Life is sweet. And so is sugar.

Hi there folks! I'm back. Back in the world of sugar. This is day 6.

Photo from nourition.com

What I learned is still pretty similar to what I wrote in my mid-month reflection.

The biggest take-home for me was the aspect of sugar in breakfast foods. I do not want to be starting the day off with added sugar in my foods. No, I'm not going to be militant about this, but as a regular thing I will start paying more attention to sugars in yogurts, cereals, and other items.  A rare doughnut or pastry are okay for special breakfasts, but I'm not looking for something so sweet in the routine rotation.

Another change is that I'm still having tea without any sweetener. I've grown to like it this way, so why add anything else? .

This sugar month has brought home the importance of allowing myself to indulge. The main time that I missed sugar was on the weekend. During week days the lack of sugar was hardly noticeable. I know that recommendations often say you should not use food as a reward for eating well. And this makes sense, but when I eat copious amounts of fruits and vegetables throughout the week and watch portion sizes, I can enjoy a dessert because I ate well throughout the week. If I completely cut myself off from the more "fun" foods, I think I would go crazy and eat everything I missed a few months down the road.

Not having sugar was a bit of a saving grace. I had an excuse to say, "No" to candies and treats that came my way. Candy bowls at a conference I recently attended and leftover desserts that are routinely left out in the office were off limits. That saved me from food I did not need to be eating.

Now that I've gotten to try a few sweet things, what is my reaction?

I had a fun sized Snickers bar that was way too sweet.

Special K cereal, okay, but felt like I was eating dessert for breakfast.

David and I had a bit of a vacation day and shared a slice of key lime pie on a day trip. This was good.

I could have done without a girl scout cookie, it wasn't all that I hoped it would be.

And life changing news, I have never liked dark chocolate but I tried a little Dove square the other day and it was wonderful.

My experiment changed the way I taste sweetness and that is what I was hoping for. I no longer need quite as much sugar to satisfy a sweet craving and I am more aware of the sugar that is in some unexpected places. This was a great challenge for me and I look forward to trying other monthly challenges throughout the year.