I did it – I kicked sugar to the curb for one week. Seven looong days. Over Valentine’s Day, no less. I know this post is lengthier than usual; hang in there with me, and at least read my thoughts at the end.
Day 1:
Piece of cake – no pun intended. I missed the stevia in my coffee, but I didn’t have any cravings on the first day. I ate more fruit than usual instead of sugary snacks, and I had an apple with peanut butter and peppermint tea as an evening snack. I totally got this.
Day 2:
As I was standing in line at the Hallmark store, I thought, “Ooh, I can get one of the little Ghirardelli squares they sell at the counter,” and I smiled. Then I realized that I couldn’t, and I was sad. In Target, I was surrounded by Valentine candy, and I could not find one box of cereal that did not have sugar added. I suppose it’s oatmeal all week, then.
The rest of the day was fine. I had to nix the two teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce (it has sugar in it) that were supposed to be in my garlic chicken recipe, but I substituted soy sauce and no one was the wiser.
As we watched Swamp People tonight (don’t judge), I had my peppermint tea with two of the banana carrot oatmeal cookies I made on Day 1. I was not a fan – I’d rather go hungry.
yuck.
Day 3:
I haven’t had any physical symptoms of sugar withdrawal yet, but I don’t feel any different either. I thought I’d have so much more energy. I guess I had plenty to begin with – who knew? I am finding that my afternoon slump is lessening, though. I don’t have the overwhelming need for a 4:00 nap like I usually do.
I am really wanting chocolate. I’m like Pavlov’s dogs after every meal, smacking my lips for some of the good stuff. Instead I have a handful of blueberries. No offense, blueberries, but you are a sad imitation of my true love.
Matt came home from a conference with a huge tin of leftover desserts. I don’t even know what was in there; I wouldn’t open it. But I swear I heard “Let me out! Eat me!” coming from inside the container.
Day 4:
Snow day. Fabulous. My friend Amy K. posted a photo of a glass of wine and a chocolate bar on her Facebook page and said “Ready, set, SNOW!” I would gnaw off my left pinky finger for that bar.
I wanted something sweet badly after I spent an hour shoveling snow. Reheating roasted sweet potatoes sprinkled with pumpkin pie spice actually did the trick. Cinnamon (one of the ingredients in that spice mixture) is becoming my best friend this week.
It’s a sweet potato that was hiding in the back of my pantry.
I did resort to taking a deep inhale of the hot chocolate packet that James left sitting on the counter. The smell of perfection.
Day 5:
Valentine’s Day. Fabulous again. Matt knows better than to get me chocolate, and I got the kids those candy conversation hearts that hold no appeal to me at all. We had a yummy dinner of steamed shrimp and crab cakes, and watched The Neighbors while munching on popcorn. James had a box of Jujyfruits that he shared, but they don’t do it for me. If it were a regular week I would have had a few anyway – complete waste of calories. Going forward, I plan to choose my sugar wisely.
I think this is the first chocolate-free Valentine’s Day I’ve experienced since I was two years old.
Day 6:
I cheated a teeny tiny bit. We went to Chick Fil-A after James’ basketball game and I got the nuggets, which have one gram of sugar. A healthier option would have been a salad, but all the dressings have much more than one gram of sugar. I abstained from the ketchup, and I couldn’t even finish the nuggets. Believe it or not, they tasted too sweet.
I was worried about what I would eat for dinner when we took my parents to an Italian restaurant for their anniversary. I had a red sauce, which probably had some sugar in it, but it was the best I could do with a limited Valentine’s menu. It’s difficult to eat at a restaurant when you’re trying to stick to a strict diet.
I was dreading dessert – ice cream and mallomars. But it wasn’t as hard to say no as I thought it would be. That is when I knew that this sugar detox was working. I didn’t have the craving for dessert, and although I wanted it, I was able to pass without feeling too deprived.
Day 7:
What an idiot! I totally forgot I had Trader Joe’s pumpkin flavored coffee in my pantry; I could have been drinking that all week! No sugar added – just spices and pumpkin oil. And on Day 7, this was a huge treat.
The week ended without fanfare, and I went to sleep on the last night wondering how my body was going to react as I reintroduced the bad stuff.
Day 8 (Post detox):
I had a little stevia in my coffee this morning, and it wasn’t as good as I remembered it. I think I’m going back to no sweetener. I did buy unsweetened chocolate almond milk that is okay, but I prefer half and half. And even though I wasn’t restricted, I didn’t eat any added sugar beyond my beloved…
Come to mama.
I bought a bar of 72% dark chocolate, and had one square with my coffee in the afternoon. It was delicious. But again, it wasn’t as good as I had remembered it in my head. Of course I’m not giving up chocolate, but I think I will be better able to control my intake.
Final thoughts
This detox wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be, and it did open my eyes to how much added sugar is in so many prepared foods. I’m hoping I will be able to eat less going forward. Knowing that I did it once makes me feel mentally stronger – I can do it if I put my mind to it.
The American Heart Association recommends no more than six teaspoons of added sugar per day for most American women. That’s about 24 grams. Remember those Ghirardelli brownies that were on my Love List for February? A two-inch brownie has 21 grams of sugar. TWENTY ONE GRAMS.
That’s insane. But now I feel like I’m armed with the knowledge I need to make good decisions about what I eat. No more wasting part of my 24 grams on a bowl of Lucky Charms or a Vienna Finger. If I want something with sugar, it’s going to be chocolate.
Do you have a sweet tooth like I do? Have you ever done a sugar detox?
Sugar is my absolute downfall. I even have days where I feel like my body is telling me that I NEED OMG MUST HAVE sugar. My significant other doesn’t care for sweets so most of the time I run around feeling like some sort of crazed sugar harpy. I’d love to try going a week without sugar just to see if I can do it, but I’m afraid of the side effects. You definitely get mad props from me for finishing this detox!
Thanks, Nicole. It wasn’t as bad as I thought. I think I’m going to do it again soon since I’m already slipping back. I have managed to stay sugar-free with my coffee, though, and that’s an accomplishment!
OMG to Matt getting back from the conference with a tin of leftover sweets. You are STRONG, woman! I couldn’t do it. Even with dinosaur poop (which I totally have to show Ben). I’m a whole new level of impressed here. I am totally Pavlovian too and no meal is complete without something sugary. My closest attempt was making date and pecan balls my dessert. It worked for two days.
I’m giving up on those substitute desserts. If I’m going to eat something sweet, it won’t be bananas or dates. Just the good stuff please.
Great job, Dana! I used to take so much cream and sugar in my coffee that when dining out I’d have a giant (and embarrassing) pile of empty sugar packets and creamer cups. I cut the sugar out cold turkey. Not easy… Not sure I could do an entire sugar free week.
If you cut sugar in your coffee cold turkey, you could do the week, Mo. Not that you’d necessarily want to, but I think you could. Unless you had to cut out wine…
I’m a freak for sugar! I don’t know how to survive without it. You are definitely stronger than me. I’m proud to see you accomplish this challenge! 🙂
Thanks, Crystal – it was a big accomplishment for me. Now let’s see if I can make a permanent change…
Yay! Way to go! Cutting sugar (esp. chocolate) is VERY hard. If you can do it for a week and then use less after that, it’s wonderful! You could at least watch the white sugar intake. Go for Stevia, honey, real maple syrup or molasses instead. And dark chocolate rocks! I have IBS, so in an effort to control it, I went totally gluten-free three years ago. But I kept having issues, so I also went low-FODMAP. Okay for a while, but issues came back. I noticed that coffee and chocolate weren’t my friends either. 🙁 Long story short, my goal this year was to get to the bottom of my food sensitivities. I’m on day 18 of resetting my digestive tract with a strict elimination diet. Believe it or not, I’m only eating 3 vegetables, meats, and good fats & spices. No sugar, chocolate or coffee. I know your pain over Valentine’s Day. It does get easier, and my energy level is improving. Wild enough, my mouth, between eating, actually has a natural sweet taste in it all the time! Once a minimum of 21 days had passed, and I’m mostly symptom-free for five days in a row, I can start slowly reintroducing foods. I was looking forward to sweet things, but now I’m looking forward to things like eggs, avocado, potato, and fruit. I think I’ll be adhering to a Paleo way of eating after this, seeing how great my energy level and reduction in brain fog is now! I can imagine a square of dark chocolate will be heavenly!
Wow, Kristen, you’ve had quite a journey. I hope your digestive is successful and you find a diet that makes you feel good. I found a recipe online for no bake granola bars with all clean ingredients (and honey as the sweetener) – they are my new go-to treat in the afternoon. I’ve really learned so much through this experience, and I appreciate readers like you weighing in and sharing your own.
Oh Dana!!! I am SOOO PROUD OF YOU!!! And that coffee- oy. you could have had that ALL WEEK! But I am impressed that the chicken nuggets tasted too sweet, already your palate was changing. And now you don’t even need sugar in your coffee at all? I use stevia for iced tea, but need to try it in my coffee instead of raw sugar. I am SUCH a sugar freak- I’m really not sure I would make it. I can’t imagine how much I consume on a regular basis. I’m so glad you didn’t need that 4:00 nap! I AM ALWAYS ALWAYS TIRED THEN TOO!!! Usually people say it happens to them earlier- mine is inbetween 4-6 where I want to either sleep or sleep. 😉
I’m sure the fact that I go to bed too late has something to do with me being tired, too. I’m shocked at how quickly I got used to no sugar or stevia in my coffee. I’ve put it in a few times since the detox and it’s too sweet. Pretty amazing.
Interesting about going back to Stevia and it tasting different. I’ve done the Diet coke fast and after 3 or 4 weeks without it, I’ll have one, and it will taste so different that I start to wonder what I was crazing to begin with! good for you for doing this detox. I went years without eating any white sugar whatsoever . These days I’m not as cautious. But I really do feel better when I stay away.
I’m hoping I can make a permanent change, Ilene. I’m not using any sweetener in my coffee at home, and I found a recipe for a homemade granola bar that’s really good. Baby steps, but I feel good about taking them.
You are amazing! I don’t think I could do a complete sugar detox. I have an incredible sweet tooth… not just chocolate, but anything sweet. For the most part I don’t eat a lot of sweets, but something like the Christmas holiday filled with treats sends me into a sugar feeding frenzy that takes several weeks for me to get away from.
BTW, that Wegman’s 72% dark chocolate cacao is one of our favorites (my hubby is a certified chocoholic)!
That’s good to know, Debbie. I haven’t tried many different kinds, but if your husband gives that bar a thumbs up, I will stick with it!
Go you!!! I know how hard that is. I am a chronic soda drinker (regular Coke please) and every once and awhile I will decide that I’m tired of being Coke’s slave so I give it up. It’s HARD!!!!!!
I bet it is! I gave up soda (diet Coke) for the new year, but I was never really that into it so it wasn’t too difficult. Sounds like Coke for you is like chocolate for me.
WOW! I bow down to you! I have never tried giving up sugar, but we did take salt off our menu a year or two ago. Now we don’t crave it anymore (except for mashed potatoes!) and we rarely use it for anything. My husband used to salt each LAYER of food! As in, he would pour salt on his plate, eat the top layer of food and then salt the next layer! We don’t even keep salt on the table anymore! I’m not sure if I’, brave enough to give up sugar!
That’s great about eliminating table salt. I do think that’s a craving too, and it sounds like you got used to using less. If you did salt, you could do sugar – at least for seven days.
Dana, you have no idea how proud of you I am really! It can be so hard to do something like this! One of my blogger buddies wrote a post about how sugar is hidden in so many things. I think that actually makes me the most livid more than anything. It’s one thing to avoid the obvious sugar items like our chocolate, etc, but then they put it in things that you wouldn’t expect like ketchup? Ugh! LOL. I’m so glad you survived this! I have a peer who is about to do a raw food sugar detox diet for about 3 weeks. I get so excited when I hear people doing things like this 🙂
Thank you so much, Brittnei – I knew you would appreciate this. I’m so glad I did it, and I will definitely do it again if I feel like I need to reboot.
I have a sweet tooth when it’s that time of the month. Other than that, I usually have 2 tablespoons of sugar in my coffee and that’s about it for the day. My husband on the other hand… now that’s a different story, and I’m seriously debating getting him on sugar detox, although something tells me he would look at me like I’m crazy.
Maybe if you do it together he would be up for it – or at least think you were a little less crazy. But if he’s not motivated, it’s going to be an uphill battle for you!
i’ve been eating a box of girls scout cookies each day for the past few days. is that bad? 😉
Not at all! You can eat whatever you want. 🙂
I’m seriously impressed. I’m not sure if I could do it. Maybe I could. I could probably go without dessert type sweets but when you think of all the other stuff sugar is in, I think it would be really hard!
You could do it, Michelle. But you’re right – it was almost harder to eat the non-desserts because of the added sugar in EVERYTHING.
YOU SO ROCK. I’m not a big sweets person, but I’m a big salt person, so the whole time I was reading this, I was thinking “yeah, ok no chocolate” but then also thought about NO AFTERNOON STRING CHEESE snack and almost panicked. I think I need to do that version of it and great job, Dana!!! Seriously.
Thanks, Kristi. I think salt would be harder to give up completely – it’s in almost everything. You can have my string cheese anytime!
Good job! It truly is amazing how much sugar is in prepared food. I’m amazed you did it over Valentine’s – WILLPOWER rules 🙂
Thanks, Amy – I was pretty proud of myself 🙂
Wow! A while week without sugar. As I was reading your post I started thinking about all the stuff eat (and drink) that has sugar in it. You gave me a lot to think about. I’m going to ask a friend from work to do this with me next week. Fingers crossed!!
Sending you good vibes, Peggy – you can do it! It really was eye opening. Let me know how it goes!
Great job Dana. I may try this. After reading this post I began looking around at labels. Wow! Sugar is in so many things, 7 days would be a great way to try this out. I’m curious, did you lose any weight?
Barbara @ http://www.allmylivesnow.com
Sugar is one of my biggest struggles. I try to eat a lot of fruit, roasted sweet potatoes, plantains, and winter squash to satisfy my cravings. But I recently discovered Enjoy Life chocolate chips (they are dairy free) and I have eaten a whole bag in a week. I can’t buy another bag because I clearly can not control myself 🙂 I sounds like you are doing really good post detox.
So far, so good. But I’m much better when I’m eating at home – social situations are my downfall. And I know what you mean about chocolate chips – I keep the bag on the top shelf in the back so I have to make a big effort to break into them!
Congrats!!! At this point in my life all I’m craving is chocolate. Kudos and keep up the good work!
Thanks, Susan – I will try!
BOOM! Well done you 😀 I’m glad you managed it without finding it a huge drag. And now you’re seeing benefits, I assume – like not needing a nap.
I loved your thoughts in blue 😀
Thanks Lizzi, and thanks for being encouraging when I was starting. I am seeing the benefits – I just have to stay focused and not slip back into my old ways!
Congrats on finishing the sugar detox!! I’m not sure I would be able to do that. Does honey count as sugar? Are natural sugars okay, like the sugar in a raw piece of fruit? If I can have those things I might be able to pull it off. Great job! I think it’s awesome that you were able kick sugar in the butt!
For the detox, I couldn’t have honey or any artificial sweeteners, but I could have fruit, or any food that had sugar in it naturally. I didn’t think I could do it either, but I did!
As I sit here scarfing down M&M’s you are my hero. My hero. I don’t know if I could go totally sugar free.
You can do anything for a week, Kerri. But if you do it I’m stealing your m&m’s.
6 teaspoons?!?!?! No way. I am very impressed that you did this. I’m not sure I could. It is interesting, though, that you didn’t crave the sugar. I am trying to eat healthier, but it is really hard with picky eaters and busy schedules.
It is hard at dinnertime -that’s the only meal we eat together!
I still have a fair amount of sugar in my diet (in the form of honey and wine), but since moving to a whole food’s diet (no white flour, no refined sugars unless I make the baked good myself) I have much less a craving.
Even my kids are now drinking straight up seltzer since giving up soda. It’s craaaazzzzzyy! 🙂
That’s awesome, Julie. Fortunately, giving up soda was no big deal for me. My kids are a harder sell, but since I’m the one who does the grocery shopping, they have to eat what I give them!
You are brave and amazing. Going gluten free was easy for me. Sugar free? Never! Actually, since we went gfree we eat a lot more whole foods and not much processed so I don’t know if I’m really getting any sugar besides any chocolate I put in my mouth. 🙂
Going gluten free would be so hard for me, Kristina. Although maybe not as hard as I think. I ate Ezekiel bread instead of whole wheat bread, and that’s gluten free. I think that will be a permanent switch for me. Whole foods are really the best way to go – but it takes a lot of dedication!
Congratulations on kicking the sugar habit! I did this a few years ago, even eliminating fruit so it was really no sugar at all, and I was physically ill on day 3 from withdraw. That was a huge wake-up call.
Wow – I can’t imagine cutting out fruit too – I relied on my berries and apple/peanut butter as a sweets substitute. I can imagine what a wake-up call that would be.
Good for you! I had a huge sweet tooth but about a year ago, I cut way back. I haven’t been able to give up Stevia in the Raw and once in a while I’ll indulge in a hot chocolate from Starbucks and a Ghirardelli brownie when I am pmsing but since I lost 18lbs after giving it up, I don’t think I’ll ever go back.
I don’t think I could drink coffee without sugar. I go for the real thing – not a lot but, none? Yuck. You did amazingly well and it sounds like you learned a lot too!! Good for you! You really took it to the edge with the Worcestershire sauce too – wow. And who knew nuggets would be a better choice then salad? Don’t tell my kids!
That’s the funny thing – the choice with less sugar isn’t always the healthier one. And I never thought I could do coffee without sweetener, either, but after a week I got used to it. Now if I were having really strong coffee I’d have to use stevia, but my Keuring is old and makes a pretty weak brew.
Wow!! Great job on the sugar detox!! I didn’t realize that Worcestershire sauce had sugar in it – clearly I need to do a better job of reading labels.
I haven’t ever done a detox but maybe I should try 1 – the problem is I don’t crave sugar as much as salt and I’m afraid I will go overboard on the salt if I give up sugar (maybe that’s just an excuse though).
No, I think that’s a valid concern, Kim. Salt just isn’t my vice, so it wasn’t too much of an issue for me.
Ah, sugar. I’ve had a love-hate relationship with it my whole life. I finally discovered I can’t keep it in the house, that’s when I go overboard. If I’m at a restaurant and order dessert once every few months I’m good, but if it’s in the house I inhale it and it gets out of control. Sigh.
Good for you for detoxing from it! It actually gets easy to live without once you get over that first hump.
I’m with you – I can’t have it in the house. But I’m not the only one who lives here, so I do need a little willpower. And it has gotten a little easier, which was what I was hoping!
I’m impressed by how well you did especially when there was temptation. Do you think you’ll start doing the detoxes regularly?
Maybe – one a month or two as I need it, especially if I fall off the wagon.
I’m so proud of you! My attempt at a sugar detox was a big ole FAIL. But then again, as soon as I realized it was Valentine’s week, I kind of blew it off. I just get frustrated with myself because I’m never going to give up good dark chocolate (like you!) but I eat way too much crap food with sugar in it just for a quick fix.
I hear you – that’s what I’m trying to stop. Eating sugary food that I don’t even love, just because it’s easy and it’s there. You can always try again, Sarah!
This was awesome! Minus the crumbled old sweet potato poop shot. 😉 When I first started my blog three years ago I did a 21 day sugar detox. It was SO HARD. I seriously felt like there was no reason to live after dinner. It was like no dessert–what’s the point? I have come in and out of good and bad times when sugar since then. Mostly I’m able to keep things in check. The detoxes are good for seeing just how much we depend on the sweet flavor. *putting some stevia drops in the coffee as I speak*
Oh- a tip– sometimes after dinner I steam some almond milk and drop in a bag of decaf chai tea (a tea bag with spices, not a sugary mix). It’s really fragrant and delicious and soothing.
Twenty one days – wow. Thanks for the tip – I saw chai tea at Trader Joe’s yesterday and almost bought it. I’m trying really hard to not eat anything after dinner so that would help. I can always do another detox if I feel like I’m slipping back into old habits, right?
You are one sugar-defying mama! Glad you teamed up with Laura for the detox. I don’t know if I could do it. Sure, I’ll get out for a ridiculously long run, but waiting at the end is a giant fountain Coke. Loaded with bubbly, sugary goodness. And what about my ice cream reward for finally getting the girls to sleep? I don’t know if I could give it up! But I do try to make conscious choices and limit the amount of processed, packaged foods my whole family consumes. Way to go, Dana! You rock!
Thanks, Nicole. I’m sure you make healthy decisions with food – you need good fuel for all that running! And I think a fountain Coke is a fair tradeoff for a long run – it’s the millions of Americans who down three or four Cokes and never get off the coach that have to make some changes.
I’ve done a sugar detox and it was weird. I actually lost weight!
I think I’m like you – I always think, “I can get one of those Ghirardelli squares at checkout.”
Always.
I will say that when I was pregnant with Des, I learned more than I wanted to learn about sugar. Like that the drinks at Starbucks? Some of them have MORE sugar than the glucola drink they give you for your gestational diabetes test.
Disturbing!
It is disturbing, and I will definitely be more aware now. There is diabetes in my family, so it can’t hurt to be proactive now. And I think I may have lost a pound, which was an added bonus!
I love that last line and am with you if I am going to eat something not so good for me, it will totally be chocolate here, too! But seriously, huge congrats and way to go. I am seriously impressed and not sure I could go a week without sugar, hell I don’t even think I could go a day right about now!
You could do it, Janine, but the question is – why would you want to? 🙂
Wait….you can’t even have stevia??? 🙁 Aw, MAN. I always add stevia to my coffee. *sob* HOW AWESOME that even over a week, you were already craving sugar less and finding things like nuggets too sweet! That just goes to show you that your body really will adjust, if you do it. Wow!! I’ve never done a sugar detox, but your experience makes me feel like it would be a great thing to do! At the VERY least it would make me MUCH more aware of how much sugar is in “regular” things that I’d never think of…like ketchup or nuggets! YIKES!! Well done! (and thank you for labeling that back of the refrigerator sweet potato. I was really worried there for a minute!) –Lisa
You should see some of the guesses when I posted it on my Facebook page. One person was convinced it was a shriveled up critter of some sort.
Isn’t great that you’re not craving sugar as much as before? Didn’t realize how much sugar we’re allotted. Ouch! I’m not a big sugar fan at all but now I’m gonna be more conscious about it. Glad you made it through. I’m on week 3 of my 30 day smoothie challenge & it’s going well. Can’t wait to share with you all once I’m done.
That sounds interesting, Bianca. If you think of it, tweet me with the link when you write about it so I don’t miss it. I’d love to know more about it.