2020年5月21日
〈如何少吃九成糖份，脫胎換骨？〉
Last year, I was consuming over 36 grams, or 9 teaspoons, of added sugar a day. Now I consume only 3–4 grams, one teaspoon, on average — as I have for the last four months.
去年，我每天消耗36克添加糖，也就是九茶匙的份量。現在，我平均每天只消耗3至4克，那是一茶匙的份量，這是過去四個月的情況。
It has not been a herculean effort of self-control and deprivation. Instead, I altered a few habits, deepened my awareness of what I was ingesting, and discovered delicious alternatives for sugary foods. Consuming added sugar is a risky business; it contributes to obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer. It also racks up calories while providing zero nutritional benefit — calories I wouldn't call "empty," considering their effects are far from "empty."
這不涉及艱苦的自我約束與作賤。
我只不過調整了一些習慣，對吃了什麼進肚子更有自覺，並發現了含糖食品的好吃代替品。
攝取添加糖的風險很大，有機會導致癡肥、心臟病、第二型糖尿病和癌症。又會使卡路里飇升，卻毫無營養。我不會說添加糖「空無一物」，它的影響絕對不空。
This year, my goal is to become fitter and stronger than I've ever been. Along with working out regularly and nurturing a healthy lifestyle, I had to refine my diet— the added sugar had to go. Here's how I did it.
我今年的目標是要達到個人史上最窈窕和強健的狀態。除了定時健身，定立健康的生活方式，我還改良個人餐單——把添加糖請走。以下是我的要訣。
I removed cues that prompted me to consume sugary foods.
Studies show that the mere sight of food, contextual food cues, can make us feel hungry even when we don’t have physiological hunger.
If I open the fridge for water and see a bar of chocolate next to the jug, I'll break off a few pieces to munch on, even though I'm not hungry.
My apartment was filled with such cues. So I moved the tub of Maltesers and tins of buttery biscuits away from my coffee table and didn’t restock the kitchen shelves with honey-glazed nuts, caramel popcorn, and fruit loops.
It worked. I stopped eating unnecessary sweets and snacks when I wasn't hungry, trimming down my added sugar intake.
Out of sight, out of mind — indeed.
我移除了將我引向含糖食物的提示。研究顯示，食物的畫面，也就是相關的食物提示，可以令生理上不饑餓的人覺得饑餓。
假如我打開雪櫃拿水喝，看到水瓶旁邊有一條巧克力棒，就會把它截斷數份，大快朵頤，縱然我肚子不餓。
我的居所充斥了類似的提示。我將麥提莎和一罐罐牛油餅乾從咖啡桌搬走，也不再補購廚房架上的蜂蜜果仁和、焦糖爆谷和雜果味穀物圈。
這樣行之有效。我不再在不餓的時候吃無謂的糖果與零食，添加糖的攝入量隨之下降。
眼不見，心不念，理所當然。
Recording my sugar consumption for a few days revealed two things:
1. I was consuming much more than I'd initially guessed. The amount of added sugar in food astounded me.
For instance, one two-ounce Snickers bar has a whopping 27 grams of sugar — a little over the entire day's recommended sugar limit for women.
紀錄自己的糖份消耗量數天，透露出兩件事：
一、我攝取的添加糖份量遠超預期。食物之中的添加糖份量也出乎意料。事實上，一條兩盎士的巧克力棒居然含有27克糖，已略為超過女性每天的建議攝取量。
2. It was sneaking into my diet from unexpected sources, such as condiments, nut butters, granola bars, and oatmeal.
I changed the way I shopped for food.
I began carefully scanning nutrition labels and returning sugar-filled items to their shelves. Added sugar hides behind different names on nutrition labels: agave nectar, honey, fruit juice concentrates, molasses, maple syrup, maltose, and more. No, thank you.
二、添加糖從各種源頭偷偷潛入我的餐單，例如調味料、果仁醬、營養棒和麥片等。我改變了購買食品的方法，開始仔細檢查營養標籤，把高糖的食品放回架上。添加糖在標籤上用各種別名埋藏身份，龍舌蘭蜜、蜂蜜、濃縮果汁、糖蜜、楓糖、麥芽糖，凡此種種。不需要了，謝謝。
I also used commitment devices: when we make choices in the present to control future actions, binding us to good habits.
I didn't purchase cookies, flavored yogurt, or brownies to keep at home, so I couldn’t be tempted by them later. Having to make more effort, than just grabbing something from the kitchen to get a sugar fix, made the activity less enticing.
我也啟用承諾機制：當下的決定能影響將來行事，以此培養良好習慣。
沒有將曲奇餅、甜乳酪和布朗尼蛋糕購置在家，就不會被它們誘惑。從前不過在廚房隨手一拈就能滿足糖癮，現在不再那麼容易，整件事也沒那麼大誘惑。
I kept hunger at bay.
Hunger between meals invariably leads to snacking — possibly sugary snacking.
I eat satiating foods to remain full after meals, clamping down on the urge to snack. These foods include fresh vegetables, plant-based protein, and whole grains.
I’ve also made simple lifestyle changes, such as eating mindfully, to stay satiated, even though I’m practicing calorie restriction:
我盡量遠離飢餓
正餐之間餓肚子，我沒有一次不想起零食——也許是含糖的零食。正餐之後，我會吃飽肚的食物，抑制對零食的欲望，例如新鮮蔬果、含蛋白質的根部植物、全穀類食物。我也作出簡單的生活調整，例如專心進食，保持飽肚，哪怕正在控制卡路里：
I found delicious substitutes.
I made a list of items contributing to my sugar overdose and discovered natural, wholesome alternatives for each of them.
我找到好吃的代替品。
那些使我攝取量超標的高糖食物，我給它們列成清單，逐一尋找天然健康的代替品。
Here are some of the dietary changes I made:
Swapped my breakfast, of flavored-yogurt and honey-drizzled granola, for a bowl of plain yogurt, sprinkled with nuts, powdered dates, and fennel seeds. Dates and fennel seeds provide natural sweetness.
Sourced locally-produced protein bars, devoid of added sugars and artificial sweeteners, to enjoy with coffees and chais, instead of dense-caloric biscuits.
Traded sweetened fruit preserves and jams, on bread and smoothies, for sugar-free nut butters, which provide protein and flavor.
Replaced sugary snacks in my apartment with whole fruits. Fruits are packed with vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants.
And so on.
以下是我的一些飲食改變：
我的早餐改頭換面，由甜乳酪和燕麥片改為純乳酪，並撤上果仁、海棗粉和茴香籽來加入天然甜味。
喝咖啡和印度奶茶，不再配以高卡路里的餅乾，改吃本地出產的蛋白質棒，那不含添加糖和人工甘味料。
塗麵包、調奶昔，不再用入口果醬和含糖乾果。改用無糖果仁醬，既有味道，又有蛋白質。
用水果取代家裡的含糖零食。水果有豐富的維他命、礦物質、纖維與抗氧化物。
I cast votes to be healthy.
In Atomic Habits, James Clear writes that the key to lasting behavior change and intrinsic motivation is to make the desired habit a part of your identity.
"It's one thing to say I'm the type of person who wants this. It's something very different to say I'm the type of person who is this."
He writes that your identity emerges out of your habits, and every action is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.
It was simple; I wanted to decrease my sugar consumption—I wanted to be healthy. So I cast votes in favor of this identity.
Every time I chose nutritious alternatives to sugary foods or worked out, I affirmed my identity.
Shaving off some sugar doesn't seem arduous anymore — it's just an extension of who I am.
給自己的健康投票
在《原子習慣》一書，James Clear指出若想行為改變和內在動力持久不衰，關鍵是將你的目標習慣納入自我意識。
「說自己是渴望如何如何的一類人和說自己就是如何如何的一類人，兩者差天共地。」他說人的自我意識來自習慣，每一個行為都是你給「想成為哪種人」所投下的一票。
很簡單，我不想吃那麼多糖，我要健康，於是給這樣的自我意識投票。
每當我去健身或是以營養食品取代含糖食品，我都在加強自我意識。
戒吃一點糖不再艱鉅，那不過是我的延伸。
Final word
Slashing my sugar intake helped me break through a fitness plateau and achieve ab definition after years of working out.
The benefits went beyond improved physical health to include — reduced mental grogginess, smoother skin, strengthened confidence in achieving future goals, and a positive shift in identity.
I’ve achieved progress. I’ve shaped my identity as a person who is healthy. Both are powerful sources of motivation, making my dietary changes sustainable. Plus, I enjoy the creativity of crafting healthy substitutes — I’m hooked.
Of course, I can’t resist freshly baked banana bread or my Mom’s apple pie. So I’ll just go ahead and enjoy a small serving occasionally.
It's not an all or nothing game.
結語
糖份攝入量銳減，助我突破健美樽頸，健身多年，腹肌線條終於清晰顯出。不只體魄健康，其餘好處多多，包括減少昏沉、皮膚更滑、更有信心達成目標、自我意識更積極等。
我有所進步。我將自己塑造成健康的人。這都是強勁的動力泉源，使我的飲食改變能夠維持。再說，我也享受製作健康的代替食品，我對此上了癮。
當然，我始終無法抗拒新鮮出爐的香蕉麵包和媽媽的蘋果批，偶爾仍會品嚐幾口，畢竟這不是非黑即白的遊戲。
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