Monday, July 22, 2013

The No-Sweets Challenge Begins Tomorrow!


My yoga buddies decided to celebrate my birthday last Thursday, even though there were already plans to celebrate it today. No worries. I am not complaining! However, we all happened to be at the same yoga class on this particular Thursday and also planned for the celebration at Cafe Rio afterwards.


During our meal, my friends started to talk about sugar intake. We were specifically talking about added sugar intake and not the much needed complex carbohydrate food sources. Being the registered dietitian of the bunch, I piped up and mentioned how my ignorant mind back in my twenties thought that eating added sugar was causing my acne. So, I decided to cut out all sweets for at least four months. Although the plan didn't zap out my acne at that time, what did happen was a pleasant transformation of my taste buds. I use to love eating ice a lot back in the day, but ever since the cutting back of sweets for several months straight, I now... cannot... to this day, take more than a few bites when it comes to desserts of all sorts and sips of sugary drinks.  I'm satisfied with just a few bites and sips, because my tastebuds cannot take more than that. My tastebuds have been re-trained. I am absolutely satisifed with just a little bit. This story encouraged my friends that we should go on a challenge together, since one of them ate four doughnuts in one day the day before and the other loves her sugary drinks.

Now, I don't need this challenge to decrease my sugar threshold, but I'm thinking I need to give my buddies support. So, tomorrow will begin our six week "no-sweets challenge". All sugary desserts will be temporarily avoided as well as sodas of all kinds. Only fruits juices that are 100% will be allowed, but because we are also endurance athletes, sports drinks, gels, and chews will be allowed with choosing the items with the lowes added sugar content. Fresh and dried fruit will be allowed. Canned fruit is allowed if packed in its own natural juice.Since Greek yogurt is not really considered a dessert, but a food item that is healthy, that will not be eliminated and will most likely stick to the plain flavor.  I

Shani purchased for each of us a little notebook from the 99 cents store. We are to log what we eat for the next six weeks minus portion sizes. If one of us is tempted to have a sweet dessert, she must call one of the other gals in her moment of weakness

Will see how my friends do as well as me. You are more than welcome to join us starting tomorrow! This is not to deprive us of sweets permanently, its just an attempt to lower everyone's sweet tooth threshold!

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What is your sweet tooth addiction that you would like to overcome?