The I Quit Sugar Program - Week 1 update

So week 1 of the 8 week I Quit Sugar program is almost over, so this is my first update of how the program is tracking. I thought I'd also provide a little more information about what exactly the program entails. Remember when I talk about quitting sugar, i'm talking about quitting fructose (in my honest opinion I do think Sarah Wilson should label it just that - A LOT of people mis-interpret this.

In case you missed my first post about why i'm quitting the white stuff, you can read that here.

Week one of the program was all about cutting back sugar, and making simple food swaps, sort of a way to ease into the whole process. I really like this approach as it does feel like it will be easier when sugar is completely cut. In the starter kit (available the week before this one) she did also mention cutting back refined carbs and sugar then as well.

This week we received access to the following:

• Meal plan
• Shopping list
• Sunday cook up - a few things you can get ready for the week ahead (love this!)
• Weekend read - some details about exactly WHY we are quitting sugar
• Movement plan - a few ideas to help get moving and what exercise we should be doing
• Try this - Some tips about what items you can swap for those high sugar foods
• Tuesday eats - some great little tips on how to create sugar free versions of favourites. This week was lemonade, veggie chips and raw chocolate!
• Expert tips - We were given some tips on motivation and setting ourselves up for success
• Webinar - with Sarah Wilson. You can access this live or watch the recorded version at a later date

Each week will look the same as above, but obviously with different info :)

For me, this week was a fairly easy one. The food was delicious and very nutrient dense. I am a fairly clean eating kind of girl anyway (I live on a farm so we are all about fresh produce) but I am becoming more conscious of exactly what I am eating - reading labels for sugar content, wrapping my head around all the different kind of sugars there are and how they effect my body. I also haven't had too many cravings - I know a lot of people have though. Perhaps these will come later....

So how am I feeling? Well to be honest, I haven't noticed any sort of improvement except that I'm sleeping better - I used to wake up 2 or 3 times a night but this week I've only been waking once! Not sure if this is a coincidence (work has upped this week!) but this could be attributed to the sugar dropping.

Overall I think the setup of this program is wonderful. We get a lot of support, with loads of tips, snack ideas and easy to read information about sugar. We also get access to forums, so we can interact with other people that are doing the program which is fantastic. I haven't posted yet, but have lurked and there is a lot of good conversations in there! The only negative I have is that the meal plan seems a bit 'lazy'. Lunches all week are leftovers from the night before. Don't get me wrong this does make it easier for cooking but I would have liked to see a bit more variation, and better lunch ideas. I am often in a paddock somewhere for lunch so beef stroganoff for lunch is not always ideal ;). We have got access to next week's meal plans and it is the same so it will obviously be this way for the whole 8 weeks. Hmmm.

So that is the wrap of week one! What do you think? Obviously if you have any questions, or would like me to cover anything in particular please comment below or email me at pinklipgloss85@gmail.com

Lastly, I did want to share this article, which was featured in Women's Health magazine (Sep 14 UK Version) which I think is a lovely snap shot of what food looks like after qutting sugar :)

Image credit www.iquitsugar.com