Sweet Nothing Day One: Easter Weekend

Two big holidays sure to induce a sugar fest in America are Easter and Halloween. Why I chose to start my 30-day no-sugar challenge on Easter weekend is beyond me. But the commitment has been made so no turning back.  The good news for me is that I’m not that big on sweets, so I think I should be okay.  I don’t drink soda (soft drinks), so I’ll be fine there too.  Where then is my sugar problem, you ask? Well, that will be all other categories.

Every morning, I faithfully stopped at Starbucks (the big coffee chain that you’ve read and even know about even though there are no stores in Nigeria) to get my fix of café mocha (fancy name for coffee with lots of sugar and cream/milk). You can see for yourself just how much sugar I typically consume before 8 AM in the morning, breakfast not included.  This morning, I had to forgo my “regular.” I skipped the coffee all together and opted for good old water.

Upon waking, I drank 10 oz glass  (1 1/4 cups) of water, and by 9 AM, I drank another 24 oz (3 cups) of water.  At noon, I was feeling fantastic. An hour prior, I had my snack of almonds nuts and more water.  For lunch, I had grilled chicken breast and green beans.  By 2 PM, the first sugar craving kicked in.  Can I make it?  I reached for more water and opted for a small apple.  But an apple has sugar you say.  An apple has sugar in its natural state but meets the formula in the glycemic index that I’m looking for, that is, low numbers = good.  If you look at the table, apples fall under a good number on the glycemic scale. So, as far as I was concerned, I beat the first hurdle; the true test was yet to come…the dreaded night time craving.

Evening came, and I had chicken salad (no dressing) with tomatoes for dinner.  The temptation for sweets came when my kids wanted some ice cream. I made them a small cone and resisted the strong urge to have just a finger lick of their inviting chocolate ice cream.

I decided not to work out today because I wasn’t sure how my body would react to the first day.  As I add fitness  back to my daily routine I will need to make some adjustments.  All in all, my body did well and my first day was a success.  29 more days to go!