Just how sugar free should we go?

So it’s been a week now since I committed to giving up sugar in my tea!  And I am doing okay, I have not caved in at all, I am not yet the one that says ‘white no sugar’ automatically but I am getting there slowly.  I have to admit to cutting down on the amount of cups I have each day from about 3-4 to 2 and I think that is because I am not craving the sugar -  I think I craved the sugar not the tea.
 
So I need to move on to the next commitment, this time it is biscuits and other small easy to grab snacks.  If I don’t eat a proper breakfast or skip lunch then I get hungry around 11 am or 4 pm and if I am rushing around I reach for something easy and generally sugar laden to fulfil the craving.  I need to think ‘nuts’ not ‘biscuits’!
 
My lovely PT and friend called it ‘mindless eating’ and she is right, it is not the meals I struggle with, I actually eat really well for breakfast, lunch and dinner, it is the bits in between.
 
Which got me thinking … just how sugar free should we go?  Is it realistic to be completely sugar free?  It is in everything and unless we cook all our food from scratch there will always be some that gets through.  And is it okay to still have a biscuit or a cake from time to time, just not all the time?
 
Now my personal view is ‘everything in moderation’ but of course if you are trying to lose a lot of weight that might not be sensible but the more we deprive ourselves the harder it is to keep to a healthy eating plan.  We need to change our mind-set so that healthy eating is the only way we want to eat anyway.  I honestly believe that diet and weight loss is all in the mind and that diet clubs etc should be working on what lies beneath the need to eat the wrong things.
 
So for me I am going to cut out the ‘mindless eating’ of biscuits etc.  I will eat a biscuit but not every day.  I will treat myself to a slice of cake if I am out and fancy one.  But I will keep it in moderation.
 
As an adult we should have no more than 30g of sugar per day.  A teaspoon of sugar is 4g.  Ideally we should be looking for items that have less than 5g of sugar per 100g.  This is low sugar.  And don’t get confused with sugar alternatives – they are just as bad so avoid all ‘sweeteners’, you are actually better to have proper sugar than a sweetener!  Same with butter vs. margarine – butter is better!  Or why not try a natural sweetener like raw honey, Gold Bee offers a delicious organic honey that is also good for you!

I have a goal – I am going to Turkey in May and I’d like to feel comfortable in my swimsuit and maybe even my bikini again!  I don’t mind particularly what I weigh, I just want to be in better shape, by reducing sugar my body can regulate my hormones better and I will feel better!

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Last time in Turkey 2013

Love from
​Michelle xx