Sugar Detox: Day 9

Day 9: Eating out presents a new challenge.

This morning for breakfast I had a bowl of cinnamon raisin granola (this is really good, tastes just like an oatmeal cookie that has been blown to bits) with a glass of water and a fruit strip. I’ve done away with the morning orange juice since it has anywhere between 20-25 grams of sugar. I’ll save that for an afternoon pick-me-up snack and only do 4 ounces instead of 8 ounces so that I can stay under my goal of 15 grams of sugar.

Lunch, however, was a different story.

I went out to eat for the first time with a few coworkers to an Indian buffet restaurant on the West Side.

First of all, there were no healthy choices in the buffet unless I wanted to eat only salad and fruit. Even the rotisserie chicken breast was full of oil and grease.

When all was said and done, all I had to eat was a slice of naan bread which I dipped in some sort of tandoori chicken and less then a handful of salad.

I left the restaurant starving. I don’t think I’ve ever done that before.

Also, one of the hardest things for me came when we first sat down. Typically I’ll down two or three glasses of Coke or Dr. Pepper when I eat out. This time, I stuck to water.

Watching the rest of the table drink their sodas was pretty distracting. Plus, to add insult to injury, I couldn’t eat anything. I paid $10 for half a plate of food and a water. But at least I learned I’m developing discipline.

For dinner, Jack and I met some friends of his at Carino’s restaraunt, which had actually had food I would eat and not hate myself for. I ate half a turkey and mozzarella panini and substituted broccoli for french fries. Was it the healthiest meal? No. But it was a far better choice than most other things on the menu.

I’m going to be picking up a copy of “Eat This, Not That” to help me with my eating-out habits. That way, from now on I can know what’s a good choice.

On a positive note, I checked my weight this morning and I’m down three pounds! I’ll have to weigh myself again tomorrow morning to make sure it wasn’t a fluke. I’d like to see a consistent three-day confirmation of these readings.

Also, here’s a tip. I marked my starting weight on my scale with a permanent marker so that I can see exactly where I am from day to day. Of course, if you have a digital scale, this isn’t needed. But for those of you with the old-school scale it helps a lot. That way instead of trying to see which tiny tick mark you correspond to, you can just check your progress against your line.

Although the downside is everyone who enters your bathroom can see your weight. But be brave! I actually found showing my weight on the 5 p.m. news was extremely motivating.