I’m not a fan of bandwagons. People tend to either fall off, get pushed off, or looked down their noses at.
And bandwagons can happen to anybody or anything that gets hyped up. Even Trim Healthy Mama. *gasp* Yes, I’m pretty sure some of you die-hard THM’s are ready to push the x and close your browser. But hear me out. It might not be what you think.
After being so horribly sick with morning sickness last fall and winter, I pretty much let myself go during pregnancy and ate what felt good. I know that’s not the healthy way to do it. But I declare hot fudge sundaes taste three times better when expecting a little one! However, these hot fudge sundaes also led me to packing on the pounds.
Strange thing this mommy business is. I found out that what Mommy eats . . . everyone else eats. Whether they’re pregnant or not! And this led to some general weight gain throughout the household.
So a couple months following delivery of our little Dallas, we decided it was time to take back our health. And that of our family.
This will be a very honest opinion of the last few weeks of our lives, so give me a little grace. There is good and there is “not so good for the Shoe”. I believe each family needs to decide what suits them, their lifestyle, budget, and goals.
If you’re not familiar with THM, the main principle is this: to LOSE weight, you need to separate your carbs and fat. Eat meals like this: protein with good carbs OR protein with fat.
Here is how it worked for us.
- Stevia – This was the one hurdle I knew we would have a hard time adjusting to. I love my sweets! If you read this blog much, you know that I believe chocolate should be one of the main food groups. In fact, I have one board on Pinterest completely devoted to chocolate. Sad, but true.So we tried some of the THM desserts using Truvia from the grocery store. And we gagged them down until finally one evening at supper, my little family had had enough. They were feeling rather sick. And I had noticed that I’d started aching all over. Come to find out, stevia can cause aching in some people. Who knew! Some of you might be ready to tell me it was candida die-off. Hold your breath. I already thought of that, but I wasn’t hanging around to find out.Secondly, I tried KAL stevia extract powder. Again, they couldn’t hack it, although I like it in my shrinker tea and smoothies THM recommends.
Next up was a sweetener that THM approves called xylitol. I knew this one had the side effect of causing tummy troubles and diarrhea in some people. So I tried this one out on myself – rather than inflicting pain on my little children. Gallant, aren’t I? Sure enough, within two hours, I was running for the restroom.
At my wit’s end, I finally decided I’d make one last ditch effort. By this time, it was getting expensive trying different kinds of sweeteners, foods, etc. I decided if this didn’t work, I’d have to figure something else out. I tried coconut sugar. Now this is not THM-approved, but, frankly, I was tired of having THM tell me what to do. Coconut sugar is supposed to be lower-glycemic than white sugar. So, I tried a dessert using coconut sugar plus KAl stevia and held my breath. Didn’t have to hold it long. It was a no-go. Nada. We were done with other sweeteners.
So we made the executive decision that went against everything THM. We would keep sugar in our diet – only reduced from what it used to be. I also like to add in some coconut sugar, since I now have a bag to use up. And for myself, I can handle the KAL stevia in my shrinker tea and smoothies. In liquids it seems fine – I can even get used to the taste.
- THM can be brain-tumoring. Meaning, this way of eating takes a while to get used to. You have to think quite a bit about food – how to match it, what time you should eat it, plus how to feed the little ones that aren’t following it closely.
- I felt like somebody had run over me with a truck. I’m nursing a three-month-old, so that could have been part of it. I also would call myself a sugar-addict. That might have been the other part of it. But for the first few days doing THM very religiously, I felt awful. Shaky, lightheaded, horribly crabby, achy, so very drained, and lethargic. After eating a few days like normal (although healthier), I’d feel better and then repeat the cycle again. This whole time I was trying to find ways to cook THM to where my family liked it. And I was also trying to pack lunches for my husband and oldest son the THM way. I was nearing burn-out and needing carbs. Like NOW. This lasted for the first month, until we finally decided to scale it back and keep reduced sugar and cut the stevia use.
- You are supposed to wait 3 hours between switching fuel meal types. Your E (energizing – protein/carb) and your S (satisfying – protein/fat) meals need to be 3 hours apart. This includes snacks. I don’t like being tied to a clock as to when I can eat or can’t eat. That was a big hurdle for me and one I knew I wouldn’t be doing for the rest of my life. I also got so hungry I couldn’t make it three hours between meals and would cave and eat something very off-plan!
- I felt bound to the book. I don’t think it’s healthy for relationships when you go to someone’s house and can’t eat what they’ve spent hours to prepare (unless, of course, you have a real medical reason not to). I love eating in other people’s homes! This was one thing I didn’t want to give up – at all. But following the book so closely took away the pleasure I got from receiving food at the hands of others. I felt like I was cheating and being a bad girl. And I don’t like that feeling.
Now lest you think it’s all a bad review, read on.
What we took and applied from Trim Healthy Mama:
THM made me realize how much sugar we were consuming, and how much more protein we should be consuming. Our carbs to protein ratio was off. But THM says this way of eating also needs to be sustainable. And sustainable for us might be different from you, and is definitely different from most die-hard THM’ers. We are taking from THM what we can sustain, and applying it to our lives.
- For us, this means we are reducing the sugar products, and even sugar in our recipes.
- We are also reducing the gluten, even getting our oatmeal cookies to be completely gluten-free (which we will share later). Lowell found he felt better when not eating gluten.
- We are eating suppers together that are either E (protein/carb) or S (protein/fat). Most evenings we eat more S’s than E’s just because I figure we get enough carbs during the day, and also that our bodies don’t process carbs as well in the evening.
- Some mornings we will have an S breakfast. But during the day, we eat regular – especially with packed lunches for Lowell and the kids.
- Sometimes I will make myself an S lunch, so most days I get two meals per day that are THM-approved.
- We have begun to sprint in the mornings. THM doesn’t tell you to do this, but we believe it helps get metabolisms going. Lowell had been sprinting earlier than Derek and I, but this morning we all did it together. And I’m beyond excited to tell you that I was the bear bait of the bunch! Around here, the joke is that whoever is last in the pack is who the bear catches first. That was me. But if you’ll remember that, only 5 1/2 years ago, my husband was in ICU and we thought this day would never come – it makes the defeat even sweeter!
- I’ve found some oldie-goldies that I’ve fallen in love with! Foods like parmesan cheese, coconut oil, olives, and broccoli. Things that we hadn’t been using much but have come to love now!
Now on to the results . . .
Does THM work?
In one word . . . yes. THM works, at least it has for us so far! And this is with following it very loosely. We didn’t want to throw the whole thing away just because some parts didn’t work for us. So we’ve kept the parts we can incorporate and sustain for years. This way we do it also fits with our social lifetstyle. We can still eat around another family’s table, and thoroughly enjoy it! In fact, it has made my children appreciate the hot lunch at school so much more. Every Tuesday now I hear somebody say “Yeah! Tomorrow is hot lunch!” You wouldn’t believe how awesome warm, garlicky french bread is until you’ve gone without.
In the few weeks we’ve been eating healthier, we’ve all seen a drop in weight – somewhere around 13 pounds combined! However, I do watch the little ones carefully since they don’t have extra pounds to lose. But Lowell, Derek, and I have each been pleasantly surprised at having our clothes fit looser.
We also found that even the weeks that the scale didn’t budge, our clothes continued to fit a little looser.
We’re happy. So happy we might celebrate with something smooth and creamy – like chocolate.
So even though we are not die-hard THM-ers and are probably only halfway on the bandwagon, I wanted to tell you our experience since we will probably be including some supper recipes that would be Trim Healthy Mama style. But for those of you who do not eat the THM way, don’t worry, we’ll still be including good, old-fashioned recipes on here too.
And since this post is getting really long, you’ll have to wait until the next post to hear the answer to this question: “What does the Shoe eat the loose-THM way?”
- The Adventum CD Collection – Sale Now - March 27, 2021
- Alternative To Facebook Option - January 30, 2021
- The Beauty of the Hoary Head - January 2, 2021
Sharon says
Good for you! I like the sprinting idea, the only sprinting we get in the mornings is sprinting to beat the clock …and that bandwagon? I could live like that ….but I can see it will take a while lot of planning on my part …
Carolyn says
Thanks for filling me in on the THM scoop! I’ve been seeing your Pinterest boards/pins, and been meaning to ask just what all this THM-E-S abbreviations meant.
Mary Otto says
I went gluten free or mostly gluten free back in Feb. I still cook for my family but it’s on a much healthier scale. Lots more beans, veggies, salads, and foods made without tons of fatty ingredients, sodium, and simple carbs. It has made a big difference and my children are learning healthy habits as well.
Sprinting is great for your health. It gets your heart rate up and you probably reach the ‘fat burning level’.
Losing inches but not weight is a good thing. That means you are likely burning fat instead of muscle.
Monica Hershberger Yoder says
I like your very balanced approach!!!
Hilda Smucker says
Well written. I think THM is one where so many get overwhelmed and disheartened because they take it too seriously. For real… depending how a family was eating… there is not way you can stay sane and make all those changes in a day. In reality… to keep you sanity it will take months… and maybe a year. I love your balance. And I’m thankful we like stevia. Bless your heart… you tried so hard. 🙂 I tell people who ask me about it to ease into it. Don’t stress about a cheat. It’s a lifestyle not really a diet. And being pregnant now… and trying to eat THM… it’s hard. Because I crave carbs so much. But even though… i don’t follow it perfect. I know i’m eating better then last pregnancy. 🙂 So if we keep learning and slowly getting better we are on the right track. 🙂
Living in the Shoe says
That’s what I tell myself – it’s the small changes every day that help!
Crystal Levin says
Thank you so much! I love your REAL experience with this book. It makes me want to read it now and see what I can gain from it!!!
Kathy Sadlier says
I too like your common sense approach to it. Am curious what you do for suppers -especially the protein fat ones.
Rosalyn says
I’m encouraged to read your perspective. We’ve also been doing the THM experience at our house, and had similar results. 😉 Browsing the internet, it’s easy to get the idea that THM is the only way to go, and ‘everyone’ follows it perfectly, and they have such glowing results. Not so for us.
Through the process, we have discovered how much better we feel if we limit our carb intake, and as a result, we eat very little bread, potatoes, & pasta..
I also try to have fewer desserts, or more healthy options available, but we are a sweet-loving family, and so totally eliminating sugar from our diet just didn’t work.
What we are doing is incorporating a lot more good, healthy proteins & previously unknown vegetables in our meals, and everyone is (mostly) liking it.
We would do well to put in place some kind of exercise routine, along with this, but we have yet to get there….
Living in the Shoe says
This sounds like us! We feel better limiting carbs and gluten, especially my husband noticed the gluten. I do like THM’s recipes for some of their sides, better than I do their desserts. Those we can eat and enjoy because you don’t use sweetener.
Valerie says
O my goodness , I LOVE this! Such a balanced look! I have been coming to some fo the very same conclusions. I hate that my whole life has started to revolve around what I eat…. when I eat…what I eat with what I eat! I also think there are great principles on the THM but as balanced as it says it is , it really is not very balanced for our life style and frugal grocery shopping. And it seems to me that reduced amounts of raw sugar , in particular, would be just as good or better for you than some of the processed natural sweeteners in the book. Cause xylitol, Erythritol and most Stevia has actually been processed quite a bit from it’s natural state.
Anyhow saying all that to say, I’ve been processing a lot fo info the last twod ays through threads on the THM facebook site and elsewhere and your blog here pretty well sums up my conclusion. I really think I will be better off to follow the “Shoe ” plan! LOl
Living in the Shoe says
🙂 You’d do better following the “Valerie” plan! We’re still in the beta phase around here. LOL
Arla says
Aha! Just as I thought! Kendra, I vote that you simplify this huge tome into a laminated flip book on about five pages max. Just the principle of the thing so that ordinary folks like us with ordinary groceries and budgets can do our successful version of same. I suppose, of course, that you’d have to get permission from the two lovely ladies that cooked the plan, eh? Anyhow, I’m impressed with what you came up with. Just exactly what I thought could be done. Cheers are in order.
Living in the Shoe says
🙂 Do I have the right to veto your vote?
Rachel says
This was a very interesting post to me. I’ve seen vague allusions to something called THM but never bothered to figure out what it was about. Several years ago I began cooking somewhat non-traditional Mennonite and left out the ‘starch’ of the meal. (I cook a meat and a veggie.) This was a start but, like you, I love my sweets. :/ Rather than subject my whole family to a ‘plan’, I began using My Fitness Pal and keeping a food diary. Very enlightening. But it totally works for me because I eat foods I like but keep within my calorie goal. It also makes me look for higher protein choices since that is also calculated. I think each family needs to decide what works for them and go with it. And those on other ‘plans’ need not judge. 😉 Great post!
Tamara Allison says
Hello there! Although I haven’t bought the book, I have been keeping track of the info floating around on the internet about THM. I really like your review of the book. From everything I’ve seen, read, and heard, it almost seems that a keto diet would be a much better option, especially since you and most of the people commenting here feel better reducing their carb intakes. (I know I do, and I’m keto dieting by proxy, because my boyfriend is a great cook!) Keep making S meals and I bet you’ll feel even better.
By the way, Serene is my sister-in-law. She married my oldest brother Samuel when I was 8. I’ve known her for most of my life, and I’ve got to say that many of the things she’s fed me I wouldn’t want to try again. The scones are good though! 🙂
Living in the Shoe says
Hi Allison! Quite a privilege to have Serene’s sil here. 😉 I’ve been trying THM pretty faithfully again this week since we got back from vacation and it is going much better. For two reasons: I am not doing it for the entire family, and I also think I can tolerate erythritol and some xylitol. Stevia is still great in drinks, but at least my options are little more open now. Hope your year goes well and thanks for stopping by!
Julieanne M. says
Tamara, my family has used Trim Healthy Mama for a year now with great results. We haven’t lost 70 lbs. per person like some of my friends, but our overall health is a lot better in many, many ways. We’ve learned to tweak many of the THM recipes in the book, and a lot of gals have learned to do that to make them “to taste”, but I’m surprised that you’d make this kind of public comment about Serene’s cooking here on the internet. I hope she doesn’t ever read what you said, because that’s sad and would be hurtful. Pearl’s and Serene’s recipes are great in concept, and we just add more salt or stevia or spices to make them “to taste” for my own family’s tastes.
As for Living in the Shoe’s dislike for stevia, our family greatly disliked it, too…for about 6-8 weeks. We have major sweet tooth problems (and yes, I do now believe it was a problem/addiction that wasn’t healthy for us at all). But after completely going off of all sugars and forms of sugar like maple syrup, honey, molasses, etc., and only using stevia extract, suddenly we found that we could no longer taste the aftertaste that stevia has. 🙂 Woot! Since we generally have dessert every evening after dinner, this was huge for us! Now we’re able to eat dessert regularly (and even for breakfast if we want) without guilt. Yeah! Pearl and Serene will be selling their own version of stevia extract here in another week or so, so many people are excited about that because the current options on the market don’t taste very good. I’ve tasted Pearl’s and Serene’s new stevia extract (they privately sent me some to sample), and if a person is already used to stevia, they will love this product. I can’t wait to buy some more!
You’re right; xylitol has nasty side effects for many people. We tried to use it in small amounts for about 6 months, to hopefully build up to being able to use it regularly, because it tastes and acts just like sugar, but it was a no go. Well, actually, it was the opposite of a no go. 🙂 Plus, our guests who came over for meals would get sick when they got home, too. We no longer use xylitol even though it was the best tasting sweetener option.
Living in the Shoe, I’m sorry that you had the exhaustion and other ucky feelings when starting THM. Most people who love sugar and sweet foods go through this detox. Detox can last from 3 days to 3 weeks, depending on the person. Once we got through that as a family, we felt so much better! My husband no longer snores (he’s been snoring his whole life, even when he was thin and a strong athlete); the bumps on my upper arms have disappeared (I’ve had those since I was a little girl). My husband and I no longer take Tums for heartburn. 🙂 Our teen daughters’ acne has disappeared. Monthly headaches are gone, as well as cramps. 🙂 THM won’t work for everyone, but for my family and many of my friends, it has been amazing. 🙂
Living in the Shoe says
That is awesome that THM is working for you! I tried it again after the first of the year, and I didn’t have any of the same detox symptoms that I had earlier. This was interesting to me because I would have went back on sugar in the meantime. I don’t know if this is anything related to it, but my 7 month old was taking some solids the second time I tried THM. I did feel good on it – even helped my monthly be lighter! 🙂 But when using the erythritol, my baby developed a nasty rash. 🙁 I was so disappointed……seems everything I’ve tried to do – I come against something I can’t control. But it did make me hopeful that once my baby quits nursing, I could do this way of eating if I still want to!
I agree that the sugar addiction is exactly that. And we are working on simply reducing sugar intake around here. I also feel better when I get some hard exercise in everyday, and reduce snacks after supper. So far, this seems to be helping as well!
Thanks for you input and God bless.
~ Kendra
Andrea Smith says
Julianne, did you quit gluten as well as sugar? Just wondering about the arm bumps. My daughter, husband, and I have them and I’m wondering what to focus on first.
Beth Boman says
I had just started Trim Healthy Mama and was so confused….many articles in the news talking about Truvia and how it isn’t natural, yet THM was telling me to use it. I was hungry quite a bit, but I like you thought there were some great points to Trim Healthy Mama. Thank you…I feel encouraged. While I won’t be gung-ho, I can take the parts of it that I found healthy and incorporate this into my family’s lifestyle. Thank you!
Kim says
I’m really glad that you and your family are on a journey to being healthier and that THM has helped you along that path. I’ve been following THM for a year now and have lost over 50 lbs, I’m lighter than I’ve been since my early 20’s, and feel so much better. I was a major sugar addict, and can attest that no other sweetener will taste good until you’ve kicked sugar to the curb, I felt like I had the flu for 4 days when I quit sugar and wheat cold turkey. After a couple of weeks, the sugar did not have the pull on me that it has had for my entire life, and I was then able to incorporate stevia and truvia. My family has a strict food budget but we’re able to eat the same meals, just adding crossovers (carbs with fats) for the rest of the family since they do not need to lose weight. We’re all healthier, our recent bloodwork was wonderful! I love the fact that if my body needs fat, I have healthy fat, if it needs energy, I have healthy carbs, and if I want something sweet…I browse through the plethora of yummy desserts I have in my Pinterest account. If I can’t wait three hours to eat, I enjoy a huge chocolate mint smoothie while I wait for mealtime. Blessings on your journey to better health!
Lori says
I like your take on THM. But the one thing I think people should know is that stevia is the only sugar substitute that should ever be used. I am not doing THM because I don’t want to replace all the junk with other junk, it makes no sense. Instead I am doing no flour no sugar (just me, not my whole family) and it is doable, and it is the only thing I find wise. It cuts out the processed foods, and instead I am eating a whole lot of wholesome foods. I am sure I should try to learn about her S meals, E meals theory to tie in to what I am doing. I feel so much better eating healthy than I ever did eating whatever I pleased.
lindaallen1160 says
We have an almost empty nest now and quite a few pounds to lose…We are also southerners and my husband loves his sweet tea. I started following THM by myself and left my family out of it at first and this made me realize that my husband was using 1/2 pound of white sugar every week in his tea and on his cereal…all by himself. When I told him this, he decided to cut it all out. Stevia was out of the question because it causes him to have headaches and dizziness. I made a mixture of xylitol and erythritol and started using it sparingly to sweeten his tea. To my surprise, he likes it. In addition, this week I didn’t make that side of rice or a baked potato for just him when I prepared an S meal for myself. He is down 6 pounds in 1 week. Wow!! THM does work, but I agree that in a large family setting, following it loosely would be the only way to go (especially if on a budget).
Living in the Shoe says
That is some excellent progress just from cutting out white sugar! I’m glad it’s working out for you, and, yes, I agree about the “loosely” following it with a large family.
Tobi says
Thank you, for being honest about THM and how you work with the changes. I am just starting this process and journey. My children are grown and I am now by myself so testing isn’t so bad with it being just me to be tested on. 🙂 I am truly more of a show me what I need to do than to be tied to the book so that is a little difficult for me right now, learning what foods need to be together and how much of each one. I work virtually for my employer and when I am on the road for a week or two it is much more difficult to keep to the plan. At least when traveling, one of my 3oz liquid containers can be my ACV.
Living in the Shoe says
You’re welcome and I hope it works out for you!!
Regina says
I enjoyed reading your post. I and my hubby are following THM but like you, have a few tweaks. I have milk cows so I do drink our milk. Not a lot like before but it’s too good to pass up! We both find that we like the THM approach using foods we grow and raise instead of buying on-plan foods. With that said, I do like almond flour but also use sprouted whole wheat. That may be one reason we are losing slowly but the weight is dropping. Stevia is my big downfall. I love it and have used it for many many years. Now we aren’t in the time of our life of having babies since our 7 are 42 – 27 and we won’t be having any more but I do believe we need to try more natural sweeteners such as raw honey and maple syrup so I’ll add those in for future use. Thanks for a good review and I’ve enjoyed visiting your blog. Regina
Kendra says
Thank you! Glad to know it’s working well for you!
Julie says
My husband and I just started THM, and it has been really tough. We have not felt well at all since starting. I was wondering why, and I never thought it could be because of the stevia. I love the way that you doing THM with modifications that work with your family. We will definitely be tweaking some things so we don’t feel so icky. Thank you!
Kendra says
You are welcome! I’m sorry you and your husband didn’t feel great on it – some folks feel awesome, but others feel like I did. I believe God made our bodies all unique!
We are currently moving towards the “whole foods” route. It’s been fun to incorporate more whole grains, fats and natural sweeteners into our diet.
Hope it works well for you!!
Marcy Darby says
LOL. Julianne M, at the idea of “but I’m surprised that you’d make this kind of public comment about Serene’s cooking here on the internet. I hope she doesn’t ever read what you said, because that’s sad and would be hurtful.” I doubt anyone is hurting over the amount of money that is in the bank.
That said, appreciated reading all the comments about the program as I am looking into it. I am not sure why there is so much info on fake sugar? Is it because people just can’t (or won’t live with out it)? Curious. Still trying to decide if I should buy it. I am assuming moderation is better than being ill.
thepcgoddess says
I was following Eat To Live before starting THM.I really loved THM and the great foods I got to eat. However my health did not improve with this plan. My chest pains and shortness of breath came back with a vengeance and became worse. My breathing was labored and difficult. I would just cry because it was so hard to catch my breath. I reluctantly went back onto Eat to Live and my problems started to subside. I’d say I’ve had at least 85% if not more reduction in symptoms. I felt more in bondage to food during my THM time too – I thought about food a lot. Now I eat 3 times a day and thoughts are not totally consumed with food. I’m glad THM works for some people but for those of us who may have more health issues a more radical approach may be what is best.
Casey says
I was so happy to find this. I found out with doing all the different sweeteners I was allergic to all. From crippling migraines to rashes. I thought I couldn’t do THM! I’m so glad I found your blog. Thank you for sharing!
nicole says
You described EXACTLY how I feel. I am nursing a 3 month old and I believe THM is making us both feel… Out of sorts. I have never felt so foggy and drained. My little girl is having tummy issues. I need to follow low-glycemic because I have PCOS but I’d rather adjust my carb and sugar intake, as well as eat whole foods (minus the gluten). There are THM recipes I love but I am actually scared of Xylitol (preferred sweeteners). I think I need to rethink and adjust our diet just as you have. Thanks for writing this 🙂
Joni says
Thank you for this! Very refreshing and needed!
Toni says
This is a great article, and I’m so glad you’ve written it and that I read it. I feel so much this same way about THM!
Becky says
I have been reading all of the comments and have come to realize it works for some and not others! I get shots for ragweed and have for years and when I read that Stevia was part of that family and could make things worse, I ceased using it! I had been having quite a few heart palpitations and my allergies got worse so I immediately stopped Stevia and within three weeks my symptoms have totally improved! I find it really hard like someone else said I am consumed with “food” now where I wasn’t before. And I was on a low carb and losing weight but now my weight loss has only been one pound since January 16, not great! I find myself forgetting to remember “when” I last ate so I get confused is it time to eat again? Pray for me that I either find the “solution” for me or go back to my low carb where I was losing at a pretty good rate! NOW! I do feel better physically but I don’t know if that is from removing the Stevia or what because I wasn’t a sugar aholic before! THM is good but very expensive and on Social Security I can’t afford some of the special ingredients! HELP, please pray I will know what to do here because a I find it very consuming! I too am praying for the good Lord to direct me, so far nothing, but after reading this maybe I just need to ask for extra prayer for my direction, thank you I await the answer!
Kendra says
I will pray! God doesn’t want us to be consumed with anything but Him. 🙂 May He guide you!
K says
I was blessed to read your experience with THM , I have been trying it for Well over a month but not at all sure it is right for me. Never had a weight concern until last couple years…aging is a factor for sure and slower metabolism and less activity due to some physical issues…I .have always loved to cook and bake but after these past weeks Struggling to overthink every meal combination and feeling lousy many mornings and no baking because of sugar fear and no desire to change to stevia or other sweeteners I realize I have lost my life long love of cooking and food and the effort to adapt all this is stressing me out …your message made me consider that perhaps a relaxed approach to the parts of THM that might be worthwhile for me to keep trying and stop worrying so much about the entire zealous bandwagon as well as reducing our sugar was what I needed to hear … I will be enjoying following you and browsing your wealth of recipes. Thank you …
Kendra says
You are so welcome! We are realizing more and more how much we need to cut out processed foods and put in more whole foods. I can totally relate to how that love of cooking gets deflated when we overthink it. Hope it goes well for you!