Before I get into our 30-day sugar challenge, I have to share with y’all one of the best sales of the year — SHOPBOP is currently offering up to 25% off of your entire purchase and I definitely took advantage of it! I’m going to share what I ordered below, plus some other fun finds.
LOFT is also having a 40% off of your entire purchase sale and I cannot start this post without sharing this amazing dress I ordered. It’s pink, one shoulder (with a ruffle) and eyelet…could it be any more perfect? I shared it on Instagram last night and I saw several of you ladies purchased it too— I can’t wait to try mine on! (it arrived today)
| dress |
I’m kind of on a shopping binge now because I’m attending a conference in Dallas next week and I’m aiming to have a variety of looks to choose from for each event. I don’t normally wear a lot of cocktail or formal dresses, so this event is always fun to shop for (albeit a little stressful).
Here’s what I picked up at SHOPBOP:
mar y sol clutch (more amazing mar y sol bags here) | white dress (more white eyelet faves here) | sam edelman heels (more cute options here) | mara hoffman dress (pretty much obsessed with everything MH, especially the swimwear) | schutz heels | tory burch blush wallet on chain (more cross body options here) | bell sleeve eyelet top (and really cute options here too)
Now is a good time to buy:
KAREN WALKER SUPER DUPER SUNGLASSES
AG JEANS (I need the white ones, clearly!)
3 0 – D A Y S U G A R C H A L L E N G E U P D A T E
Now, for my 30-day sugar challenge update — I’ve partnered with three of my fave bloggers (Jess from Happily Hughes, Laura from Walking in Memphis in High Heels and Heather from My Life Well Loved) to reduce added sugar intake in my diet. Read the introductory post here. You can also watch a Facebook Live video for week one of this challenge, here.
It’s been a week since embarking on this challenge and in some ways it has been easier than I imagined and in others, more difficult. Let’s start with the easy part — it hasn’t been as hard as I anticipated to give up added sugars in terms of battling the cravings and avoiding consuming them altogether. Being mindful of what I eat (I’m keeping a food journal) has helped a lot with understanding when I’m actually hungry and when I’m having a craving that will pass or that can be remedied with fruit instead of candy.
The more challenging part in this first week has been an unexpected level of irritability. I guess I should have known it can be a side effect of drastically reducing sugar intake, but I found myself cranky and lacking energy, especially on day 4 (Saturday).
Before I share my weekly food journal, I’m going to share a few ways in which I “set myself up for success” when it comes to this challenge.
Purchasing safe foods and having them available at work and at home so there isn’t a temptation to purchase something quick and easy — this includes sprouted grain bread, peanut butter with only one ingredient (peanuts), veggie trays, replacing my coffee creamer with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, some fruit, etc.
Sipping on hot tea after a meal — helps me digest my food and is relaxing.
Eating a piece of fruit when I crave sweets.
These are all little changes that have helped me along the way. Ideally I’d like to get rid of all of the candy/chocolate we have in the house but it’s right before Easter and I’m doing okay managing not to eat the sweets we have (as tempting as they are). I have a friend who doesn’t keep sweets in their home—any time they’d like to have a special treat they go out to get it. I think this is the model I’d like to move to myself. Allowing myself ice cream or candy or cake once in a while, but not having it be part of my everyday life/accessible at all times would be a better approach since I have a history of struggling with moderation. If I have to go out and buy a donut or ice cream or what have you, I know that one it’s gone, it’s gone and can’t be tempted to continue to indulge.
How have you all been doing with this challenge? I would love to hear any highs and lows you have to share. To be honest, I’m not sure I could have been successful with this had I not been on such a limited diet when I was nursing. I think that experience made me recognize that I was capable of giving something up that I never thought I could. Of course this is just week one and who knows, I may have slip ups along the way, but big changes like this require time to become a habit, so here’s to the clock ticking!
Here is my food diary. I still work out with my trainer M,T,TR,F.
Sugar Challenge Day 1:
Breakfast:
Coffee with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, whole grain pita bread with organic TJ peanut butter (no additives)
Snack:
Mozzarella cheese stick
Lunch:
Zoes’s Kitchen Greek salad with chicken salad
Cup of green tea
Snack:
Apple
Basil pesto humus with three pieces of pita
Dinner:
Beef and veggies over rice
Sugar Challenge Day 2:
Breakfast:
Coffee with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, whole grain pita bread with organic TJ peanut butter
Lunch:
Turkey and chicken soup with veggies and lentils
2 cantaloupe spears/wedges
Snack:
Roasted/salted cashews
Dinner:
Beef and veggies over white rice
Sugar Challenge Day 3:
Breakfast:
Starbucks coconut milk latte (grande, with no flavor/syrup), Starbucks bacon & gouda breakfast sandwich
Snack:
Roasted/salted cashews
Lunch:
Zoe’s chicken salad, Zoe’s basil pesto humus with whole grain pita bread
Cup of orange spice herbal tea
Snack:
cantaloupe wedges
Dinner:
Scrambled eggs with cheese and bacon and two tangerines
Sugar Challenge Day 4:
Breakfast:
Starbucks coconut milk latte (grande, with no flavor/syrup), Starbucks bacon & gouda breakfast sandwich
Snack:
Apple slices
Lunch:
Three AppleGate farms turkey hot dogs with mustard, and tangerines
Veggies with sour cream ranch dip at a birthday party and fruit
Snack:
Tazo zen green tea
Popcorn
Dinner
Hamburger with no bun (mayo basil sauce, tomato, basil leaves, lettuce) and a garden salad with balsamic vinaigrette
Sugar Challenge Day 5:
Breakfast:
Sprouted grain toast with organic peanut butter
Snack:
3 Subway mini subs with meat, cheese and veggies and fruit (at a birthday party)
Lunch:
3 AppleGate Farms Turkey hot dogs with mustard
7 sun dried tomatoes
Three tangerines
Snack:
Lavender chamomile tea
Dinner:
Minestrone soup (home made)
Cherry pie Lara Bar
Sugar Challenge Day 6:
Breakfast:
Whole grain pita with organic peanut butter, one cup of coffee with almond milk (unsweetened(
Lunch:
Minestrone soup (home made) w/ chicken and one peach
Snack:
Roasted/salted cashews
One cup of green tea
Mozzarella cheese stick
Dinner:
Stuffed shells (beef and low glycemic index tomato sauce, cheese)
Day 7:
Breakfast:
Cup of coffee with unsweetened almond milk, 2 slices spouted grain toast with organic peanut butter
Lunch:
Salad with tons of veggies. Chicken and balsamic vinaigrette
Tall latte from Starbucks
Snack:
Mozzarella cheese stick
Roasted/salted cashews
Sugar snap peas
Dinner:
Stuffed shells
3 tangerines
This is the first time I can ever remember not eating sweets (candy, baked goods, cookies, etc) for this long of a period. I am hoping to stay on track while in Dallas, but I am OK if I have a few slip ups since it’s a special event and I want to enjoy my time here. I’m just going to continue to be mindful of what I consume and make better choices like I have been so far!
Don’t forget to visit friends doing the Sugar Detox Challenge! Heather from my Life Well Loved is sharing her favorite athleisure brands, Jess from Happily Hughes is sharing what you need to know about portion control, and Laura from Walking in Memphis in High Heels is sharing her cardio workout you can do anywhere.
How are YOU doing with this challenge?! Leave me a comment and let me know!
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