I went sugar free at the end of June and thought I'd post some of the recipes and products that have eased me through it!

I've cut out all chocolate, cakes, biscuits, sweets etc - all the obvious stuff and on labels I'm following a guide of 4g per 100g. Basically I'm trying to avoids food that taste sweet which will then trigger a craving so I've also given up sweeteners in drinks.

This evening for a dessert I had a pancake, fried in a few squirts of low-cal spray. Then as it was nearly ready I added blueberries and sliced strawberries to the pan and squished them a bit as they sizzled. Top with a dollop of Total 0% ( this is a great product for sugar free) which has no sugar or sweeteners.

At the weekend I discovered 'Nak'd' bars (tesco's). These seem SO sweet to me. No sugar or syrups and ingredients include raisins, walnuts,almonds,oats,strawberries,raspberries. They have a few different flavours. I also tried one with raw cacao and it tasted really chocolatey - so this is one to have have only now and again!

Total 0% is generally useful for fruit but also it's lovely as a low-cal sour cream with spicy soups, chilli etc. Will post more findings/recipe experiments soon!

I was a complete chocoholic/sugar addict before I cut it out and I couldn't have just a little bit without pigging out on it for weeks on end. The problem was one bar was never enough. I feel so much better for it and I've also lost 10.5 pounds since so feel healthier all round.

If anyone fancies giving it a try it IS possible!

Yep, all support and congratulations possible to Simone. Really, really well done on this wonderful journey.
Any doubters out there? Have faith, it can be done and it can make your life so much better. Health, vitality and happiness will be your reward.

That's great news - 10.5 pounds off is great!

I guess you are talking about avoiding processed sugars? Most fruit has more than 4g of sugar per 100g (and many are three or four times higher) but they don't give you such a sugar hit because of the additional fibre etc in it?

Yes I often think of the fact that you did it for 15 years Barbara - and it really keeps me on track - completely amazing. Did you find any alternative recipes during this time? It's a real quandry of mine to find a recipe to make up for the deficit with out making something tasty that I will gorge on instead! Suppose that's where the Paul McKenna theory kicks in!

Yes, it is more the processed sugars although most of the time I stick to low/low to medium sugar content fruits:

http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/whattoeat/a/whatf ruit.htm

Just so as not to tantalise my tastebuds too much! Though the higher sugar content ones are obviously miles better for you than a chocolate bar so won't worry too much!

Wow, that's incredible. I wish I could be as disciplined as you!!!

(she says, having made a big batch of brownies)

A completely honest answer to this, Simone, is that if I felt I wanted to sweeten something when fruit wasn't an option, I'd add a bit of honey. Never very much of this as taste changes when you no longer eat synthetically processed sweeteners. Purists will say that honey is processed too, which it is, and that's another reason for keeping its use low. Honey produces a different consistency in baked food, so it isn't always an option either.
Within a short space of time I was just happy without - and the most difficult part was really how to deal with other people's desire to feed me something sweetened eg mum's xmas pudding or xmas cake etc. One very embarrassing situation sticks in my mind when I was invited for a meal to someone's home for the first time and I put quite a lot of salad on my plate - as I usually do - and then really couldn't eat it because the host had put a sweet dressing on it. I felt awful, but it was just revolting for me and I just hadn't thought to try a little at first because I just didn't expect a salad to be sweet.
I am sure in time your desire for sweet things will decline even if you can't imagine that now and you will be able to allow yourself a little treat now and again and probably find that it's enough or not really what you want. And if you do enjoy it and eat a bit more, so what? You decide what is right for you and when you want to be S-free and when not. I am sure you will be able to do that.
I have to admit to eating loads and loads of fresh fruit, dried fruits etc and am not in any way pretending that I don't enjoy their sweetness; I do. But it is really rare for me to feel that I need a sweetener of any kind in anything other than something like rhubarb and then I just add a tiny spot of honey and lots of vanilla. If it's not enough, then I try a little bit more. I just find that things taste better that way; I really notice the flavours.
Like most things, the difficulty really is the products that we buy where we have so little control over the ingredients.
Your pancake idea would be really typical of something I eat - and I'm happy with that. Still looking forward to your Yorkshire pud recipe.

I ve recently been diagnosed with impaired glucose intolerance ( IGT ), my gp s prognosis is to have another blood test on a year s time . . . . . .
surely . . . .
Can anybody suggest an altenative course of action?

Sim, you are amazing! I am so impressed with your resolve for the choice you have made. Was it really the end of June?!!? The weight is certainly great news, but somehow it's more, because you sound free of something that has trapped you for so long. Am really delighted!

Do you know Barbara you are so right with that! I've encountered a few birthdays and occasions since and those times can be more difficult. I've found that the cravings, like when we are cutting back on other unhealthy food groups are always short lived and then when you've come out of them you know you've done the right thing. I love it how your taste buds change and now fruit seems lovely and sweet. Like you say you can you can really notice and appreciate the flavours.
It really sounds like after all this time it just comes naturally to you now - which is the stage I'm looking forward to reaching. Thanks for all your insights Barbara. Will try and put up recipe for YP's today - it's nothing too exciting just the batter mix with chopped fruit.

Chong, I've not heard of that condition - maybe it's worth a trip back to you GP to ask a few more question on changes you should make to your diet. Can anyone else hepl?

Julia, you're so right that is the best bit - it really was such a burden as I had to have some every day. It was making me really unhappy and I wanted to feel happier - so simple - wish I'd done it years ago! Thanks Julia x

But I would have probably eaten them in one sitting until I felt fuller than after Christmas dinner!

Many congratulations Simone. I was really interested to read how you have cut out sugar as this is something I have been thinking about for a little while. After years of sweeteners in tea I have managed to cut those out and whilst I don't think I have a particularly sweet tooth I can binge from time to time on chocolate, cake and biscuits - and that is a real downfall. I too would have eaten Emily's brownies in one go!!
Keep up the good work Simone and I look forward to trying out some recipes.

[I [i]wonder if anyone else has helpful tips for someone arthritic, re-occurring spinal probs over 60 and who has to avoid certain acid fruits that don't mix with medication, not just diet but exercise, I've got hiking poles which help and MBT trainers but as soon as the ol' sciatica or spasms come on in neck I despair and guess what I want, what I really want??? yep comfort food, especially when tablets don't work. Thanks [imgs]http://www.your-url-to-image-here.com/image. jpg[/imgs]:(:(:o[/i]

Hi Barbara and welcome. I don't have much knowledge about your condition but hopefully someone else has some info for you. You may be interested in a group called AbFab that many of us are members of - it's very active and chatty and well worth a look! Good luck with keeping your comfort eating at bay.

Hi Chong and Barbara

Like Simone, I just don't feel that I am in anyway qualified to comment on such specific medical issues as I have not experienced them myself, known anyone who has or read about them even.

I think Simone's advice to check again with medical staff is a good one to follow and also, as she says, to go onto a busier thread so that you might that way get in contact with others with more knowledge or experience in the areas you are talking about.

Barbara, are you aware of the Alexander Technique for improving body alignment? Would doing a short course in something like this prove helpful? Other TTHC members also seem to find the Paul McKenna approach to things helpful. Once again, I can't speak from experience, but do try Ab Fab so you get to a bigger audience. And why not log on and tell us all about your frustration and pains when they hit you? That might replace the comfort food to some extent.

All the best at this point.

Excellent advice Barbara.

I always had trouble with ketchup and dressings, dolloping loads on my plate - but there's so much hidden sugar. I went for a lovely roast lunch and added so much cranberry sauce that it was half meal and half dessert.

Tonight I made homemade chips (made with low-fat spray of course) with a piece of fish and I made a tomato ketchup substitute. 3 tomatoes, chopped quite small, one spring onion, chopped, malt vinegar and a level tablespoon of dried mint. Malt rather than balsamic as balsamic has extra sugar.

Simone - this seems to have transformed things for you! I'm seriously thinking of giving it a go, as sweet things are my binge food of choice, and I would like that to stop!

Go for it Sue - the first 3 or 4 days are a bit of a challenge and you could always try it for two weeks or something. It was my binge food of choice too - because I don't binge on 'normal' food it's making the weight loss go more smoothly and it also makes following the general rules of PM much more easy. I'll post a good article all about it for you. It certainly seems like my only way of having a more relaxed and normal relationship with food. Good luck if you try it out - you'll need plenty of support so let us all know if you are going to take the plunge!

Here is the article Sue. I've found it really helpful. It talks about the deficit you may feel - which is an excellent excuse to find pampering type ways to fill it! I've had to get into home cooking even more as lovely home cooked food becomes so important - so this would be second nature to you with all your lovely recipes! After a while it really does feel like you're looking after yourself. Anyway here is the link:


http://www.firstourselves.com/first_ourselves/2008 /01/how-to-give-up.html

Yes, we do have good homecooked meals, and I hardly eat any sugar, except when I go into binge overdrive! Then I consume chocolate biscuits by the dozen!
Thanks for the article. If I went sugar free, it would not give me the option then to binge on sugary treats - I would have to binge on something else! I agree about fruit and yoghurt - I like Yeo Valley Fat free Nat Yoghurt, but up to now, have always cooked fruit compote with sugar. Will have to try without or with a spot of honey. I have some redcurrants, raspberries and strawberries in the freezer which I'll cook up to go with yoghurt.
As for pampering - a great way to treat yourself! I recently borrowed a book about Thai treatments you can make at home using lovely natural products. I'll give that a whirl next week after the festival. I'll let you know if I find any good ones

Brilliant - it would be great to be doing it with someone else! See how you feel. Also give it a week and your taste buds will be starting to change. After a while fruit is sweet enough on its own - honestly! I don't like honey - but that could be a great natural substitute for you.

Oh yes keep me updated on the treatments - be lovely to take our minds off anything tempting!

OK Simone - you're on! I've even just announced it to the family so that's it!

Excellent - well done! I'm right behind you all the way x

I was amazed to see how much sugar was in a low fat fruit yoghurt! Had some greek natural yoghurt, but full fat and this was quite high in sugars too!
It's been the 4 o'clock low energy time when I've gone for a piece of flapjack, only to realise that I must usually satisfy this tired bit with sugary snacks, which then can lead to binging. Have had some fruit instead and feel fine!

Some fruit yogurts are horrendously high in sugar. I have Muller Vitality as (as flavoured yogurts go) it's not toooo bad, and tastes really creamy. I tend not to go for the low fat ones as I think they just take out the fat and put sugar in instead. Vitality isn't necessarily the lowest calorie yogurt out there, but it is satisfying.

Remember though that yogurt will be high-ish in sugar because of the sugar content that occurs naturally in the milk. Not all yogurts will tell you how much is natural sugar from the milk/fruit and how much is the added white stuff, which would be helpful.

That's what I've found - a lot of products are high fat or high sugar. I just stick to Total 0% now and chop fruit into it.

Sue, well done on having the fruit instead - brilliant! What I do at those 'tired' times (mid-morning or mid afternoon for me) is make sure I have protein. A cracker with Philly light / watercress and a few slices of ham / a mini babybel light with some cucumber. These are the times I used to reach for sugar too but the protein trick really does work. Also the sugar pick-me-up will assure you another dip not long after as it messes with your blood sugar (and for me it usually started a binge-out as I got the taste for it too). I usually always have to have a little snack between meals now!

Barbara can help us through tough times aswell - she has 15 years experience!

Thanks for your advice Simone. I've gone a whole day sugar free now - brill! Will weigh in tomorrow as I think I've lost since I came back from holiday.

I needed something new to focus on to kick start things, and this is just the job, especially coupled with Exercise in August.