No flour, no sugar

So it's my third day without flour or sugar ... this is a crazy idea for a cyclist, not recommended during the biking season.

But it's below zero here in Wyoming today, and I've done exactly two studded-tire outdoor rides since the snow descended in December. Besides a long X-C ski here and there, I haven't sweated for more than two straight hours since September. Lots of indoor training, but I really need to stop the madness of my sugar addiction, and, Ullrich-like, drop 20-30 pounds during my personal "spring training" boot camp. My excesses have led to excess ballast that slows me down, especially on the hills.

Anybody else doing this sort of regimen? Do the cravings really go away?

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Originally Posted by CyclaSutra

So it's my third day without flour or sugar ... this is a crazy idea for a cyclist, not recommended during the biking season.

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:eek:

Doing this would put me in the hospital. I'm diabetic not hypoglycemic, but my medications still require a minimum amount of carb intake otherwise I do go hypoglycemic. Remember your brain runs on glucose.

Mel

there are whole grains, or grasses you can eat which will help, and that your body vitally needs.

grasses include wild rice, which is a very good food to eat. don't let the carbs scare you, whole grains and grasses are a pretty complete food. don't forget your beans and legumes.

no sugar, hard thing, I'm totally addicted. no flour, I could do, but no grains, I'd die of starvation. steel-cut oatmeal is my friend. :-D

Yes, the cravings go away and I don't think it takes too long. Then, when you taste anything with refined sugar/flour, it tastes impossibly sweet and yucky!

You'll have to figure out how you're going to reintroduce the simple/complex carbs when you're back to riding longer. CorsairMac has a whole thread about homemade energy bars with dried fruit/nuts, etc. Sometimes you've just got to put gas in the tank! :)

Melody, what type of food do you take when you go for rides? I am also diabetic and am trying to determine what type of foods will give me the most energy. This summer we are going to attempt participate in the Seattle to Portland ride and I don't want to be a drag and unable to make it. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for the support, chickadees.

But "no flour" doesn't mean no carbs, and "no sugar" doesn't mean no fruit. I'm still eating steel-cut oatmeal, shredded wheat, Triscuits (whole wheat, no flour), rice, bananas, apples, etc.

The theory is that flour and sugar are too readily bioabsorbable, meaning they give you a big blood sugar spike and crash, and we don't get enough nutrients because the milling of the flour, etc. gets rid of fiber and vitamins.

It's getting easier, and the scale is heading in the right direction (two pounds in the six days since I weighed). I'm not going into ketosis, which is the Atkins approach when you avoid all carbs, and thus not losing just the water weight that keeps the carbs in your muscles.

I did slide once two days ago. Flew through Dairy Queen after an emotional incident, and ate a third of the small Blizzard before handing it over to the DH. But other than that, I've been "good" about it.

I'll keep you posted on how it goes...

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Originally Posted by Andi

Melody, what type of food do you take when you go for rides? I am also diabetic and am trying to determine what type of foods will give me the most energy. This summer we are going to attempt participate in the Seattle to Portland ride and I don't want to be a drag and unable to make it. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

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Andi, what I usually take with me on my rides is fruit (generally bananas) and Gu. For longer stuff it's important that you're pulling in salts since your body is losing them.

I know for me the sugar that I take in from the fruit and Gu will be burned by my body. One general rule is that for aerobic exercise your primary fuel will be body fat but as you go more and more anaerobic (getting close to your lactate threshold) you burn more and more glucose. There are other things that are happening underneath too but from what I've seen on how my sugar acts, I have to refuel with Gu from every 30 minutes to 1 hour dependent on the amount of effort I expend.

I'll eventually probably have something better. I'll be in contact with a registered dietician in the near future to talk about my diabetes, cycling and my kidney issues. I have an odd diet unfortunately. :o

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Originally Posted by cyclasutra

But "no flour" doesn't mean no carbs, and "no sugar" doesn't mean no fruit. I'm still eating steel-cut oatmeal, shredded wheat, Triscuits (whole wheat, no flour), rice, bananas, apples, etc.

The theory is that flour and sugar are too readily bioabsorbable, meaning they give you a big blood sugar spike and crash, and we don't get enough nutrients because the milling of the flour, etc. gets rid of fiber and vitamins.

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The system I'm using these days, in order to measure the effect of sugars on my body, is the Glycemic Index. Under it flour has a very very GI, but sugar does not. This is due to sugar being a disacchride, a mix of glucose and fructose. Glucose has a GI of 100 (since it is what is used as the base for the modern GI) and fructose (GI of 23) which makes sugar at GI of 62. White bread, on the other hand, is a 72.

This system follows the same principle, however, to gradually increase your glucose levels so you don't have a hard drop. :)

Mel

Thanks. I have tried the Carb Boom and that helps. I will try the GU also.

I'll let you know when I find things that work for me. They might help others. Can't wait until the weather gets a little nicer so I can get out and ride.

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Originally Posted by Andi

Thanks. I have tried the Carb Boom and that helps. I will try the GU also.

I'll let you know when I find things that work for me. They might help others. Can't wait until the weather gets a little nicer so I can get out and ride.

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Have fun on your ride. :) BTW, don't forget to take your glucometer with you on the ride. I have a Freestyle Flash that I take with me specifically on rides (I normally use a One Touch UltraSmart) since it's a nice small compact meter that fits in my bento. :) Also, make sure that you _always_ have emergency sugar. Cycling can seriously deplete your glucose levels. I've had it as low as 55 while cycling and my lowest point ever was a 42 (though not cycling, but was having fairly strenuous exercise). When it was a 42, I was literally *crawling* to my car to get sugar because I couldn't keep walking. :/ Very scary moment.

I also happen to wear a MedicAlert bracelet which specified that I'm diabetic so in the event I do go into a low glucose event it's evident that I'm diabetic from the bracelet. There's also a phone number on the bracelet which allows EMTs to get my current medication and a list of allergies.

One last thing, if you haven't done it already, there's a thread called "Getting to know you." Drop on by and introduce yourself. :)

Mel

I'm still learning my around this site. Where do I go to get to Getting to Know you?

Thanks for the info. I have emergency gluscose tablets with me all the time and a current list of medications along with emergency numbers. I need to get a diabetic bracelet though.

My lowest has been 57 and that scared me.

Whew.

The cravings finally did go away, and except for the obsessive food thoughts and daily meal planning efforts, I'm coasting. And the scale is down 2.5 pounds. Yay! It really is amazing how bad my sugar/flour addiction was. Cookies, pastries, pastas, bread, candy drawer at work, mmmm.

I'm in this intensive base-building indoor cycling course at the LBS on trainers, and I was worried that my energy would suffer, but with the Triscuits, oatmeal, rice, fruit, I'm getting plenty of carbs and my energy feels great, with very few dips. I had a hard time today during the 2:30 p.m. slowdown, but I ate oatmeal with a banana and bounced right back up. :)

I know some of you may freak out at that rapid level of weight loss, but this is really what I need, just to drop the ballast before cycling season so I can eat normally when I'm training hard. I also should mention that my thyroid was too underactive and I just got my medication adjusted in late November, so my metabolism is sort of returning to normal after gaining 10 pounds last fall/winter. :eek:

I guess I can see why "moderation" is the buzz word these days ... doing without treats is emotionally difficult. During my two weeks without flour or sugar, I had both the night before and the day of a century ride.

Of course, the scale stopped going down and I am sick of depriving myself without good reason... so ... back onto the trying-to-eat-healthfully bandwagon, with less sugar than before.

Sigh. I will not obsess, I will not obsess...

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Originally Posted by CyclaSutra

I am sick of depriving myself without good reason... so ... back onto the trying-to-eat-healthfully bandwagon, with less sugar than before

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Good girl. I firmly believe that if you deprive yourself of these things, that just makes the obsession worse. You will fall off the wagon...it happens. But it's like my mutual funds: I'm in it for the long run and I know (hope??!!) that the little setbacks are really just blips in the big picture.

Focus on eating healthy and exercising every day (yes, even on "off" days, I exercise by going for a walk). You're in great shape already...it will only get better as the weather improves!

Try the sugar-free lemonade in a can. When I have a sweet craving, I have one of those. I get the sweet and the liquid fills me up. And I love lemonade!

Did you get any of that nice weather yesterday that we got? Storm blowing in now. :(

I am sick of depriving myself without good reason... so ... back onto the trying-to-eat-healthfully bandwagon, with less sugar than before

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Originally Posted by yellow

Good girl. I firmly believe that if you deprive yourself of these things, that just makes the obsession worse. You will fall off the wagon...it happens.

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Haha....ok...sorry, but when I looked at the picture of your dog, with the colorful bandana, hat and toy I cracked up with the statements above...as if the dog is saying it to another. I work at a vet clinic and see pets in a different way I suppose.

Hey Ladies

I have been reading The Metabolic Typing Diet by Woolcott. Its definitely an interesting read an way of thinking about eating. I have been experimenting with it and I was definitely a sugar fiend...i used to put more sugar in my coffee than coffee. I have been slowly reducing sugar and changing my eating to include grains other than rice and wheat, eating protein and carbs together (according to the book i am a protein person, and should never eat any one type of thing alone, e.g. like just apple), and i feel fantastic and I am maintaining my lost weight very easily with out fatigue or cravings. I even have my coffee sugar-free now! I have the occasional treat but like i said, i don't really have cravings or even think about them as much.

Cheers

Hannah

For those who are freaking over no sugar or flour, perhaps it should say no REFINED sugar or WHITE flour. That's the basis of South Beach. You get fruit, whole grains and all kinds of low fat protein, nuts and veggies. When I'm "good", which means I'm not eating the refined sugar and white flour, I feel great. I have more energy, after a day or two the cravings disappear and my skin is even clearer. This is the only way of eating in which I don't feel hungry or obsessed with food all the time. (on some diets, you are mentally preparing your next meal all day long) If I slide, (like I did on Sunday), my energy goes to 0 within a day,and I just feel crabby. Seems like I'm more affected the older I get. I've done this long enough that donuts look icky to me. I don't think I can ever do it long enough, though, so that an Oreo flurry doesn't look like the best thing ever...