What I learned on my sugar detox

  I know I've been away for a while but...life. So I did a 21 day sugar cleanse. The idea of the cleanse is that there is an overabundance of the naturally occurring yeast in your gut. By cutting out sugar for 21 days, you stop feeding the yeast and bring it down to normal levels. My friend told me about this cleanse a couple of years ago (she had gotten it from her primary care physician) but I was not in a mental space to do it. She is super fit and her dietary willpower is just... Anyway, I saw her mom a few weeks ago and she had lost a dramatic amount of weight and she said that it was from the cleanse so my vanity motivated me to try it :-). It was an interesting 3 weeks and I would just like to say: sugar is a hating ass bitch. Here are some of the things I learned on this cleanse:


1. Nutrition really is the most important part of fitness.
    We keep hearing it's 80% nutrition and 20% exercise. IT IS TRUE and I want to yell it from the mountain top. I've been working out on and off since college and been doing so consistently for the last 2+ years. While I feel better and more in shape than when I don't work out, I always find that I hit a plateau in terms of my weight loss that I thought was going to be impossible to overcome. At the end of this cleanse, I lost a total of 9 pounds, 1.5 inches off of my waist, and went down a dress size in 3 weeks. I didn't increase exercise (I exercise 4-5 days a week). I was never hungry. I just had to be smart about what I chose both in content and portion size. Which brings me to #2.

2. Sugar is in EVERYTHING.
    I basically had to give up any alcoholic beverages in the last 3 weeks because they are loaded with sugar; that wasn't a big deal. What was challenging was giving up my oatmeal breakfast and 2 pieces of fruit daily. Not to mention my treat meals and the random goodies at work I tend to find in my vicinity and eat without thinking. This cleanse really forced me to sit down and read/research/think about what I am putting into my body and I realized what a big part of the general diet sugar is.

3. I'M an all or nothing person.
    Although in general I eat pretty well, I let my cheat meals get out of hand sometimes. A cheat meal becomes a cheat day becomes a cheat week and on and on (i.e., my birthday month binge). I always felt like there were some foods that I would just NEVER be able to totally cut out. This cleanse made me realize that if I'm committing to a healthier lifestyle I have to REALLY committ. This may not be true for everyone, I'm just speaking for myself because a) I gain weight really easily and 2) I've got willpower issues. I don't buy large containers of cashews because they are my favorite and I'll inhale it all in 1-2 days. I don't keep cheese in the house very much because I will put it on everything. I don't make my comfort foods in large batches because my portion control goes out the door. When it comes to sugar, I'm going to have to be creative in how I satisfy my craving for it and that brings me to #4.

4. There are lots of healthy alternatives to the foods I love.
    Sometimes I want a sandwich. Hello coconut flour! I learned to make bread using coconut flour and it pretty much changed the bread game for me. I'm going to be doing a lot of experimenting with it in my future. I love cheese. See #5. I also love fruit. See #7. The crux of what I'm trying to say is that there is always a better version of that favorite food of yours. You just have to look for it. (sidebar: found a delicious recipe for an almost sugar free alcoholic beverage and I'm working on paleo mac and cheese.)

5. Avocados FTW!
   I love cheese. No, I LOVE cheese. Specifically cheddar and bleu cheese. Unfortunately these were off the menu for the cleanse. Too much saturated fat. Then in walks avocado. I've always loved avocado but it is a really great way to substitute for cheese. It's creamy and has lots of healthy fats and is just all around delicious. But I'm not a fan of slimcados. They may be bigger but not as delicious as regular avocados.

6. Fat isn't bad for you!
   I keep track of most of my food intake on My Fitness Pal. I usually try to keep my fat intake to a minimum and consider it a victory if I'm a couple of grams under my daily sugar intake. During this 3 week cleanse, my fat intake was over what the program said I should be taking in while cutting out most* of the sugar and I lost a significant amount of weight in a pretty short amount of time. The key is to take in good fats from things like avocados and nuts and limiting your intake of saturated fats (i.e., take the skin off your chicken and go light on the bacon)

7. Fruit extracts: get into them
   I love citrus fruits. This cleanse cut out any fruit intake for 21 days. I learned to satisfy my desire for tasty tasty fruit by flavoring cottage cheese with orange and lemon extracts and a non-sugar sweetener. Delicious. I'll be looking more to berries for my fruit intake in the future. Citrus fruits will have to be a sometimes treat.

8. Stevia is gross.
   I don't know what that nasty aftertaste is but keep it away from me. I finished out my stevia stash and started using Splenda even though that isn't too great for you either. I'm going to be switching over to Xylitol and hopefully I have better luck with it. BTW if anyone wants a bag of Coconut Palm Sugar and one of brown sugar, they're yours.

9. Preparation is key.
    This goes for the mental as well as the physical. During this cleanse I attended the wedding of two of my dearest friends. The reception was OPEN BAR with a NIGERIAN/SOUTHERN FOOD BUFFET. Satan get thee behind me! Perfect opportunity for me to slip up. But I was committed to seeing this cleanse out and I just had some chicken (I took the skin off) and collards. Plus I had my own stash of food in the car. Last weekend I went on a beach trip with my running group and there were boardwalk fries, ice cream, and funnel cakes oh my! But I had my trusty bag full of burger patties, avocado, and spinach, plus some no sugar treats and I stuck to it. You have to be willing to put in some prep work if you're going to stick to an eating plan. You don't know what people are putting in your food (I worked in a restaurant where they put sugar in the corn). Also you need something to lean on when you are tempted. I might look a little odd when I pull out my prepped food, but I've got goals to attain.

10. Eating clean isn't as hard as some people make it out to be.
    Halfway through the cleanse I got really lazy with cooking. So I went to the grocery store and I bought rotisserie chickens and veggies that required minimal prep. The hardest part was dividing the meat into appropriate portions (invest in a food scale; it is WORTH IT). While I do plan on trying out some fancier recipes, it's comforting to know that sticking to this style of eating isn't something that is going to have me constantly slaving in the kitchen.

   To sum it up, the cleanse wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and I am more than pleased with the results. I think I might keep it going a little longer. I'm definitely more aware of what kind of food I put in my body and how sugar affects me. I know that because of the way MY body works, I have to pay special attention to my sugar intake. If you want the meal sheet, send me your email and I'll be happy to share it. Let me know your experience!

*I had negligible sugar intake from some veggies and avocado.