Julia 365: My Sugar Free Lifestyle Journey Day #1 (Getting Started & Keeping it Simple)

Today has been a crazy day. Who knew that after 55 years of yo-yo dieting, being totally addicted to sugar, cookies, bread, potatoes and anything wrapped in white or brown rice that I would be in this predicament.

It’s Monday, November 7th and I am working at home. Just as I was about to brew my morning coffee, the phone rang. It was my doctor calling to tell me the results of recent blood work. Great News, (just kidding), I am now among the millions of Americans with something called Insulin Resistance and Pre-Diabetes.

He did not have too much information to share, just to eat low carb, and check back in 3 months for more blood work. I really don't know alot about insulin resistance or pre-diabetes. So….I did what everyone else does, I went on-line to find a “group” to join that can give me more information and some ideas of where to start.

There are tons of groups out there. I settled on a fairly new one, Blood Sugar Central --- Sugar Free Lifestyle Coaching Club because there is lots of great information, which I really need, and the coach seems very accessible. The on-line Facebook Group is FREE.

Plus, she just opened the doors to the Membership Coaching Club and you can become a Founder for just $25 a month. It has everything I need to get started. A 5 Day Quick Start so I can figure out what I am doing, a 12 Step Master-Class that I can follow at my own pace, a community where I can connect with others, a Food Plan and tons of recipes which is great because I have no idea what to eat now. Joining, Seems like a no brainer to me, and I am feeling a little more hopeful.

First Steps & Coaching Tips for Success

I spent some time this morning just going through posts on the Facebook Group, and then after signing up (it was really easy) I went into the Club area and clicked on the Welcome Section.

Reading through the instructions on that page, Janet pointed out there are 3 main groups of people in the Club--- Newbies, like me who have no idea what they are doing and have not participated in her 5 Day Challenge QuickStart, People who are relatively new but have been through the Challenge so they already have a foundation of how to start eliminating sugar and the third group which is not me at all are people who are pretty familiar with quitting sugar so they have a bit of a head start. (since the latter 2 groups have some foundation in going added sugar free, she recommends that they are ready to start the Break Free from Sugar Master-Class)

But for people like me (who are at this point pretty lost) she advises for us to Download the Challenge Workbook and work through that at our own pace before starting the Master Class. So I did that, and will read through it tomorrow. I also printed out the Food Guide, which seems to have everything I need to know about what to eat. I also listened to her 9 coaching tips. Great Stuff. I totally resonated with everyone of them, and they will be a good thing to come back to.

I took the "Track Your Progress" tip to heart, and hence, started a Journal with this first day entry. About me... I am 55 years old, married, 2 children (one in college, one married with 2 children ages 5 and 7, which makes me a grandmom to kids who love to come to my house for treats). I am a Mom to 3 cats who hopefully will help me stay a little ZEN through all of this. I am a project manager, I work 4 days a week at home and one in the office. My husband is skinny and can eat whatever he wants!! (that makes it kind of hard for me at times)

I am excited to be on this journey and think it will be helpful not just to know what I am doing every day, but pretty cool to look back a year from now to see where I have been and hopefully how far I have come. If you have never read the book “A Gift of a Year”, it is a must read if you are trying to change your life.

What to Eat & Learning About Trigger Foods

By the time I got registered and explored some of the materials, it was NOON and time to get some work done.But, first, it was time for the hard part, what to eat. Truth…I am petrified to put anything in my mouth. I only know from eating things that are not good for me. And I had to grab something quickly.

Boring I know, but I figure you can’t go wrong with eggs, so I had a few Egg Omelet Muffins still in the fridge (so easy, you just mix egg with veggies and cheese and bake in the oven - I also added in some leftover ham) and I ate one of those with a cup of coffee with ½ and ½. No sugar, but I had some Vanilla Liquid Stevia Drops that I bought and never got around to trying. I added 3 drops...not bad.

Tonight I am going to take Janet’s advice and just keep it simple. I am going to make a Stir Fry with Chicken, Broccoli, Onions and Cashews that I found in the posts, it seems to not have anything I can’t have in it as long as I don’t put any sugar in the Stir Fry sauce. And of course no rice. I had some quinoa instead.

I am sure I will want something sweet, I always do. You have to start somewhere so I ran out and got some Lilly's No Sugar Chocolate Chips and used the Vanilla Stevia drops to create a Ricotta Whip topped with the chocolate chips. I have no idea if it is a trigger food for me, I will have to pay attention and see how my body and reacts. (oh yeah, a trigger food is a food that either leads me to binge on more of that food or leads me to sugar or other foods that cause big spikes in blood sugar ---- I learned that today!)

Feeling Hungry But More Hopeful

I am feeling more hungry than usual, I think it is my brain fretting about what I can’t eat. I am drinking de-calf tea and water when the hungry feeling hit. I noticed the Challenge has a section on staying hydrated, I will have to check that out next week.

That’s it for now, I am mentally exhausted, but feel pretty good about getting started on this strange, brand new sugar free lifestyle.