Is there such a thing? I believe that we can become, as human beings, addicted to anything. Whether it's psychological or physical or a combination, I'm unsure of the physiological aspects of it. I do know that I hear a lot of people say they have a sugar addiction so if they are identifying with that and it's true for them I will not argue that. The problem occurs when we use the "addiction" as a reason that we must continue on the same destructive path. People often beat addictions, I've known many recovering and sober alcholics and people also overcome drug addictions,even the worse ones like crack cocaine. Easy, no, possible, absolutely.

And on a personal level I do understand is that addiction can be overcome. I know I can overcome addiction because I have in the past. I've given up smoking. I've also in recent months found the motivation to quit artificial sweeteners which was difficult in lieu of my relationship with diet pop. But it's gone and I very much doubt that I will ever taste aspartame or splenda again.

For all of the things I have given up I've been able to find compelling overwhelming reasons, health reasons, to do so. In the past I have a lot of trouble reconciling that sugar has to be banished from life and I also have trouble reconciling that I will never get to have a cookie or cake or anything like that without experiencing extreme deprivation emotions. Is this addiction?

More recently, I am starting to encounter some compelling reasons to drastically reduce the amount of refined white sugar I'm consuming. A new book called "Skinny Bitch" has fascinating and compelling arguments for a very clean, very low-sugar diet and I have trouble not agreeing with everything written in the book about keeping sugar intake below 15g per day. Where my trouble begins is in actually doing it.

But I've decided that I do need to drastically reduce the amount of refined sugar I consume. One day at a time, starting today, I'm removing it from my diet completely. I no longer crave cigarettes because I gave them up, one day at a time, I no longer crave diet pop, because I gave it up in a similar fashion. Is it possible that I can give up refined sugar and eventually get to this same place without the feelings of deprivation I think I'll experience? I think the answer is yes.

I will never know until I try though. I will retain honey in my diet for now. Natural unrefined, raw honey in small amounts. I will also eat fruit, again, natural source sugar.

So one day at a time I'm going to remove the sugar. I'll keep you apprised of the journey. I'll be honest and straightforward. I'll rant and rave to you as I go through the withdrawal, but I hope you bear with me until I get to the point where it's no longer a battle but a way of life. And if you choose, I welcome you to join me in this journey.

Affirmation: I no longer need processed sugar in my life. My body deserves the best and most natural forms of food I can give it and the gift I give it today is optimum health through natural unrefined forms of sugar.


Namaste`

So today's topic is JOURNALLING. I've done some reading and it seems that it's unanimous that journalling is one of those things that is considered by people who have lost weight and kept it off, to be the main contributor to their success. Some people have found it helpful to keep track of their calories, their food intake, their exercise output and those who are emotional, stress, bored eaters also wrote out their feelings, reasons and alternatives to their compulsive overeating. Why does it work? Why is is so important? The number one reason is because it forces you to be honest with yourself and forces you to face reality. You actually ARE overeating and you actually ARE defeating yourself and allowing you to lie to the most important person in your life, you!

I journal using Spark People. I discovered this website a few years ago and it is a vast wealth of information and tools to help you along in the journey to not only losing weight but also with other forms of self-improvement and personal growth. You can sign up and just focus on well-being and personal growth, you can focus on weight loss or you can combine all their tools. I use the parts I need and leave the rest alone. It also has a great community where you can talk to others with similar goals weight wise or similar life situations, or a combination of both. There are teams, there are inspirational stories, there are Spark Pages where you can blog your success and build up a following. There is support in the form of motivational successful spark people who will send you motivational emails and check on you. And the best part, it's absolutely 100% free. A few years ago I made the commitment to never spend another penny in the weight loss industry.

I also journal here by posting what I've posted at Spark People but that's more about accountability. I will write more about that tomorrow. Knowing I have made the commitment to post here keeps me out of the ice cream aisle in the grocery store or the cookie jar. It's a great tool if it's something you need. I find that this helps me here more than if I had to post my weight loss.

Of course, getting back to journalling, a note pad and paper is as good as anything and all you really need and journaling can be a very simple thing.

So, if it's so simple and very important to success why is it that quite often it's something we rebel against doing? I think for me that's because it makes me feel abnormal somehow, I want to be a normal eater at a normal body weight and having to write everything down doesn't fit that description. But If I did eat like I should and didn't have a problem maintaining a healthy body weight I wouldn't be writing this blog or need any tools at all. So I'm fighting my resistance to journalling.

I'm going to journal, I've committed to doing so and be prepared in the next while to read the good, the bad, and the ugly in my journal posts. And some of the delicious too!

Please let me know if you journal and what works for you. Do you follow a plan? Do you use an Internet based journal like Spark People or just a notebook. And if you don't I'd like to hear how that's working?

So winter has done it to me. I've hybernated like the bear but unlike the bear I've added weight instead of living off the weight and it is March and I feel like a slug. I've decided to blog about my journey back to the healthy me I was last November when I was still running and walking daily, watching my food intake and just generally happier.

Winter does it to me every year. I believe I suffer from a mild form of Seasonal Affective Disorder(SAD) which causes a certain amount of depression and frustrations. It also causes a lot of boredom which leads to nothing else to do but bake and eat. I was so determined going into this winter that I would not fall into the trap again, I would buy the gear and get out there in the snow. But I didn't because the truth is I hate being cold and wet, I hate the work that goes into getting two kids and myself dressed to go outside. So, I'd dress them in their snowsuits, open the door to the back yard and they played happily by themselves while I made cookies.

But spring is here. And I've gained 15 lbs that must come off but even more important I can feel the impact the extra pounds have on my health, my hip hurts more, I get out of breath more quickly, I can only run short intervals and I was up to 5k last fall. Time to get out there, time to make the time and get my health back.

Only this time, I'm taking you along for the ride.