This month, I am breaking off the mad affair I have had for most of my life…sugar just has to go! Well, I’ll try my best at least. So while I let the manuscript of my first novel rest for a while, I will occasionally blog about going sugar free: it will keep me on track, keep my honest.

Back in May I came across a tweet by Commissioning Editor, Marisa Pintado, about going sugar free for eight weeks. I was mildly amused. “Who in their right mind minds would even attempt such a thing,” I thought, popping another Malteaser in my mouth. I favourited her tweet with a link to the blog by Sarah Wilson, author of ‘I Quit Sugar’, but read no further, at the time. Coming to the decision to cut out sugar has been a process.

First I became more aware of everything else I was eating. I cut out bread and pasta and refined carbs. I already ate plenty of vegetables, but now I ate more beans and became more aware of ensuring I had a balanced and varied diet. This was great – I felt better and lost a few kilos. Bonus!

After a string of visitors and holidays, I found myself eating more sweet snacks than usual and when my I returned to my daily writing routine I was craving chocolate all the time. Suddenly it felt serious!

I started looking around for things to read. It wasn’t just about cutting sugar, this felt more like a long-tern habit, like breaking an addiction. I came across ‘Sugar Wars: Getting Over Sugar Addiction’ by Betty Johnson – and that convinced me. Not because it covers all the health risks – I know all that already and it doesn’t make a difference, but because it talks about sugar in terms of an addiction and discusses elements of sugar detox.

Ok, I don’t eat THAT much sugar, I’m far from obese, and I’m not at risk of heart disease any more than your normal person on the street, but I crave chocolate a LOT, so it was helpful to find a book that discussed this response – the addictive nature of sugar.

Today is my first sugar-free day in a long time! It’s only 10:30am and already I have had to grapple with my cravings, but I’m prepared. I had a protein rich breakfast, I’ve drank 1 black coffee, 2 cups of water and a cup of tea, and I have filled my fridge and pantry with healthy snacks: nuts, seeds, carrot and celery sticks. This week I don’t care how much I eat, as long as it is healthy and sugar free, once I’ve broken the back of these cravings, then I will deal with food quantity!

I do have Sarah Wilson’s ‘I Quit Sugar’ and that link to her blog…reading material for the weeks to come.

Wish me luck! (I promise to return to more ‘writerly’ content on Monday).

Photo credit: Candy Hearts

Photo credit: Chocolate