Sugar Detox – How To Consume Less

Sugar. We as a nation are going overboard. The average person consumes over 100 grams of sugar per day!!

We had a #SugarDetox challenge in our free private Facebook group not long ago and were stoked to see how many people participated and took something valuable away. People like Karen, Inspired Wellness Fit Tribe member who’s on Day 8 of no added sugar and feeling fantastic! Real people, real results ya’ll.

This post is all about REDUCING the amount of sugar in your life. Specifically added sugar. It’s everywhere, popping up in the most random of places and sabotaging your health. We’re touching on this heavily in Season 14 of our Get Fit Challenge (shameless plug) so if you want in getting on the presale list here. Kick it to the curb with these ideas:

Sugary Drinks? Say BUH-BYE.

From soda to teas to fruit juices. We’re talking 30+ grams of sugar. We looked at one that was supposed to be “healthy” and it had 30+ grams of sugar. Yes, it was from fruit but it didn’t include the fiber to help assimilate it so hellloooo blood sugar rollercoaster. We can easily consume our entire day of sugar with just one drink … and deal with the *lovely* energy crash that follows. Alternatives:

Water

Don’t like plain water? You’re not alone. We like to infuse our water with lemon + fresh strawberries. You could also do mint or cucumber, oranges … the opportunities are endless to keep it refreshing and tasty! Maybe even a mock “lemonade” with fresh lemons and a drop or two of liquid stevia.

Low or NO Sodium Sparkling Water

Again, add some lemon or lime … think refreshing and light. This is great for soda lovers who need an alternative.

Herbal or Fruit Teas

If you live in the Sacramento area, you know we’re approaching triple digit days. We shudder to think about them … but they’re a stark reality. One of our favorites is by Tazo – their Passion tea. Sometimes we have it hot, sometimes cold – whatever we’re feeling that day!

Sauces – oy vey, the sugar!?

These bad boys are LOADED with sugar. We were looking at garlic salts (oh the things we get excited about now … #adulting) and even THAT had sugar in it. Sauces are generally used to infuse flavor and there are a lot of different ways to achieve this. It’s virtually impossible to avoid sugar in various things it doesn’t belong. But notice we said almost – you CAN avoid it … you just need to be looking at the labels. Alternatives to sauces with added sugar:

Fresh or Dried Herbs

A flavorful option and you can usually get them at your local farmers market to make sure they aren’t full of preservative and filler overload.

More ideas: chilli, yellow mustard, vinegar, pesto.

Low Fat Foods – a craze that needs to GO AWAY FOR GOOD.

It’s no secret: the diet industry phases in and out of trends. Low fat, high fat, high carb, no carb … what’s a person to do!? Sooo many approaches that are deemed “good” or “bad”. To the average person who doesn’t study this stuff for a living, it can feel like a rollercoaster and drive you bonkers. We can imagine how you feel because we feel the same way, and we do this for a living! Low fat almost always equals more sugar – the average being FIVE TIMES MORE SUGAR. You guys, that’s not okay! Same with processed gluten free products – LOADED with sugar. Alternatives:

Assuming it’s a healthy food (i.e. not processed to death) eat the full fat version! It’s usually not a huge difference – we’re talking a few grams – from its low fat and sugar laden cousin.

Eat More Whole Foods – here’s how.

It goes without saying that you want to avoid processed foods as much as possible. That can be hard in today’s day and age. If you’ve worked with us for any length of time in the nutrition space, you know we always recommend shopping on the perimeter of the grocery store. Once you start coming toward the middle you start getting more of the processed foods that are shelf stable and can stay there for quite some time, dead and doing nothing for your health.

In fact, processed food companies pay a premium to be eye level and attract your attention, hoping you’ll walk by and grab their product over the others (this is where the deceptive marketing comes in). Things like soft drinks, desserts, cereals, pizzas, pies. Even certain healthy foods are to blame so remember our two step grocery shopping process: shop 90% on the perimeter and ALWAYS read your labels. If we see any of you in the grocery store picking something up without reading your label we’re going to come over and swat it out of your hands. Okay … maybe not … but we’ll be thinking about it. The label is meant to entice and woo you in … and like a bad date it LETS.YOU.DOWN. Always read about what you’re putting in your body.

Whole food alternatives to processed snacks:

-Nuts and seeds

-Trail mix

-Hard boiled eggs

-Fruit

-Jerky without added sugar

Okay we know … this doesn’t sounds as exciting as the processed stuff. But the cool part is that once you eat the 90% whole foods lifestyle for long enough, you don’t crave the crap. Your body adjusts, it’s amazing and adaptable and it will treat you well if you treat IT well.

Learn the different sugar terminologies so you can make informed decisions.

Sugar has many different names. This is for a reason. The processed food industry wants to confuse you:

-High Fructose Corn Sugar (always avoid)
-Cane Sugar
-Maltose
-Dextrose
-Rice Sugar
-Molasses
-Caramel

Last but not least … consider natural sweeteners.

Not ready to completely give up your sweets? Eventually, your palate will adjust, but until then, check out these healthier alternatives for now – should food science deem them subpar in the future we will update our stance:

Stevia Leaf Extract

Extracted from the leaves of a stevia plant. You can even go to a farmers market, grab a stevia plant and crush it up and there’s your stevia! That said, we aren’t huge fans of the powdered stuff. It leaves a strange aftertaste. We get organic liquid stevia at Trader Joes.

Erythritol

Naturally found in fruits and has 6% of sugar – PLUS it doesn’t cause that annoying blood sugar spike

Xylitol

Naturally found in fruits and veggies. We use this in place of crystallized things like coconut sugar.

At the end of the day always remember: there is no random headache, dizziness, anything that happens to your body … it is usually directly tied back to something you have consumed. So get on the #SugarDetox wagon and watch your health transform.

Do you struggle with sugar overload? What are some of your sugar vices?

P.S. Ready to rock your sugar-filled world and get rid of those cravings? Join us for Season 14 of our Get Fit Challenge coming July 30th – get on the free pre-sale list here!

About Inspired Wellness
We are a wellness movement aimed at cultivating greatness in all areas of life. We believe that everything is connected and that having the body of your dreams shouldn’t come at the price of your mental and emotional health. You CAN have it all; you just need some determination, grit and the desire to truly change your life!

Catch us locally in sunny Sacramento CA inspiring lives at our wellness center with fitness, nutrition and lifestyle programs, or online doing the same thing with our new online training site + community coming soon!

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