Line In The Sand

Today is Tuesday February 16th, 2016.

No big deal.

Just another Tuesday.

Just that boring day of the week that brings us one day closer to Wednesday, which gets us to Thursday; and Thursday is almost the weekend, and then we’re at Friday…where we can say “we made it”.

That’s what Tuesday means to a lot of people.

Just another day.

But this is not just another Tuesday. Today is not just getting us one day closer to Friday.

No. Not even close.

Tuesday February 16th, 2016 marks what will become one of the most changing days in the lives of almost 90 people.

It marks the day where this brave group drew a line in the sand; a day they planted their flags and declared “I am HERE! I am WILLING! I am stepping out of my FEAR and into COURAGE.”

It marks the day where they put guilt and shame and self-hatred aside and chose to love themselves more than hate themselves; to respect their bodies more than mistreat them; the day where they faced their demons head-on, instead of cowering to them; a day where they DECIDED that they were in charge!

So, what happens today?

Today, Tuesday February 16th, 2016, almost 70 people in Canada and the U.S., unite to conquer an addiction that has been holding us back.

We hold hands in solidarity as we pledge to avoid a drug that has been taking over our lives and hurting our mental and physical health; we take comfort in the knowledge that we are not alone and that we have brothers and sisters with us on the same journey who will lift us up when we need a hand; and whose spirits we will lift when they need our help.

Today marks the start of the 28-Day Kick The Sugar Challenge, and if the preparation phase is any indicator of the impact this Challenge is going to have on people, I can’t wait to see the outcome.

I have been blown away by people’s willingness to share their struggles with sugar. I have been humbled by their openness to reveal the truth about themselves; truths they have never shared with anyone…up until now.

How are we so lucky to have created such a beautiful and safe space where people, from all different backgrounds and upbringings; people with all different experiences and stories; are able to come together and learn, share, and grow together as we prepared for today.

Our day.

I am honoured to be a part of this experience, and I am beyond excited to see what the next 28 days have in store for each and every one of us.

Sugar Inc.

Sugar is found in almost every food we buy.

Food producers spend exorbitant amounts of money conducting studies to find the “sweet spot”; that pleasure point where there is exactly enough sugar in a product to get us hooked, begging for more, more more.

Food marketers have an almost unlimited budget for advertising, selling us the lie that tells us sugar is sexy and popular and desirable; selling us the lie that we will be sexy and popular and desirable instead of sick, fat and addicted.

We become seduced by the very idea of what these products represent (have you seen the new Pepsi ad with Beyoncé, Pink, and Britney ?)

We know deep down that these products are addicting us and making us sick, but we just can’t seem to stop reaching for them.

Whether to soothe our emotions or to celebrate, we find excuses to put them into our bodies, without being able to stop; without understanding why we can’t stop.

Doing The Work

When we signed up for this Challenge, we all received some assignments.

At first, they simply had us consider new behaviours; then, they saw us making subtle changes; soon after, we started uncovering more about ourselves and the role sugar plays in our lives.

Step by step, we peeled back the layers of the onion while we worked on understanding our deeply rooted connection to sugar.

We wrote our sugar stories.

Assignment by assignment, Challengers have been learning how sugar grabbed a hold of them, and we are beginning the process of ridding our lives of this addictive substance. We are learning how to get this monkey off our backs.

There is a clear strategy to all of this, and I am so blessed to be able to help people progress through each stage. They are trusting the process, and that is big.

That is huge.

Surrendering to a new way of thinking takes just about everything we’ve got. Surrendering to new behaviours takes even more.

It is with this level of commitment that I believe, beyond a shadow of a doubt, there is no stopping us.

If we all stick together and support one another; if we all do the work, trust the process, and follow the plan, we will not only achieve our goal of 28 days without sugar; we will CRUSH it.

But the reality is, the odds are stacked against us.

Big Sugar

We have to commit to this Challenge with everything we’ve got.

Why?

Because we are becoming more and more addicted.

Sugar-laden cereals in colourful boxes that claim “high fibre” or “whole grain” to the moms beckon to our children, seducing them to get hooked young; the younger the better.

Sugar is even found in so-called “healthy” foods like granola bars, spaghetti sauces, salad dressings, and yogurt so that our taste buds win out over our common sense as we continue to seek out the sweet stuff in everything we buy.

That’s Big Sugar’s strategy. To get us hooked on sugary food products that do nothing more than simply taste good to our devolving taste buds. The more sugar we have, the more we crave, and so they just keep pumping out more ways to get the sugar into our bodies faster.

Their strategy has worked for so long that what used to taste sweet to us isn’t even enough anymore! We need more and more of it to taste good; to feel good.

And look at our bodies!! Look around!! We are sicker, fatter, and sadder than we have ever been in history.

This sweet substance that is supposed to make us cool and happy and fun (and even “healthy”) is making us sick and tired and fat.

Haven’t you had enough???!!

The 90+ of us on this Challenge certainly have.

We really, really have.

And today, on Tuesday February 16th, 2016, we show the world just how serious we are as we embark on one of the most challenging experiences of our lives.

There is strength in numbers and there is power in knowledge and there is hope when there is a plan.

We have all of that…and more.

We have our spirits and our stories and our thread of connection that binds us to one another as we embark on this journey…together.

Wish us well and prepare to celebrate our success 28 days from today!

The Truth About Sugar

Sugar is a drug. Plain and simple, and the more research that is done on it, the more clear the science becomes.

Sugar lights up the same reward centres in the brain as cocaine. It is as addictive as heroine.

Sugar gives us a high. And then it sends us down. Low. Really low. So we reach for more sugar. And we get high again. The cycle continues, and don’t forget about the self-loathing we feel when we don’t understand why we can’t “just say no” to it.

I shared a documentary in last week’s post, and I received a lot of great feedback on it. It was eye opening, so I hope you watch it.

In honour of our very own Kick The Sugar Challengers, here is another documentary, called the Truth About Sugar where people do a sugar Challenge of their own.

I hope it motivates our own Challengers to keep going, and I hope it inspires even one more person to start.

We still have room if you want to join us; there is still time.

But the time is NOW. Right Now.

Because I want you to  love your life one bite at a time.

P.S. To sign up and start on this Challenge with us, today, enter your name and email to the right of this post. If you, or someone you know is struggling with sugar addiction, please consider this opportunity. It is FREE. And I don’t know when I will be doing another one again. 

P.P.S. Let’s be friends! Connect with me on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram. 🙂