Personal Tragedy - The Betrayal of Slim Fast
Ok, not to rant, but I do want to mention Slim Fast. If I had a nickel for every Slim Fast I have used in place of a meal I would be rich! Oh the inhumanity of it all! All told, I replaced many, many breakfasts with Slim Fast. And quite a few lunches. And I suffered. I was constantly dealing with cravings, etc. Slim Fast has sugar in it. I would eat my little meals, and drink my Slim Fast and suffer. I could go weeks sometime before the call of the refrigerator got me.
So, if you want to be Sugar Free - You have to be Slim Fast free too!
I wish I knew then what I know now! Well, I don't! But the good news is I know now what can change my future!
Some Ecouragement!
Let's not fool ourselves. People who have weight problems know exactly what foods are good and what foods are bad. We are much more astute to food than people without weight problems.
There are dozens of reasons why people overeat. I don't mean to suggest that it is a simple problem and it is easily fixed. However, I know from personal experience that sugar certainly doesn't help overweight people. It can be blamed for nervousness, food cravings, etc. In my case, once the sugar was out of my body, I wasn't nervous. I haven't had a craving since. It was a major shock. I was so used to it. I spent my entire life since the first grade in a constant state of nervousness and craving. Denying my body sugar changed me in ways I never would have believed being possible.
If there is one thing someone with a weight problem can do it is start a new diet. We all have do it, some of us dozens of times. But this one is different.
I almost forgot - What to AVOID!!!!!!!!
• Table sugar, brown sugar, rock sugar, cane sugar
• Jam, marmalade, honey, kaya, syrup
• Sweets, chocolates, candy, ice cream
• Cakes and cream filled biscuits
• Sweetened desserts
• Canned fruits in syrup
• Ordinary squash, fizzy drinks and sweetened packet drinks
• Sweet wine and sherry
• Glucose and foods containing glucose
• Condensed milk
If you aren't sure - check the package. If sugar is listed in the first six ingredients then avoid.
Let's Talk About What a Sugar Free Diet is!
A “sugar free” diet is is the perfect choice when someone is trying to improve their health, and/or lose weight Another good reason is when one is found to be diabetic. Diabetes is a condition in which the body cannot use sugar normally. The food we eat provides our body with carbohydrates and sugar. These carbohydrates and sugars are then converted into glucose used by the body for energy. Normally, the glucose in the blood (blood sugar) is kept at a constant level. However in a diabetic, it rises above normal because a they lack a hormone called insulin which is produced by the pancreas (Insulin is a hormone that regulates our blood sugar levels, without it, our body is unable to use the blood sugar effectively). Eating an appropriate amount of carbohydrate or starchy foods which the body can cope with will help to rectify this. This amount differs from person to person.
So - to be sugar free (and thus healthier) one has to:
• Avoid sugar and sugary foods.
• Eat regularly (Skipping meals is a no no)
• Try to include starchy foods with each meal (eg. rice, noodleS, bread, potatoes)
• Choose foods high in fibre.
• Eat less fatty and oily foods.
What You Can Eat!
Suitable Foods
• Vegetables and salads
• Lean meat
• Fish
• Fruits
• Eggs and low fat dairy products in moderation
• Unsweetened drinks eg. tea, coffee, plain/mineral water, sugar-free soft drinks
• Salt, pepper, vinegar, spices and herbs
• Include one of these in every meal - rice, other cereals and grains ( eg. oats, bran,wholegrain), starchy vegetables (eg. potatoes, tapioca, yam, lotus root, corn etc.)
• The same amount of starchy or floury foods must be eaten at each meal
- This will help maintain a good sugar balance
• Have a variety of foods
• If you cannot eat because you are ill, then have plain biscuits and milk instead of a meal
NEVER MISS MEALS OR SNACKS
Welcome to the Sugar Free Wizard's Blog
Sometime during my 47th year on this planet I made a startling discovery! Maybe not startling or big to others, but to me it was enormous. I have been struggling with being overweight for nearly 40 years. I have been on every diet that has come along in the last few decades and no matter how well I did, I always ended up gaining more weight. It never failed. Talk about a never ending cycle of doom!
Every year I gained more weight. The difference between one year and the next may not have been much, but over time I grew, and grew, and grew. Finally, being 150 pounds overweight and suffering immensely I became depressed. As a matter of fact, I had become suicidal. My life was a nightmare because I had finally reached the point of saturation. I had exceeded my body's capabilities and was suffering.
I had become desparate. I knew I couldn't continue on like this. Everything hurt. My blood pressure was skyrocketing. Climbing one flight of stairs winded me! I honestly felt I had to come up with a solution quickly or I wouldn't see very many more birthdays.
My spouse heard of a group of people who met weekly who were operating a successful weight loss program. As much as it pained me, I decided to go. I knew I had to take action of some kind or just give up. I am so glad I went.
I left the meeting committed to one goal. To become abstinent! Or rather to abstain from eating anything with sugar or white flour in it. Now, I wasn't a believer then. I simply understood that I needed to do something or I was going to continue killing myself. Pure and simple. So when these folks started explaining what I had to do, I did it. Not because I accepted what they said about the evils of sugar and white flour, but because I had no where else to turn!
My goals were simple. To not eat, in any way, shape or form anything that contains sugar or white flour. Day One was easy. Day Two was a little tougher, but I was newly committed and I hung in there. Day Three was unlike anyday I had ever experienced. I had now entered the detox zone. My body wanted sugar. And it wanted it NOW! I felt so bad! Day Four - I was so ill. I felt horrible. I refused to eat anything. I just wanted to lay down and stay away from anyone and anything. What kept me going was the realization that removing sugar from my diet had caused me such grief! I was flabbergasted! Impossible! Day Five - I felt much better. More importantly, I had no desire to eat. I wasn't nervous. No cravings present. Talk about a shock. I spent 40 years in a constant state of craving. It was gone. The whole thing was
quite dramatic for me!
After Day Five I became NORMAL. What I mean by this is I no longer had cravings, yens, or the need to eat outside of my normal sugar and flour free menu. I had become a new person.
I could now drive past a fast food restuarant or 7-11 store without stopping. I didn't overeat. I had suddenly developed the eating patterns of healthy and thin people. My nervousness was gone. Food was no longer a priority! The most exciting thing for me was the fact that I ate because I was hungry - you know - stomach empty. I just wasn't used to being hungry. I never ever came very close to having an empty stomach. What a big change I had underwent!
Now, I have to be honest and tell you that I did have remorse. If only I had discovered that I had an inability to handle sugar years ago. My life would have been very different indeed. It took me some time and heavy thinking, but I have come to realize that while I can't change the past, I have definitely changed my future!
I started this blog on Day 72. I don't think of myself as dieting. I only really did a one thing, and I consider it to be a lifestyle change. Not a diet. It isn't about dieting. I understand now that sugar is my enemy. I have chosen to remove sugar and white flour from my diet. And I have been showered with plenty of positive reinforcement without even seeking it!
The day I made this lifestyle change I weighted 342 lbs. 72 days later I weight 293 lbs. I have lost 49 lbs. I have been on many diets and I suffered during them all. Once my body got used to being sugar free (Day 5) I haven't experienced one negative feeling. No cravings. No feelings of missing anything. I do, for the first time in my life, feel like I am in control of my eating. I eat when I am hungry and need to eat. It is simply a chore I have to do every day, just like taking a shower, and nothing more. I have had high blood pressure for 15 years and needed to take a daily medication. If I skipped a couple of days of not taking my prescription for some reason, I really paid for it. But not anymore. My blood pressure has been excellent for over a month and I no longer am taking it!
So here I am. Day 72 of being sugar and white flour free. I haven't felt this good in many, many years! The only negative that I have encountered so far is clothes. Nothing fits anymore. And I mean by alot. My entire wardrobe is too big. My favorite shirts and jeans only fit the person I used to be! This is a unique experience for me because I am used to my clothes growing tighter over time - not looser. Who would have thought that 49 lbs would have made such a difference!
