Sayonara Sugar!

     
     I'm giving up sugar. 
     Let that sink in a moment. Because I mean, we live in America. The land of apple pie. And cake and ice cream and cookies and...
     Now, I'm planning right now to only do it for a month. Thirty days. Starting September 19. Why that day, you ask? Because it's the day after my husband's birthday and you better believe I am eating one last piece of cake. 
     I'm not going to go crazy or anything. I've done a little research online and there are people who cut out basically everything because sugar has been included in practically every food on the planet. But I don't think that's realistic for me. I need to start small. I'm not going to start shopping at Whole Foods and using agave nectar or anything like that. I'm not going to cause our grocery bill to sky-rocket. I'm just going to try my best to avoid the white stuff and be mindful of sugar in various prepackaged foods that I eat. I'm not going to cut out fruit or stress about the sugar in spaghetti sauce, for instance. I think the hardest things for me to give up are going to be ice cream and coffee creamer. 
     The reason I'm doing this is because I have really noticed how sugar affects me lately. It's basically my gateway drug. Once I eat sugar, I start craving other sugary and not so sugary foods and I overeat and I get a sugar high and then I crash and it's just not a pretty picture. Too long have I used sugary foods to comfort me when I'm upset or lonely or to reward myself. And I have practically trained my body to think that no dinner is complete without dessert.
     And as I was making Owen's baby food using organic fruits and vegetables the other day, I tasted some and marveled at the deliciousness of just plain no-sugar or spice added food. And I wondered why I cared so much about what I put in his body without worrying about what I put in mine. 
     I have been hovering at my pre-pregnancy weight for a couple months now, but I'm not where I want to be. I have been working out three times a week for the last couple weeks, but I want to try and get my eating in check too. I know it's going to be hard, but I'm hoping with the support of my husband and some accountability from posting this on my blog, I can do this. 
     Anyway, I will keep you posted as I start this journey. And let me know if you want to join me!


The above picture was taken by Suat Eman and was downloaded from freedigitalphotos.net.