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| BACON! |
When I took the Say No To Sugar Challenge, I never expected the kind of response I got (do check out this, this, this and this post for the responses and the challenge). It came from unexpected spaces – Facebook, Blog, Email, other social networks, not to mention the people you meet every day. But one great thing was, despite the challenges, I made it. And the best thing is, I did not cheat.
In the past I had always cheated slightly, even in the face of the toughest competition. But this time I did not. I stayed strong and although a few times made the wrong choices, mostly stuck to my goals.
As I do not drink tea or coffee, meeting the goals was not difficult.
The best thing was – I finished the challenge at 12 pm on 14-03-2014, and a week later I have come to realize a few things.
1. I am visibly more aware of the amount of sugar entering my system, and how much I am dependent on them.
2. I have stopped using it as a mood lifter. Rather, I try other ways to lift up my mood. For example, go for a walk with a friend. Calling someone up, and chatting, or reading a book. It works.
3. I have reduced sugar intake daily. It is okay if I don’t eat anything sweet at all on certain days. My body has accepted that sugar is not necessary for my system.
Now for the other segment – a lot of people thought that I was quitting sugar because of weight loss issue. While it might be considered to be a side-effect of sorts, actually, I was not that keen on it. I was way more keen on getting myself out of my sugar addiction. And I was quite good with not drinking excess of it.
So what happened when I had my first encounter with sugar post-challenge?
Well, I confess – I went to Ralli’s right after my challenge ended, and drank up a glass of Thandai (ahem. Weekend began like that. Do not ask me how many glasses of Thandai I consumed during and after Holi, because frankly, I don’t know). However, apart from that, I did not have any other sweet during the weekend, and went without sugar on Tuesday and Wednesday. I realized, thanks to the challenge, I was all right with not eating anything sweet for a couple of days.
Whee.
I did falter at times. I made mistakes.
But I also made this amazing Paneer recipe. I swear I will post that recipe very soon! Meanwhile, I am thankful that Bacon isn’t sweet, because this challenge would have been unbearable otherwise.
