Why? I realized I ate so much food during the holidays (and before that, too), especially sweets, that I felt big, uncomfortable, puffy and bloated.

Knowing from previous experiences that cutting out carbs (therefore sugar) helps lose weight, I set a goal for myself to NOT eat sugar for the entire month of January. I didn’t eliminate carbs, because I didn’t want to put too much pressure on me. I knew that eliminating both sugar and carbs would make me give in and cheat along the way, so I stuck to just no sugar. 

And guess what, guys? I DID IT!! I completed my No Sugar Challenge and I’m so proud of myself!

I strongly believe you can do it, too! That’s why I wanted to write this blog post, to help you achieve this goal, too, if you want to. 

So here’s how my January went: what I ate, what I didn’t eat, what I craved and how I managed to keep it up and not eat sweets.

My game plan for the No Sugar Challenge

Before starting the challenge, I set myself some rules that I had to follow:

• No sweets.
• No soda or cocktails (I used to drink Cuba Libres every weekend).
• No products / meals with added sugar into it.
• Limit natural sugar (that means, little to no fruit, or whole milk, or similar).
• Few or no sweets in the house.
• Limit temptations: no birthdays and no accepting desserts from family.
• Have on hand low sugar snacks.

Obviously, I didn’t go 100% without sugar, because there are some natural items that have a low quantity of sugar in them, like milk or nuts, but I avoided all obvious sugar choices, including fruits. 

Substituting Sugar: Choose snacks with low or no sugar

I knew, going into this, that 

1. I couldn’t eliminate snacking all together;
2. I would crave sweets or have the need for dessert.

That’s why I made sure I had low sugar snacks in my house. During the no sugar challenge, nuts were my snack of choice. My saviors. 

I always had a bowl of trail mix on my counter with the following:

• Walnuts;
• Cashews;
• Almonds;
• Pecans;
• Hazelnuts;
• Pistachio. 

Now, I know that most of them contain fats and that eating a bigger amount doesn’t help with weight loss, on the contrary, but they are filling. And that’s what I needed. 

Walnuts and Pecans, especially, have low natural sugar, so they were my favorite. 

I also had insane amounts of peanut butter. I say “insane” because I usually don’t eat that much of it, but during January, I ate ½ or ⅔ of a jar by myself. It also helped me beat the cravings. 

Other snack options were carrots, hard boiled eggs, chips and popcorn.

How to overcome sugar cravings

I will admit: it was so hard at times. Especially when my boyfriend loves sweets more than I do and he eats them all the time. In the house. 

This was probably my biggest problem. Seeing him eat Nutella or drink Coke after dinner. He tried to minimize sugar, too, or at least not eat it in front of me, but I told him from the beginning that he doesn’t have to. So he ate normally.

How did I manage to not eat sugar when my boyfriend did? Well, I’ll tell you what helped me:

• I ate peanut butter when he had Nutella; I snacked on something I could when he had sweets;
• I went into another room, or redirected my focus to the TV or something else;
• I told him how I craved chocolate, and he reminded me of my challenge, and supported me, telling me I could do it. He would also playfully say “NO, it’s my precioussss” and hide his chocolate.

Other ways to overcome sugar cravings that helped me:

• Having low or no sugar snacks on hand;
• Limiting my possible temptations, so
  • Not browsing the sweets section of the supermarket;
  • Less birthdays and social outings;
  • Refusing to bring home dessert offered by my mom or my boyfriend’s mom.
• Reminding myself how well I did until that point and that I could finish this;
• Focusing on other tasks.

Be careful: Food with added sugar that you don’t know about

One habit I got into while on my No Sugar Challenge was checking the product label. You would be surprised by how many seemingly normal products you thought have no sugar, actually do have sugar. 

First, you have to check the ingredients. Obviously, if you see listed “sugar” in the ingredients list, then you can’t have it. I also recommend avoiding things like Stevia, too, but to each its own.

Secondly, you have to check for the naturally added sugars. What you have to do is to go to the nutritional facts section and find “Carbohydrates, from which Sugars are..”. Always check that part. If the product has more than 5, ok 10g of sugars in it, then it’s a no go.

Here are some surprising items with sugar in them:

• Milk;
• Ketchup;
• Certain crackers;
• Some store bought Salad dressings;
• Instant oatmeal.

31 days No Sugar Challenge: The results

The first obvious result is actually losing weight: I “got rid of” 4 kg (almost 9 lbs). And that’s amazing, considering I ate normally, which means pizza, pasta, burgers, etc. 

I feel lighter and not so bloated. The clothes are not so tight anymore (especially the jeans) and my tummy has gone down a bit. 

I do have to mention a result / “side effect” of the no sugar challenge. My body reacted to the sugar detox, not only by losing weight, but also by….giving me pimples. 3 or 4 days in, I started developing zits on my chin and my forehead. I got worried for a bit, but then I googled it and it turns out this type of detox does give you spots. Don’t worry, though, they lasted only for a few days, and then they were gone. 

For me, the biggest accomplishments (and result) was my will and motivation to actually not eat sugar and finish the no sugar challenge. I am proud of myself for not giving in, for not indulging from time to time, and for sticking to it. Not a lot of people can do that . Actually, I was one of those people up until two years ago, when I went through a weight loss process. 

So if that is your worry, I hope I can assure you that YOU CAN DO IT. I believe in you, and I’m here to say you got this!

Next steps & Recommendations

I have to admit, the first day after the 31 days challenge ended, I had a glass of Coke. Surprisingly, that was what I was craving at the moment. 

Going forward, I plan to continue my challenge up until the 25th of February, when it’s my birthday, so obviously I will want to eat cake & co. That’s (almost) one extra month of challenge. 

Why? One, because I loved the results and I want more. Two, because I feel like I’m on a roll and I can do it. Three, because there won’t be as much pressure on me as before. Everything over the 31 days is a blessing and nice to have. 

If you’re thinking of doing the 31 days no sugar challenge, here are my top 3 recommendations that I think will definitely make a difference:

1. Get rid of all the sweets in your house – if you don’t have it, you can’t eat it. 
2. Have low sugar snacks on hand to resist the cravings. 
3. Be in the right mindset. Stick to your end goal and make sure the people around you support you. 

So there it is, my experience with the No Sugar Challenge. It was a hard month, but I am proud of my results. 

What do you think? Would you do something similar? Have you done it in the past? Let me know!

The post My 31 days NO SUGAR Challenge appeared first on Cozy Home Hacks.

If you’re on a keto diet, or want to lose weight, or just looking for some healthy, I’m here to tell you there are plenty of options for low carb low sugar snacks. Below you’ll find 6, but there are so much more out there. I’m just sharing my favorite snacks, the ones I reach for the most. 

Before, my idea of snacks was a chocolate bar (Snickers for the win). Or 2-3 chocolate chip cookies. Or a bag of Doritos. That was between lunch and dinner. After dinner, me and my boyfriend would have cake, or ice-cream, or a slice of bread with A LOT of Nutella spread on top of it. 

Fast forward to the beginning of this month, when I realised I was eating too much, especially too much junk food and sweets. So I committed to a month of no sugar (or very low sugar) and so far, so good. The only snacking I’m doing is around the 3-4 pm time stamp, when I need it the most. I try to refrain from eating anything after dinner, but if I must, I grab a couple of walnuts.

It’s not my first endeavor in the low carb low sugar snacks game, you know. Two years ago I went through a two month weight loss program, where I lost 22lbs and I used the same principles back then, too. They definitely helped with the craving and the hunger, so I hope they can help you, too.

If you don’t like any of the options below, feel free to have something else, but make sure you know the nutritional information for it. It’s something I learned during that period and I still apply to this day.

I learned the main categories of nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fat, fiber, etc.), and most importantly, I learned how to classify the most consumed food in my meal plan. This helped me, in turn, know what I am eating, and what I should be cutting or adding from my diet. 

For example, I know now that carbs means potatoes, bread, chocolate bars, bakery, cookies, etc. I know meat, milk, yoghurt and cheese are high in protein. And I know I need to eat plenty of vegetables, because they are low in calories and high in nutrients. 

By knowing this (and some other nutritional information), I can create a meal and snacking plan which limits the use of carbs and sugar. Not eliminate, just use as little as possible. 

Since snacking is so important because most of us do it, it’s important to know how to do it appropriately. So here are 6 low carb low sugar snacks to help get through the day. 

Nuts, especially pecans and walnuts 

This is, actually, my favorite snack out of the 6, and the one I reach for the most. I usually buy big bags of pecans and walnuts (and sometimes hazelnuts), and make myself a bowl of nuts. I don’t consume it in one sitting, of course, but stretch it for a week, if I can (spoiler alert: I can’t, it’s usually gone in 5 days tops).

Pecans are a great choice of low carb low sugar snacks because they taste sweet, but they have 14g of Carbs per 100g of product. So as long as you stick to 30g of pecans per serving, you’re good. 

Walnuts are low in carbs and sugar, and most importantly, have many health benefits. It is said to be useful in weight loss, that they are helpful for brain function, and that they also improve quality of sleep and….sperm. 100g of Walnuts have about 14g of Carbs and 3g of Sugar. 

Yogurt

If you’re the type of person who loves yoghurts or smoothies, this might be a great solution for you. But before you run out to get some chocolate Chobani or something similar, I have to urge you to only buy and consume the plain yoghurt type. You probably already know that the flavored ones have sugar in it, so you have to stay away from those.

Next time you go to the supermarket, go to the plain yoghurt section and check the labels for nutritional data. Choose the ones that have the least amount of carbs and sugar (ideally, under 5g for each). Fun fact: you might be surprised to discover that some 0% fat have more carbs than the usual ones. So please check the nutritional data on the back of the product. 

String Cheese 

Great news: most mozzarella sticks have less than 1 gram of carbs per serving (one stick)! That’s amazing! And to add to that, they also have about 6 grams of protein, which is great for building muscle and losing fat, so go for it. 

Next time you’re buying some for your kids (or partner), get some for yourself, they are a quick snack to have, easy to carry and consume on the go.

With the risk of repeating myself, please check the back of the package and go for the one with great nutritional numbers, some types of cheese have more carbs or sugar.

Hard boiled egg

Hard boiled eggs are a good choice if you want a filling option, one that does not feel like a snack. Eggs are very low in Carbs and Sugar, but they do contain cholesterol, so it’s recommended to stick to 2 eggs a day.

I recommend boiling 6-10 eggs on Sunday, to have on hand for the next week. Just pop one out, put some salt on it, if you want, and there you go! Hunger subsided. 

Carrots

If you love veggies and have no problem eating them, definitely try carrots. I personally love them because they are refreshing and crunchy. 

For one large carrot (roughly 72g) you get 7g of Carbs, and 3g of it are sugars; these are great numbers for healthy snacking. Just be cautious about them, I know my nutritionist recommended I don’t eat large quantities, since they do contain carbs.

Peanut butter 

The last item on the low carb low sugar snacks list is everybody’s favorite: peanut butter. Yes, you can eat peanut butter, in decent sized quantities (1-2 spoons of it). 

The crucial aspect when it comes to peanut butter consumption is if it has added sugars in it or not. Always go for the natural, organic one, with no extra ingredients. I use Meridian Smooth Peanut Butter. It has 11.6g of Carbs and 5g of Sugar for 100g, which is ⅓ of the container, so a spoonful will have considerably less than that. 

So there we go: my list of 6 low carb low sugar snacks that I reach for the most! Like I said before, there are plenty more choices out there. The important thing is to make sure you know the nutritional data for it before you consume it. You might find a delicious snack you didn’t even consider trying. 

Let me know in the comments what your favorite snacks are. Preferably healthy, so that we don’t all start craving Doritos and chocolate while reading the comment section 🙂

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links, which means that I may receive a commission if you make a purchase using these links, at no extra cost to you.

The post Low Carb Low Sugar Snacks I Eat All The Time appeared first on Cozy Home Hacks.