8:52 am I really, really want some cereal with sugar. It was a long night last night. A neighbor had a DJ yelling into a microphone until after 11:30, and shortly after that stopped Canaan woke up. He was feverish so I gave him some Motrin and brought him to bed with me, where he tossed and turned and nursed all night long. I didn't get out of bed until 8:20 this morning. Surely some very sweet cereal would fix my mood, right? Ha!10:17 am I'm making bean, green chiles, cheddar cheese omelettes for breakfast. I had a thought - ooh, ice cream! I'll get some ice cream - oh, wait - no. I feel like I'm thinking about sugar double-time today since I can't have it, but maybe I actually think about it this much normally?
10:25 am Maaan, I really want some hot tea. We don't even have any tea bags. I checked the mango in the freezer to see if it has sugar - it doesn't! YES!
12:35 pm I had an orange with breakfast too, and it was very sweet but didn't satisfy my sweet tooth. I feel like Eve in the garden - God has given me so many wonderfully delicious and nutritious foods to eat and I am fixating on what is destructive. I remember the first year we did a tv-turnoff for the month of August, I kept a journal. The first few days were so awfully hard for me that I wrote in that journal quite a lot. Then we got into a new routine and it just wasn't that big a deal. I hope the same happens with this sugar fast.
1:32 pm Ate two boiled eggs for lunch. Also tried a little experiment - plain (no sugar) yogurt with 100% grape juice mixed in as a sweetener. Not so good. REALLY could go for a big bowl of cereal with lots of sugar.
Monday 9:07 am Sugar wins. I did not survive my sugar fast. I was outwitted, outplayed, outlasted. It started when Alif left for a few minutes and I scarfed down a bowl of cereal with sugar. When he came home I told him I went off my sugar fast and he said, "at least you made it half a day!" Then I ate sour gummy worms, which we bought at the gas station while buying a newspaper, and then that night I drank a Strawberry Fanta with my fast-food dinner and also had not one but TWO root beer floats after dinner. Sigh. We'll try again next week.
I think part of the problem is that yesterday was a long, boring, slow day. We couldn't go to church in the morning and so that threw things off, and then the rest of the day was just spent puttering around doing nothing. Not a good day for a sugar fast. I think I will pick the busiest day of this next week and do it then.
i think you did great! even if it wasnt the whole day. i would have given in after a hour!
ReplyDeleteOh, you were doing so well! I think the trick is not to beat yourself up when you slip, and not to insist on all or nothing. So, you had some cereal. Start over with the next meal instead of declaring the fast null and void and putting off starting it again.
ReplyDeletePlain yogurt with berries and walnuts is really good! Not as sweet as you're used to, but gotta be better than just grape juice. The crunch of the walnuts makes it more interesting. Or add a little sugar-free jam.
It's easier to do this with a meal plan, a grocery list, and a fridge full of yummy, healthy stuff to eat. Tell the kids you want to give up sugar and you need their help -- by getting rid of all the temptations in the house, at least temporarily until you get past the hump. It really has to be a family-supported effort.
P.S. I'm thinking about having a TV-turn off week next month. I think that'll be even harder for me than giving up sugar! LOL. We tend to take breaks between outings and meals by chilling in front of the boobtube. I'm trying to plan ahead so I have strategies for those moments.
ReplyDeleteOh Emiles that you so much for sharing. I just feel for your heart in that moment of "crap, I messed up!" I can soooo relate.
ReplyDeleteHey you made some progress, see that as a win and don't beat yourself up. I don't know if I could do that. If you would like I would be happy to try to fast with you next time!
ReplyDeleteGreat job...we are cutting back on sugar here...I use splenda and buy the sugar free puddings for those fixes...I know, that probably isn't good for you either...but I do feel better and more energetic without the real sugar!
ReplyDeletewow, a sugar fast. good for you. our church observes lent(early church founders observed it. we are not a catholic church)
ReplyDeleteanyway, we were supposed to give up something important to us and think about Christ's sacrifice instead. Lent lasted 40 days, but you got to have sundays off. so I gave up sugar(except fruit and grains) and after a while sugar started to taste toxic to me. However, initially the only thing that got me through was knowing I was doing it for God. If I was doing it for myself I would not have made it. I lost weight and felt great. Too bad I went back to my sugary ways. I would really like to have no sweets but once a week. that is reasonable--save up my sweet day for a special occasion, like a baby shower. Good luck to you!!
Thank you for your good advice and encouragement, everyone! Davi, it's interesting that you say that because I was in the shower the other day and suddenly felt so convicted that I do not pray nearly as fervently as I should for my husband. I pray for him but not as much as I know he must need it, and I thought, "if I'm not praying for him, WHO IS?" And then I thought, duh, next time I do a sugar fast I can actually be fasting and PRAYING. Not pining away all day for sugar, sugar, sugar.
ReplyDeleteInteresting to know.
ReplyDelete