Yasemin's Sugar Free September
I’ve been taking part in Sugar Free September for a decade now! I first took part in 2010 when I wanted to kickstart a healthy eating regime. I’ve never been one to “diet”, but I like the idea of a challenge – with an end in sight. One month. That’s all. A small, achievable goal. I can do it! And I did, sort of. Who knew how challenging giving up sugar could be? When I first took part in the challenge, I had no idea how much sugar I was consuming. Nearly everything I was eating had sugar in it!
The challenge is to cut out all refined and added sugars for the month of September, but ultimately it is up to you how much sugar you want to remove during the challenge. I challenge myself not to eat anything that had more than 5 per cent sugar in it. And after September I usually continue to make sure I don’t eat foods with more than 10 per cent sugar in them.
Basically, it’s not just giving up the usual culprits like chocolate, cakes and ice-cream but also a lot of other favourites too, most of which you probably don’t know have a high-sugar content.
I learnt so much about nutrition and the food I was consuming in that first September challenge. Lessons that I continue to apply to my daily life. And that is exactly why I highly recommend, and encourage, others to take part. It’s an eye-opener, a really good learning experience and one that will help improve your overall health.
One of the first things I learnt when I signed up for Sugar Free September was how to read a food label. I started reading all the food labels to make sure the sugar content was 5 per cent or under and this was helping me learn so much about the foods I was consuming. I also learnt that if sugar is listed as one of the first three ingredients on a food label you can pretty much put it straight back down.
It’s not easy. All of a sudden you have to think twice about the cereal you’re consuming for breakfast and the dressing on your salad. But it is worth it.
The benefits of giving up sugar are endless, and include: weight loss, clearer skin and more youthful skin, increased energy, increased well-being, healthier teeth and reduced risk of disease.
According to the Australian health survey Aussies consume 22kg of free sugars each year, which equates to around 14 teaspoons of sugar each day. Most of us think we are doing pretty good by not adding a sugar in our coffee, but we are totally unaware of how much "hidden" sugar we are consuming. Have you watched “That Sugar Film”? It’s a great documentary that documents the effects of eating supposedly healthy foods that contain high amounts of sugar. Think muesli bars, cereals, juices. I recommend you add it to your lockdown movie list!
What I also learnt from taking part in Sugar Free September is that it’s okay to slip up, as long as you pick yourself right up. Don’t let one mistake cost you the whole day. Don’t say “I’ll start again tomorrow”, start again right then and there. Don’t waste a day of the journey. Pick yourself up and keep going! – one to add to the “life lessons” section too.
To keep yourself accountable let people know you’re taking part in the challenge. It’s a great conversation starter. And the conversation is even more important because of the special cause attached to the challenge. Not only are you going sugar free for yourself, but you’re going “Sugar Free for MD”. By registering online, as an individual or a team, you can start a fundraising page to help raise funds for Muscular Dystrophy NSW. Another fabulous reason to take part this September.
Each year I create a team called “Less Sweet, More Sweat” – encouraging friends, family, clients and pretty much everyone to join with three main aims. One, like the name suggests: eating less sweet stuff; two: Exercising and moving more; and three: raising vital funds for MD, a progressive muscle wasting condition which impacts the lives of kids and adults. You too can join my team, or donate here: https://www.sugarfreeseptember.org.au/fundraisers/yasemintalat/sugarfreeseptember
I hope I’ve given you enough reasons to want to join and shake up that lockdown diet. If you’re participating, I’d love to hear about it. Good luck!
For more information and to register visit: https://www.sugarfreeseptember.org.au/
Yasemin Talat