sugar is NOT my friend

So a while back I blogged to you about my NO SUGAR CHALLENGE (I feel the need to add a little gravitas to the title) and I managed to keep that up for months and this weekend I fell off the wagon. Hard. The absolute crap it has made me feel like has inspired me to write a little bit about why sugar is so bad and why I should start the NO SUGAR CHALLENGE MONTH again from tomorrow (last time it started as a month and then just carried on; I like this method as indefinitely just seems too much but at the end of a month your eating habits have just changed - it's all psychological). First things first - I forgive myself for munching those sugary treats this weekend; I am considering it a break from sanity and healthy eating!

The thing that I was most asked about, when I mentioned the NO SUGAR CHALLENGE in the blog discussion wall coffee shop thingy, was how do I avoid sugar. Most people, if not all, considered it completely impossible - so let me briefly explain how I avoid sugar.
1) I eat fresh fruit and veg (a bit of a cliche these days) wherever possible
2) I exchange sugary items with no-sugar alternatives (beware of "low fat" anything - usually they're loaded with sugar); my example of this is switching my soya milk for light soya milk, which has no sugar
3) When I have items of processed food, such as cereal, I eat completely sugar free such as rice puffs by rude foods instead of rice krispies.
4) Snacks, which I have between every meal, are usually cashew nuts (just a few) or some fruit (apple, banana, a smoothie - fruit sugars are essential!)
- and a new rule I have added after this weekend -
5) avoid bakeries at all costs

Motivation for why it's a good idea to cut out processed sugars can be found in all the reasons why sugar is bad for you...

1) Sugar is calories - fat in the human body is laid down from sugar intake, and not from fat intake.
2) Sugar in any quantity alters your blood sugar levels and causes your glands to work overtime to balance this out; sugar highs inevitably lead to sugar lows; these lows make you feel hungry when you're not and, in the case of me this weekend, cause you to visibly shake!
3) Sugar is addictive; once I've munched a little bit I have to have more. I don't know any other food that has that effect on me.
4) There are a wide variety of sweeteners in foods these days, none of which am I using as alternatives to sugar - sweeteners such as Aspertame (originally labelled as a poison until someone noticed how sweet it tasted) are hideously bad for you! (online search it).
5) The human body's urge for sugar comes from the necessity for Vitamin C; fruits have known this for a long time which is why they have lovely natural sugars to attract us to eating them. Our sweet tooth is really a craving for vitamins!
6) I have already gone without sugar for a few months and felt amazing. My energy levels were balanced and my diet was healthier. My body became leaner and my sometimes tetchy stomach was much happier.

I think those are pretty good reasons to try the NO SUGAR CHALLENGE for a month. Roll on tomorrow, I know I can do this again! :)