Sugar Baby

It would be a major understatement to say I have a sweet tooth. I am one of those people who can eat three cupcakes in one sitting without a second thought. And cheesecake . . . well, we won't even go there.

I didn't always have this problem. Growing up, my mom did not keep a lot of sweets in the house. We had decadent desserts for holidays - cherry cheesecake, chocolate pie, sweet potato pie, and my grandmother's carrot cake that could make you weep with joy and thanksgiving. Special occasional treats at home included chocolate pudding made on the stove top, allowed to cool, and topped with cool whip from the tub - none of that squirty canned stuff. In the summers, I snacked on blackberries picked down the street, not bags of preservative and processed sugar-filled cookies and candy.

Then, I got pregnant. And all bets were off. Somewhere around the 5th or 6th month of gestation, my hormone-saturated brain told my taste buds and tummy that no meal was complete without dessert. I became a champion. I could finish an entire Applebees maple nut blondie with cream sauce (after an enormous meal, mind you) before you could blink. Cheesecake in multiple flavors became the piece de resistance of every meal. 52+ pounds later, I was fat and happy. This was my first baby, after all, and I was delusional. I figured my tastebuds, and my HIPS, would go back to normal just as soon as I popped that child out.

Not so, my friends, not so. It took some work, but I did get the weight off. However, the sweet tooth was here to stay. My daughter is over seven years old, and I've reached my day of reckoning. As I mentioned in an earlier post, all my sugar consumption was making me feel like crud. I needed to take drastic measures, so I completely cut out the processed sugar for a week. I expected to go into shock and withdrawal, curled up in a fetal position while begging for a snack cake, a whopper egg, let me lick the frosting spoon, anything!

Surprisingly, it wasn't like that at all. Within a day or two I realized that I no longer craved an afternoon nap. I'm sleeping better. I've added a little more daily activity (still not enough, but I'm getting there! Baby steps!), and I FEEL better. And, best of all, I've changed my habits. I made a chocolate cake the other day covered in fudge sauce and I didn't eat any of it! I can have a small treat now with no guilt, and it feels great! Since my body isn't in a constant state of sugar pollution, it handles those little amounts with ease.

I am very happy about this change in my life, and I'm working hard to keep it up.