Giving Up Sugar And Flour For Lent

The season of Lent is upon us, and not that I am an actively church going person, I am spiritual and see Lent as a time to practice control and self-discipline to better myself through giving up vices. The past few weeks, I have been racking my brain to find just the right vice to abstain from. A few items that came to mind were social networking sites and alcohol. Sure, giving up Twitter and Facebook will have a short-term benefit of added free time to my daily routine, but I feel socialization is important to one's self being. As far as giving up alcohol, I might find some benefit mostly to my wallet as my appreciation for fine wines can sometimes be costly, but I don't drink in excess and I feel there's nothing wrong with a glass of wine or cocktail daily. I want to find something to give up that will have the greatest beneficial impact for my overall being. That's why I have decided to give up sugar and flour for Lent. I'm also proud to say, my husband, Josh (a.k.a Yoshi), has decided to take part in these dietary restrictions as well. This makes me even more excited to stick with it because now the whole household will get the benefit of a healthier lifestyle.

So here's how it will work: No food made with flour. Whole grains are ok as long as they do not contain flour. No food that contains sugar, beet sugar, cane and brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, molasses, high fructose corn syrup or any other misleading name that sugar goes by these days. So no cakes, cookies, pizza, pasta or bread (even whole grain bread).

What is ok: Healthy foods such as vegetables including starchy vegetables like potatoes, fruit, beans and legumes, nuts and seeds, soy, eggs, dairy including cheese and no sugar added yogurt, lean meats, fish and shellfish, whole grains, rice, tortilla chips and corn tortillas made from corn (not corn flour). I can still have my daily espresso without sugar of course, but I use Truvia anyway. My daily glass of red wine will still be allowed. Sugar and flour free desserts are fine and even a small amount of over 70% dark chocolate to help satisfy the sweet tooth.

With the help of the wonderful Whole Foods iPhone app, I have prepared a menu for this week of tasty no sugar, no flour meals. I will admit, grocery shopping was a struggle as I did not realize how many foods have sugar added to them. Things that were on my list that I had to find substitutes for or eliminate were ham and bacon because they are cured in sugar; however I easily substituted them with turkey sausage. Also, Yakult is a no-no because it is high in sugar, for which I replaced with unsweetened Kefir so I could continue taking my daily probiotic drink.

So I'm set for Lent which starts on Wednesday. I'm already cooking no sugar, no flour meals just because I don't want to bring any foods that were no allowed on the diet into the house. Meanwhile, Josh and I are finishing off any leftover sugary foods before Lent. Basically, Our Mardi Gras will be spent indulging on bacon and Girl Scout cookies before giving them a fond farewell for the next 46 days.

I know dietary restrictions are tough, but I am focused and remind myself this will teach me how to look for hidden sugars in foods and to find new recipes that don't depend on ingredients containing flour. This is a beneficial and healthy change, and after Lent is over, we can slowly add restricted foods back into our diet. (I vote bacon first!)

I plan to blog throughout Lent and post updates on new recipes I find and any struggles with food temptation along the way. I'm curious how long my readers think Josh and I can be successful, so I have put up a poll for each of us at Curious Cloud. Also, please share if you plan to give up anything during Lent.

UPDATE: Poll Results 3/7/11 - 3/14/11

How long will Keri last on a no sugar, no flour diet?
00% 1 week
12% 2 weeks
00% 1 month
87% Entire 46 days

How long will Josh last on a no sugar, no flour diet?
14% 1 week
14% 2 weeks
00% 1 month
71% Entire 46 days