Day 23 : Katie

Had a good day today. Discovered raw cacao nibs. Oh heavens. So delicious. Much better than eating straight up unsweetened chocolate. Really they were such a delight. I have seen several recipes for them but I think they are delicious in their own right.

I did go out to lunch and had to ask several questions--like "what is in the chicken salad? Oh, relish. The tuna salad? Relish in that too, huh? The shrimp salad has relish too? Ok I'll just take the green salad with no dressing or croutons. Thanks." I felt rather annoying but was glad I asked otherwise I'd have eaten relish which is loaded with sugar.  


Alcohol : 8 oz red wine
Coffee : None
Sugar/Sweetener : None
Fruit : 1/2 cup cherries
Exercise : None

Day 22 : Katie

Today was T minus 10. Hard to believe.

Calories : 1514
Alcohol : 12 oz red wine
Coffee : none
Exercise : none
Sugar/Sweetener : none
Fruit : 1/2 cup mango, red apple

Day Twenty Two

Another day at work, I ate great at work. On the drive home, in addition to my usual air-popped popcorn, I also had 1/2 a larabar and I think it really set me into a perfect storm like Katie had on day 12. Once I got home I just wanted to eat and eat and eat and never felt satisfied. I am going to steer clear of the larabars for now and see if I can avoid this feeling.

Added sugar: none
Cheese and nuts: a ton
Fruit: dates in the larabar
Alcohol: none
Exercise: none

Day 21 : Katie

Yesterday we were inside. I was finishing up this batch of tomatoes. 29 quarts total.

I am missing more fruit. It is so hot now and I am wanting to eat more fruit. 

Sugar/Sweeteners : None
Coffee : None
Alcohol : 2 glasses red
Exercise : None
Fruits : Strawberries, banana

Day 20 : Katie

We had a good Memorial Day. Worked around the house some, got outside some. Today was the first time in months that I knowingly ate gluten. I made us a bunch of vegetables for supper and a skillet of cornbread. I totally caved. I am sure the wine worked against me. I've got to come up with a good gf cornbread recipe that isn't sweet. The ones I've tried have not been to my liking. Cornbread should not be sweet and should have a somewhat coarse texture. It's cornbread not cake.

Exercise : 15" yoga, one hour of yard work
Fruit: banana, strawberries
Sugar/Sweetener : None
Coffee : None
Alcohol : 3 glasses wine

Day Twenty One

Today we had our new neighbors and A's new favorite friend over for dinner. I asked the mom to make the dessert so I wouldn't have to torture myself making something delicious. She brought over a cheesecake with brownie crust and heath bar on top. It looked delicious but I really felt ok not eating it. It was a lovely time. How did I not eat any fruit today? Mysterious.

Added Sugar: none
Fruit: none
Exercise: jogged 4.5 miles 51 min
Alcohol: 1 glass chardonnay, 1 glass merlot

Day Twenty

Today was a fun day, we went with dear friends to a festival at the beach. I mainly ate an oat and date "muffin" while we were out and brought water from home. If I had not brought water I would have been very, very tempted by all the lemonade and hawaiian shaved ice stands. I did take a few bites of A's tamale, not sure if it had sugar, but after looking at chicken/chile tamale recipes, I don't think it did. It was spicy! Everyone again loved the muffins, I added 2 bananas and 3/4 cup chopped dates. They were nice and sweet, unlike sister's loaf that was not sweet... I find it to be a very versatile recipe :)

Added sugar: none
Fruit: dates/banana/applesauce in 2 muffins
Exercise: walk 3 milesw
Alcohol: 2 glasses merlot

Day 19 : Katie

Well, I finished my little pity party last night. I read so of an ebook that I bought back in February : Sarah Wilson's I Quit Sugar. I highly recommend it. Then I decided I would bake another batch of smackaroons and take them. So, last night when everyone was eating coconut cake, I ate two smackaroons. Again, a lesson in thinking ahead and being prepared.

I also made Karen's oatmeal loaf yesterday. It is different. At first it is a little off-putting because it isn't sweet. Because that is what we expect in a muffin, right? But then you accept it. And, then, you get these surprising and lovely bits of nut and raisin. When I make them again I will likely add more nuts and raisins. And, I think dried bing cherries would be great. I may rename these the fruit and nut muffins, because they are what really sing in these muffins. Also because oatmeal loaf brings to mind braless hippies on a commune in the 70s. Not that there is anything wrong with that.

The other fantastic thing about my day is that I went swimming in the pond. We live on a 7ish acre pond. There is a woman at the church I go to. If I had to guess, she is somewhere in her early- to mid-70s. She is so fit and healthy looking. One thing she does is go out to their camp and swim in the pond in the summers. Inspired, I decided to try it. I loved it. I swam one big lap of breast stroke and back stroke. It felt so good. I have always loved swimming. This might even me more fun than swimming laps.

Alcohol : None
Sugar/Sweeteners : None
Fruit : banana and raisins in smackaroons and oatmeal loaf
Exercise : Swam 15ish minutes
Coffee : None

Day Nineteen

Another crazy busy day at work. Enjoyed 8 veggie salad from TJ's with goat cheese and non-sugared vinaigrette for lunch. This kind of day (and yesterday) would normally be a day that I would snack and eat sugary foods at work to cope with the stress of a busy day at work where I eat at my computer (as always) and don't have a minute to breathe. This is showing me that I don't have to eat sugar to cope with stress. It's a good lesson for me to learn.

Added Sugars: none
Fruit: something, oh a lara bar on my way home from work
Exercise: none
Alcohol: none

Day 18 : Katie

I love coconut cake. I would say it is one of my top three favorite cakes. I made one today for PopPop's birthday which we are celebrating tomorrow. I felt sad for a while after I made the cake. I love to bake sweet confections and I love to eat them.

And I am in a bit of a quandary about tomorrow's little birthday celebration. I can be superstitious. I think it is bad luck to go to someone's birthday party and not eat--at least a bite--of their cake. To me it is like raising your glass for a toast and not drinking but just setting the glass back down. Bad luck and bad manners.

I feel like I've made enough mistakes in this challenge already so why not make one more? Maybe I'll feel differently tomorrow.

Alcohol : None
Coffee : None
Exercise : one hour of yard work
Sugar/Sweeteners : None
Fruit : one cup of strawberries, juice of a lemon

Day Eighteen

Work day: ate a ton of that detox salad, yummy. 

Added sugar: none
Fruit: vitamix sorbet 3/4 cup, 1/2 cashew cookie larabar, raisins and currants in detox salad
Exercise: none
Alcohol: none

Day Seventeen

I can't remember day 17, I guess that's a good thing, or it means i am waiting too long to post. Oh I made the whole foods detox salad, so yummy.

Added sugar: none
fruit: in summer salad, blueberries.
alcohol: 1 glass pinot grigio
exercise: 4.6 miles, 53 minutes

Day 17 : Katie

I spent the day in the kitchen canning tomatoes. The children cooperated by playing/destroying the house. We are out tomorrow so I am already planning food to take on our outing. Also, I have to bake a coconut cake this weekend for our PopPop's birthday. That may kill me.

Calories : 1057
Alcohol : 6 oz red
Exercise : None
Sugar/Sweetener : None
Fruit : 1/2 cup mango and 1/2 cup watermelon in a smoothie
Coffee : none

Day Sixteen

Today I made my 3rd sugar free baking/treat recipe. I got this recipe from a friend, not the internet, shocking I know. It is for "Oatmeal Loaf" or oatmeal muffins. They were really yummy, everyone loved them and the recipe is versatile.

Oatmeal Loaf
3 cups uncooked oats
1/2 c unsweetened apple sauce (I used more like 3/4 cup)
1 block silken tofu, blended to yogurt-like consistency
cinnamon, vanilla, salt to taste (i didn't use vanilla, but did use lots of cinnamon)
1/2-1 cup raisins (I did 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup almonds, chopped

You can add any nuts you like, or none. You can add mashed bananas, chopped fresh or dried fruit, canned pumpkin, hmm, i bet zucchini could be good too, I might try that next, and I think there are lots of spices that could be good too.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 + minutes.

Added sugar: none
Fruit: applesauce/raisins in muffins, fruit in summer salad leftovers
exercise: jogged 4.5 miles, 49 minutes
alcohol: 2 glasses pinot grigio

Day 16 : Katie

My sister and I each have unique challenges for this journey. She works 12 hour days, three to four days a week. She has to shop, plan, and prepare on Mondays and Thursdays. She has a long drive to work along with her long days. 

I live in a rural community with no access to organic produce and vegetables. We have a local grocer but it doesn't stock any organic meat or eggs, and very, very little organic produce. I can't even think of I have to drive 30 minutes to a Wal-Mart, 70 miles to a Publix, 3 hours to a Whole Foods or EarthFare, 6 hours to my beloved DeKalb Farmer's Market.

I don't think I've mentioned yet that I am also gluten-free. A little over a year ago, I found a blog that I really liked. Along with some articles I had read, this doctor helped me put together that I might have a gluten intolerance. Long story short, I came back very intolerant to gluten. On the test, the average number for a person with a gluten intolerance was 45, my number was 275. So, in addition to giving up coffee and sugar, I'd already given up gluten. 

While I've been doing this challenge, I've also been taking an ecourse from Dr. Haneca. She offers over 50 recipes, all of which are simple and something I would try. She offers encouragement along with information about how to live your healthiest life. I have enjoyed taking this course while completing this challenge.

Calories : 1913 (minus 430) =  1483
Exercise : Picked vegetables for 2 hours
Sugar/Sweeteners : None
Fruit : None
Coffee : None
Alcohol : 4 glasses of wine (eee gads, over a longer period of time, but still.)

Day Fifteen

I like talking to people about the sugar challenge we are doing. I am sure they don't like hearing me talk about all the hidden sugars, but I think it's fun to share my knowledge and to encourage people to listen to the 60 minutes segment that started all this for me. I have received mixed feedback, mostly people saying they could never do it or they don't buy into the science because they are afraid of what it would mean for their life. That they don't have the willpower. But the day before I watched that 60 minutes (4/1/12), I would have said the very exact thing. I was completely addicted to sugar. I would have laughed if someone had said "in one month you will start a 32 day no sugar challenge, oh and this month you will only have sugar when you are sick and when you are in new york city" (that was nice of me to allow myself sugar in nyc). But I have done it, I am doing it, and one big thing I am learning is that in fact I do have willpower, willpower that I never dreamed I had. Sugar was consuming me. Like you, sister, I don't want to go back to a place where sugar rules my food decision making when this challenge is complete.

Added sugars: none
fruit: 1/2 cup fruit is summer salad for lunch, 1/2 cashew cookie larabar
alcohol: 1 glass merlot
exercise: none

Day Fourteen

Today I ate some more of the choco bites, even though they weren't that delicious the day after. Sort of the same as how I would eat chocolate covered raisins or almonds every night before this challenge... At least they are healthy, but still not sure I should eat them just because they are staring at me from my refrigerator.

I also saved most of my fruit allotment for the summer salad by oh she glows. I loved this salad last summer, made it all the time. Maybe because the fruit isn't peak season (it has peaches, strawberries and blueberries) or because I skipped the maple syrup in the dressing, it wasn't quite as good as I remembered it. But I did still enjoy it.

Added sugar: none
Fruit: 1/2 date/1/8 banana choco bites; 3/4 cup strawberries/blueberries/peaches
Alcohol: none
Exercise: jogged 4.5 miles/52 minutes

Day 15 : Katie

If I had a uterus, I would be about to shed its lining.

Calories : 1606
Exercise : 10 minutes
Coffee : None
Alcohol : 14 oz chardonay
 Fruit : granny smith apple and 1/2 cup thawed strawberries
Sugar/Sweeteners : None

Day 14 : Katie

Whoa. Two weeks down. Really, this has been quite fun. Karen and I continue to discuss what this will look like at the end of this session. I know for me, I will be extremely disheartened if I revert back to my old ways. I really like my new ways. I feel better. I feel better about myself.

We are supposed to reside in the low 90s this week. As the temperature has increased, so has my intake of water. I've tried several different types of water. I am a big fan of La Croix twelve packs. I love the grapefruit and the berry, and then I have this weird attraction to the coconut. It is much like drinking a bottle of Hawaiian Tropic. While I wouldn't say it is yummy, I somehow really enjoy it. Maybe it just reminds me of Daytona Beach.

I have also blended cucumber, lime and mint with water and ice in the Vitamix. I loved that. Today I put slices of an orange and 1/2 a grapefruit in a pitcher of water, along with slices of a 1/3 cucumber and mint. Refreshing. 

Calories : 1292
Exercise : two hours of yard work
Coffee : None
Wine : 8 oz chardonay
Sugar/Sweetener : None
Fruit : 1/2 grapefruit, orange in a pitcher of water, did not eat, just infused

Day Thirteen

The chocolate cravings have been consuming me lately, yesterday and today. specifically.

Inspired by Spoonful of sugar free's almond chocolate chip cookie bites, I made these:

Almond/chocolate/banana bites

5 small dates
1 cup almonds
1.5 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 vanilla bean scraped
1/4 tsp salt
(1/2 banana)

I tried to make in the vitamix but the batch was not big enough so the dates got stuck in the bottom, so it wasn't sweet, so I added 1/2 a banana. Once I scraped all the ingredients into a bowl, the dates were mixed in and I found this to be a little too sweet and taste a little bit too much like banana. But it did satisfy my chocolate craving.

Added sugars: none
Fruit: 1/2 cup pineapple, 1 date/1/4 banana in 5 choco bites
Exercise: walking 30 min
Alcohol: 2 glasses wine

Days 11, 12, 13 : Katie

We went to the beach for a long weekend with friends--wew and family. We had a great time hanging out and playing in the water. We ate delicious grouper one night and wew taught me to make a Greek omelet. Also, Saturday night I made the Vitamix sorbet Karen has been raving about. I've never really loved sorbet. It is always been too sweet for me. The Vitamix sorbet is between a sorbet and an ice cream. It is creamy and fruity and cool and delicious. And easy. 

Interestingly, when I saw my friend, wew, I couldn't get over how great she looked. I probably told her three times within the first ten minutes of seeing her. I couldn't exactly say why she looked great. She just looked clear and healthy and fresh. After a while she told me how she had cut way back on her sugar, mostly by cutting out sweet tea and Cokes. She told me how great she felt both physically and mentally. Wow. Confirmation. Yet again.

Friday--
Exercise: 30 minute leisurely walk on beach, lugging beach crap to beach
Alcohol: two glasses of Preseco
Sugar/Sweetener: None
Fruit: 1/2 cup berries, goji berries
Coffee: None

Saturday--
Exercise: 30 minute leisurely walk around marina
Alcohol: three glasses (two white, one red)
Sugar/Sweetener: None
Fruit: 1/2 cup fruit sorbet, 1/3 of a banana
 Coffee: None

Sunday-- 
Exercise: None
Alcohol: None
Sugar/Sweetener: None
Fruit: One cup strawberries, handful of goji berries
Coffee: None

Day Twelve

I have been thinking about chocolate a lot lately. Missing chocolate. And no, unsweetened chocolate is not going to satisfy me.
So today instead of eating chocolate, I literally  ate 6 cups of chopped vegetables plus another cup or two of raw carrots and snap peas. I ended up eating 839% of the daily recommended allowance of vitamin A and 761% RDA of vitamin C and 54 grams of fiber (recommended is 14 grams?).
I thought I might make myself sick, but I didn't.

Added sugar: none
Fruit: 1/4 banana
Alcohol: none
Exercise: none

Day Eleven

Work day. Same old snacks. Ate a huge bowl of airpopped popcorn with parmesan cheese after the kids were in bed. Probably did not need to do that. But no sugar.

Added sugar: none
Fruit: none
Nuts/Cheese: a ton
Alcohol: 1 glass pinot grigio
Exercise: none

Day Ten

Back in the car today. If I am home--things are easy and breezy. For supper, the children and I decided to get chik-fil-a. I thought--I'll just get fries and a diet coke. A special little splurge I like to enjoy. I took one sip of that cool, crisp diet coke and thought "oh crap." i was too depressed to look at it so I put it in the drink holder behind by seat. Arrgggg. Not as tragic as my 31 grams of sugar category 5 disaster yesterday. Exercise: 1 hour of yard work Alcohol: None Sugar: 1 sip of a dern diet coke Coffee: none Calories: 1605

Day Ten

A good day home with the fam.
Floors are still ripped up from the flood and will still be when this challenge is long over.
Now my dishwasher is barely working, thanks to LB standing on the door today. He thinks he wants to transition to one nap but he was cranky all the day through today.
I know I sound like a broken record but I ate too many nuts today. It's what I go to instead of chocolate these days.

Added sugar: none
fruit: 1/4 cup fruit/veggie juice (vitamix) and 2 strawberries
exercise: none
alcohol: one glass pinot grigio 

Day Nine

Another busy day at work. Ate lots of nuts and lots of veggies too. I worry that I am eating the same foods over and over and that if I don't mix it up some I may get sick of some of these frequent fliers (carrots, sugar snap peas, 8 veggie mix, triscuits, cheese/nuts, air popped popcorn).

Added sugar: none
fruit: none
wine: none
exercise: none

boring! but so glad I didn't succumb to the thought to go get a half passion fruit/half green tea from the starbucks at work. that would have really been terrible (see below).

The Perfect Storm

Oh, today. I'm glad it is over. All things came together for failure. And I succeeded. At failing.

The children and I ventured to the big city with a friend and her son. We enjoyed the children's museum and lunch in the park--fountain, mounted police, squirrels. Beautiful weather. I brought iced green tea and sugar snap peas and cucumber slices. It was shaping up to be another easy day of sugar-free.

And then, about four o'clock, we stopped at a Starbucks before heading the 75 miles home. It was a fairly warm day. I wanted a cool drink. I went for the safe choice, the choice I've been making for years now. The iced passion tea UnSweet. I said UnSweet. Did you hear me? UnSweet.

I enjoyed my drink on the way home, sucking down most of it within ten minutes. When I got home I was hungry. I had eaten a light lunch--about five grilled shrimp on a green salad with no dressing. (I ordered my salad sans dressing because I wouldn't want to get tripped up by hidden sugar would I?) So I thought that was why I was hungry. 

I came in and ate a smackaroon. Then another. Then I wanted another. After three I thought, "maybe the banana in the smackaroon is affecting me like sugar" even though the previous two days is had not. Then, after I'd eaten four smackaroons and a small plate of tortilla chips with microwaved cheese and salsa, I had a Goody powder. In a desperate move, I put six ice cubes of red wine in a glass to thaw. My headache was not disappearing. I took another Goody powder. I started getting mad and thinking of how my day had gone. 

This was the former me. The me that used to come in from a day of teaching middle school, unhinge my jaw and shovel in whatever I could find--chocolate and olives and leftovers and cheese. This was out of control eating. 

I looked back at the day and knew I'd probably not eaten enough. But it felt like more was going on. I suspected it may have been the tea. I had a flash of one time hearing that there may have been sugar in the passion tea. I don't think I ever looked into it, because I didn't believe it. It was unsweetened, afterall. Unsweetened. And I usually order half passion tea and half green tea. (According to the website the green tea has no sugars.)

Tazo® Shaken Iced Passion Tea

Nutrition Facts Per Serving (24 fl oz)

Calories 120	Calories from Fat 0
	% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g	0%
Saturated Fat 0g	0%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 0mg	0%
Total Carbohydrate 31g	11%
Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
Sugars 31g
Protein 0g

Not good at all. I was beside myself. But then I started thinking. This was a great day. An affirmation of why sugar is not good for me. It does not affect my body in a healthy way. It isn't something I can deny or ignore. I am glad today happened the way it did.

Calories : 2176 [almost 900 calories of snacks, including the tea, all consumed within an hour of a major sugar crash]

Sugar : hidden Starbucks sugar, 31 grams

Fruit : 2/3 cup strawberries

Alcohol: one glass of red wine

Coffee : None

Exercise : Fifteen minutes of yoga

Day Eight

Finally a day at work without a temptation! Thankfully dark chocolate mint covered espresso beans do not tempt me.
Gogo bear has started crying when I drop him off at school/daycare. It makes me very sad and normally when I am sad I look to sugar to cheer me up, but not today. Hoping he doesn't cry again tomorrow.

Fruit: my new obsession, once the kids are in bed, ask the hubbie to make me some vitamix sorbet. delish. had 2/3 cup (strawberry/banana/pineapple).
Added sugar: none
Alcohol: none
Exercise: none

Day Eight : Katie

So tired tonight. Only got through with half the Azaleas in the front yard and it wore me out.

Tomorrow going to the big city with the children and friends. Hoping I have time in the morning to prepare some snacks for us (me!).

Had a good day today. We even went one state over and bought us some honey bees. We are all very excited about that.

Calories : 1206
Sugar or Sweeteners : None
Exercise : Lots of Yard Work
Fruit : 2/3 cup strawberries, 1/3 bananas in smackaroons, raisins and Goji berries in 1 cup of detox salad.

Day Seven

Wow, seven days down. This 32 day challenge is going to fly by. And I know that I can do it. I have gotten into a not so great habit of finding starchy white breads that don't contain sugar and eating a few servings of it before it goes stale and I have to toss it out. If it weren't for that I would also be nearly gluten free, other than hidden gluten that I don't know to look for. I am thinking of finishing out the end of this challenge, maybe the last week or two with no gluten while I am at it... although I do love my triscuits and the only (not) sugar free, gluten free cracker actually has maltodextrin. Anyway, we will see.
Today was kindergarten lottery day.
I drew A's name (second out of six names).

Sugar: none
Alcohol: none
Exercise: jogged 3 miles
Fruit: 1/2 cup homemade vitamix sorbet (strawberries/bananas).  so delicious. interestingly i normally would have probably had 1.5-2 cups without measuring.

Day Six

happy mother's day.
it was a wonderful day, spent with a wonderful friend J and her family.
j is also doing this sugar challenge to some (most) degree with us although she is not blogging about it.
but she is doing a great job too and we were able to enjoy a sugar free (i hope chicken caesar salad has no sugar) lunch at the spa after wonderful massages/jaccuzi/catch-up time.  i had an unsweetened passion fruit black tea that was yummy. my sister is always suggesting i try an unsweetened tea when i get grumpy about this whole thing and after that cup i think i will try it more often.
i packed tons of sugar free snacks for the ride up north and had a good sugar free day.
i have found the detox back off sugar easier this time since i was mostly off sugar up until the 5 days before this challenge started. i have had a lot more energy today and yesterday.

sugar: none
fruit: 1/4 banana in 3 smackaroons
wine: none
exercise: none
happiness: a great big dollop

Day Seven : Katie

Today on the phone, I told my sister that I missed baking. She suggested I give the smackaroons a try. I am glad I did. They were so good and they were fun to make. No grains and the only sweetener in them is banana. The author of the spoonful of sugarfree website says she figures them to be 100 calories per cookie. I also made a batch of delicious crackers today. I have made these once before and my only complaint is that the recipe doesn't make enough. They are so good.

The children and I did make a batch of peanut butter chocolate chip cookies today. Before we delved in, I thought it might drive me crazy, but I had just eaten a smackaroon so I didn't feel like I was giving anything up. 

My caffeine headaches have subsided. I am tired still some days, but I feel like my energy level is more stable. I also feel like I have reigned in the fat the past couple days. I'm trying to watch my nut and egg intake some because those two things were pushing my total fat for the day much too high.

Day 7 of 32 complete.

Sugar or Sweeteners : None
Alcohol : None
Exercise : None
Fruit : half a banana at breakfast and quarter of a banana in smackaroon
Calories : 1176

Day Six : Katie

Today was a wonderful Mother's Day. We had lunch at H's grandmother's. Lots of salads so I didn't have much of an issue. Although I did make buttermilk pancakes for the family today that I did not partake in. I hear they were good.

I made a salad today that I thought was delicious and will definitely make again. It is a copy of the Whole Food's Detox Salad. The only change I made was to omit the maple syrup and I used goji berries instead of currants.

Alcohol: None
Exercise: None
Coffee: None
Sugar & Sweeteners: None
Fruit: Half a banana, juice of a lemon, raisin and goji berries in a salad.

Day Five : Katie

Day Five was fine. We ate supper down at H's parents. I took a salad and a vegetable that I knew I could eat.

I have been getting a headache at night for a few days now. I think it is a no (very little) caffeine headache. They haven't been horrible, but bothersome. 

I am enjoying doing this with my lovely sister.

Today:
No coffee.
Half a bottle of wine
(Does it sound better for me to say 2 glasses of wine?)
Exercise : 10" yoga
No sweetener or sugar.
Fruit: 1/3 banana, juice of a lemon, 1/2 cup blackberries

Day Five

Today was the first day I felt good. Also the first day of this challenge where I had time/opportunity to exercise.
Went to a 2 year old birthday party and had the forethought to eat an ezekial tortilla with cheddar cheese (aka quesadilla) on the way so as to not be tempted by all the yummy, sugar-laden foods. It worked.

added sugar: none
fruit: 3/4 cup of fruit smoothie (strawberry/pineapple/cucumber/date)
         3 smackaroons without unsweetened chocolate, much better than my first attempt (banana and
         date)
exercise: ran, i mean jogged, 5 miles

Day Four

oh the tempting zucchini bread i had to look at all day today...  torture.
but i persevered.

sugars: none
fruit: none
nuts: 5 million
veggies: lots (thank you TJ's 8 veggie mix)
air-popped popcorn for the commute.
alcohol: 1 glass pinot grigio (while I unloaded DW and reloaded with a sink-full of "we haven't had water for 2 days but now we do, hooray" dirty dishes).
clean kitchen: check.

Day Four : Katie

Slip up on the potato chips. Really? Who would have thought?

I think really you just have to make EveryThing YourSelf.

Calories: 1519
Exercise: walk 30" pushing triple stroller; yoga 10".
Alcohol: half a bottle of red wine
Coffee: None
Sugar: None
Sweeteners: About five salt and vinegar chips. Dern things had maltodextrose.

day three

thanks sister.
today was hmm, a not so good day. no water in the house is not fun.
maltodextrin, also no fun. darn crunchmaster crackers!!

no sugar, yes maltodextrin; never again, well for now.
smacaroons with unsweetened chocolate, disgusting, but the bites without the chocolate were good so i will try without sometime soon. chia seeds, so fascinating how they gel in water. what is that all about?
yes to 1 glass of pinot grigio, had to after today.

Day Three : Katie

Day Three was easy enough. Lots of hydration going on.

No sugar or sweeteners.
No alcohol or coffee.
Calories : 1632.
No exercise.

Onward.

Day Two : Katie

Today we motored to the big city for a dental appointment and to go to a museum. Only temptation in my day was walking by the chocolate at Target.

I had no sweeteners or sugars.
No coffee or alcohol.
No exercise and too many calories.

[I've tried to comment on previous posts several different ways, but can't get it to work. I'm so, so sorry about your flooding. That is terrible. But you are correct, you can absolutely do this thing.]

Day Two

Today went pretty well. no added sugars. 1/2 banana. no vino. still eating more overall calories than necessary. dining room flooded tonight. may not be able to cook at home tomorrow... or the next day... may not be able to bathe... but if i can resist my own black bottom cupcakes, Lisa's carrot cake, & cookie pops from April, (all in one day) I think I can do this thing.  Good Night!

Day One : Katie

Day One for me went fairly well. I did eat more fat than I should have. Four eggs in a day is too many, huh? Since I have broken the sugar cycle already, this day was not the hell it might have been. (I'll post more on that later.)

I did find myself several times breaking out into a panic, thinking things like "Does coconut milk have sugar?" when I'd already checked the can.

My son loves strawberry milk. That nasty kind that has artificial flavors and red 40 in it. I saw a recipe for strawberry milk on pinterest. So today, I gave it a try. I forwent the stevia and added a third of a vanilla bean. For the milk I used lite coconut milk. It was delicious. I asked Elliott which strawberry milk he liked better. He said he like them both the same. I saw him later in the day pick up the yellow box of strawberry powder and say to it, "You aren't very good for me."

Tomorrow we are going to the big city for dental appointments and then to a museum. I am planning on bringing a few snacks for me in case things get tight.

I hope everyone else's day went well today too.

Summary:
No coffee; No alcohol
No sugars or sweeteners
Fruit: 1/2 cup strawberries, lemon juice
Exercise: None
Calories: 1576

Day One

How is it that I have to bake cupcakes tonight for a school fundraiser? I have decided to withdraw myself from a work cupcake baking contest scheduled for late in this "challenge" so that I don't have to compete with a cupcake I never tasted. Seems safer that way. But tonight I make my go-to black bottom cupcakes that I could practically make blindfolded, so I definitely don't have to tast them to know they will be good.
Wishing my fellow competitors great luck (and strength) today :)

The Agreement

Spoonful of Sugarfree/I Quit Sugar Challenge

32 Days of SugarFree

Dates: Tuesday, May 8-Friday, June 8, 2012

Participants: Katie, Karen, Jenny

Prize: a $100 gc to Athleta for all who complete challenge

KK Guidelines: No sugar in any form, no artificial sweeteners

Exceptions: 2 servings of fruit a day*

J Guideline: No sugary snacks or treats

Free Days: None

We also each have some individualized goals.
Jenny: Drink water
Katie: No coffee, alcohol only in social settings.
Karen: Try five no-sugar recipes

*The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) sets a serving size for fruit or vegetables to be equal to about one-half cup. Greens like spinach and lettuce have a serving size equal to one full cup. One serving of sliced fruit is equal to one-half cup; however a single piece of fruit, such as an apple or an orange counts as one serving.