Hi, how’s it going? This blog is about setting and achieving goals. Not just ordinary goals, but extraordinary goals, Check out my current goal list here, or browse through some of the articles below.
We now know (if we didn’t already), that sugar is evil. If we want to have any hope of lowing our body fat percentage then eliminating sugar from our diets is going to be a big step in the right direction.
1. You’ll have more energy and be more productive
Believe it or not you’ll actually have more energy if you completely avoid sugar. Sugar in it’s refined state is not friendly to our body’s digestive system. The more sugar we eat the more our bodies have to work to deal with it. Any energy that is gained from sugar is short-lived, and it creates such a spike in our insulin levels it’s like trying to quench your thirst by drinking from a fire house on full bore.
2. You’ll feel less sluggish in the afternoon
Do you ever experience that annoying tired feeling in the early afternoon? I know I did, and it was something I’d come to expect/learn to live with. After removing sugar (and grains) from my lunch meal however, I’ve come to realize that it isn’t actually normal. Instead of your body having to work hard to get your blood/sugar levels back to a normal level, your body can coast along and its resources can be used on more beneficial things like the work you are doing. Sound good? It does to me!
3. You’ll be able to appreciate more subtle tastes
The thing with sugar is that it is such a heavy taste it dominates the various tastes we are eating. By removing sugar, things may seem rather bland to begin with, but over time we’ll start to appreciate tastes that we would not even be able to identify when our food was saturated with sugar.
4. You’ll be in control of your diet (and therefore your body)
After a couple of weeks your sugar cravings will start to subside. You’ll no longer yearn for the white cocaine-like powder, so when others feel like a cake or soft drink, you’ll be happy with an apple or orange. You’ll also be able to appreciate cheat meals, without eating harmful amounts of sugar as you’ll be satisfied by smaller helpings. These days sometimes just one piece of chocolate can be enough for me.
5. You’ll waste less money
Cans of Coke, chocolate bars, cakes, cookies, confectionery… all these things will no longer be on your shopping list. You’ll be walking straight past the vending machine at work as you watch other employees bending over to pick up their mid-afternoon chocolate fix. Just dig your hands into your pocket and feel those coins that are still yours to spend/save (I recommend saving).
6. You’ll be able to get rid of any yeast infections you may have
Candida is a yeast infection that almost everybody in the Western world has but probably doesn’t know it. It feeds on sugar and if you’ve ever had antibiotics in the past you’re most probably suffering from Candida to some extent. Cut off the life blood from it and you’ll cut out this problem, or at least keep it at bay (your body can quite healthily deal with a small amount in its system without a problem).
There are other advantages I could go on to list, such as sleeping better, avoiding extra dental fees, having a better skin complexion, but I wanted to list just those that will be applicable to everyone. No matter who you are, if you stop eating sugar for good, you will enjoy the benefits listed above.
Have I gone off sugar completely?
Well, no. I avoid it whenever possible but now and again I do eat it, and I enjoy it too. But most of the time I actually prefer to use healthier sugar substitutes such as honey or maple syrup. Almost all baking recipes out there can be made by substituting sugar with honey.
Take note: You may experience flu-like symptoms if you completely shut off from eating sugar. This happens as your body finally has a chance to get rid of toxins which have stored up in your body. Headaches are quite common as well. Don’t go out and get medicine, just ride it out and in a day or two you’ll feel a lot better.
Related Articles:
Sugar Is Evil – 3 Facts Which Prove This!
Comment by Nikhil Murthy
14 April 2009
This is an interesting article…. I have been off refined sugar for a few weeks and it feels great. However, you probably shouldn’t mention that if people feel sick when they get off sugar, they should “ride it out”. People who might be diabetic could potentially pass out and die due to low blood sugar..
Be sure to always check with your doctor first..
Comment by Chuck
27 April 2010
Thank you! I was wondering why I felt so ill during the first days of elimination.
Comment by Lynn Finn
18 September 2010
I have been off sugar for 11 months…and
most carbs…I have lost 75 pounds…..
Would have been more but I do enjoy my
cocktail after work…..NO sugar of anykind but I do know that alcohol turns to partial
sugar in the blood…at any rate I feel like
a different person….Energy and not sleepy
in the afternoons anymore….IF I was to eat
anything sweet it would be a straberry or
blueberry…..or maybe half cup
Just making my comment…It is well worth it
to give up sugar
Comment by Th!nkL!ght
2 October 2010
It is true! I got the flu after I quit cold turkey. I hadn’t had a cold or flu in 2 years & thought there might be a connection. Also, massage during that week may have contributed to toxin release.
Btw- cold turkey is easy is you have a hypnotherapist.
Comment by nikki
2 February 2011
I used to use sugar in everythig.I used to drink tea with sugar three four times a day.
two tsp of sugar in each cup.But for two years I have stoped taking sugar in my tea and I have made a rule for myself that for five days I’m not going to take any sweet.On weekend I’m going to treat myself with sweet, but in mederation.I feel good and don’t even miss the sugar.Best thing for me is that I don’t even keep any junk food in my house.If you have in your house then its hard control. I notice that whenever I eat sweet,I feel more tired and get heartburn and headache. Whenever you feel like eating sweet, have some fruits and fill yourself
Comment by can
3 April 2011
long story short; you are going to feel on top of the world after 10 days you stopped eating sugar. I strongly claim that it is even healtier than quit smoking.
Good luck…
Comment by Danielle
29 June 2011
It’s always good to avoid too much of anything. But I’d like to just clarify that sugar in itself does not cause yeast infections in everyone. There is a higher possibility for women who are diabetic, but that’s it. Taking antibiotics does not cause them, either!!
Diabetic women cannot process the sugar they intake, so they release it through their urine. Tiny amounts of urine always end up in the vagina, and because the urine of diabetic women (NOT ANYONE ELSE) has such high concentrations of sugar, in their case, it can adversely affect the pH of their ladyparts.
And what’s the problem with taking medicine for a headache if you have one, especially if you know the cause is nothing more serious?
Oh, the perils of people looking for health information on the internet…
Comment by Marie
7 July 2011
I was addicted to sugar and have cut cane sugar out completely. I have heard that green poop is a sign of too much sugar in your system, and I never had green poop from eating sugar. However, a few days after I removed all cane sugar from my diet, I started to get green in my poop which turned to the green runs. I’m hoping I am releasing toxins. Does anyone have a guess what might be happening? Thanks.
Comment by Mike
16 September 2011
I agreed with most of this article until the statement about honey and maple syrup. The addictive, liver digested component of sugar is fructose. The other half of common white sungar (sucrose) is glucose.
Honey, maple syrup, dried fruits and fruit juices are all high in fructose. Honey I believe is 40-50% fructose—much higher than softdrink, similar to sweet chocolate and basically identical to white sugar.
Replacing sugar with honey is like replacing a broken window with a different broken window.
Comment by Elliot Wilson
16 September 2011
With antioxidant and anti-bacterial properties honey is not in the same camp as refined sugar (ever used it on a cut, burn or bee sting?). However honey and maple syrup should only be used in moderation, simply replacing it with sugar will not help one’s fat loss efforts.
Comment by pero69er
20 September 2011
sugar is your enemy. i used to eat healthy and exercise, lost weight and look good. but wondered why i put some back on. i done the elimination of fat and processed. i done it all . and once i just removed sugar as in all things like cake and cookies,basically sugar thats added in foods. i lose all my weight without even tryin or exercising. give it a go for a fortnight and let me know your progress. i bet u will feel better and lost some weight. hell u wont even crave it anymore. may sugarfree be yor bible that includes sweetners.goodluck,its the way to keep thin.
Comment by Joann
17 October 2011
My doctor just now said she doesn’t recommend stopping eating sugar completely but in moderation….
She also said sugar is natural
Comment by Elliot Wilson
17 October 2011
Refined sugar isn’t natural.
Comment by Collin Hansen
8 November 2011
Refined sugar is nothing more than the raw sugar recrystallised without the brown syrup that gives raw sugar its colour (soft brown sugar, the fluffy stuff, is created from this syrup).
White sugar isn’t bleached, just washed (in a centrifuge for about half a second, dissolved, the natural organics are filtered out and then the sugar solution is boiled to recrystallise the white sugar – C12 H24 O12.
Honey, whilst better for you (vitamin-wise), is unfortunately often heat treated, and it is common practice for commercial keepers to feed the bees….white sugar (They can’t feed raw sugar as it gives the bees the runs! Seriously.)as well as various chemical treatments against disease and parasites.
Try and get comb honey if you can, better still get into beekeeping and enjoy chemical free honey fresh out of the hive.
Collin.
Hobby beekeeper and Ex-Sugar analyst at CSR Sugar Refinery, Auckland, NZ.
Comment by Ryan Critchett
9 November 2011
I’ve been thinking about doing this. Not to completely remove sugar forever, but to really experience (fully – I’ve done this before on a small scale) the physical and energy related benefits.
Comment by Nicole
20 November 2011
Arsenic is natural too, so that argument is bunk.
Comment by Maxine
7 December 2011
Can you offer some tasty substitutes? I love cakes and pie and candy! I do know they are not good for me
Comment by Elliot Wilson
7 December 2011
Dried fruit can substitute for candy (but remember that there’s sugar in dried fruit, so don’t go overboard). Pie’s could be sweetened with honey or possibly stevia, but that won’t make the pie healthy, just more healthy than if you’d used sugar.
Comment by Amber
27 December 2011
Sugar is the most addictive substance today. Look around you, the obesity rates are way up, health is way down. Children are being introduced to sugar and deep fried foods as early as the age of 1! Sugar is a poison. They should put the skull and crossbones on all foods containing this toxin rather than cigarettes.
By the way, yeast infections ARE completely related to the intake of this sweet non-nutritional substance. I speak from experience as well as research. They are also the beginning (stage 1) of cancer, and if you feed them with more sugar, the more robust they will become, spreading into full-blown organ destruction. Antibiotics are irrefutably linked to yeast infections as well, along with thrush and other debilitating health problems often resulting in death. Two books I would recomend to anyone interested in learning the truth about sugar and its deadly qualities are – Sugar Blues, by William Dufty. And Young Again, by John Thomas.
Death rates are up not because of tobacco or drugs, SUGAR is the leading NUMBER 1 cause of death and illness in the world today.
On another note, honey and maple syrup are natural substances, coming from bees and trees. They both contain minerals and although they ARE high in calories and fructose, it is a NATURAL sugar, not the refined, processed crap everyone buys today. Eating honey will not give you the health problems that commercial sugar will – I guarantee it. Now lets all go out and empower ourselves by learning what we’re REALLY putting into our bodies. If we are what we eat, I only want to eat the good stuff
Comment by Surabhi
12 January 2012
good comments.. I always experienced acidity after havin sugar as my digestion speed was not really good.. i stopped taking sugar and too much of salt both I drink a lot of water and I feel that my skin glows more than before, i dont crave for sugar i am off it since for days.
Comment by Surabhi
12 January 2012
i meant four days… But i love to eat oranges
Comment by Kristen
13 January 2012
I have been off sugar, dairy and fruit for 2 weeks and I have to say I feel fine. I’m not hungry, deprived or sick. My trainer challenged me and I have to say I’ve only lost 3lbs in 2 weeks but hey, it’s a start. I would though like to know how it’s going to effect me when I start adding it back into my diet, gradually that is, in February.
Comment by nicola
15 January 2012
am going to give up sugar for 1 month and see the benefits for myself. I’m terrible. i’m addicted, I crave it everyday. I’ll go well all throughout the day and then by night time i’m raiding the biscuit tin and complaining about my sluggish state and weight gain. I’m 12 stone. I’d love to get down to 11stone.