You can survive one week without sugar?
Certainly yes and indeed, we can assure you that you will feel so well that you will want to continue forever.
How do we know it? We have accepted the challenge!
With no added sugar
We did a test to understand how and if you can easily exceed a week without ever consuming any food containing added sugar.
We specify "added" because sugars are practically everywhere, but not in all foods are sugars that hurt.
To be clear, the fruit contains sugar, but eliminating it from the diet is not right. A packaged product like a snack, a soup ready, a ready sauce, biscuits, pizzas and much more, instead, they contain added sugars useless for our organism, excessive and harmful. Eliminating them is very difficult, but not impossible. Reducing them would be essential.
For 7 days we have also eliminated all the sweeteners such as granulated or cane sugar, fructose, honey, malt, agave and coconut sugar because, although natural, they are always sugars. Stevia can replace them, but not everyone likes its licorice aftertaste.
7 days without sugar
As we have already said, we must not eliminate any type of sugar, but only the unnecessary one.
So fruit yes, cookies no.
Yogurt yes, but only Greek.
No alcohol, no fruit juices, no jams and spreads if not homemade.
Pasta yes, but wholemeal and the same is true for bread.
Sugar of any kind no.
The expense to do
During the sugarfree week we advise you to have at home everything you need to prepare lunches, dinners and breakfasts to avoid going to the supermarket and let yourself be tempted by "forbidden" products.
Make a good supply of vegetables, vegetables and fruit, avoiding that which is too sugary or too ripe.
Buy also of the dried fruit perfect to take with you as a mid-day snack.
Determine what you will eat more or less day by day and adjust accordingly. Meat, fish and eggs they cannot be missing, but neither can they legumes and cereals.
To get an idea of how to organize the week, read our recommendations for meal prep.
Watch out for seasonings
Simply use oil, lemon juice, spices and aromatic herbs.
You may not know that even in some famous sauces like soy sauce there may be added sugars, as well as in ketchup. Absolutely avoid the ready dressing, not so much because they contain added sugars – and contain them – but also because they are generally rich in fat.
Breakfast tips
It could always be more or less the same even if by choice we advise you to vary it a little and explain how.
A Whole grain bread slice is the base to which you can add a poached egg, hard or fried or smoked salmon or ricotta.
They must not be missing good fats like avocado or dried fruit and a fruit of your choice, not too ripe and not too sugary. A Orange juice in this period it is perfect.
If you don't like salty breakfast you can prepare a porridge with oat flakes and water and then enrich it with Greek yogurt, cinnamon, fresh and dried fruit.
If you are in a hurry, opt for one instead Greek yogurt with chopped dried fruit and 80% dark chocolate.
Lunch tips
If you can't do pasta by hand, choose the whole wheat pasta or legume flour pasta and season to taste, always with homemade sauces.
Try to give space also to Whole grains such as rice, spelled, barley, millet, oats and quinoa, although in this case it is a fake cereal, which, however, does not do badly!
Accompany both pasta and cereals ad a portion of vegetables and to one small protein part which can be based on cereals, fish or meat.
Some examples: spelled with steamed zucchini and smoked salmon, brown rice with cherry tomatoes and feta, salted porridge.
Dinner tips
If you gave more space to carbohydrates for lunch, eat more at dinner proteins always varying between meat, fish, eggs and legumes. A soup of legumes and barley could be an excellent idea as well as a cuddle, but prepare it at home because in those already prepared there are often added sugars. Always with legumes you can prepare velvety and cold creams like thechickpea humumus also perfect for filling a rye sandwich.
Chicken or turkey yes, but not sliced. Prepare a simple cut, season with spices and herbs and accompany with vegetables.
The eggs they are easy and quick to prepare and are very versatile: omelette, fried egg, small pie with vegetables. You can really indulge yourself.
As for the fish, avoid canned and frozen processed and seasoned. The fresh fish it is prepared in a short time and is good for you.
One week without added sugar
We have decided to offer you in gallery some ideas for breakfast to be alternated during the week, some snacks and 7 ideas for lunch and dinner.
These are very simple recipes that you can easily replicate at home, with light cooking and few seasonings.
Attention only to not use refined flours and not whole grains and pasta.
Obviously at the table only water or even tea, herbal teas and infusions, but not sweetened!
Play a lot with spices and herbs to give more taste to your dishes and if you fancy a dessert at the end of the meal, treat yourself to a extra-dark chocolate cube.
