The 'Towards a Sugar-Free Future' Challenge

hazeldreams

Pollybear said:

I still don't understand magazine articles about medication that stops you feeling hungry.   What's feeling hungry got to do with anything?  It's purely a terrible craving for whatever food you're susceptible to (chocolate for me) that you sometimes just can't cope with.  I have no discipline if it's in the house so I just have to try not to buy it.  Today I could murder a big bar of Cadburys Dairy Milk, I'm not sophisticated,  but I haven't bought it.   I'll worry about tomorrow when it comes!

This just made me lol. This is so me. Being hungry isn't the problem! I wish it was, it might be easier to manage then!

Honey_Bear

Being restrained by a broken ankle has some advantages.  I weighed myself the day before it happened, 68.2kgs.  I weighed myself this morning, 10 weeks later - 67.2kgs.  I'm delighted, but puzzled - I used to walk a mile most days, was active around the house, was walking the Dartmoor Way and clocked up 8 miles, 12 miles and 16 miles over a couple of weeks and couldn't lose weight.  Belovéd controlling my food intake, and me being a bit reluctant to ask for things and I lost a whole kilo. 

Pollybear

It's strange isn't it?  Sometimes I have been "good" for days on end and put on weight.  Another time I have chocolate and lose a bit.  Maybe you've lost a bit of muscle Honey over the last 10 weeks.  

Mostly I can have something like one biscuit and put on a pound.  I refuse to believe there are 3500 calories in a custard cream

Honey_Bear

Polly Bear I've never believed that anything that has as much iron as dark chocolate can have any calories at all, but apparently my beliefs about science aren't valid.  It should be allowed to just be nutritious and have done with it.  I'm right up there with you regarding custard creams - no biscuit should have 3500 calories in them.  That's just wrong.  (I never liked them even as a child, so I've been spared that temptation, thank goodness.) 

And you're right, I have lost muscle mass in my legs and I'm really ticked off about it.  I may have a pillowy tummy but my legs and bum have been firm for several years because of the dog walking.  Getting a bit fitter was one of the many factors in my choice to have a dog 15 years ago and my biggest regret with adopting older, calmer, quieter dogs (which is entirely my choice) is that they sometimes can't manage more than a mile so they can't come with me on hikes now that I've graduated to wanting to do that.  The exercise bike is helping and things are tightening up a bit but it's boring and uncomfortable so I'm sticking to 30 minutes a day.

Not a bad weekend sugar-wise.  Belovéd treated us to a small carrot cake so I had a slice with my afternoon tea on Saturday and Sunday and a m@gnum both days too.  Knowing I've lost a smidge despite being hors de combat has been a real motivator even if I can't claim any credit. 

We're off to London tomorrow and back on Wednesday which are High Days, obviously, and after the past 10 weeks we both really need to be able to enjoy this.  We've planned it very carefully to minimise the complications so there will be treats. 

How did everybody else do - anyone else got an excellent reason to allow a bit of indulgence?

Pollybear

I'm not a particular fan of custard creams but my husband is and so they are in the house which can be a problem sometimes!

Hope you have a good few days in London, Honey, and your ankle holds up well.

cookie02

hazeldreams said:

Pollybear said:

I still don't understand magazine articles about medication that stops you feeling hungry.   What's feeling hungry got to do with anything?  It's purely a terrible craving for whatever food you're susceptible to (chocolate for me) that you sometimes just can't cope with.  I have no discipline if it's in the house so I just have to try not to buy it.  Today I could murder a big bar of Cadburys Dairy Milk, I'm not sophisticated,  but I haven't bought it.   I'll worry about tomorrow when it comes!

This just made me lol. This is so me. Being hungry isn't the problem! I wish it was, it might be easier to manage then!

Me too, Hazel!  You have described exactly how I'm feeling this week, Pollybear.  Last night, despite not being hungry at all, I ended up eating cake.  Two slices! They were smaller slices than before so it was ok.  Today, I've had a big lunch and I'm not hungry at all but I'm still thinking about cake.  I would love to get through today sugar-free but I'm not sure if I'll make it...

Congratulations on the weightloss, Honey_Bear - have a lovely trip!  No High Days here this week but the temptation is very present and I may need to go back to the beginning and reset with 1/2 days a week and build back up to 4.75. 

Hope everyone is having a great week and good luck with your goals 🍀.

Honey_Bear

I only graduated to a smartphone a few months ago and yesterday it appears I finally managed to do something that apparently all 3 year olds would have been able to do straight away. So, I can now log in to MSE on my mobile. Yay me!
So, Beloved made us a sandwich for the train, very MSE, and also remembered to pack the leftover slices of carrot cake to have with our afternoon tea. Fab. Very High Day of him.
This really is a treat.

cookie02

Glad you are enjoying your trip, Honey_Bear!  

Yesterday, I ate a small square of brownie.  I enjoyed it thoroughly and it was worth losing my sugar-free day over.  It also meant that I stopped obsessing over sugar and dreaming of sugar for the rest of the day so I'm not complaining.  I've managed to be sugar-free so far today and, in better news, I haven't been thinking about sugar all morning.  I had a recent email from that ZOE project re: their Intermittent Fasting (IF) study.  I was planning to sign-up, largely out of curiosity to see if it is having any positive impact or not.  However, in the last couple of weeks, I've been feeling hungrier in the mornings so I might wait and see as I've fallen off the IF wagon right now.  Do any of you do this and, if so, have you found that it works for you?  The study is open for anyone in the UK so you can sign-up, if you are interested (it is on their main page). 

How is everyone doing?  Have a great day ☀️ 

Makingabobor2

I'm quite a newbie to MSE land but have discovered this challenge and would love to join in, as I think its just what I need.
 I have been trying to cut out too many cakes, biscuits & chocolate for ages now, without much success.  I am not overweight, in fact, if anything I am actually a bit underweight for my height, but I know that too much sugar is making my digestive system worse and making my IBS worse.  I can go for several days with maybe just 1 biscuit or 1 square of dark chocolate (which I like to have as apparently it has benefits), but then one day I'll just keep craving more & more.  Tried not buying it, but as we are within walking distance of shops, that plan didn't work

So the goal is not to completely give it up altogether, but to only have maximum 1 square good quality chocolate a day (which actually is not that high in sugar) and only have cake or biscuit on a weekend or when we are on holiday as a treat. I do worry about my body being too acidic, and actually bought some test papers, but not started using them yet. Its definitely my future health that concerns me the most, not my weight, as I've never put on weight apart from when I was pregnant, and that's a LONG time ago. 

So I thought if I joined this challenge than I would be more motivated as I can't come on here and lie about what I've eaten. Also I might pick up some tips along the way.  It seems, from reading so far, that you are all doing very well. 

Pollybear

Welcome making and good luck.   Unfortunately for most of us it's not always a straightforward road but we keep picking ourselves up and keeping going