Sugar Stop

So without making any big fanfare about it, I finally went off sugar (and wheat) this past weekend. I've been hemming and hawing for awhile (as evidenced by the last 20 or so posts on here), but I weighed myself Saturday morning and was absolutely horrified by the number. Just awful.

I knew my clothes were tight, but I didn't really want to admit how far I had let it go. I determined that Saturday morning I was turning over a new leaf, and that began with weighing myself and facing the brutal honesty of the digital scale. I'm really disappointed in myself, actually, and frustrated with the knowledge of all the work I'll need to do to get back to my weight of a few months ago, and then I still have 25 pounds I want to lose.

It's amazing what a number like that can do for my motivation, though. I went to a 3-hour long church function on Saturday, and at the end they brought out giant trays of cookies for all of the participants to munch on. (When they had said they would have refreshments at the end, I was hopeful that maybe there would be a veggie tray or a fruit bowl mixed in with the junk I knew was coming. Nothing healthy as far as the eye could see). I was starving by that point, but I can honestly say, I didn't want a cookie at all. So different from my point of view these last few months.

Jason went shopping Saturday and bought some dark chocolate mints for us to share. He said he knew I was trying to be good, but one wouldn't kill me. I decided to try one and it didn't taste that great, actually. I didn't want any more. I think last week I would have popped them in my mouth anyway, even if they did taste like they had been in the box too long.

What is my problem that is it so easy for me to slip into mindless eating?

Today I am at work with veggies and protein and a bit of fruit. I chopped a lot this weekend, and planned for the coming days. I've also planned our meals and am determined to stop our trend of getting take out several times a week because I didn't plan and we're both too tired to cook when we get home. Must remind myself: the crock pot is my friend.

I know this is a strange time to start, what with Thanksgiving coming up. However, I needed to start eating better, and after the holiday I can just pick up again. I actually found a great recipe for a low-carb pecan crust, and ran some experiments this weekend on pumpkin pie fillings with no sugar. Stevia was a no go - it tasted sweet when I put it in the oven, but came out tasting horrible. Agave nectar was the winner, though I'm not really sure what the current low-carb thoughts are on agave nectar. I'll need to research that a bit. I also substituted coconut milk for the evaporated milk and it added a nice flavor. Right now, the only really high carb things on the Thanksgiving menu are sweet potatoes (which I make with a pecan topping) and stuffing. If I don't overdo those, I think I can keep this Thanksgiving pretty reasonable.