21 Day Sugar Detox
Removing sugar from your diet is the fastest way to lose fat and increase your energy. When your blood sugar is out of balance it causes depression, causes you to store sugar as fat instead of using it for energy, causing you to have highs and lows in your energy.
Why Should You Stop Eating Sugar?
- Sugar Makes You Fat: Sugar makes you fat, tired, and ugly. I wish I was kidding about this, but I’m actually quite serious. Eating fat doesn’t make you fat, sugar does.
- Tiredness: Eating too much sugar and carbs is the reason that most people are tired all the time as well.
- Not Good For Skin: Not to mention that sugar zaps the collagen in your skin, and dulls your complexion.
- No Nutritional Value: Sugar has zero nutritional value, That’s right. No vitamins, minerals, no NOTHING.
- Consuming Sugar Without Knowing: Most Americans consume up to three pounds of sugar every week! It’s not always easy to eat away from sugar because they put it in almost everything these days. It’s added to so many processed foods we eat, not just in what we consider “sweets”. Check your labels!
- Raised blood insulin levels causes’ weight gain. Insulin promotes the storage of fat; so, when you eat foods high in sugar, you increase fat storage. Resulting in rapid weight gain.
- Sugar is addictive: The more sugar you eat, the more your body craves, so just limiting sugar won’t do the trick. You literally have to cut it out completely, cold-turkey, to stop the addictive cycle. Studies have shown that it can be more difficult to get off of sugar than heroin.
For me, dried fruit was the hardest!
Signs that your blood sugar may be out of balance
- Cravings for sweets, sugar, or bread products. (This is almost a guaranteed sign that your blood sugar is out of balance)
- Fatigue after eating a meal, or “food-coma”
- Get lightheaded if meals are missed
- Eating Sweets does not relieve the cravings for sweets
- Depend on coffee to keep yourself going or started
- Difficulty losing weight
How to balance your blood sugar:
- Eat more protein
- Digest more protein (check stomach acid levels to make sure you are digesting properly)
- Eliminate simple carbohydrates and sugar
- Eat more complex carbohydrates
- Eat more good fats and essential fatty acids
- Eat more fiber
- Do a 21 sugar detox!
21 Sugar Detox: How to Stop Eating sugar?
Instructions for 21 day sugar Detox
- Remove all sugar and simple carbohydrates from your diet for 21 days in a row.
- Remove all foods from the “avoid” list below, and eat only foods on the “good” list for the 21 days.
- If you “slip-up” and eat food from the avoid list, just continue and try not to do it again.
At first, your cravings for sugar may be more pronounced. After you get over what I call the hump” you will stop craving sugar all together. I never thought I’d get there myself. It usually takes 3-4 days to get over the hump, so this is the point at which you’ll have to buckle down and use all of your will power. Believe it or not, the longer your stay off sugar the easier it gets. I don’t even crave sweets now. I have ideas however, if you do have the craving! Just let me know.
This doesn’t mean that you’ll never be able to eat fruit again or enjoy a piece of bread. This is a temporary cleanse to overcorrect your blood sugar. This is when the cravings for sugar disappear, and your energy goes way up! Not to mention that most people see a huge difference in their skin.
Foods to Eat and Avoid During Your 21 Day Sugar Detox
Good Foods:
Make as many of these organic and NON-GMO as possible:
- All Herbs
- All Vegetables, Except Potatoes
- Avocado
- Beans
- Beets*
- Brown Rice
- Carrots*
- Nuts
- Olive Oil
- Green Bananas
- Green Apples
- Organic Free-Range Chicken
- Organic Free-Range Turkey
- Organic Grass-Fed Beef
- Organic Grass-Fed Lamb
- Quinoa
- Sashimi
- Seeds
- Coconut Oil
- Corn*
- Eggs
- Fish
- Ghee (Clarified Butter)
- Goji Berries
- Grape Seed Oil
- Lemon and Lime
- Lentils
- Miracle Noodle Brand Pasta
- Tomatoes
- Unsweetened chocolate
- Wild Caught Salmon
- Yams*
*Limit to ½ cup per serving
Food To Avoid:
- Agave Nectar
- Alcohol
- All Fried Foods
- All Fruit not on Good Foods list
- All Grains not on Good Foods list
- Artificial Sweeteners
- Breads
- Buckwheat
- Candy
- Cereal
- Cheese
- Cream Sauces
- Dairy
- Evaporated Cane Juice
- Ezekiel Bread
- Flour
- Flour Tortillas
- French bread
- Fructose
- Fruit Juice
- Fruits
- High Fructose Corn Syrup
- Honey
- Hydrogenated Oils
- Maple Syrup
- Millet
- MSG: Monosodium Glutamate
- Oatmeal
- Potatoes
- Raw Cane Sugar
- Seitan
- Soy
- Sucrose
- Sugar
- Tortillas
- Trans Fats
- Vinegar
- Wheat Bread
- Wheat Pasta
- White Bread
- White Flour
- White Rice
- Yogurt
This is a list of foods only during the 21 day cleanse. After the cleanse, you can slowly add back fruits, whole grains and all natural sweeteners, such as agave nectar and stevia. However, processed sugars and processed grains should still be avoided.
Symptoms of Cleansing and What You May Feel During and After A Cleanse
“Sometimes feeling worse means you are actually getting better.”
These detox symptoms are called a “healing crisis” and usually only last 2–3 days of the cleanse or fast. When a person is cleansing or detoxing his body, it is common to experience these different symptoms. Our bodies clean from the inside out. Sometimes we take a step back before we take a leap forward in our health. Many times people experience no symptoms. Every time you do a cleanse your body will react differently.
Most Commonly Reported Positive Effects During the Cleanse:
- Fat loss
- Less bloating
- Clearer skin
- Less craving for sugar / food
- Increased sense of taste (healthy food starts tasting better)
- Increased energy
- More consistent energy
- More regular bowel movements
- Increased sense of wellbeing
- Elevated mood/less depression
- Lower cholesterol
- Better sleep
- Old memories / emotions resurfacing
Most Commonly Reported Negative Effects During The Cleanse: (these symptoms pass after a day or two)
- Headaches
- Flu / Cold-like symptoms / Chilling
- More emotionally sensitive
- Lethargic / Low energy
- Diarrhea/ Constipation
- Gas / Bloating
- Body odor / Bad breath
- Skin breakouts / Rashes
- Irritable
- Sporadic sleep
- Old memories / emotions resurfacing
- Mucus drainage
Most Commonly Reported Positive Effects AFTER the Cleanse:
- Fat loss
- Less bloating
- Clearer skin
- Less craving for sugar / food
- Increased sense of taste (healthy food starts tasting better)
- Increased energy
- More consistent energy
- More regular bowel movements
- Increased sense of wellbeing
- Elevated mood/less depression
- Lower cholesterol
- Better sleep
Disclaimer: The entire contents of this handout are based upon the opinions of Cindy Ballard, unless otherwise noted. The information in this handout is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care professional and is not intended as medical advice. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge and information from the research and experience of Cindy Ballard and her community. We encourage you to make your own health care decisions based upon your research and in partnership with a qualified healthcare professional.
