Healthy Habits for Life: Body, Mind and Spirit Series
If you’ve followed my blog any this year you’ve noticed that I had a knee replacement back in February. And with that knee replacement I made the decision to change some things about my diet and exercise. It’s a big deal to have a joint replaced. It’s even bigger when you realize that it’s your lifestyle that played a significant role in decline of your knee.
I’m glad to say that I did make some changes. I dropped 27 pounds. My A1C was down to 6.2%. My time in God’s word and prayer was up (this is very important to my success), and I was walking and stretching with yoga twice a week. Very big changes for me, the computer girl whose work and play included sitting for most of the day.
But then my circumstances changed. My yoga and diet buddy took a full-time job. I began to slide in my commitment to exercise. I began to say to myself, “A little of this, or a little of that won’t hurt. I’m doing so well.” I gained back five pounds. But that didn’t really worry me. What worried me was my blood sugar. You see, that “little of this, and a little of that” mostly included cakes, pies, ice cream, and on and on. I just had to face it, I’m addicted to sugar.
People may chuckle at such a claim, but it’s true. I grew up in an addicted household. My parents were addicted to alcohol. Later, my brothers were addicted to drugs. But for me, my drug of choice wasn’t alcohol or drugs: It was sugar. I used sugar to help me deal with stress. And trust me, I had a lot of stress in my life. Sugar has been my go to, feel good addiction for 50 years and today I’m ready to deal with it.
Maybe sugar has been your nemesis. If so, won’t you join with me in this continuing journey of Healthy Habits for Life? Let’s break our sugar addiction once and for all. I’m talking about being ruthless. Sugar has to go.
Let me take a moment and qualify that statement. When I say sugar I’m talking about the refined sugar found in most processed and low-fat foods. I’m NOT talking about naturally occurring sugar found in fruits and vegetables. God in His wisdom added fiber to those sweet fruits and veggies. God’s added benefit of fiber helps level out blood sugar because it slows down our absorption of the sugar. God is amazing in His wisdom. And it’s the blood sugar spikes and falls that cause us to gain weight, keep us from losing weight, sets us up for diabetes, and keeps us addicted.
I’m not a dietary expert. I’m a woman with a problem that has been reading and working at overcoming this problem for many years. I’m using Prevention’s book: The Sugar Solution as my guide through this detoxification process. You may be interested in following their guidance, or you can check out some other great resources like:
Beat Sugar Addiction Now, by Jacob Teitlbaum, M.D.
Or The Sugar Detox Diet by Betty Johnson.
I just want to express to you that we will be offering ideas and advice that are scripturally based and may not agree 100% with the advice found in the books I’ve mentioned. In its natural form, God made all things good; it’s man that messed them up (especially food).
As we continue this journey of creating Healthy Habits for Life: Body, Mind and Spirit, let’s begin with a verse found in Proverbs. This proverb was very important because it is a proverb God repeats. It’s found in both Proverbs 22:3 and 27:12.
“A prudent man foreseeth the evil and hideth himself from it; but the simple pass on and are punished.”
I see where the road of sugar addition is headed. It’s headed towards high blood sugar, weight gain, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, heart disease, heart attacks, bypass surgery, amputations. Definitely some very evil things. I want to hide myself from it, don’t you? Let’s change our future by making changes today that set our feet on the path to the abundant life Jesus promised us.
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. But I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” John 10:10
So this week let’s commit to:
- Reading the Bible and praying each morning that God will help us be successful in removing this addiction and eating the way He intended.
- Taking inventory to see just how much sugar we consume in a day. Do this by reading the labels and researching the ingredients of everything that goes into your mouth. Note the different names of sugar used on packaged foods. Please share those with us in the comments section below. You should shoot for 6 grams of sugar or less in any packaged foods. (It’s really better not to eat packaged foods at all, but if you must…).
- Select whole foods when at all possible. By whole foods I mean in their natural form; like fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats. This will come with planning. Plan on getting hungry later, so have that apple, or banana, or unsalted nuts, or tossed salad ready for snacking between meals. And yes, tossed salad is a great snack. Warning: watch the sugar in the dressing! Better yet, make your own with extra-virgin olive oil, vinegar and herbs and spice of your choosing.
- Come back to this blog and post your comments. I want you to feel free to offer your struggles, prayer requests, suggestions and things you’ve learned through the week. THIS is a very important step. It helps when we build community together. God’s word teaches accountability. It’s important in any endeavor we undertake.
Next time we’ll look at our suggestions. Take the best; leave the rest. And we’ll continue our study of the children of Israel leaving Egypt and heading to the Promised Land.
Father, Thank you that you’ve opened my eyes to my struggle with sugar. I pray that you will help me overcome and be the best me you’ve created me to be. Don’t let me fall into the trap of relying on myself and my power to effect this change. Let me fully trust you and walk circumspectly through the process you’ve laid on my heart. Quick doesn’t always win the race. Slow, consistent and informed progress will help me in this battle. Thank you, again, for your abiding presence and help. To you be all glory now, and forever. Amen.