Week 1: Cut out sugar!

Fitness & Food

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week_1_fitness_challenge

Welcome back, fitness challengers! It’s our official week 1 start of the 12 week Tone Up and I hope you’re ready to make some great healthy changes!

I leaked our first challenge in the intro post last week so you already know…

WEEK 1:

Eliminate Sugar!

Guys, I don’t have a ton of unhealthy habits: I don’t drink or smoke, I sleep a reasonable amount of time (most nights) and I eat vegetables.  But sugar is my kryptonite! And I know I’m not alone.  We consume MASS quantities of it here in America and in most of the Western world. It’s in everything and (besides alcohol) it’s our favorite thing to consume in social settings.  It’s nice to have on special occasions (I’m gonna apologize ahead of time for a post coming later this week that’s full of sweet Easter treats!) but I, for one, eat it WAY more often than that!

We already know the sweet stuff is bad for us: it’s toxic, creates imbalances, taxes our pancreas and is extremely addicting.  But wouldn’t it just be easier to cut back, you ask?

Maybe, but cutting all of it out is simpler.  It’s just one week.  You can do just about anything for 7 days!  Except be in labor, that would kill you.  This will only make you stronger!

The trick is to reset our bodies so that even small amounts of sugar taste sufficiently sweet to us again.  Not only are we cutting desserts and candy, but also eliminating any other food that contains sugars: soda, jam, breakfast cereals and snacks.  Be sure to check all your labels and watch for other names of processed sugars, like high fructose corn syrup or cane syrup.   Don’t forget to check your condiments! Ketchup and salad dressing are common culprits.

askdrernst

Click the image above to read more about the dangerous effects of too much sugar in our diets, plus all the various names sugar can hide behind in your food.

And please, please, PLEASE don’t replace it with fake sugars!  If an excess of real sugar will cause problems, we don’t even want to start talking about the dangers of consuming artificial sweeteners.  We’re talking CANCER, here guys.  That stuff is no joke.  (If you need an excuse to kick diet soda, read this scary article about apartame.  Did you know consuming diet soda can actually cause you to eat more??  Yikes!)

I’m personally eliminating any added sugars, even natural ones like honey and agave.  I want a total reset!  But this part is up to you…I’ve found that the quicker I can wean myself off the daily need for something sweet, the quicker I feel better.  But if having a little honey here and there keeps you away from the donuts, then do what works!

Lastly, when trying to avoid sweets, I notice that I want them the most when I’m hungry (duh).  If I’m staying on top of my hunger and eating healthy snacks and meals regularly, then my blood sugar never plummets and I never find myself contemplating a swim in a lake of molten chocolate.  Be sure to stock the house with lots of prepped veggies, lean proteins and some good healthy fats to avoid feeling starving.

Ok, that’s it!  I’d love to hear what everyone’s biggest weakness is when it comes to sugar…please comment here or on Facebook and tell me what sweet treat is hardest for you to kick!

Ready for Week 2?  Here it is!

 

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7 Comments

  • Reply
    Audrey
    March 14, 2016 at 10:00 am

    Only one week? And I started with your post last week? I thought it was 12 weeks and mentally prepared myself for that. Hmmmm, I think I’ll do at least 2…
    And chocolate is the hardest thing for me to cut out!

    • Reply
      Bonnie
      March 20, 2016 at 10:48 pm

      Haha – you are just an overachiever Audrey! I’ve done a couple of weeks so far and it definitely takes me a couple to get it all out of my system and start feeling better! You’ll have to let me know how long you make it 🙂

  • Reply
    Heidi
    March 14, 2016 at 5:51 pm

    From a biological perspective, cutting out fruit (just for the sugar detox) is a good idea too. Don’t get me wrong, fruit is great and healthy, but it raises insulin levels just like other sugar would. So during the detox stage, steering clear of fruit helps too. Anyway, I’m a huge fan of detoxing from sugar. I mean I hate DOING it, but once done, things that used to be just right are waaay too sweet for me.

    • Reply
      Bonnie
      March 20, 2016 at 10:51 pm

      I’m sure you’re right. I love it when I get to the point where just fruit or really dark chocolate is plenty sweet for me…instead of desserts with buckets of sugar in them! Even though most Americans eat WAY too much desserts in general, there are so many sneaky sugars in our diets too!

  • Reply
    Amy
    March 20, 2016 at 10:37 am

    One tip/trick that works for me is making sure I have some quality dark chocolate on hand. When I am cutting out sugar, knowing that I can have 1-2 pieces of the good, dark stuff helps make it so much easier to leave the junk behind. I know, I know. One would argue that adding in dark chocolate is NOT cutting sugar. And maybe this plays to the psychology of will power, but knowing that I am not totally deprived helps me.

    Also, for later on, after the sugar cravings have subsided, I do something I call the “S” rule: no Sugar or Sweets unless I’m being Social AND it is Saturday or Sunday. This helps me keep the sugary stuff where I think it should be: in times of celebration and socializing, not because I’m bored or lonely on a Tuesday night.

    Good luck cutting the sugar! It can be done!

    • Reply
      Bonnie
      March 20, 2016 at 10:54 pm

      Yes! I agree with the dark chocolate, 100%! I made a granola this week that was kinda savory but also had cocao nibs in it and it was amazing! Sometimes that chocolate taste just helps 🙂 I really like your S rule too…except does sitting in front of the TV with your husband count as being social?? ha!

  • Reply
    12 Week Tone Up: Introduction • Whisk 'Em
    July 26, 2017 at 8:56 am

    […] Find Week 1 here! […]

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