Wow! Week two brought all of the challenges! It was a such a rollercoaster, it’s hard to believe it all happened in one week. It all started out innocently enough, feeling good with a touch of proud and the tiniest sprinkle of smug. Someone who has completed the program before told me, good luck, week two is the hardest! I almost laughed. I was fine. Better than fine.
How naive I was.
The very next day, I was rabid. Possessed. I did not feel completely in control of the impulse that had taken over my body. If I didn’t get snacks NOW! I was going to eat anything and everything in site. Especially the chocolate biscuits. Cue mad dash to the health store for cashews. No chance for a measured approach. Of a reasonable serving size. Down they all went. Somewhat satiated, crisis averted I thought.
Until my boss, in an endeavor to be supportive, bought in mixed nuts and dried fruit. You better believe I picked all of the nuts out of that mix. Tempted though I was, I didn’t eat any of the dried fruit. Pat on the back for me. Ten points for being rabid and not caving to my cravings.
So my body threw a fit. Decided I didn’t need to be able to think clearly. To have motivation. Or focus. It was all superfluous. Didn’t matter that I had a deadline to meet, my brain was not open for business. Lucky me. Somehow I battled through, met my deadline and didn’t succumb to sugar.
Now before you go thinking I’m some kind of saint, I had my first major social outing since quitting sugar. Going out for brunch is easy to navigate, lots of sugar-free, tasty brunch options. No FOMO. Dinner is actually manageable too. But when you turn up and everyone is raving about the cocktails? That’s a different story. I scoured the drinks menu, found something mixed with chai tea instead of fruit juice, and went for it. As much as these eight weeks are about detoxing (don’t I know it!) and recalibrating my taste buds so sugar and sweet doesn’t rule me anymore, I also need to live my life. Find a way for low sugar to be sustainable. Ultimately, that’s my end goal. Having the odd cocktail while out with friends fits into that vision. So I made the decision to partake in what may or may not have been a low sugar cocktail. And I’m cool with that choice. You find my beating myself up over this one.
Week two was undoubtedly a challenge. Despite sticking to the no sugar plan, over dosing on fats to keep on the wagon left me feeling sluggish. Snacking does not serve me, lesson learned. Hidden amongst the turbulence, there were some definite wins. I made conscious decisions. I stuck to my guns. I found ways to manage during challenging times. I didn’t use sugar as a crutch to get me through the long days to meet my deadline. For those reasons, I think I smashed week two.
An Independent Maven 