The Sweet Poison Quit Plan

I have found the book to be totally convincing, Bath, mainly on the suggestion that I won't be a binger once I've detoxed and that is the clincher for me. I think it's more than the physical damage aspect of sugar that matters to me - I am well practiced at abusing my body, LOL! But the psychological feeling of not being in control of what I eat fully sucks. I am desperate to be in control of myself and that's my motivation at this point.
Thanks again for your support - it helps.
I have actually felt cravings quite strongly today. Being at home makes it harder to break the old habits. 1 week down. Hopefully this time next week I won't be looking at the chocolate shelf in the fridge at all, let alone longingly.

Hey ladies! Is everyone still going strong? I am doing well, although I am still eating too much... but just feeling a bit crook afterwards, LOL! Old habits die hard.
I am still drinking diet lemonade... 3 weeks in. I wonder if I should try to kick it. But I haven't really had any other sugary foods and haven't really felt like it.
Haven't lost weight. I have heard that it can take a couple of months, so I will keep plugging away.

Bugger, bottom and poo. I think AF is on her way. Last night I ate chocolate! I can't believe I am back to square 1. :cry:

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Nuts, fruits and veg are my new best friends :)

Good luck to you guys on the sugar free journeym i hope this has inspired!!

PS- i am not a diet, willpower sort of person, i just see this as a sensible life change that was worth a shot and in hindsight, necessary. X

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thanks Jackrose, that's short sharp and shiny, a good one to remember. (vegies, nuts and fruit). But much to learn (about quantities i think).

Snaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaacks..... mate.... where are you!!!

Where are you at with being sugar (fructose) free? I’m on day 2 and I’m struggling. I started this thread last night (oops, I should have done a search and just posted in here). I need a buddy! :D

LOL, I fall in a heap every time I get my period. This last month I have been absolutely shocking. Pretty much I am off the sugar-free wagon. :(
Some days I am very conscious about it and choose a non-sugar option for my meals and snacks. Other days I just don't give a stuff. I am pretty much permanently off cereals, white bread and only very rarely eat desert (like if we have people over). I also don't do low fat stuff anymore, just full fat dairy but less of it.
Problem is I go through phases of focusing on some aspect of my health or nutrition but can't seem to get the motivation to do it all at once.
I would be happy to step up my game and re-read the plan and start over again. I'll be your buddy :) (Well, probably for the next 2.5 weeks until I get pre-menstrual again, lol).

Just revisiting this thread as I have just had a major bleugh sugar hit!!

I was doing really well, stuck at the sugar free plan really stringently for a few months then relaxed a bit to avoid sugar if possible but not be militant about it. That has gone well for a long time but a few times recently I have had a bit of sugar cravings and given myself a big dose pure sugar with a few mixed lollies :rolleyes: Now I feel like crap! Not at myself, but just physically crap. I am not used to eating much sugar at all let alone a few handfuls of lollies! It wasn't that much in the scheme of things, but it just goes to show that when your body isn't used to much, it doesn't take much to leave you feeling bleugh.

I think in reflection, I am tired (lots of restless nights with the wee ones at the moment), hungry, (not been eating properly and regularly as the daily routine is a bit haywire) and I'm therefore feeling flat. It highlights how important it is to look after yourself to be in a better place to look after yourself more easily IYKWIM. So, time to put on the kettle, take a moment to relax, plan a proper dinner, get my motivation back and fill up the fruit and veg stocks at home to get my snack fixes.

Just wanted to fess up and share with those of you who are going through the sugar free journey. Now, I'm back on the wagon ;)

Ahh jackrose I’ve been meaning to come and update this thread (or the other one). Huge hugs to you. :hug: Thanks for your update. :D

Four days mate, four days, that’s how long I lasted on a completely, totally, utterly fructose free (well, less than 10g / 2 pieces of fruit per day) diet. I have cut way, way, way back though and I continue to head in the right direction, but I do have a fair few blowout days along the way. You know he says in the book that women of childbearing age seem to be more tolerant of fructose than other people. And that women usually find it better to cut down gradually rather than go cold turkey (men tend to be able to go cold turkey more easily). And that women suffer terribly with sugar cravings around AF time.

Unfortunately some of the alternative choices I make are also unhealthy, like instead of having something with sugar, I’ll have something with heaps of salt and fat. I know my appetite is supposed to dramatically diminish after I kick sugar but I think breastfeeding is really interfering with that for me. Becoming sugar aware and deciding to go low sugar and eventually sugar free has been good for me though. I do feel better and I’m not putting on weight anymore (I don’t think, I don't actually weigh myself). When I get a sugar craving, about a third of the time I make a good choice, then about a third of the time I make a bad choice (and have something equally unhealthy or just have something sugary), and about a third of the time I’ll just have nothing at all. I reckon getting it right two thirds of the time is pretty good. :D

Rach, it can take a couple of months to actually lose weight, apparently. I never lost any weight either and I found eating more fatty foods was the recommendation. I have found it really hard to get my head around after so long believing a high-fat diet is more evil than high-sugar. I guess "high" anything is bad.
I am not completely sugar-free, I must confess. But it helps to have the logic in my mind that sugar is addictive and therefore I don't go for the lollies or the chocolate or the stupidly sugary products (except for cereal - I have been eating a bowl of that most mornings lately as I have run out of oats until I shop on Friday!). Having said all that, I ate flavoured licorice and Hersheys chocolate whilst on holidays and I scoffed it like a dying woman. I think AF must be on her way again, lol.

I have just downloaded Sarah Wilsons I Quit Sugar ebook and am going to do this for 8 weeks. DH thinks it is a stretch and has NO faith that I can do this so am feeling pretty crappy about it and not trusting myself but I really want to try because I think it will make a big difference in my mood swings, well being and weightloss.

For anyone who has done this can you tell me which bread is best to have?? I generally eat grainy breads from the bakery - are they still ok?? She mentions things like avocado on toast but not what kind of toast. I don't have the quit plan book and can't afford it right now so am getting all my info from blogs and this ebook!

Any suggestions/recipe sites etc would be really great!!

Hey Tanstar, I’m not sugar(fructose) free (yet) but I am sugar-aware/low-sugar.

Sweet poison says anything less than 3% sugar is fine. For breads, most wholemeal/grainy breads are less than 3% sugar, just check the NIP (nutritional information panel) on the pack. Any fruit breads/toasts are out, obviously because dried fruit is out, and they often have added sugar in them anyway. I think things like bagels have a lot of sugar in them too, again just check the NIP when you’re shopping.

I do allow myself to have some things that are more than 3% sugar. I have a teaspoon of brown sugar on my porridge in the morning. This is still several orders or magnitude less sugar than any commercial breakfast cereal (except plain weetbix). I have a small amount of sweet chilli sauce occasionally. Even though it is very high in sugar, I only use a very small amount so the portion size is the most important thing here when considering totally daily sugar intake. I also have a few squares (ok, so maybe a few and then a few more) of 85% chocolate. It only has 12% sugar so again, % sugar and portion size are important here.

Good luck. :hug: I really want to go completely sugar free, but as I have said in some posts above it’s a long term thing for me. I will get there one day but for now being sugar-aware/low-sugar is a HUGE step in the right direction.

Oh, just in terms of recipes and baking I now substitute dextrose for sugar (table sugar – sucrose, which is half glucose half fructose. Glucose is OK, fructose is BAD). You can get it in the home brewing sections of K-Mart and Big-W. Coles and Woolworths used to have home brewing sections but they got rid of them recently. It is so cheap, $2.50/Kg or something like that. Dextrose is powdered glucose, so OK, no fructose. It is not as sweet as sucrose. I also use natvia which is a non-sugar sweetener. It’s really expensive but it is very sweet so you don’t need much.

I like to make a fructose free hot chocolate with a cup of full cream milk, 2 teaspoons unsweetened coco powder, 2 teaspoons dextrose and ½ teaspoon nativia. I think I even like it better than Ovaltine.

I find dextrose great in baking. It is milled very fine, finer than castor sugar, almost in between castor sugar and icing sugar. Because it is so fine it’s very easy to cream with butter and makes a fantastic buttercream icing.

Thanks for the info hun!! I am finding it a bit overwhelming and think that like you it will be a long term phase out. Just trying to get my head around what I can and can't have right now - first week of Sarah's book is about cutting back, second week is increasing fats and then week 3 is cold turkey. I think I am just going to combine the 3 weeks into this week!

:D He (David Gillepsie) says in his book, Sweet Poison, that:

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...women of childbearing age seem to be more tolerant of fructose than other people. And that women usually find it better to cut down gradually rather than go cold turkey (men tend to be able to go cold turkey more easily). And that women suffer terribly with sugar cravings around AF time.

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I like to keep that in mind so I don’t feel quite so much of a failure when I inevitably cave as I occasionally (but more and more rarely) do.

I so need help. I saw this post or another one a while back and decided to kick the habit. Was doing so well but I find once I let myself relax and have a bit of chocolate here and there I relax too much and start eating lots of sugar every day all over again. I've completely cut it out before and I lost 5 kgs doing it, had more energy and no headaches. I've been getting headaches every day for the past month and I'm sure it's the sugar. Anyway you ladies have kicked my butt back into gear. Starting again tomorrow!

Yay Babyluv! :D

Tan, and another thing, if you “like” Sweet Poison on facebook he is always linking to blogs with people’s journeys and recipes, so check that out too (if you haven't already). :D

I've been sugar free for almost six months now (to combat severe candida problem) and have found it pretty easy in general...maybe because eating anything sugary has a direct impact and I start getting breast and nipple pain :(

I have had the occasional slip up, mainly because I am also caffeine, yeast and gluten free too :/

The bread I eat is Edwards sourdough spelt yeast free grain (available at Coles) and I have that with butter and nut butter.

I eat lots of raw nuts in yogurt, and lots of spelt pasta, rice and quinoa.

I've heard chromium is good for sugar cravings, but haven't really had any. I find nuts sweet now and don't miss the sweetness. In fact I accidentally licked my finger after making dd a honey sandwich and almost died from the sweetness of a drop of honey!!

As a breastfeeding mum, I know I need lots of calories, so I eat heaps of fats and oils...mainly butter and nuts...and I eat two serves of dinner each night. I haven't lost any weight (because I didn't want to) but my dh has! Mainly because we don't have any chocolate or biscuits or cordial in the house any more.

Babyluv we can help each other if you like! I am totally clueless though so major baby steps here!! I am a Marks Daily Apple fan on FB as well as the Sweet Poison page so there are lots of ideas there as well as on lots of Primal websites.

My biggest thing will be post dinner chocolate cravings. I don't eat a huge amount of cakes/biscuits anyway (am more a savoury eater during the day!) and endless bacon appeals! I love eggs so they will be my staple lunch most days I think, and I love salmon and fish too. I am doing it as an experiment more than anything - can I do it? Will my moods stabilise?? WIll I lose weight!?

Hi girls, when this thread was 1st started I signed up thinking I could do it but ended up not being ready. I've been off sugar for about a week and a half now and have even knocked back a muffin when a girlfriend came over for a cuppa bringing treats! anyway would love some support from this thread as I continue on with it :) I had started a 12week challenge in the weight loss section and had to pull out due to injury but since then my eczema has gotten out of control. I had a consultation with a lady and she has given me an eating plan which you guessed it doesn't include sugar!

Hi there sugar free ladies!

I have been sugar free for almost 2 months now. For the first month I just read packets and didn't eat anything sweet. Then once I figured out that I actually COULD do it, I bought the book. I've got to say, while I would still occasionally like something sweet, I don't have the all out terrible cravings that I used to. I can easily turn down cake, biscuits, chocolate, icecream. I generally have a coffee if others are having dessert and that is fine with me.

At first I put ON about 3kg, and I've now lost about 2.5kg of that, so no actual weight loss, but I'm giving it till Christmas, and then I might start another diet as well. I think that being sugar free works for me and I can seriously see myself doing this for years to come as I have a life long weight problem.

Just a little personal woo hoo - I sat in front of a bowl of chocolates last night and I didn't eat one! Not at all! It was slightly tempting, but I just told myself "I dont' eat desserts" and was fine. I knew if I started, I would eat 10!

Woo day two of the quit plan!
The boyfriend has already caved in (but claims he's not addicted).
This is going to be harder then I thought without him on board I think - he loves his candy!

Feeling good, have been eating alot healthier too - when did everyone start getting the withdrawls?
I started writing about it on my blog to help keep me on track too.

Glad there's a community here to read peoples different stories.

Courtney

I have heard great things about this diet, I am interested to see how you go