Sweets Free...

I've done it before. I can do it again.

I think.

As noted in yesterday's Thursday Thirteen post, I have a sweet tooth. Matter of fact, I don't have a sweet tooth, I have sweet teeth. My whole mouth is full of them. And for some reason, no matter how much chocolate or carmel or ice cream or cake I give them, my teeth are never satisfied. They just continue to want more. In fact, it seems as though the more they get, the more they want. If I eat a dougnut in the morning, by lunch I'm wanting a Twix and by dinner I want some cake. But, if I hold off on sweets for a whole day, it's usually easier to get through the next day, too. And so on - by day seven or eight, my teeth aren't even thinking about sweets.

It's making it through that first day that is really the hard part.

So, here's the challenege that I am setting up for myself: I'm going without sweets.

That's right, folks. I'm giving up sweets altogether. No more scones in the morning from the cafe across the hall. No more brownies that my co-worker made. No more mini Snickers or Milky Ways or Twix bars from the candy dish at the reception desk. No more Girl Scout Cookies. No more ice cream during Grey's Anatomy (sorry, Mark). I'm not eating any sweets, at any time.

I know. This sounds crazy. Senseless. Insane, even! Why would anyone want to deprive themselves of the deliciousness that is sweets?!?! Well, I don't WANT to, believe me. But I feel as though I must. I feel like my sweet eating is at an all-time out-of-control state, and something drastic needs to be done in order to kill it.

Here's the funny thing about this challenge. Every time that I do it, it gets more and more fun. I know, you're thinking "FUN?!". But yes, fun. Because you make it a game with yourself. You get through day one, and it's hard as hell. But when you make it to the end of the day you are proud, and a little surprised. Day two comes, and you think, "Oh, can I make it through another day of this?!". So, you force yourself to get through day two. By the end of the first week, you are thinking, "Well, I've come this far. Let's see how long I can keep this thing going." And so you keep going.

Now, I haven't done this in a long time. And usually, I do it only for a week or so at a time. But I really feel like this time I'm in deep trouble.

So this time, I'm going sweets free for a whole month.

On May 5th, my dear friend Heather will marry her high school sweetheart, Eric. On that date, I will be happy to partake in some wedding cake. That will be my first taste of sweets for almost an entire month.

This challenge starts today, right now, this minute. You may ask, "Why start on a Friday? Start on a Monday, when most people start new diets or workouts or whatnot." The problem with starting on a Monday is that work is the hardest place for me. There is always something sweet at work. So, if I can make it through this first day, I have two more days at home, where there aren't any sweets, to jumpstart my new challenge. I'm hoping that by Monday morning I'll be good to go.

I know that it will be hard. I know that it will seem impossible at times. But I truly feel like I can do it, and that I need to do it.

We'll see how it goes. I'll keep you all posted...