It’s official. 21 days are over. 21 days, sugar free has finally come to an end. If you haven’t heard, I’ve been doing the 21 Day Sugar Detox by Balanced Bites. And I’ve loved it!! Which is sick and weird since that meant no sugar, including fruit. And if you know me, I LOVE sweets. Like, love love love them. BUT, sweets don’t love me. Not only do I gain 6lbs from eating 1 banana, but I feel bloated, I don’t have a ton of energy, and well, I crave even more sweets. And I found all of this out from not eating sweets. I had no idea I felt like that until I took these beloved foods out.
So let’s recap. Something else to remember that I have cut out of my diet is nuts. All nuts. One day, I just woke up and decided to not eat them because I was sick of feeling like sh*t all the time and wanted to know if they were the culprit to my bloated belly and stupid acne. I’m just such an all-or-none person. I have no middle ground, no sense of moderation. Just not how I roll. So I cut out nuts, then shortly after cut out fruit and sugar.
At first, this was pretty tough. My go-to night snack is anything sweet. Whether that’s eating Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips from the bag or chocolate covered mangos from Whole Foods, I wanted it all when the sun went down. So the first 3 days were kind of annoying, then the 4th day SUCKED. I mean, REALLY sucked. I was super light headed, really really dizzy, felt like I was blacking out half the day. It just sucked. So I went home, loaded up on sweet potatoes and sweet potato chips and instantly felt better the next day. I was just super low on carbs since I hadn’t really stocked up on vegetables in the first 3 days. After that, it was easy. I even made a couple sweet desserts and didn’t even taste them, just gave them to friends instead.
What I did find was that I craved something crunchy way more than I usually do. I really wanted sweet potato chips or Tyrrell’s vegetable chips on a regular basis. I day dreamed about them a lot. And I wanted to eat beets and carrots a ton more…probably because they are sweet. I ate more meat and more fat than I usually do, fat coming mostly in the form of coconut butter. I’ve stopped craving sweets most of the time, just once in a while I’ll get that.
So here were some of the things I ate while on the diet that aren’t entirely sugar free (but are acceptable in moderation on the sugar detox)
- Sweet Potatoes (mostly post workout)
- Green Apples (I had 3 over the course of 21 days)
- Tyrrell’s vegetable chips
- Coconut Butter
- Coconut Water (1 per day, if that)
- Kombucha (1 per day, if that)
- Alcohol (ok, that’s not allowed, but if you remember, I just couldn’t say no. 5 shots of Grey Goose were consumed)
So here’s what I think after 21 days. I think it’s awesome and everyone should try it. Yes, fruit is natural. I get it. But, if you’re anything like me, life sucks because even fruit makes you gain weight and feel bloated, so you may actually benefit from removing that excess sugar. After cutting out the treats, I felt WAY better and had more energy than ever. I also felt like my hormones were more in balance because I never felt like I was going through any mood swings. I felt like I was in a good mood almost every day.
So I was going to post photo results, but then I got scared and backed out. That’s just too frightening to me even though I’ve post half naked pictures of myself in the past. My bathing suit pictures is just serious. Sorry people, I’m lame.
What I can say is that even though my goal was not to lose weight or change anything body wise, I did feel like my body changed. I felt like my stomach got smaller, I felt a bit leaner, and I honestly thought my cellulite didn’t look quite as bad. I don’t think it’s anything that any of other person would notice, but I did and that’s all that really matters to me.
This is what I think. I think EVERYONE should try it at some point. We don’t really know how much sugar affects us until it is completely stripped of our diet. I, will probably not go back to eating sugar other than a once-a-week cheat, but Laura who wasn’t as greatly affected probably won’t be quite as strict as I am. So try it out yourself. Man up. If I can cut out sugar, anyone can. ANYONE.
Stop complaining. There will be a recipe tomorrow, ok? Geez.
Congrats on the detox and results, I know how frustrating small things about our bodies can be.
I was wandering around the interwebs and came across this site. You are always talking about acne and what not and she seems to have lots of cost effective simple home made natural recipes. I am going to try the baking soda scrub tonight. 🙂
lol sorry, here is the link
http://www.crunchybetty.com/
okay, you updated us on everything except the acne. i feel your pain in that category, sister, so word up–what’s up?
congrats on the 21 day detox. you’re a monster, girl. no nuts AND no fruit all at the same time. kudos!
don’t feel bad about not showin’ skin here on the blog–shoot, it’s YOUR blog and YOUR body, so you do whatever you want.
hey Jenn!! Ok so i’ll probably do an update next week about the oil cleansing i’ve been doing but my face has surprisingly gotten better. No nuts, no fruit, and sticking with an oil cleansing regimen of castor, jojoba, and coconut oil has seemed to help! I’ll update more for you next week!
I am with you. I encourage anyone who is in the fence to try it. My top benefits from the 21 day sugar detox (plus I gave up coffee which for me requires lots of sugar)
1. Steady mood– major plus+++++ since I have bipolar type 2 and also deal with anxiety.
2. Freedom from cravings and being a slave to the sugar drug
3. I eat real meals when I get hungry instead of pacifying my hunger with a fleeting moment of satisfaction from chocolate or coffee or whatever- the benefit there is not being hungry/buzzed/perpetually needing something else.
4. Creating a real sense of pride by being disciplined enough to withstand the CONSTANT temptation of sugars EVERYWHERE. my confidence is way up. I’m a bad ass, if you ask me.
It feels very good to be “sober” probably for the first time ever!!!!
Thanks for everything Juli. You are M.A.D. (Making A Difference)!!
Congrats on the detox! I’m going to have to go back and reread some posts on this because I’m totally curious. I’m more of a salt lover, but I know I eat more sugar than I think!!!
I have the same reaction to fruit and nuts which are the only two things that keep me eating healthy because they taste so damn good. I had the same reaction you had when I gave up fruit (on a daily basis, it’s my “cheat” now….how unfair is a world where FRUIT IS A CHEAT!) but like you I just feel leaner and better.
I just watched your last vlog and think you look absolutely inspiring, sugar or no sugar.
I haven’t done the same sugar detox you did, but when I’ve been on point with a ‘clean’ physique competition diet..which is of course sugar free, my cellulite improves dramatically too. If only my desire to have less cellulite were stronger than my desire to eat fruit and honey at the moment. GAAAAAAHHHH!
If your cutting out fruit, and nuts, you should see what would happen if you cut out coconut “stuff” too…..I read that coconut, while considered one ot the best “good fats”, was also an inflammatory food 🙁 It causes problems for some people.
If your cutting out fruit, and nuts, you should see what would happen if you cut out coconut “stuff” too…..I read that coconut, while considered one of the best “good fats”, was also an inflammatory food 🙁 It causes problems for some people.
coconut is ANTI-INFLAMMATORY!!
That’s what I thought too, until I read this article…..I’ll see if I can find it and post it. It talks about coconut being an inflammatory food for the gut??!!! IDK 🙂 Hey….you didn’t have to yell at me!! LOL!!! 😉
Okay……I think I found the article I was reading (the article which goes against everything holy!!!! haha!)
http://chriskresser.com/fodmaps-could-common-foods-be-harming-your-digestive-health
Maybe I misunderstood what the article was trying to say…hopefully at least!!
I started the detox yesterday. It’s been tough; I love love fruit so much! But it will be ok I can do it! lol I’ve been having to chew on ice cubes just to make the cravings go away! haha ( i think it’s just something to have in my mouth)
Congrats on making it through the 21 days! I wish everyone had the attitude as you to just buckle down and get it done!
Way to go your such an inspiration!!!