Episode 112: Answering Frequently Asked Questions about the 21-Day Sugar Detox
In this episode, I answer the most frequently and uniquely asked questions I’ve received as a 21-Day Sugar Detox coach, about the 21-Day Sugar Detox program. You’ll hear questions and answers about Yes/No foods and why, tips on how to navigate the program, and we even have some real talk about your mindset, and how and why it matters in how you approach this program.
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MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:
Episode 111 - Common Mistakes Made on the 21-Day Sugar Detox
Episode 030 - Secrets to A Successful 21-Day Sugar Detox
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“When you say you don’t have time to cook, it may not necessarily be because you don’t have time. It may be because it’s not a priority. You have to decide how much of a priority this is to you, because if it’s something that you really want to do and you really want this change to happen, you’re going to learn to make time for it and you’re going to learn some cooking skills to make it enjoyable.”
Read the Episode Transcript:
Hey there, and welcome back to the Live FAB Life podcast. I hope you are doing well today. We are back with another episode on the 21-Day Sugar Detox program. As you know, I am a certified coach for the program, and in the last episode, episode 111, I pointed out some common mistakes that I have seen folks make over and over again when doing this program. Now, I recently did a takeover of the Instagram Stories of the 21-Day Sugar Detox Instagram account. I've done that several times. I did it last October and I did it this past December 2019, most recently. I love that experience because it really gives me the opportunity to connect with so many people who have a genuine interest in this program or who have already done it before.
Based upon those two experiences and the questions I get directly to myself from my own community and my past students, this is a collection of frequently asked questions, and some of them aren't necessarily frequently asked, but I think they're really smart questions that someone has asked. There is a total of 18 questions. Don't worry, I'm not going to do a sermon on every single one. It's going to be quite a bit of a rapid fire, but I think you'll get a lot of benefit about hearing these questions because they may be questions that you have yourself. Let's just dive in.
Question number one, is tofu a yes food? When it comes to the program, we have a list of yes foods, of foods allowed in the program, and a list no foods, foods not allowed. This question is asking is tofu a yes food, and the answer is no. Tofu is a no food. Now, tofu is soy, and soy is one of the most genetically-modified foods, at least here in the United States. It's really in everything, things that you wouldn't even think you would be in. It's also a phytoestrogen, which means that it mimics or it tricks your body into thinking that it is estrogen. Estrogen is a critical hormone that we have, but it's not estrogen, so we definitely don't want to have that in our body. We definitely want to not have our body being tricked into things. We want it to function in the way that it's meant to. So tofu is a no food.
Question number two, are potatoes allowed on the 21-Day Sugar Detox? This is a question I get asked every single time, and the answer is yes, my friends. All potatoes, not just sweet potatoes, are allowed on the program. Question number three, what fruits are allowed on the 21 DSD? There are, I'm going to say five fruits allowed, which really most people focus on the three, but there are five. Grapefruit is allowed, green apples are allowed, green-tipped bananas, not just any bananas, but ones that have green tips, and then of course lemon and limes. You might be asking, well, why those fruits? Think about it, what do those fruits have in common? None of them are sweet.
We get this question asked a lot. Why can't berries be allowed, they're really healthy. Yes, fruits are really healthy, and berries are really healthy for you and I encourage you to let that be one of the first foods you add back in on day 22, but the reason they're not allowed on this program is because the goal of the program is to get you to quit sugar and to really change your palate so you no longer crave sweet things. If you're still eating sweet things during this program, that's likely not going to happen. We are not saying there's something wrong with fruits or berries, we're just saying for these 21 days, for these three weeks, we want you to refrain from eating sweet things. So grapefruit, green apples, green-tipped bananas, lemons and limes are allowed on this program.
I've kind of answered the next question, why green apples and not red apples is because green apples are not sweet compared to Galas or all of the other common red apples that we have. Now, I mentioned Galas because I am a huge fan of apples, I eat them all the time, and Galas are my favorite. I will tell you that after I did the 21-Day Sugar Detox program for the very first time, my palate most certainly did change and my go-to apple to eat now is a green apple. I find Galas a little bit too sweet for me, so that was something that really did help change my palate. People are surprised that I always go for the green apple first, but it really is what I prefer.
Okay, question number five. Is popcorn allowed on the 21 DSD? No, it's not. We do not allow chips or popcorn, no matter how clean they may be. We want to get out of that junk food mentality, so it is not allowed. Related to that, are Siete chips allowed on the 21 DSD? If you're not familiar with Siete, they're a wonderful company who makes grain-free tortillas and chips. That's really important because there are a lot of people, myself included, who have a really hard time tolerating grains. It really upsets my digestive system, and so for a long time I avoided tortillas and I love Mexican food. So when I found Siete tortillas, and they now have chips, it was like this godsend. I was so happy I could enjoy this food again, and I know it's been that way for so many people, which is why the company has grown tremendously. But as far as the chips, it is not allowed on the 21 DSD, because again, we're trying to get out of that mindset of junk food and sweet foods.
But I will say we do have an exception where one tortilla is allowed per day. My tip for you is that, and I've done this before, is I will take a piece of tortilla or I'll take an entire tortilla and I will take my pizza cutter and I'll slice it up into pieces and I will either bake them into chips or fry them somehow. That is one way that you can. I mean, that's a little hack to the program there.
Question number seven, why does my pizza sauce that I'm using say it's sugar-free and the ingredients don't have any sugar in it, but on the label is still says there's sugar? This one's a little bit tricky and that's because the natural ingredients in pasta sauce, like tomatoes, they have naturally-derived sugars. That's fine, and as long as there's no actual sugar listed in the ingredients list, you are fine. I have a couple of brands that I like, but I use a number of different ones and there's a number of ones out there that do not have added sugar or do not have added soybean oil. So definitely look through the ingredients list to see just what's in it, because not every pasta sauce is made the same.
Question 8, and you guys, this is probably the biggest challenge that people who I have worked with in my group coaching program have had, and it's what do you put in your coffee instead of milk? If you are doing level one of the program, dairy is allowed. Not any random dairy, we're very specific about that and you can read about that in the book. But when you start to move up to level three, dairy is not allowed. People have a hard time with this, because unless you're drinking black coffee, they don't know what to put in their coffee. Again, this is crowdsourced from the 21 DSD Instagram community. This is a couple of suggestions they have. I don't drink coffee, so this is not my personal experience, but this is, again, crowdsourced from the community. Nutpods coconut cream, you can drink it black, you can add some cinnamon, you can add some coconut milk, or you can add some coconut oil, or you can do a combination of those things.
If you missed the list, go back to the show notes for this episode at www.liveFABlife.com/112, for episode 112. You can check out the transcript there and I will have the list. Let me just repeat it quickly to you. What to use in your coffee instead of milk, Nutpods coconut cream, drink it black, cinnamon, coconut milk, coconut oil.
Question number nine, why do I feel so tired and lethargic after starting this program? Now, this is where I really recommend to you, like I said in the last episode on the biggest mistakes I see people do, is that they don't get the books, at least one of the books. The answer to this question can be found in the 21-Day Sugar Detox Daily Guide, and that is the book that I coach my groups through, but it's also in the original book. It really gets into the science of what sugar does to your body.
The reason you may feel, it's not guaranteed, but you may feel tired when you begin this program, is that you're eating less sugar, so naturally you're eating less carbs. So the amount of glycogen in your body, and glycogen is what glucose turns into in your body and it's stored in your liver and in your muscles, the amount of glycogen in your system is going to decrease. So your body going to have to then dip into what we call your glycogen stores, which I like to think of as your savings account, right? There's not going to have any coming in, so it's going to have to dip into the savings account to withdraw glycogen. Because of that, your body may feel tired and you may feel low on energy for the first few days with the program. But your body's adjusting, and as it adjusts to this change, it's going to teach itself how to burn fat instead of carbs for fuel and that's a good thing. When that adjustment starts to happen, then your energy will start to pick back up again.
Question number 10, I am not sure where to start. Well, my friend, you start by deciding that, yes, I am going to do this and I am going to commit to doing this. Then from there that's when you do a self-assessment with yourself and think, "Okay, do I have it in me to be able to do this program on my own? Do I need accountability to help me?" If you do need accountability, then go and find that. Whether that be through the free 21 DSD Instagram account or the free Facebook group, or hiring a coach like me to help you through it, or enlisting a friend to do it with you. You really have to know yourself and understand yourself to know what you need to be successful. Then once you have those things in place, then get the books and go to the website and see what resources are there and then you just do it. It doesn't have to be on the first day of the month, it doesn't have to be on a Monday. It's whenever you're ready to start, that's when you do it.
Okay. Question 11, what if I'm ready to start? Where can I find 21-Day Sugar Detox compliant recipes? So many places, guys. There's the books, like I said, there's three books. All three books have recipes in them. The 21-Day Sugar Detox website, 21DSD.com, has a blog, and on that blog are many, many recipes and there's collections of recipes from other sites as well that are compliant. You definitely want to check out the blog and I would encourage you to sign up for the newsletter, because every week they're sending out newsletters with recipes and tips. There is also the 21 DSD Pinterest account that you can go and check it out there, and then also look at hashtags. The same way you find information for anything else you're interested in, it applies the same way here as well.
Question number 12, where can I find the books? Oh, this is an easy one. You find them wherever books are sold. They're on Amazon, they're in Barnes and Noble, they're probably in your local bookshops. Like I said, there's three books, so you can definitely find them really, really easily. A tip I shared in the last episode, I do have hard copies because these are books that I'm going to keep forever, but I also have the Kindle versions, which if you are a Kindle person, they're a little bit cheaper than the printed copies and you can take them with you anywhere. I have the Kindle app on my iPad. I don't always travel with my iPad, but I have it on my phone so that if I am visiting family or visiting friends and I want to cook a meal for them, I can dip into those recipes very easily and readily available to me.
Number 13, how do I select what level to do? If you're not familiar with the program, there are three levels, like I mentioned earlier. There's level one, which is the easiest, level two, and level three is the most challenging one I think for most people. There's an assessment that you can go to the website and check it out and it explains all three levels. You just do this self-guided quiz, and you can almost look at the levels too and figure out which one's right for you.
But as I mentioned, the common mistake they make is people try to be a hero and they try to do a level although very admirable but maybe might be above where they're at right now. We always say, or I always say, don't be a hero. Start with what is going to be the easiest for you and then go from there. If that's level one, that's level one. Find out what the levels are, do the assessment, and then decide for yourself which one you think you can be more successful with and that's where you begin. There's nothing to say you can't come back in a month, in six months, the next year, whenever it works for you, to try the next level of the program, but pick which one that you think will get you started in the right direction where you feel like you can really be successful and feel like you really accomplish this.
Number 14, how can I find an accountability partner? Ask a friend. You probably have some friends you know who will want to do this with you too. Strength in numbers, and when you have one friend or two friends or a group of you do it together, you are going to be more successful together and it can be really fun. I actually have an episode on this podcast, episode 30, where I interviewed two of my past detoxers who I coached through a program and they were friends that live in the same town and they did it together. It was really, really fun coaching them through it, because it was really great to see them giving each other tips on which products to find at which grocery stores in town. They even went out to dinner together to just support each other to see that, hey, I can eat this way even when I'm dining out. That's a really fun experience, so you can ask a friend to do it with you.
You can, like I said, join the Facebook group or maybe a coworker to see if they might want to partner with you to do the program with you. You don't need to know the person, but I think you do need to have some compatibility there. Or again, as always, you can hire a coach. You can hire me to work with you and be your accountability partner and guide you through the program.
Number 15, and this is a loaded question, I'm going to have a bit of a tough love here. What if I don't like to cook, or I don't have time to cook, or don't want to cook? My friend, you have three options here. Number one, you can not do the program. You're here listening to this and you're saying you want to do this program and you're raising your hand because you don't like the way things are the way they are. Well, nothing's going to change if nothing changes. When you say you don't have time to cook, and this applies to anything you say you don't have time to, it may not necessarily be because you don't have time, it may be because it's not a priority. I think you have to decide how much of a priority this is to you, because if it's something that you really want to do and you really want this change to happen, you're going to learn to make time for it and you're going to learn some cooking skills to make it enjoyable.
You guys, I was in your place. Pretty much every restaurant within a two-mile radius of myself knew me and knew my order, because I used to eat out all the time. Red Robin, the shrimp pasta dish, that was my go-to every other night, because I always said I don't like to cook or I don't have time, but the reality was I didn't have the skills, I didn't know how. I grew up with my grandmother who loved to spoil me, so she never taught me how to cook. I wasn't home enough with my mom to learn how to cook either. So I learned, once I decided I wanted to start eating healthy, I learned to teach myself some very basic, and you guys, I mean this, so basic cooking skills. I learned from reading cookbooks and from reading blogs and then just trying it and doing it. I really encourage you, if you feel this way, that you don't like to cook, you don't have time or you don't want to, I really challenge you to change your mindset about that.
Now, I do have three options for you. Number one was don't do the program. Number two is make the time, make it a priority and make the time. Then number three ... And not having the time is a real thing too, I get that. I'm a busy person too, many of you are as well. You're working women with full-time jobs, with commutes, with things you want to do outside of your normal routine, going to the gym, socializing, whatnot. There are services like Balanced Bites Meals, that you can order that have 21-Day Sugar Detox compliant meals that are frozen. I always have a stock of these meals in my freezer so that on the days when I am short on time, I can pull one of those out of my freezer, I can defrost it throughout the day, and then I can reheat it. It's a 21 DSD compliant meal.
I think if it's a mindset issue, I think you really need to get honest with yourself and address that, but for those days where it is a time issue, there are things, there are options available for you. There's also things like meal prepping and other things you can do in anticipation of those days.
Number 16, can I lose weight on this program? The goal of this program is to help you balance your blood sugar and to change your palate so that you no longer crave sweet things. It is not a lose 10 pounds in 21 days program. As a byproduct of changing the way you eat, many people do lose weight on this program because they naturally stop eating sugary foods, which really, for a lot of people, is junk food. So as a byproduct, weight loss can happen. It is not the primary focus of the program, so take it at that.
What I would encourage you though is that if you do have that question and you do have that diet mentality, I would encourage you to release that mentality, because when you come to this program, I think those who get the most out of it, and by most I mean this really lasting change, this shift in their thinking, this shift in their relationship with food, is that when they come to this program they focus on the fact that they're going to be feeding their body healthy foods, nourishing foods, foods with tons of vitamins and minerals that that your body needs to thrive and not just be in a survival mode. I think when you have that mentality and you try not to fixate on the scale, which I know is really hard to do, that's when I think most people have the most success. Not just in, oh, I lost 10 pounds during this program, but, hey, I recognize behaviors in myself, I recognize triggers, and my whole relationship with food has changed.
Question number 17, which is really not a question. I need support to break this addiction. I added this in here because I had a couple of people say this to me and I thought it was such a brave thing to say and it was such a brave thing to acknowledge. I think this is why a lot of people aren't successful, not just when trying to do this program, but when trying to do anything that's new to them or different to them, is not admitting or allowing themselves to accept help to be supported in whatever it is that they're endeavoring to do. Sugar is an addiction. It is proven to be way more addictive than even things like tobacco and heroin. Acknowledging that, yes, I want to do this but I can't do it alone, is really brave and it's really insightful and it's really showing a ton of self-awareness. So I applaud you and kudos to you for recognizing this within yourself.
Then that leads to, of course, question number 17, how do I find a coach? I am a coach. There are many, many other 21-Day Sugar Detox coaches. I think you need to figure out which coach is going to jive with you the most. There is a coach directory on the 21 DSD website that you can go through and you can look to see. Different coaches offer the program in different capacities. Some do in person, which some people like, some, like me, do online, which some people prefer as well. Even if I were to do this in person, it's really hard for people to find a date and time that works for everybody and I don't want that to be prohibitive of somebody doing this program, which is why I offer my programs online. I've had people even locally do this program with me online and it just works out really well.
My next program is coming up soon. I encourage you to go to my website at www.liveFABlife.com/21DSD. Check out my schedule there, and if you are curious to see if we would be a good fit, you can definitely contact me, send me an email. We can set up a short 15-minute call and we can see how we work together too. If I think we might not be a fit, I will tell you that as well and I can recommend someone who might be a better fit for you. But if we are a fit, I would love to coach you through this program.
These are the most common questions that I get most often. I think these are great questions to ask and I really hope that it helps you decide, "Hey, I think that I can do this program." With that, thank you so much for being here, for joining me this week. I hope it was valuable for you, and I will be right back here again next week. Next week will be an interview with someone, also talking about sugar. She takes a little bit of a different approach to quitting sugar, but I think it's a really insightful discussion to have and so I'm really looking forward to sharing that with you. Have a good week and we'll see you right back here again next week.
Naomi Nakamura is a Functional Nutrition Health Coach. She helps passionate, ambitious high-achievers who are being dragged down by fatigue, burnout, sugar cravings, poor sleep, unexplained weight issues, and hormonal challenges optimize health, find balance, and upgrade their energy so they can do big things in this world.
Through her weekly show, The Live FAB Live Podcast, programs, coaching, and services, she teaches women how to optimize their diet, support their gut health, reduce their toxic load, and improve their productivity, bringing work + wellness together.
Naomi resides in the San Francisco Bay Area and can often be found exploring the area with her puppy girl, Coco Pop!
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