Red, Red Wine...

You may have heard that I am doing a detox for the month of March. Most of my recents blogposts have been about giving up sugar, cleaning out the pantry, stocking up on healthy whole foods, etc. Today I want to discuss all the delicious and wonderful treats I can still enjoy during this month of detoxing!

1) Red wine!!! Did you know a glass of dry red wine has less than a gram of sugar? And of course, no added sugar. I swear I don't drink much at all, but I do enjoy a small (about 4 oz.) glass of red wine most evenings with my dinner. My husband doesn't drink at all, so a bottle of wine will last me an entire week. I'm not a wine snob. In fact, I'm pretty much the opposite. I like to discover the cheapest wines that are still drinkable!! Costco has a LARGE bottle (1.5 liters) of Frontera Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot from Chile, made by Concha Y Toro for $6.79. Fantastic deal for a nice dry red wine. If you want to spend more, Meiomi Pinot Noir is fantastic! But Costco charges $15.65 per bottle.

2) Coffee!!! I am never going to give up coffee. Let's not be ridiculous. Coffee is packed with antioxidants and studies show that coffee drinkers live longer. They are also happier. This is a proven fact! Studies show coffee helps women especially with depression. So drink up and enjoy without guilt!

3) Cocoa!!! I'm talking about UNSWEETENED cocoa powder which I add to my morning cup of coffee, along with a pinch of Celtic sea salt, collagen, coconut oil. Yes, this combination is a tad bitter, but I actually enjoy the bitterness. So yeah, maybe I'm a little weird.

4) Fruit!!! Because I mostly attempt to eat a fairly low carb diet, I often skip fruit. Sometimes a few berries on my salad, but I rarely eat a whole piece of fruit, and I usually avoid dried fruit. But not this month! My treats now include bananas, apples, strawberries, raspberries, dried apricots, prunes, etc. Because I am substituting fruit for treats like cookies, I can still lost weight on this program. Watch out for dried fruit, though, because the natural sugars are highly concentrated. Same for fruit juices--high in sugar and calories, so best to tread lightly!

5) Nuts!!! I love almost every type of nut and seed. I always top my daily salads with whatever seeds I have on hand, including sesame, poppy, pumpkin, sunflower, and hemp. Nuts and seeds contain healthy fats which your body needs. However, you can easily go overboard and eat a disastrous amount of calories if you go crazy with the nuts. A small handful, about a quarter cup, is plenty for a serving if you want to lost weight.

These are my go-to treats on my zero added sugar plan. What types of treats to you enjoy? Can you lost weight while eating nuts? Fruit? Let me know!