Since my recaps of the Whole30 have been so popular I thought I’d share my 21 Day Sugar Detox journey as well! As many of you know I have been trying to go completely Paleo for some time now. I’ve done a couple rounds of the Whole30 and always feel wonderful after completing them. However, I keep slipping back into old habits, and justifying non-paleo, non-gluten free meals/snacks and it’s like a landslide.
If you don’t know what the 21 Day Sugar Detox is or you would like more information check out Diane Sanfilippo‘s book out. It’s called The 21 Day Sugar Detox. The goal is to spend 21 days as close to sugar free as possible. There is also a great Facebook Page that has lots of tips, tricks, and AMAZING support!
These past few months have been hit or miss with my eating, so I decided to give the 21 Day Sugar Detox a go. My sweet tooth is intense, and things that should be sweet and satisfying weren’t anymore. As a result I had put on weight (again), and really wanted to make a change. I’ve heard really good things about the detox and since my diet bet was getting ready to start too, I figured why not! I bought the book on Amazon, and didn’t look back! There are 3 levels (and some modifications) on the 21 Day Sugar Detox. I went with level 3 as it was strict Paleo.
I will do a post on the difference between the 21 Day Sugar Detox and the Whole30 later, but for now I just wanted to share how my journey is going.
I’m not going to lie – I had NO idea that week 1 was going to be THIS HARD! It was a total eye opener as to how dependent my body has been on sugar. Maybe if I was eating better prior to the challenge this wouldn’t have been such a hard week, but I got through it, and I can say Day 7-8 were A LOT better!
21 Day Sugar Detox Week 1!
Day 1:
- Breakfast: Coconut milk, spinach, 1/2 avocado, green tipped banana, almond butter. (My smoothie didn’t taste very good but it was very filling – I will make some modifications next time.)
- Lunch: Bacon, chicken, olives, cucumber, tomato, avocado oil, 1/2 avocado, with flavorgod everything seasoning.
- Dinner: Chicken sausage, 2 eggs, broccoli, mushroom, onions.
Day 2:
First day headache showed up. I was feeling very flu-ish too. Dang Carb Flu!
- Breakfast: Leftover dinner + 2 eggs.
- Lunch: 21 Day Sugar Detox Ba-Nola (Recipe in 21 Day Sugar Detox Cookbook – Totally worth the purchase).
- Dinner: Since lunch was small and quick… 2 turkey burgers, bacon, onions, mushrooms, avocado, tomatoes, mustard flavorgod garlic lovers seasoning.
Day 3:
Massive headache all day today. Finally drank some warm water with Young Living Peppermint oil in it, and that helped a lot!
- Breakfast: Smoothie-Coconut milk, 1/2 avocado, 1 green tipped banana, cinnamon.
- Lunch: left over Asian ground beef with 2 eggs.
- Dinner: Salad-romaine lettuce, celery, cucumber, tomato, olive, broccoli, and avocado dressing. Chicken with puréed tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil. Feeling munchie…
Day 4:
Still have my headache. Woke up hungry, forgot to take a picture of breakfast. Also experiencing so weird joint pain. Unsure if it’s related. Crazy how dependent we become on sugar!!
- Breakfast: Banola.
- Lunch: Uncured bacon, leftover salad from last night, tuna, and my favorite easy to make creamy avocado dressing.
- Dinner: Egg scramble with bacon, mushrooms, onions, carrots. (Aka in didn’t get to the grocery store…) and sautéed spinach.
Day 5:
Headache seems to be gone, but fought some tummy troubles today. Started using BurBur herbal detox per the recommendation of a friend. She said that when you cut sugar you are also killing all the candida (aka yeast) in your body and it can be really hard. It’s just 10 drops in 4oz of water. Seemed to help!!
- Breakfast: Uncured bacon, green juice/smoothie (green apple, full cucumber, spinach, coconut water).
- Lunch: really didn’t want to eat because of my stomach… Leftover turkey burger with carrots (ate them pre-pic sorry!), and guacamole.
- Dinner: keeping it simple. I’m wiped! Chicken breast, leftover salad (topped with evoo and Trader Joes 21 season salute) green beans with ghee and Flavorgod garlic lovers.
Day 6:
Finally feeling GOOD – using the burbur herbal detox (see day 5) 3 times a day.
- Breakfast: monkey salad… Green tipped banana, unsweetened coconut flakes, and almond butter.
- Lunch: the best salad EVER! Totally hit the spot! Romaine, tomatoes, broccoli, cucumber, bacon, hard boiled eggs, and a dressing made with mustard, evoo, apple cider vinegar, and Flavorgod garlic lovers seasoning.
- Dinner: Romaine, bean sprouts, evoo, tomatoes, onions, grilled steak, topped with guacamole.
Day 7:
One Week Done! Feeling SO much better than I did in the beginning.
- Breakfast: spinach, 1/2 avocado, cinnamon, banana, and coconut milk.
- Lunch: Spent the day at comic con, so I was happy I packed this! Turkey slices, 1/2 avocado, cup of black olives, almonds/cashews, and carrots. Drank peppermint water with it.
- Dinner: Steak and peppers, with apple cider vinegar, fish sauce, and coconut aminos.
My Thoughts on the 21 Day Sugar Detox Week 1?
Like I said before, I had no idea how my body would feel detoxing. I’d done Whole30 before, but this was something new to me. I’m hoping to reset my sweet tooth so I can make better choices. I wish I had done a little bit more meal planning – there were a few times that I had to go to the store if I wanted to stay on plan.
Also more meal prep – hardboiled eggs, pre-made salad, maybe even 21 Day Sugar Detox approved smoothies prepped ahead and frozen. I bake my bacon all at once, so that wasn’t so bad. I also wish I would have bought the cookbook at the same time I bought the “instructions/about/guide” book. There are recipes in the main book, but I struggled to find 21DSD approved recipes online like I would do with the Whole30.
As far as my family goes…My husband has been out of town for work for the majority of my detox so far. I have found that to be very helpful. No tempting foods in the house. That said – when he is home he loves all my Paleo cooking, it would be interesting to see if he liked this. My son is eating the dinners I cook with a few added items like yogurt or fruit.
Overall I’m feeling good and really proud of myself to be sticking this out. I’m also doing T25 and running at the YMCA depending on my day and the kids. Plus as a bonus I’m down 4.5 lbs!
Follow me via Instagram to see what I’m eating daily instead of waiting for the recaps!
Have you done the 21 Day Sugar Detox?
What was your favorite meal?
Are you interested in learning more about the 21 Day Sugar Detox? Click HERE to learn more and get started!
Recommended Reading & Products:
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That is awesome that you are doing this. I don’t think I could give up sugar like that.
I need to do this in the worst way! Thanks for laying it all out there in an easy to follow plan!
Very nice detox menu. Lots of good items included.
Sugar is weird….It’s like once you get it out of your system you don’t crave it as much or at all. Really changes the way I look at food.
Your meals look delicious! This would be so hard to do. But when I was growing up, we had NO sugar, ever. Unless you count the natural sugars in fruit, we didn’t have any.
Congrats on week 1 and another 4.5 lbs! Your meals look fantastic!
I don’t know if I could give up sweets! Bravo to you for making wise choices.
I was just telling my husband that I wanted to do something like this. This sounds great thank you for posting!
Great job! That HAS got to be tough. I have been wanting to detox for so long but have not had the will power to go through with it. Your meals look pretty good though!
I love that you proved there is light at the end of the tunnel…and there’s no reason to quit because you feel lousy in the beginning. That’s the hardest part, I think, is getting through those first few days!
No I haven’t done a detox like that. It’s always interesting to hear about people’s different experiences with them.
I’ve never done a sugar detox. I need to look into it more. I have a fairly intense sweet tooth, too!
I’ve never done it before, and I think I would struggle mightily like you did. It would be interesting to see how I felt once I got over the hump though.
I have never gone 1 day without sugar. I kinda love it! I really think that a detox is maybe a good idea for me….
Good for you hanging in there. I have such a sweet tooth so I haven’t tried a detox yet but know I need to soon. I have been off soda for about a week though and not even really trying.
I need to do this…I feel so much better when I do not eat sugar…why I go back toeating it I wil never know.
I should go on a 21 day sugar detox as well. My sweet tooth is getting my waist line in to trouble.
I’m not doing the 21 Day Sugar Detox but my doctor did put me on a low glycemic diet so we’ve cut out a lot of sugars. It was hard at first but we’ve gotten use to it now.
Oh mercy! I’ve never eve CONSIDERED doing a sugar detox but I’m sure my body would probably love me for it after the initial shock! Good for you, you’re a brave woman!
I love Dianne and all of her yummy recipes. I have the 21 Day program and her paleo cookbooks. I should take the 21 Day seriously and actually go through it. I generally eat low carb, but lately I have been backsliding. This might help kick it back into gear.
Bravo on making it through the first week – I’m not sure I’d be as strong! I like to think I’m good on my sugar intake, but its likely a lot worse than I imagine. :/
Way to go! I’m doing the 21 Day Fix right now and love the way I have been feeling. Eggs and nuts are a big part of my menu right now too!
Cool for you! I am doing a cutting out sugar starting this week and its going great!
I did a sugar cleanse myself. IT was so hard but the meals were actually kind of good once I got the hang of it!
As I sit here with a mini Butterfinger in front of me… I’m thinking I should try this. Your menu looks completely satisfying and delicious. Not like a “diet” at all!
Good for you for doing this! I would love to try this out but I don’t know if I have the willpower!
Giving up sugar is really hard. I have been weaning myself very slowly. I don’t think I will ever cut it out completely, but small steps like switching to unsweetened tea and eating more veggies helps.
I have a massive sweet tooth and am going to try to cut back. I have never done a detox, I am actually intimidated by them
Awesome. Just tweeted this and I’m bookmarking it so I can can try it with my husband.
Thanks for sharing your journey. I think by day 3 after I started with the headaches I may have quit. I know not good but I don’t think I’d have been able to do it. I suffer with really bad migraines so would prefer not to have one. 🙂
Wow these recipes look great – forget the detox, I would eat them just because! lol
I struggle with that same landslide! LOL! Right now I am just trying to kick my caffeine (IE Dr. Pepper) habit. Then I will move on to the next thing. These menu looks awesome though!