The problem with artificial sweeteners (and sugar)

So we are in the anti-sugar crusade these days.   Unfortunately, that means that a lot of people head directly to the artificial sweeteners, Splenda, Equal, etc, etc.  

No.  The selling point is that, supposedly, they have sweetening power to the 1000s over sugar.  But for me, they made me crave sugar.  My theory is that your body tastes the sweet and prepares itself for the sugar hit.  

And then doesn't get it.

But now your tastebuds are acclimated to the sweet, sweet, sweet...  so now they start increasing the sugar in things.  Formulations are different throughout the world, but American brands are generally sweeter and fattier.

I honestly believe that foods are sweeter than when I was a child.

I also know that manufacturers hide sugars in things and add sugars that do not need to be there.   They hide artificial sweetener in anything that is remotely "lower-calorie".

But I have even found added sugar in my dried fruit.  In the mangoes.   Or the coconut.

Things that don't need it have added sugar.

A lot of cereals are sugar bombs.  They recently reformulated Cheerios to be "gluten-free".   (which is a completely different lie, but anyway)

My mom is now describing it as "real" Cheerios.  They had changed the formulations so much that it was no longer recognisable.  

I do not lose weight eating sugar substitutes.   I lose weight eating less sugar, a little bit of the real stuff.  

Plus, you don't get all that artificial junk in your system.  Most have been linked to cancer.   (Most food-like substances, unfortunately, are not that healthy).  


I do wish we could get lower-sugar/artificial-sweetener-free products.   I want Coke or Seven Up made with real, but less, sugar.   I want the European versions of things.  I want less sweet back.  I don't want it replaced.  We tried that with fat-free, which led to the higher sugar..

Refreshing, restarting, years later.

Hi!  My name is Catherine and I am a middle-aged, perimenopausal fat chick.    I managed to lose a lot of weight ten or so years ago, and then stalled out and have yoyo'd since then.  It doesn't help that I live alone, in some ways.  And that I am gluten-free.   Because regular gluten-free stuff is higher in calories and lower in fiber than the non-gf.   That being said, I have access to some lovely veggies and meats and such.

So, refreshing and restarting the weight loss journey.

Things I have to remember:

Set a nice table for myself.   Use the good china.  Buy some single-serving place settings (including flatware, maybe?) .  Stop idle snacking, or make sure you snack on fruit and/or veggies between meals.  Eat when you are hungry.  

Baby steps.   Pull out one of those "goal" items of clothing and use it.   (note, I have real issues with using a scale, because that triggers all kinds of stuff for me, as does journaling, I can't keep a food diary because I get paranoid)

So, goals for this week:

Eat 80% of your meals at the dining table off of a plate.
Buy and prep some fruit and veggie snacks to grab when hungry
Cook meals.   As opposed to grabbing cheese.
3 20 minute workouts
yoga ball stretches 4 days a week
buy a yoga ball office "chair"

Starting Fresh, and not waiting for a New Year.

I know many of us struggle with weight, with stress eating.   I had caramel popcorn for dinner last night.  With nuts.   Which is actually ok once in a while....

But I want to start fresh.  I've been maintaining at about 180 for a while, and want to lose the last forty lbs.  

So, onward, upward, accountability.   I'm doing this without any stupid fad diets (apart from the dratted gluten-free thing, which is more of a lifestyle).    

Today, I'm cleaning up and organising my pantry, and am going to try making some gluten-free bread.

I'm going to try to be cutting down on plastics in the coming year, which means: fewer chocolates/chocolate chips, less dried fruit (my real bugaboo), less manufactured product in general.

Of course, its going to make summers interesting, since I will have to start buying fruit and drying it in the summer to have the rest of the year.  

I don't generally do "mini-size" candy bars in my home, since those encourage me to snack more...

Now, a photo, so that I can try to compare approximately once a month...

Wondering...

Why does it always end up with extremes? Its always no-fat, no-sugar, no-cheese, nothing that had a face... or the other extreme, whipped cream on top of high sugar, high fat, high calorie, manufactured crap.

Contrast these two websites:
veggies, veggies, veggies..

lard-o-rama

(The first one was apparently done in response to the second)

But then we have things where Paula Deen's (the butter lady) son tries to 'slim down' her gooey butter cake. So you can just have a bigger piece of the cake?

But it just seems like there are so many many many things that go from one extreme to another. Its either a recipe with three sticks of butter (Hello Pioneer Woman), or one with imitation margarine (which isn't that great for you either).

And everything is just too sweet. EVERYTHING seems to have sugar or artificial sweetener in it. Bleah.

When I started watching tv again, I was amazed by the number of food ads there were... And its all high fat, high sugar, low quality.

And we've lost the idea of a cookie as a yummy treat. Cookie monster always loved cookies because they were yummy and special. Veggies can be yummy, yes, but it just seems wrong to have cookie monster pushing veg... Have a veggie monster. Have a big giant rabbit come trying to eat everyone's veggies.... and show the veggies not covered in dip, please.

Why I need this blog...

I've decided I need some accountability. Jillian Michaels or Kathleen Daelemans are never going to come to my house, make me work out, make over my foods. The FitTV Housecall folks are never going to magically show up at my door and help me use all the equipment I have in the house...

I keep sinking into food as comfort, into stress eating. Not to mention that gluten-free food has more calories per serving (the frozen stuff, the commercial stuff) and less fiber than conventional food. So, therefore, I'm going to turn over a new leaf now. I'm going to blog my baby steps. Its not going to be a total food and life makeover, because, lets face it, most people can't do that. Its going to be small goals, like eating all the wonderful produce that seduces me at the grocery store and farmers market, that I then forego because its easier to eat chocolate or cheese and crackers (g-f crackers. Unfortunately, I've found ones I like.)

I'm going to at least walk around the neighborhood at least once, if not twice, a day, or do some other form of exercise. I'd like to find a gym for the winter...

So here I am:

Me