#22 - Go Sugar Free for One Month

This was not the first time I’ve taken on this challenge, but this time it was the most needed. After surgery, I was feeling terrible and began to eat terrible. Which only started a cycle of eating sugar, feeling gross, craving sugar and repeating. I had the tell-tale signs of candida overgrowth. Bloated belly, chronic fatigue, skin rashes, and intense mood swings. Yet the only thing I was thinking about was sugar. There was even one instance after Easter I stopped by a grocery store – bought 4 boxes of sour candies expecting to share them with Mirko – and I ate them all. I ate so many that day that I thought my teeth were going to fall out. I woke up still feeling like crap and knew that I had to change.

I competed my sugar free month in May – I just haven’t had the time to share it. The first week sucked. I was in withdrawal and irrational angry at everything. The person who looked at me the wrong way was instantly a bitch. I was craving sugar all day, everyday. Then about half way through week two it stopped. I wasn’t dreaming of ice cream or doughnuts all day long. I could taste the natural sweetness in some veggies. And my belly no longer looked 8 months pregnant.

There were a few slip ups along the way. I would eat something, assuming it was sugar free – like breakfast hash browns – then read the ingredients after and see they had some form of sugar. This is true for most sauces and dressings, packaged foods and things labelled “low-fat”. Sugar typically isn’t labelled as sugar, but can be called maltose, dextrose, fructose, lactose, sucrose, corn syrup, malt syrup, nectar and about 50 others. It’s crazy how much sugar is in our foods now. During this month, I watched a documentary called That Sugar Film and it explained the history as to why we are becoming so addicted to sugar. I also listened to Rachel Brathens Podcast on her reasons as to why she gave up sugar for 30 days as well and a lot of what she had to say resonated with me. It wasn’t about losing weight, it was about quitting this addiction.

Timing wise it was hard to come off this cleanse and then head straight to Italy. Home of gelato, almond cookies and Mirko’s mother’s homemade apple strudel. Another of my #52in52 goals was to find the best gelato- not exactly sugar free. To make sure I didn’t feel deprived while on my tip I allowed myself to compare only 3 gelatos in the 2 weeks we were there. It was hard, especially because we found THE BEST GELATO in his hometown and I could have gone there twice a day. But knowing how I would feel after eating sugar, I was able to say no to the sugary sweets on the table at the end of every meal, breakfast included, and chose fresh fruits over pastries. I satisfied my Italian tooth with pizza, cheese and the tastiest cherries I’ve ever had. When I did indulge, I would get that tell-tale sugar high, and felt invincible for an hour or so. Only to feel like absolute crap for the rest of the day.

All in all the cleanse was needed and absolutely worth it. I needed to reboot my system, make heathier choices and become more aware of what I was putting in my body. Even now when I get a craving I have to check in with what is actually happening in the moment and ask myself if it’s worth feeling crappy afterwards. Quite often it’s just me feeling stressed or overwhelmed about something and when I address my emotions I’m less likely to feed them.