I posted on Monday to say I’m quitting sugar. Well, it’s been three days. And I’m going great. Although you have to be so careful…I ordered a chai tea at a shoot on Tuesday and it came with honey already in it. So far, no withdrawals… because I’ve been upping my fat intake. I shall explain…
A heap of you have asked 234923874 very good questions about the whole sugar caper. I’m going to answer as many as I can over the next few posts. I’m also chatting to David Gillespie, author of Sweet Poison, tomorrow, and will get him to answer some, too. You’ll have to wait until next week for his take.
So, why am I eating more fat?
There are two factors. I’ll cover the first here today. The next, tomorrow.
I don’t believe in restrictive eating. Humans don’t respond emotionally, psychologically or biologically to denial. When we fast, our bodies are programmed to think we’re in famine or in an emergency and thus hormones and urges kick in to ensure our survival. So…
a) we become obsessed with seeking out food (understandable really), and
b) our systems store ANY calories ingested for safe keeping (again, makes sense).
So cutting something out – as in, dieting – is ineffective. Actually, counter-effective. It mostly makes you PUT ON weight. Unless, that is, we replace what we’re taking out.
I’m finding the sugar withdrawal fine because every time I get a sugar craving – mid-mornings and late afternoons and after dinner – I eat something fatty and protein-y. It’s a new “treat” to replace the old, in the interim (while “treat” mentality still rules me). And so I don’t feel in denial mode. I’m not talking fried, trans fats. I’m talking cheese and eggs and meat and nuts. I’ve been…
* grilling some haloumi for afternoon tea (I stick it in a sandwich press). Why not?
* eating a coconut smoothie mid morning. Coconuts are great for stablising sugar cravings.
* grilling walnuts and sprinkling on half an avocado
* buying the most divine activated nuts from Origin of Energy… seriously the happiest things I’ve ingested in a long time
* ordering an extra calamari dish after dinner when I’m still hungry at a restaurant, instead of eating dessert (I ate out with a mate who’s on a candida diet right now…this helped).
I’ve loved it. I don’t feel guilty and I’ve had no cravings or hunger.
Also – this is important – I’m not talking huge quantities of fat and protein. I don’t need huge quantities, my body doesn’t want it. Which leads me to the second reason why I’m eating more fat (ooooh, it gets interesting). But I’ll cover this in I quit sugar #3, tomorrow.
What else am I doing?
* drinking licorice tea …it’s very sweet tasting but contains no sugar
* sprinkling cinnamon on things, like my yoghurt. I’m also adding cinnamon nibs to my tea. It’s great for reducing inflammation, too (thyroidy types!).
* drinking milk…for the protein/fat reasons above. But also because milk contains lactose, which is a type of sugar…but one that our body recognises as such, and so they’re not invisible calories. This will be explained tomorrow!
* satisfying my chocolate cravings by eating sugar-free raw chocolate. I’ll share what brands to look out for shortly.
* “crowding out” any need for sugar by eating SO MANY veggies that I can’t really fit too much more in. Crowding out is my overall best advice for eating well. Rather than cutting out, crowd out.
Until my next post, I can tell you this with all my love and care:
the reason you might have put on weight has VERY little to do with a lack of willpower!
It’s about chemicals and very ancient biological survival instincts that take over when we poison our systems with something we are not biologically designed to eat. Namely, sugar. We can’t correct our eating, our weight or our addictions by fighting harder. We. Just. Cut. Out. Sugar.
If you have more questions….post them here….I promise to answer as many as I can over the next few weeks.
