30 Days of No Added Sugar: Lessons Learned

                                     

For whatever brilliant reason on April 30'th, 2017, I decided I could easily make the switch to a "No Added Sugar" diet for 30 days, starting May 1 (the next day). And like most of my decision making habits, I figured cold turkey with zero planning was probably the best way to go. I know this isn't a novel or new idea, but I said fuck it, let's roll with this and see if I can handle it. I wasn't doing this to be healthier or lose weight or any of that nonsense. I simply wanted to test my willpower and use it as an experimental study on the mental effects of a non-glucose based diet.

The rules were simple: eat anything so long as it does not contain added sugar. Fruit consumption was limited to 3-4 servings (a normal daily intake) so as not to overload or overcompensate by eating 10 pounds of apples. Here are some of the lessons or takeaways I had during the experience:

1) EVERYTHING has sugar in it. I remember the first few days into the experiment when I was walking through Walmart (dear God). This was a very Shallow Hal-like moment of sudden realization. This shit is literally everywhere and in everything. I knew this is kind of the way things were anyways, but I didn't truly realize how bad of a problem it was until looking at things from a different lens. The most unnerving aspect of it was not that it is in everything, but how EASY it is to access all these sugar blasted products. Every isle, every endcap, and particularly, the front of the store, is overflowing with sucrose-infused, "buffet style" servings. 

2) Ridiculous amounts of energy. Every day I felt like a mother fucking rockstar. I had increased amounts of energy and felt less bogged down from a diet filled with the equivalent of literal shit. There was probably a two-fold add to this energy induced coma, mostly stemming from eating less garbage and taking in a more natural product base. Either way you look at it, the unintended outcome was great. 

3) It's much easier to give something up then it is to take on something new. I have a mental list of other 30 day challenges I'd like to do, but some of them seem extremely daunting simply due to the fact that you have to add some new regimen or activity to your daily schedule. This exercise is based off a minimalist type mentality where you're giving up something you don't necessarily need, which I found much easier to do than planning out the time or resources for another daily task.

4) I became rich(er). This is a lie, but I did have a noticeably less detrimental credit card bill at the end of the period. You always forget how easy it is to charge meals daily to your credit card and forget about it until it comes time to pay that bitch off. Being that I couldn't eat out (or literally anywhere other than home), I saved a couple hundred bucks.

5) People will do anything to shit on your dreams or goals. Friends, family, highly opinionated strangers, you name it: every single dick-squeezing asshole out there will find a reason to tell you you're wrong or stupid for trying something new. I'm not the type of person to market my activities and play the "hey look at what I'm doing" pretentious card, but it's a pretty tough subject to avoid when put into social settings. I almost dreaded having to tell people about it simply because they'd either try to bend your will or inform you that your life choices are pathetic and worthless. This was probably the most annoying thing of the entire process.

                                                           

Overall it was a great experience knowing that, once you set your mind to something, you can accomplish whatever you'd like, no matter how big or small that goal is. Replacing bad habits with good habits becomes addicting. There were times of heavy frustration because you tire of eating rabbit food when all you're really craving is the world's largest burger and a Monster Energy drink. However, undergoing this exercise was very beneficial towards not only my health, but establishing a good set of morals and principles to try and incorporate on your everyday routine.