The Truth About Sugar In Your Food!!

If someone told me that my food contained 4.2 grams  of sugar, I wouldn't have a clue how much that was. If you told me it had 1 teaspoon of sugar, I would know. But what if you don't cook or bake much and can't reference a teaspoon easily? If I told you it had 1 sugar cube in it...now you have a reference that makes sense, right?


I'm sure you've been told that all the packaged food you eat has sugar in it. But what does that mean? Do you have any idea how much? Do you even want to know? Or is it easier to ignore it and keep wondering why you "can't lose weight"?


So now I will tell you that 4.2 grams of sugar is EQUAL to 1 teaspoon of sugar which is EQUAL to 1 sugar cube.

Okay, so what? Let's put that into perspective...

Ever wonder why you get such a rush when you drink a coke?

 Or a mountain dew...(not to mention the caffeine!) 

Or a few red bulls... 

Well, it should be okay to have a little cup of iced tea 

or lemonade. 

But orange juice is healthy, right? 

And they sure wouldn't overdo something I give to the kids with lunch, right before nap time.... 

How about that mid-afternoon snack?

 

Which one to choose?

 Or that after dinner snack. Hmmm...wonder if that affects how I sleep? (and it's not even ice cream! It's sorbet!)

 Maybe I'll just have a glass of milk and a few cookies.

 But Bill Cosby promoted Jell-0 for kids, it's gotta be okay! 

 Are you making an effort to cut out sugar? Don't forget condiments.

   

Quick trip to the mall - have to grab something on the run? Seriously, 14 sugar cubes in my cinnamon bun?? 

So you were strong enough to walk past Cinnabon; you'll just stop by Starbucks on the way home...

Seriously, would you ever purposefully add 12 sugar cubes to your coffee or 15 to your smoothie? Do you ever feel like it MUST be a good choice just because it's called a smoothie?

Are you kidding? More than 1/2 CUP of sugar in a milkshake!?

Smaller doesn't make it any better.

 I know the cereal is pre-sweetened (then why do so many people sprinkle sugar on top of it?)

I thought Cheerios were okay. Oh, they ARE!! Now that's an acceptable amount of sugar in your cereal.

If you like sweet, and want the energy boost of sugar, there are ways to get it naturally.

This is why I recommend eating fresh fruit first thing in the morning.

The natural sugar provides instant energy.

Pick whatever fruit you like.

Want to give your kids an energy boost in the morning?

Fresh fruit will do it and jump start their metabolism without giving them a sugar crash 2 hours later.

Cut it up on Cheerios...

Or even better, on Not Your Mothers Oatmeal or Gourmet Overnight Oatmeal.

Let them think they are getting a treat for breakfast.

Throw some baby carrots in their lunch...high in fiber, low in sugar, will help keep them level all afternoon.

Fresh corn, cooked when ripe is very sweet on it's own...needs no toppings.

Sure makes you think about what you're eating, doesn't it. Take a look at the label; it will show you (in grams) how much sugar it contains per serving. I now know that my favorite hot fudge contains a little more than 4 sugar cubes (17 grams) per 2 Tablespoon serving...ouch!! I'm not sure I want to know how much is in the ice cream I would put it on and the caramel and whipped topping that go with it. What I do know is that it is more than I want to ingest. I think I'll have a bowl of pineapple instead!!

Is there a food that you will cut back or cut out now that you know how much sugar it contains? You may leave a comment by Clicking Here.

Weekly Weigh In: Not Gonna Do It!!

Yes, I know it’s Wednesday. No, I'm not gonna do  it; not gonna weigh in.

No, I'm not in denial. I know the truth...not only didn't I lose this week, but I'm up. And no, I'm not angry; a little tired but feeling positive.

If you read my weekly weigh in last week, you know that it was a rough week, but I still managed to lose a little weight. This week the rough got rougher. My hip got worse; some days I could barely walk. In an effort to preserve the joint as long as possible (because I'm so young) my surgeon asked me to try cortisone injections in my hip one more time before we replace it. I agreed. The injection was postponed from Friday to Monday. By then I was very inactive and frustrated because of the pain, so for Easter I made a dinner of some of my favorite things and enjoyed them. That really wasn't the problem; eating leftovers for the next two days was the problem!!

So, I did get the cortisone injection on Monday. My body always seems to have very unique responses to medical treatments. For example, whenever I have cortisone injections or anesthesia for surgery I don't sleep the first night. Yeah, it's real pleasant being up two days in a row when my body needs sleep to recover. This time was no exception; I received the injection on Monday and was up all night. I did go to bed and try to sleep, so at least my body is "resting"; it's a good time to catch up on all the blogs I follow while laying there all night. 

Tuesday morning I got out of bed at 4am with Doug; I like being up with him before he leaves for work. I worked from home yesterday and was very productive. I kept thinking that at some point I would crash and need a nap...never happened. Finally went to sleep at 11:00 last night and was up again at 4:15 this morning. I'm grateful for the 5 hours of sleep!! The other weird reaction to the cortisone is that the pain in the joint where I receive the injection intensifies a LOT for the first 24 hours (while I'm not sleeping). By last night the pain had subsided and I was actually feeling relief. It will take a couple of weeks to tell the full affect of the injection, but it is definitely much improved this morning.

So, back to my weigh in...I felt lousy all week, ate holiday food for three days (instead of one), didn't sleep for two days and was very inactive. I don't need to get on the scale to know that I'm up...I can feel it! I don't want to know how much and feel bad or discouraged for even a minute. It is what it is. Today I will do something about it. Today I will juice. If you are new to juicing, check out my Juicy Gossip page for information and recipes for fresh juice and smoothies. Today I will get myself back on track. Today I will take the opportunity to make a fresh start! And tonight I will get sleep!! Look for some good weight loss at my next weekly weigh in; I now have exactly 8 weeks to lose 28 lbs (plus whatever I am up this week) to meet my goal. Success is on the horizon!

Do you have a weight loss or health improvement goal? What steps are you taking to reach it? To leave a comment Click Here.

Weekly Weigh In: When The Going Gets Tough!

I have to admit, it's been a tough week. I'm having some serious issues with my hip (pretty sure I'm heading into my 2nd hip replacement surgery). I've spent a lot of time with Dr's and getting x-rays and MRI's this past week. Sometimes I think we forget how much everything in our bodies is connected to everything else. The worse it gets, the more it radiates into my back and down to my knees. I have been favoring my right hip since I had it replaced (not even a year ago) and now all of a sudden I am favoring my left. Limping is not good!! The worse it gets, the more difficult it is to get around and the more my back and knees hurt. I find myself needing more sleep, wanting to sit more (so difficult to walk) and consequently being less active. 


Don't misunderstand...I'm not complaining! Everyone has things to deal with, mine just happen to be health related. I have learned things about myself through my health issues (and yes, I've had a few (X10)). Related to physical activity and weight...


1) I have learned that I would prefer to be able to eat more and be very active to burn it off (I enjoy food & cooking). But that isn't always possible with health issues.


2) I have learned that I can still lose weight when unable to exercise AT ALL, by controlling what I put it my mouth (which means I don't have an excuse if I can't do #1)


3) I have learned that when I don't feel great physically, it is MUCH more difficult to control what I put in my mouth. (Which makes #2 more difficult). I'm not sure why it is that I want to eat unhealthy food when I don't feel great. Being aware of it doesn't make it easier, but it is the first step to controlling or changing it.


4) I have learned that if I have multiple flavors of juice prepared and waiting in the fridge I am more likely to drink some healthy, energy producing juice. (Which helps me overcome #3). We all like having choices of what we are going to eat. Choosing a flavor of juice is like choosing what fruits and veggies I feel like eating for that meal. It makes it easier to go to the fridge and grab something quickly and still eat (and drink) healthily.

Having said that, I managed to lose (only) 1.5 lbs this week. The positive side is that it's still going in the right direction. It also means I have 9 weeks and 27.5 lbs left to reach My Weight Loss Goal. And here's Why I Went Public. When the going gets tough, the tough get tougher!!


For more weekly weigh-ins Click Here.


What is your health goal and how are you working on it?

Weekly Weigh In: Results of 7-Day Juice Diet

Did you think I could do it...drink only raw juice and smoothies for one week?
Last week I said I was going on a Seven Day Juice Diet. I juiced from Saturday night to Saturday night. Doug juiced with me. Here's the skinny:


Why Did We Juice For A Week?
If you read Sick of It, you got the details. We were sick of going to bed on a full stomach after attending events with late meals. We were sick of our clothes not fitting well. We wanted to cleanse and detox. We were ready to feel energized, light and healthy. We needed to get back in control over what and when we ate. And last, but definitely not least, we wanted a jump start on our weight loss. You can read about My Weight Loss Goal here and Why I went Public with it.


How Did We Juice For A Week?
We went cold turkey from Saturday to Saturday. We gathered our favorite juice and smoothie recipes. We prepared a variety of juices each evening for the next day. (**see note below) We put the juice in glass pint jars with tight lids. We put no limits on the amount we would drink. We drank whenever we were hungry.


**Note: It is ideal to drink the juice as soon as you make it. When that is not possible, the best way to store fresh juice is in glass container, with a tight lid. Fill it to the top so there is little air to cause oxidation. With a high quality juicer your juice will be just fine for 24 hours.


What We Experienced
The very first night, I slept very deeply and felt great when I woke up. The next morning I had lost 4.5 lbs and Doug was down 2.5 lbs. We found that seeing immediate results was a huge motivation to continue our plan. Throughout our week of juicing we weighed every single day; we both experienced weight loss every day.


Each night I slept very deeply and woke feeling energized and healthy. I actually slept less than I normally do, yet had more energy. Even when I tried to stay in bed and get another hour or so (because I thought I needed more), I couldn't sleep. I woke up when my body was rested and felt alert and energetic. I never felt sluggish or lethargic throughout the week. Each night at bedtime I still felt energetic, yet when I went to bed I fell asleep quickly and slept very well. I never felt weak, tired or nauseous. I am still blown away by how little sleep I got and how much energy I had!


Neither of us ever felt deprived nutritionally. Whenever we felt hungry, we drank a jar of juice. The intense concentration of nutrition in the juice was like pouring energy directly into our veins. We felt satisfied and energized each time. It is very interesting to note that neither of us ever craved sugar, or anything else for that matter. Which proves to me that when our body gets proper nutrition it will be satisfied and not need to crave anything. When our bodies do not have the proper nutrition to sustain them, they look for something that will generate energy. Sugar is quick energy. That's why we crave sugar.


There were two days when we felt really hungry and wanted to eat. I found it interesting that for both  of us it was day 4 and day 6. We just felt really hungry on those days. As soon as we drank more juice we were satisfied and energized. On those days we drank 6-7 pint jars (jucie or smoothie). On those days we also made smoothies which add a little more bulk. Most days we drank 5 pint jars. A big part of wanting to eat is just putting something in your mouth and chewing it. As we talked about it we realized that after drinking juice we were satisfied, but the habit of eating made us want to chew something. But we didn't, and we're so glad we stuck to it because it went away.


Another interesting observation is in our choice of juice. I found that I needed variety in my juice. I wanted six jars of different types of juice in the fridge so when I was hungry I had a choice. I never wanted the same juice twice in the same day. Doug, on the other hand, preferred several jars of Carrot/Apple/Ginger Juice and then just one or two of another type.


How Much Weight We Lost
At the end of the seven days I had lost 12 lbs and Doug was down 10.5 lbs.
Here we are on Sunday with TEAM JULES at the Brain Tumor Walk with our friend Julie who is battling her second round with a brain tumor. I love her beautiful smile! She made it through the entire walk being pushed in her wheelchair. (I pulled a muscle in my calf that day and could have used a wheelchair!)

What We've Done Since Then
We had a couple of events to attend over the weekend where we did eat. We were cautious about eating too much too fast after a week of juicing. And going forward we wanted to eat much less and continue the weight loss. Even after eating light and healthy, we both felt a difference Monday morning in the quality of sleep we got and the level of energy we felt. We both wanted to continue juicing because of that. Doug's comment was "I think I'm addicted to feeling great!" So we decided that we would continue to juice and when we got that feeling that we really want to eat we would eat something healthy. We won't feel "stuck" juicing because we can eat any time. And we will continue to lose weight and feel great.


Today's Weekly Weigh in
Today is Wednesday...my weekly weigh in always goes from Wednesday to Wednesday. After eating over the weekend I juiced Monday and Tuesday. Tuesday I had a big raw salad for dinner. This weeks weigh in shows me down 4.5 lbs.

Here are some of our favorite juice and smoothie recipes from the week:

Carrot/Beet Cucumber Juice

Carrot/Apple/Ginger Juice

Arizona Red Juice

V38 Juice

2COP Juice

Mickey Mouse Juice

Orange Juice Plus (I did NOT use the vanilla this week)

Sweet Green Smoothie

Have you ever done a juice fast or a juice diet? Would you consider doing it for improved energy, sleep and nutrition?

Juicy Gossip: Arizona Red Juice

Someone commented on the V38 Juice post and said, "It looks really good. I might try it, but I don't care for beets". What I didn't tell you is that I don't care for beets either! I can only think of two vegetables that I don't care for and they are eggplant and beets. It is probably, uh, highly likely, uh, definitely due to how they were prepared for us as kids. GROSS! I have learned that I do like eggplant parmesan, so I MAY be willing to try eggplant in some other recipe. Not sure I'm willing to go there yet. Okay, I'll go this far...if you can throw a killer eggplant recipe my way, I'll try it. I'll prepare it, eat it, blog about it, and credit you for converting me...(I'm such a positive thinker; already assuming that one of you will have a fabulous recipe that will change my attitude towards eggplant.)

On to beets...I don't "care for them" is a really nice way of saying I JUST DON'T LIKE THEM!! That being said, years ago after learning about the nutritional properties of beets, I tried juicing them, just on the off chance that the juice was better than eating the vegetable. It is fantastic juice! There are so many combinations to use it in that everyone can find one they really like. Some of my favorites are Carrot/Beet/Cucumber Juice, V38 Juice and this Arizona Red Juice. 

Did you know that beet juice beet juice increases blood flow to the brain? Beet roots contain high concentrations of nitrates, which are converted into nitrites by bacteria in the mouth. And nitrites help open blood vessels in the body, increasing blood flow and oxygen to places lacking in oxygen. This means that beets juice reduces the risk for blood clots. A new study suggests that this super vegetable may fight the progression of dementia, according to researchers from the Translational Science Center at Wake Forest University.

Beets are a unique source of phytonutrients called betalains. To you and me, this means that beets are rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, and they aid in detoxification. Beets start losing betalains as soon as they are heated; the loss steadily increases as the cooking time is increased. For this reason, the greatest health benefit is derived from raw beet juice. There are also lab studies on human tumor cells that confirm that beets are a highly-likely candidate for risk reduction of many cancer types.


On to the juice. I call it Arizona Red because as I'm juicing, the vibrant and rich reds and oranges that come out remind me of Arizona sunrises and sunsets. When combined, they produce a rich red, reminiscent of sunset. This juice is beautiful in color, and sweet in taste.


Arizona Red Juice

3 Carrots
1 Sweet Potato
2 Red Beets (Lg)
1 Red Bell Pepper
1 Orange (peeled)
2 Apples (any sweet variety)


Don't be deceived by the first few  ingredients...this juice is sweet and smooth!
Note: Don't be alarmed if your urine and stools have a red tint. It is normal and expected when you drink beet juice.


Printable Recipe 



Is there a vegetable that you hate  don't care for? Would you be willing to try it in a juice recipe?

Juicy Gossip: V38

Yesterday I posted a sweet juice recipe (2COP Juice), so today I give you a savory recipe. This is a favorite as well as Gazpacho Juice, which I will post soon.

I wish I could fully capture the bright, rich red color of this juice. It truly is a beautiful color. (I'm thinking I need to build a light box for photos...probably need to talk to one of my photographer friends for tips on taking great pics of food and juice.)

I wasn't sure what to call this one. This juice is so packed full of vitamins and anti-oxidants it's crazy! And it's such a beautiful red color. I thought of V-Red, but settled on V38 ('cause there's way more vitamins in it than V8). You may also want to try Carrot/Beet/Cucumber Juice. Click on the Juicy Gossip tab for more juicing and smoothie recipes.


Just a word of caution - it stains, so don't drip it on your shirt.


You know, when I juice I see the vibrant and intense colors that naturally come from the vegetable plants. It's easy to see why Native Americans used these colors for paint. Especially beets. The juice of the beet is such a luscious red color. I enjoy looking at all the colors of the juice lined up.

V38 Juice
3 Lg Beets
2 Med-Lg Carrots
2 Lg Tomatoes (or 4 small)
1 Jalapeno, cut in half and remove seeds
12 Radishes
1 Bunch Parsley (about 4 cups if it were roughly chopped and packed in measuring cup)


Juice and mix well. Makes a great dinner drink. Enjoy!


What veggie do you not like to eat that we could hide in juice?

Juicy Gossip: 2COP Juice

It's day five of our seven day juice diet. I feel great. I am sleeping better. My body feels lighter, more energetic. But you don't have to do a 100% juice diet to reap the benefit of juicing. Even juicing once a day will improve your health and how you feel. The intense concentration of vitamins you get from juicing is like pouring energy straight into your veins. For that reason, I like to juice for breakfast. It helps me start my day with a clear mind and high energy. However, if you prefer to juice for dinner you will be getting all the nutrition you need without filling your stomach full of food that may sit heavy all night long.

A friend  of ours received a juicer as a wedding gift. It had been sitting in the attic for over a year. He was interested in juicing, but didn't know where to start. I invited him over and we made four or five juices so he could taste the difference and ask any questions he had about the equipment or the fruits and veggies. He went home and decided that he would juice for breakfast each morning. Other than that, he has changed nothing about his daily activity or diet. (I've known him since 1983 and rarely a day goes by that he doesn't have his BBQ or steak; a true carnivore.) He has now been juicing a little over 3 months. He just told me that he has lost 15 pounds. And he wasn't even trying! He feels healthier and more energetic as well.

Some of you have asked for specific juice recipes to try. I have lots, and I'm trying new combinations all the time. I will share one or two every couple of days. If you want something specific and I haven't posted it yet, let me know.

There are sweet juices and savory juices. Sweet juice does not mean it only has fruit in it. Certain veggies when combined with fruit will give you the nutrition of the veggie and the sweetness of the fruit.

I typically like to start my day with a sweet juice. Fruits are natural carbohydrates. Your body uses carbs for energy. I want to start my day with energy. Drinking a juice with fruit is like pouring energy straight into my bloodstream.

Side note on carbs...carbs themselves are not bad for you. Our bodies require carbohydrates for energy. What is bad for us is processed carbs. If it has white flour in it is processed. If you look at the ingredients of most wheat breads on the shelf they will have enriched, processed white flour in them. If you want the "staff of life" carbohydrates, you should look for 100% whole grain. If it says "enriched", "refined", "bleached", "unbleached" it is processed. In fact, "enriched" means that they have added vitamins back into the flour that were stripped away in the refining process. Crazy, isn't it? If we stick with the whole grain before refining, we get all the natural nutrition and carbs that the body can process well. Unfortunately, even white rice has been processed.

The bottom line is, when you get your carbs from fruit and whole grains your body can process it into energy and it doesn't sit and turn into fat. So don't be afraid of carbs, be afraid of PROCESSED CARBS!!

Anyway, that's why I like to start my day with sweet juices and end it with savory juices. One of my favorites is Mickey Mouse Juice. Click to see why I call it Mickey Mouse. Perfect example of getting veggies in with my fruit, but the juice is sweet and perfect for morning.

Another favorite is this 2COP juice. The name reminds me what ingredients I need...2 C's an O and a P.

2COP Juice

3 Carrots

1 Cucumber

1 Orange

1 Pear

This juice is has a good variety of vitamins while the fruit is the dominant flavor, making it another great morning drink. 

How frequently do you juice? Is there a fruit that you haven't been able to work into a juice yet?