The first day is the hardest.

Baby I know! The first day is the hardest... Hopefully you're all in tune with me. So, yesterday was my first day being "sugar free."

But oh ho! What's this? When I arrived at work there was half a sheet cake leftover from Friday sitting on the counter. And like the elixir in Alice in Wonderland, it seemed to be begging me to eat it. My will power when it comes to crappy store bought frosting is nil. Put the fanciest wedding cake in front of me and I can ignore it for days. But give me that low quality, lard based, pure sugar creamy airy goodness and I am a goner!!!

Time spent sugar free: approx 2 hours. Whew. And I am spent!

Fortunately, I have not let that spin into a "OK I'll eat all the sugar I want this week and then NEXT week start fresh!" I just put my skinny cap on this morning and said NO MORE.

I've also found that telling everyone and their mother about what you are embarking upon is helpful. But only if they are supportive and not negative about it. I've told everyone in my office and while some are trying to tempt me with M&M's, no one has scoffed and said "Yeah right." I had one coworker that used to do that and, being the sucker for peer pressure that I am, his attitude made me give up before I even started! Fortunately, he has since left the company.

But don't let anyone tell you you can't do it! And if they do, use that as motivation to do it with more gusto! Don't let those pig nosed, small minded, artery clogged snobs slow you down! Just think about come June when you are lounging in your bathing suit, all tight bodied and glowing, while they are hovering on the beach in their t-shirt. *laugh evilly with me*

So, day one is almost fully completed. The first week is always the hardest. First day seems pretty easy because you've got the sugary taste from yesterday's "last supper" lingering in your tastebuds. Days 2 and 3 will be a little tougher, but I promise, if I can do it, so can you!

Remember to focus on just this one thing if you're trying to make genuine lifestyle changes. Normally I work out 3 days a week. This week I'm even taking a break from that to just channel all my energy into accomplishing this one goal, while being good to myself. I'm not beating myself up for not going to the gym. When I start to have those negative thoughts I counter them with a, "But I haven't given in and eaten sugar!" (as you can see, this is only valid one day thus far. Hey, it's much more pleasant going through life as an optimist.)

To be continued.....

The Last Supper

Many people find themselves experiencing this mentality when they are about to go on a "diet":

SFG: Self, I am going on a sugar free diet tomorrow. Thus, I should eat as much sugar as I can tonight, because I'm NEVER going to eat it AGAIN.
*run screaming to the nearest Coldstone*

C'mon, 9 out of 10 of you know what I'm talking about. It's "The Last Supper." But looking at it from this point of view, doesn't it sound just a tad bit ridiculous? Really? You're going to go through the next 50+ years without ever eating sugar AGAIN?

Now I can sit here in my glass house and throw stones, but instead I'll openly admit it: I had an extreme mocha ice blended, 2 chocolate chip cookies, and a Love it! sized Oreo Overload from Coldstone that I justified by using this mentality. Guilty. As. Charged.

The problem lies in the approach. Instead of making this vast blanket statement that I'm never going to eat sugar again, let's break this down into smaller more manageable pieces. Like the long division problems I used to do with my dad at the dining room table. If we tried to do it all at once, a screaming match usually resulting in my grounding for multiple days would ensue. If we took it one step at a time, not only did we finish the homework with my name still in his will, but I also actually learned something!

How does the math problem relate to the sugar addiction? I'm glad you asked. The key is to break it down. Instead of this:

SFG: "Self, I am not eating anything sugary ever again!"

Try this:

SFG: "Self, I am not eating anything sugary for breakfast."

Not only does this not seem quite so insurmountable, but you also get that warm fuzzy feeling of accomplishment when you achieve this goal. And then you embrace that warm fuzzy feeling and decide, "Hey, I'm not going to have 3 mini candy bars for my mid-morning snack." It's a slippery slope, my friends! Next thing you know you're eating lunch sans ginormous cookie some client sent in a gift basket.

The key to any succesful "diet" is baby steps. As much as the folks on The Biggest Loser want you to believe it, rarely are people able to maintain the habits they are forced into on the show. It's just not realistic to expect someone who hasn't exercised since the Jane Fonda era to suddenly be able to maintain the workout routine they've created in this false environment.

And on that note, I say bring on the Cheez-Itz. There's got to be some reason to get up in the morning!

A Life Without Sweet....or a Sweet Way of Life?

Whitney Houston once said, "Crack is cheap. I make too much money to smoke crack. Crack is whack." I, on the other hand, am the complete opposite: I don't make enough money to develop a crack habit. And besides, being the dutiful graduate of my 5th grade DARE program and classic type A parent pleaser that I am, the thought of taking illegal drugs terrifies me. However, there is still a white crystal that has complete control over my life.

I'm talking SUGAR, people. The sweetness of life. The disaccharide of delicious. Whatever you call it, don't call it later for dinner. Err...dessert.

I have tried many things to control my endless sweet tooth. Including a seven year struggle with eating disorders. I, fortunately, with a lot of work and help from others, overcame the principal issues of my disease, but one things remains: I am still a slave to sugar.

Well my friends, it is time to change that! I have used sugar as a crutch for too long. Had a bad day? Eat some ice cream. Did a great job at work? Cake to celebrate! A great workout? I earned a bag of M&M's! But today I say, NO MORE.

I'm giving up sugar. Well, most of it. I'm talking the blatant out and out junk food that so destroys my quest for a healthy, balanced diet. For example:

~ chocolate chocolate chip cookies from my favorite bakery
~ Coldstone Creamery
~ "protein" shakes from the gym (made with frozen yogurt)
~ martini's from my favorite bar (ooooh, that one hurt)
and, my favorite part of a meal out,
~ dessert (can you hear my sobs echoing?)

But! Not one to dwell on the negative, let's look at all the GOOD things I can eat and the other semi-good things I refuse to cut out of my diet:

~ fresh fruit
~ greek yogurt sweetened with honey
~ Propel water (lemon flavored, thank you)
~ Pinkberry (for those of you not in LA, this is an amazing yogurt chain that serves plain frozen yogurt with fresh food. Yes, it probably has added sugar, but a heck of a lot less than my dear Coldstone. And a girl has to keep her sanity!)
~ cottage cheese based pudding

So this doesn't sound so bad, right? And let's think about the benefits: no more post late night sugar binge hangovers, no more cursing myself for eating half a pint of Ben & Jerry's Phish Food in bed, and no more $6 protein shakes that provide little protein and lots of empty calories. Right, this is gonna be great!

I'll start Monday.