What I ate Wednesday .. Sugar Free September wrap up

I can't believe that it's October!  Not just because Sugar Free September seemed to go so quickly ... but there's only 12 weeks until Christmas!!  I know, I give you permission to start panicking now .. it's entirely possible that I will start not long after you!

I'm not going to mention that any more as I have more important issues to talk about .. like the wrap up of this year's Sugar Free September. 

I was really happy with my efforts again this September.  It possibly seemed a little easier, already knowing what I could and could not have from last year.  I just stuck with foods that had as little processing as possible and I tried out a few recipes for some treats to snack on or for dessert on the weekends.

I will that I did miss a few of my usual snacks that have a small amount of sugar added but are still not considered "bad" compared with many other processed foods. 

Again, it was hard to find a sugar free recipe for biscuits or muffins that didn't have some kind of artificial sugar or loads of honey that the kids would actually eat!  I did find one that wasn't too bad but it did have chocolate chips added .. and I lost the website!  I will need to go searching for that one!

The verdict this year ... there really is just so much extra sugar or artificial sweeteners added to food that it is hard to find anything that doesn't have something extra added. 

Personally, I'm still OK with adding some sugar to my home baking.  I will always try to find an alternative to adding heaps of sugar ( and butter ) ... but sometimes a treat really isn't so bad!  And I much prefer home baked goodies to some of the ones that you buy in the stores! 

In my opinion it is more a matter of being mindful of what choice you are making when it comes to your food. Is there an alternative that will be more nutritious and healthful?

I probably won't give up sugar all together but I most definitely believe that everyone should cut down on the amount of foods that are eaten with added sugar.  Enjoying a small amount in moderation is fine .. as long as by moderation you don't mean every meal or even every day!

Oh and I forgot to mention that I did miss my glass of champagne and Baileys!  I will certainly be savouring that this weekend! 

Cheers!!

How did you go with your efforts during Sugar Free September?  What did you learn?  What will you do differently from now on?

Vicki x

PS ... No I'm not doing Choc-tober, Oc-Sober, Drop-tober !!!  I'm going to allow myself a little freedom in my diet .. without going crazy of course!

 

What I'm eating Wednesday .. Sugar Free September!

9 more days to go until Sugar Free September starts again! 

Are you going to join me?

I know the idea fills you with fear!  How are you possibly going to last a WHOLE month without sugar?!

It's really not too bad actually .. Instead of craving sugar at the end of the month you will be craving whole, fresh, unprocessed foods! How bad can that be?

So why participate in SFS?

There are so many processed foods that make up part of our daily diet. 
These processed foods are quite often filled with sugar to give them taste and make them last longer. Many of the added sugars don't have any benefit in your diet except to add extra calories that you just don't need! If sugar wasn't added to the foods they would have no taste .. Not like a fresh meal cooked from scratch at home!

Recently in the media sugar has been almost entirely blamed for the high instances of diabetes and obesity in Australia. In my opinion, sugar cannot be solely responsible for these numbers, but the increased amounts of refined sugars being added to foods is certainly not helping our addiction to sugary sweet foods and it is certainly not keeping us lean and healthy.

Enough of the serious stuff! Let's move on to the nitty gritty of Sugar Free September ... Fit Mum style! 

Last year I went hard core for the whole month ( except for one little slice of cheesecake for my sister's birthday ).  Have a read of last year's wrap up here. This time I'm not going to be quite so hard core. I'm going to let the reigns go just a little bit .. Not much but a little!

Here's my list of can eats and can't eats ...

A couple of notes to the above pic ...

• No artificial sweetners .. they're worse than the real thing!
• If you really want to you can use a SMALL amount of honey, maple syrup, golden syrup, agave nectar and stevia if you wish
• Watch out for the '...ose' ingredients ie glucose, maltose, dextrose etc
• Check out the ingredients on sauces, dressings etc .. The best option for dressing is just balsamic vinegar and a drizzle of olive oil
• Ultimately, do what works for you!  Something is better than nothing!
• Don't panic or stress about what you can and can't have that's not the point!

Number 1 rule .. Eat whole, fresh, unprocessed foods as much as possible!

Don't think that there will be nothing you can eat because this certainly won't be the case!  This is where you need to get creative! I'll post some of my favourite no sugar snacks and meals. I'm also going to do some more experimenting with baking with no sugar for the kids! I've had a few successes so I'll roll these out for you too!

Please remember that no one is perfect and making these changes will take some getting used to. All I'm asking is that you participate to the best of your ability.  

Being mindful of WHAT you are eating and what is IN the food you are eating is a great place to start!

Let me know by commenting if you will be joining me .. Don't be shy you won't be the only one!   Or, check in with Fit Mum on Facebook and let me know how you are going! There's already a hash tag on Twitter if you are following there #sugarfreeseptember.

Woohoo!! Who's excited to start Sugar Free September!!

Sugar Free September wrap up ...

It's been a few days since the end of my Sugar Free September Challenge and I haven't yet sat down to wrap up what the month was really like.  I've also had numerous questions from people amazed that I could go a whole month without sugar. 


" Do you feel different? "
" What are you going to do now? "
"How hard was it giving up sugar? "

Over the last week of the challenge, I found that I was starting to look forward to being able to have a treat .. dessert, a chocolate, biscuit etc.  Is this a sign that I am addicted?  I can't be .. I've barely noticed not having these things for a month and I certainly haven't looked for them or felt deprived that I haven't had them ... Must have been the excitement of being able to have something that I "enjoy" ...

I've also spent a little bit of time thinking about the questions that people had been asking me .. not because they were asked, but because I had thought of them myself first!

" Do I feel different? " ... No, I didn't feel that I had withdrawal from not having sugar or lollies, or cakes, or chocolate ... I had no miraculous bursts of energy ( when you find out how this happens, please forward this information to me immediately!! )

" Was it hard giving up sugar? " ... It didn't feel hard, like I said, no withdrawal ... I was just really conscious of the added / hidden sugars in foods ... they are EVERYWHERE!!! It's rather annoying actually ... I recommend, as I always do, eat whole, unprocessed foods .. as close to nature as possible and it's easier to avoid the added / hidden sugars.

" What am I going to do now? " ... The answer to this one actually came to me over the weekend .. after the challenge had finished ... 

                                      

There was no marching band or procession over the weekend.  Nothing special to signify the end of Sugar Free September ... nothing except the opportunity to have a few pieces of chocolate .. and a slice of cheesecake for dessert on Saturday night.  Wow!  I'm thinking about how fabulous it is to be able to choose that I can have chocolates and not feel guilty that I'm cheating myself ...

I had a few chocolates to celebrate on Saturday and I had that slice of cheesecake for dessert on Saturday night .. what you will be pleased to know is that I felt a bit bleh after the chocolates and the cheesecake pushed me right to the edge ... my belly was churning!!  So much for not feeling guilty .. I just felt ill!!

Sunday, I didn't fare much better .. Grandfinal night here and the boys desperately needed to watch the football, drink beer and eat hotdogs and drumsticks ... 

I didn't watch the football .. I didn't need to I could hear them screaming everything at the TV ...
I didn't drink beer .. the 2 small glasses of champagne the night before gave me a headache ( I know, clearly I have lost all fitness in this area ... )
I ate hotdogs ... yep, processed meat, must stop writing .. stomach churning again ...
I ate a Drumstick .. I knew as soon as I started unwrapping it that it was going to be a mistake ... 

I'm not going to elaborate any further .. needless to say, I feel worse now than I have for the last 4 weeks!!  I've even made the confessional phone call to my girlfriend ..  

MAKE THE BAD FOOD GO AWAY !!!! Shannon, I'm in sympathy with you here ....

So, all that being said ... " What am I going to do now? "

The verdict for me ... I will still use sugar at home .. in the baking, however I will be using alternatives when and where I can.  I'm going back to sugar free ... modified version ... I'm going to have a chocolate or dessert occasionally.  Oh, and I'm going to have that glass of wine, champagne or vodka, lime and soda .. of course, these will be celebratory only .. like the end of the week celebration!  No, I'm not going to be doing Ocsober!!

Why not give sugar free a go .. even a modified version .. say for a week .. you never know how it will make you feel!

Fit Mum x