar. I’ll start with one month and compare. I’m being consumed with my love of sugar, I’m literally being swallowed up by my desire to eat the sweet stuff, but it’s a drug and it’s an addiction I have and I’m going to kick it.
I’ll have to find something new to focus my mind on, because ole Shug is getting detention.
Thank you for all of your great words! You’re very inspirational Mrs B :)