Update on the (mostly to date) Sugar Free Lifestyle...

Back in January I wrote about my success with NSNG, aka no sugar no grains, which is a close cousin of Paleo.  The difference is that NSNG allows for dairy, especially full fat dairy and it recognizes that we aren’t perfect and that now & again having something that is normally off limits is not the worst thing to happen.

So long story short there came a point in February where I slipped and had a treat ending a sugar free streak that was quite long and with that I became an intermittent eater of sugar once more.  That isn’t to say I fell completely off the wagon, because I didn’t, but I wasn’t 100% NSNG rather I was more like 80-85%, which for some can be fine, but personally for my goals that isn’t good enough.

By the end of June I’d ridden more miles in 2017 than all of 2016 combined so I think even though exercise is a poor way to lose weight, that it did help keep any excess weight off.  When I was on my bike racking up those miles (over 2,200 fyi) I was NSNG and the only stuff put in my water bottles was either tea or MCT oil.  The majority of my rides were under 50 miles so I didn’t need to eat while on the bike and up to the 1^st of April I’d been doing strict zone 2 HR training, which kept my heart rate low to burn fat for fuel not glycogen aka sugars.

I had three cycling goals for the spring.  The first was the Crank the Kanc hillclimb time trial.  I sucked hard that day and ended up being the second to last male rider in my age group.  The last guy was hauling a tag along with a couple of kids.  I just did not perform that day and I was not happy about it.  I slacked off, no doubt about it and those slips & trips with sugar meant that I was at a steady weight and never dropped anything.

Years ago during my archaeology days, I had a crew chief who was big into martial arts and being a home brew guy.  But he came to a point in his life where he had to decide what he like more martial arts or home brew because the latter was causing his weight to fluctuate in a way he didn’t like.  He was on the rollercoaster of losing during the week and then come the weekends he’d brew and imbibe and gain it all back.

I was on a similar course except that my weight because of the treats and the cycling was staying put, granted it was staying put at an okay weight.  However that weight was not idea for going uphill on a bike very fast.  There were other mistakes made that day in terms of gear choice and warm up, but at the end of the event it also came down to my decisions pure & simple.

Next up was the White Mountain Memorial Day Classic, a ride which I adore and have a bit of history with.  In 2012 I finally made it to the top of Hurricane Mt without stopping and was literally flying until I crashed out and since then while I have gone up Hurricane without stopping I haven’t gone up it feeling the same and haven’t been flying since.  Well this year like last year it rained.  Now I’ll ride in the rain as it is not a big deal, but cold & rain, no thank you.  And so I missed it again.

Third was the my 12^th Trek Across Maine, the Trek is 180 miles over 3 days from Sunday River Ski Resort to Belfast. I love this ride and every year barring 1, I have ridden up to it with some friends.  Now at the Trek all food is provided by the locations where we stay, so it is tricky to be fully NSNG off the bike.

On the bike though I was able to stay NSNG, including the majority of the 100 miles we rode up to Sunday River from North Berwick, Maine.  And since then I have been thinking about how I want to proceed with NSNG.

Do I go strict NSNG and go into ketosis and become ripped?

Do I go into a 95-99% state of NSNG?

I think and it’s really hard right now because of it being summer and wanting ice cream, but I think I have to go full NSNG at least until I know I can deal with the sugar beast.  Now that may mean I never taste sugar again, which even though I know how good those things taste, is a good thing because regardless of taste they are just awful for my health.  And I’m aware of enough of my limitations that I know I can’t just eat one.  For me one leads to two and two to three.

So for now I take it day by day and try to get this under control.  I know I can do it, it’s just getting there without any hiccups that is the kicker.

Stay tuned for a recap of the century I did mostly NSNG….