Sugar Free(dom)

I didn't realize I had not updated on my Sugar Eradication post. The two weeks was easier than one would think. I didn't have to decide anymore - the decision was already made. I wasn't eating sugar. For instance, someone brought in cookies one day. I normally would have taken one, then had to decide if I was going to eat it before or after breakfast. How long I would try to hold off before eating it. If it wasn't amazing, would I throw it away or finish it? If it was amazing, would I go back for a second one? (Sometimes even a third?) How soon could it be appropriate to go back for the second one? And how long would I let it sit on my desk before I ate it?

This internal dialogue would happen sometimes several times a day, as I was confronted with sugary temptations at every step of my day. I did a great job at keeping these things out of my house but honestly, I spend less than half of my time there and most of it is spent sleeping. So skipping to the end result saved me that entire conversation with myself. And I realized that my battle was not with choosing to eat it, it was how much I felt I deserved to eat. And I didn't feel that I ever really deserved it because the weight of all the donuts, bagels, slices of cake, pieces of bread, servings of pasta that I had ever eaten before weighed heavily on my conscious, and I wasn't fully enjoying whatever I was splurging on in that moment.

I didn't have any withdrawals - the biggest obstacle was just deciding to quit. And let me tell you, it was the most freeing decision. I was free from sugar and it's addictive hold on me. And at the end of two weeks, while I did lose a few pounds, the biggest change was in my thought process about food, specifically treats and foods I knew were splurges, and my cravings for them. First, I didn't want them like I did before. I stopped having a ravenous appetite for them. In fact, I was craving my protein, my vegetables, my healthy fats. I could pass up something that I knew I didn't really want or need - even at parties and events! And those times that something came up that I knew was amazing or I really wanted to taste, I could - and stop at a bite or two. And often even that was too cloyingly sweet for me. I feel as if my system has been reset. My ideas of portions for treats are appropriate now; there is no way I could down a big bowl of ice cream or have a large piece of cake at this point.

I am looking forward to seeing how my cholesterol has been affected too. At last check it had crept up to 190 (very high for me - it can be as low as 150 for me normally) and there is increasing evidence of sugar consumption being linked to high cholesterol levels (among other heart related diseases).

*UPDATE* My cholesterol had dropped back down to 157 when it was checked in August.