First of all, forget about fruit. We’re not going to talk about fruit because eating a peach is not the same as eating a candy bar and everyone knows that. We’re keeping it simple here folks. I want this article and this website to be a starting line for action, not an overwhelming source that makes you feel like a failure before you even begin. Cool.
In your spare time I suggest you research how dangerous sugar really is. Google “is sugar more addictive than cocaine.”
Now I’m going to tell you something I didn’t reeeeeeally understand until a few years ago. I did not understand the maximum amount of sugar I should eat in a day. A lot of that is because I read labels. But look at ANY food label and even though it tells you how many grams of sugar are in that food product, it does NOT tell you how much of your daily percentage is reached by consuming that food product. That information has been removed from all food labels.
That’s the FDA y’all. This is truth. Do your research. Ladies, we should not consume more than 25 grams, and the guys should top it off at 37.5. Now that doesn’t mean you should try to eat 25 grams a day – none would be the best. It means you definitely should not go over that. Remember that number girls – 25 grams per day. Now let’s put that into practice with some yummy sugary snacks.
A pint (that’s the little one) of Haagen-Dazs chocolate ice cream has 76 grams of sugar. That is THREE DAYS worth of your maximum daily sugar intake.
Three Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies (the regular classic cookie) has 11 grams of sugar, almost half of your daily allowance. WHEN IS THE LAST TIME YOU ONLY ATE 3 COOKIES KAREN!! You know you ate 6 or 7 cookies.
Now here’s the crazy one.
It’s crazy because it is a “nutrition bar” and it is in the same section as the protein bars. But one cookie dough Balance Bar has 15 grams of sugar in it. It’s a candy bar with some vitamins in it. You’d be better off taking a multivitamin and eating the Chips Ahoy.
So what do we do? Read on, babes.
1. Download the My Fitness Pal app immediately and just start logging your food. The app has a handy scanner which makes it super easy to log packaged foods. By taking this one step, you’ll quickly find out what you’re putting into your body. This is by far the most helpful tip I can give you. What you measure, you manage.
2. Cut dairy out of your diet. For some reason when I cut dairy out of my diet, my sweet tooth went with it.
3. Swap sugar out for honey instead, NOT SPLENDA (stevia is fine because it is a leaf, but man it is REALLY sweet). And measure it! And then log it! Gradually start to cut down on the sweeteners. A bit less every week. Measure measure measure!!
4. Buy unsweetened food products, like almond milk. Why does my milk need to be sweet? It doesn’t make sense. DIY your yogurt. Buy the plain and then add fruit and honey/stevia.
5. Don’t drink pop. Just don’t. It’s a disgusting and foul habit. Put that bottle down and walk away.
Remember what you measure, you manage. Start entering your food into the My Fitness Pal app and start measuring your food.
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