5-Day NO Sugar Challenge

Congrats on accepting the FitMenCook 5-Day No Sugar Challenge! I once read an article that suggested it was easier for people to give up sex than it was to give up sugar. And if you think about it, they may be right since added sugar is everywhere!

GOAL FOR THE NEXT 5 DAYS:

• Learn how to find natural, sustainable ways to satisfy our sweet tooth. We want to equip ourselves with ideas and tools that will help us kick our daily dependence on added sugars and sweeteners that are mostly found in processed foods.

OUTCOMES

• We’ll be able to see how our bodies respond – physically and mentally – to a drastic reduction in added sugar.
• We’ll also understand just how much processed food we are eating that we could actually be substituting with natural foods.

FOODS TO AVOID

• No products with ADDED sugar.Yes, this may include some protein bars, protein shakes and…some nut butters. NOOOOOOOOO!!!
  • Remember, this is added sugar, not sugars naturally occurring in foods. Keep in mind that nearly all food has some amount of natural sugar in it – those are fine. It’s the added sugar we do not want.
    • TIP: Do not to look at the sugar content of food; rather, check the ingredient list and see if sugar or sweetener has been added.
  • Sugar is known by different names, so read the labels and avoid products with names such as:
    • High fructose corn syrup
    • Agave
    • Evaporated cane juice
    • Aspartame
    • Hydrogenated starch
    • Invert sugar maltose
    • Lactose
    • Mannitol
    • Crystalline fructose
    • Maltose
    • Sucrose
    • Dextrose
    • Brown rice syrup
    • Maltodextrin
    • Saccharine
    • Here is a list with other names for sugar

• No artificial sweeteners. That means no to Truvia, Sweet One, Sweet ‘N Low, Splenda, Equal, Nutrasweet, etc.

• No ADDED natural sugars or sweeteners. This includes honey, syrup, coconut sugar, Stevia in the raw, xylitol, etc.

REMEMBER, CHECK THE INGREDIENT LABEL TO DETERMINE IF WHAT YOU’RE ABOUT TO EAT SATISFIES THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THIS CHALLENGE. NEARLY ALL FOOD HAS SUGAR SO FOCUS ON WHAT SUGARS OR SWEETENERS HAVE BEEN ADDED TO THE FOOD.

ACCEPTABLE FORMS OF SUGAR:

• Fresh vegetables and fruits
• Naturally dried fruit ONLY IF the label does not have any added form of sugar.

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INVITE OTHERS TO JOIN YOU

QUICK TIPS TO GET STARTED:

• Watch my 10 Tips to Reduce Sugar in Your Diet. People have shared some great tips in the Comments section so read those!

• Stay hydrated! Carry around a jug of water or unsweetened tea in order to ensure you drink at least 9 to 11 glasses of liquid daily.
• Have one green smoothie each day. My favorite is: 1 cup spinach + 1 celery stalk + 1 kiwi + juice from 1 lemon + 1/2 cucumber.
• Incorporate healthy fats such as unsalted nuts & seeds and avocado.

A note on alcohol…

• While some alcoholic beverages may contain minimal amounts of fructose, nearly all forms of alcohol contain some form of sugar… So, I do not advise drinking alcohol during the 5-day challenge.

I will be sharing tips and hacks to reduce sugar intake throughout the 5-Day Challenge on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter so make sure you are following me!

ONE FINAL IMPORTANT NOTE:

If you do happen to have a weak moment, or mindlessly eat something with sugar, don’t beat yourself up! Identify how and why it happened, learn from it, then keep going strong in the challenge. We CAN do this!

Best wishes and Boom.