one thing i learned is that honey is on the "forms of processed sugar" list and i have to say i disagree with it being a "bad" thing. sure it can potentially spike your blood sugar like any other sweetener, but i don't consider "made by bees" to be a (bad) process. it irks me a bit how "processed=bad" is thrown around regarding food in general. technically boiling water, baking, grilling, and freezing are all processes, are they not?
i'm getting off topic. the nsa guys are not taking things to this extreme; that sugar list was not even created by them. they're simply eliminating non-natural sugar from their diets and i think that's admirable.
[edited to add/emphasize: they are eliminating non-natural sugars. fruits are natural "sugar" and therefore still part of their diets.]
i am definitely not ready to go completely sugar-less, but their challenge has motivated me to (finally) put the cookies down. i switched to kashi cereal instead of honey bunches of oats. i know that's still not great, but i can't quite quit my cereal habit yet. i'm reaching for bananas and oranges instead of walking to walgreen's for a fix. even more significant is my willpower at avoiding the chips and candy that are somehow in every aisle. i'm surprised they don't try to display a few in between the lettuce heads too.
That picture says it all - processed foods are as cheap or cheaper than the healthy stuff.
ReplyDeleteI agree on the honey.
I'm surprised they don't display chips in between the lettuce heads too...love that drawing. I've decided to get rid of honey and sugar in my house and have substituted agave or dates for sweetness...I'd like to start using stevia, but it's so expensive.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you on the honey. I stay away from HFCS, I buy only organic cane sugar for my kids(beet sugar can be GMO) Sugar is not HORRIBLE! It's the HFCS that reeks havoc on you. Balance people, balance. :)
ReplyDeleteim with you on the honey. its so NOT bad for you. i could 100 percent not give up sugar. i like your method of making some simple swaps.
ReplyDeleteI have a stash of granola bars and a stash of fruit on my desk every day.... The granola bars are absolute emergency snacks, but sometimes I have to remind myself to finish up the fruit before breaking into the bars.... It's rough... sometimes... This whole eating better... Takes tons of discipline...
ReplyDeleteI can't keep track of the rules for "clean" eating... and I'm also never going to give it all up. It's all about balance - lettuce with a side of chips!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE CEREAL. I could eat it every meal.
You know it is almost impossible to remove sugar. Think about fruit. Great for you but loaded with sugar and I understand the removal of processed sugar and that IS admirable but what is the point? What are they trying to prove? Obviously I did not click on link.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, good for you for having willpower. You said you couldn't and did not but here you are doing it.
It's very difficult to go sugar free. I don't think I'm brave enough!
ReplyDeletewow, i can say for sure that i could never make that happen. i agree with you on the honey..if that isn't natural, what the heck is? i feel like there's a happy medium in all things - i have definitely been more aware lately of trying to buy things that have real cane sugar, as opposed to HFCS or some other mystery substance which i suppose is a step in the right direction (doesn't hurt that i live closer to a whole foods than any other grocery store, haha).
ReplyDeletealso i guess they meant no ADDED sugar, since i see they eat a lot of fruit and there is definitely sugar in fruit! still interesting through :)
Why would one want to pass up lettuce after that awesome drawing? I'm going to crave it all day :).
ReplyDeleteI think honey is on the list mostly because it has a very high sugar content.
My downfall is chips, I must really crave all that salt from NOT running, huh?
I gave up sugar, all of it, for a month before Tucson Marathon. My body fat was lower than it's ever been and I PR'd. Hum.
My mother-in-law and her sister are doing something similar right now. They're interested in seeing if a dramatic change in diet affects the way they feel and/or their blood pressure and cholesterol. I don't think they're giving up honey. They're not trying to lose weight, but now that they're a couple of weeks into their challenge they think weight loss might be a side effect since snacking isn't fun anymore.
ReplyDeleteI've seen/heard discussions of raw honey a couple of times lately. I wonder if that would technically be unprocessed.
Thanks for that website! I gave up sugar for Lent and it is a challenge that is proving harder than I thought...
ReplyDeleteinteresting challenge for sure. i'm not sure if i could do it. i try to eat lots of fruits and unprocessed snacks but my granola bars and cereal? i don't think they're going away any time soon.
ReplyDeletefunny drawing. it reminds me of how every time i go to the grocery store and look at the bananas there's a box of banana bread mix right above it!
Honey is not processed, at least I do not consider it processed. I could not give up sugar, or maybe I could if I had diabetes or other medical problem that would require me so. I love my daily chocolate! But, I am lucky to be good with moderation. I think everything in moderation is fine. heck, I am still drinking one can of diet coke a day!
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you on the honey. I guess if you are trying to keep sugar in all forms to a minimum (processed or not) it might make sense. For me, I try to go with eating simpler/cleaner - unless we are tlaking about chips. Wonder how processed Taco flavored doritos are? ha...
ReplyDeleteIf I ever for some harebrained reason were to attempt this challenge, I guarantee you my tortilla chip consumption would SKYROCKET. No sugar in those crunchy little discs of gold! Safe!!!
ReplyDeleteEveryone is so anti-sugar these days that I'm starting to wonder if it's getting an unnecessarily bad rap.
And I agree - no WAY honey should be on that list! Honey is magic!
Haha, love the drawing! Sucks that we (as a nation) make it cheaper to be fat than to be fit.
ReplyDeleteJust think of honey as what it is:
bee poop! Who wants to eat poop?!!
I can't do it! I try to practice moderation - sometimes I'm excellent at it, other times - not so much.
ReplyDeleteI always do better leading up to a big race. Makes me mad that I don't do it all the time. I try and I keep trying!
I like the honey - I put it in my yogurt and cereal!
ReplyDeleteOh it's so tough to cut out sugar! Especially if you were raised on it! I loved the post!!:)
ReplyDeleteOH MY GOSH! THIS IS SO AWESOME!!!
ReplyDeleteTHANKS!
And I LOVEEEE your picture! Watch out, those grocery stores are SNEAKY!
:)
You're awesome! If you come up here ever (like say... for the BOSTON marathon) We'll have to take you to a nice place to eat (with sugar... but not lots of it!)
I'm not sure I could give up my maple syrup addiction...
ReplyDeleteI'm going to have to check out that blog.
And I bought envelopes today. There's a better than 50% chance I'll get the stickers in the mail before April. ;o)
What about M+Ms? Did I miss where you said you gave up those?
ReplyDeleteLOVE your drawing!! I think I saw just that at Walmart the other day.... I'm trying to cut down on cookies and what not too. Not all together, but just down.
ReplyDeleteI gave up sugar for the 3 weeks before I went on my trip overseas. I don't think I wrote it on my blog -- maybe that's why I was so successful for once. It was hard to define "sugar", because how far do you go? ALL sugars? My favorite salad dressing has some sugar in it. So, I gave up desserts and things that were MOSTLY sugar, but I still did have honey and aspartame (I am not ready to give up diet coke. Not sure I ever will be). I guess the rules vary for everyone. I know I can't eat perfectly clean, that's for sure.
ReplyDeleteI need to lower my sugar intake, although I totally think you get points for walking to Walgreens. It's exercise! ;)
ReplyDeleteI am doing a 30 day vegetarian challenge and part of that is to eat mostly whole foods which naturally eliminates most of the sugar. I have to say I feel great!
ReplyDeleteI need to ban HCFS for my whole family.
ReplyDeleteOne day....
No sugar for a month? I think I could do it, as long as my wife didn't bake anything. I might be a little grumpy by the end though.
ReplyDeleteSo you put the cookies down, but what about the M&Ms?
ReplyDeleteI couldn't do it. No way in hell.
Wow!!! I find if you don't buy the cookies you won't be hungry for them. Which is why I'm taking in an unopened bag of chips ahoy to work (bought it for a party.)
ReplyDeleteI think you might notice a difference in the workouts too - with changing the cereal. And I agree, honey is a good thing.