Want to cut sugar from your diet in 2021? Learn how

Refined Sugar
Refined Sugar

By Chef Tracy Lauth

We all want to live healthier.  I know I do. If you are like most people, you made a New Year’s resolution that included either losing weight, eating better, or cutting sugar.  Maybe all three. In our house, we have already been living this for a while.  My husband was recently diagnosed as pre-diabetic.  Yikes!  What is that?  It means that if we don’t make permanent changes fast, he will end up on medications for the rest of his life.  It was a shot over our bow that we better get our life under control. 

I am a classically trained chef and we love and eat great food.  Our problem was processed, ready-to-eat, and homemade foods that were full of sugar and carbs.  We were slaves to homemade bread, brownies, and Moose Tracks ice cream and had to make some changes fast.  So, I did some research and revisited my recipes from when I owned my catering company.  After some tweaks, nips, and changes, we are eating great again.   We are living a life completely free from processed sugar and you can too!   

Change Happened Fast

  • The first thing I noticed was that my waist immediately dropped two inches.  The next thing is very strange – my shoes fit better.  I wear western boots and they started to slip on easier and now, I rarely need boot hooks to put them on or a boot jack to get them off.  Hmm.  Interesting. 
  • I wear a Fitbit and the reports said I was sleeping better with less tossing and turning, and a deeper, more restful sleep pattern appeared. 
  • Now here is the BIGGEST change.  My resting heartrate dropped from mid-70’s to low 50’s.  Yes, my heart liked the change.  I have always had healthy blood pressure so that did not change much. 
  • We purchased a glucose monitor, and we were able to drop our blood sugar to under 99.  Big improvement from a fasting level of 110++
  • We are less tired in the afternoon, take less naps, and are more active, which our dog loves!  Just from cutting sugar.
  • I lost eleven pounds in the first month, seventeen as of writing this article.

Everyone is different and has different goals I used many sources for recipe and menu inspiration including Keto, Paleo, American Diabetes Association, and common sense to come up with our menu.  I also thought about . . .