No sugar, low carb 10-day challenge

You have probably heard about many diet challenges that promise you impossible results in just a couple of days, and this one may seem like one of those. However, it’s not.

A similar challenge is started by J.Lo. Famous ‘’No sugar, no carb’’ challenge has gained a lot of media attention, but it has a misleading name. No carb would mean 0 carb intake, which is really not recommendable since carbs such as fresh vegetables are a crucial part of our diet. Additionally, Madbarz challenge is widened with some other requirements besides cutting certain food - to help you establish and maintain healthy habits after the challenge is over.

The thing is, if you didn’t work on your body during the entire year, no 10-day challenge will help you get ripped abs in time for a beach. So this challenge is not made for people looking for a quick-fix. This challenge is made for people who want to cut processed food from the diet and lose that last extra pound to look completely ripped. This is not a challenge that promises you to reset or detox your body, but it can help you restart your diet if you noticed you gained some unhealthy habits and want to get rid of them.

This is not a keto diet, meaning you don’t have to count every carb you eat, but you will definitely go low carb. However, since keto snacks are low in carbs, you can use keto recipes during this period.

What to expect?

You won’t shred the impossible amount of fat during these 10 days, get insanely ripped, but there are certain benefits that should be mentioned:

Fighting off sugar cravings 

Although the first few days can be hard, following this challenge can really help you get rid of sugar craving in the long run. The important thing is not to give in to sugar cravings the moment challenge is over. First few days you may have even stronger sugar cravings, but after that period is over, you will find that sugar-filled food is not so appealing anymore. 

Weight loss

So, 10 days will not give you extraordinary results in terms of weight loss. However, what 10 days can help you accomplish is the loss of the last stubborn percentage of fat that stops you from looking completely ripped. Keeping up with a challenge on a long run can definitely benefit your scale result and help you achieve bigger weight loss. Don’t look for a quick fix - use this challenge to change your habits and raise the quality of your diet.

Decreased hunger 

Due to lower sugar and carbs consumption, you may notice your hunger levels decreased. Some evidence suggests low carb diets can have a beneficial effect on so-called hunger hormones like leptin and ghrelin, therefore causing a decrease of hunger levels while on the low carb diet. 

Restarting your diet regime

Have you noticed you are snacking more lately, or have more trouble resisting sugar cravings? This challenge can help you get back on track. Also, if you were on a low carb diet regime before, and stopped it for whatever reason, this is a great way to re-establish it.

Now when you know what you can expect from this, are you brave enough to try this challenge? 

Rules of the challenge

1. No sugar and processed foods

This is the obvious rule for this challenge. Processed food is often high in sugar and other unhealthy ingredients. Even if you are not following any low-carb challenge, you don’t want to consume such food. Instead of chocolate bars or candies, opt for some strawberries or nuts.

2. No snacks

Just because you are eating healthy snacks, it does not mean you can eat them as much as you’d like. Most of the time, we don’t snack because we are really hungry. We snack because we are bored, we just want to eat something or because we are dehydrated but don’t realize that. By snacking, we usually consume calories we don’t really need and risk getting into a caloric surplus. 

3. You still can eat some carbs

Saying this is ‘’no carb challenge’’ is wrong since you will be taking some amount of carbs. However, those carbs will be kept on minimum levels, and they will be coming from foods that are naturally low in carbs. Since cutting carbs does wonder to your body, you see why this is a good way of shedding that last layer of fat that hides your ripped abs.

Forbidden food:

1. Starchy vegetables - potato, sweet potato, carrot, grains (including quinoa), beets, parsnips...

2. Beans and legumes

3. Grains - rice, wheat, millet, quinoa…

4. Sugar and processed food - sodas, sweets, cookies, sugared coffee, candy...

5. Bread and pastries

6. Fruit - except blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries

7. Dairy products

8. Alcohol

Allowed food:

1. Non-starchy vegetables: spinach, lettuce, cucumber, kale, broccoli, zucchini…

2. Seafood, eggs, meat, and poultry

3. Avocado, blackberries, strawberries, and blueberries

4. Olive and coconut oil

5. Unsweetened teas and plant milk

6. Nuts

You can notice that most of the foods that are forbidden in this challenge are foods you need to avoid if you are trying to get ripped, so you get the way this works.

4. Watch out for the calorie intake

As Helahtline thoroughly explains - calories do matter. Some of the food listed as allowed is really high in calories  (e.g. nuts), so it’s important to keep track of how many calories you are eating, to avoid being in a caloric surplus, therefore gaining weight instead of losing it. Luckily, due to the previously mentioned effect of decreased hunger low carb diets have, you can expect to eat fewer calories on autopilot.

5. Drink a lot of water

Hydration is the most important factor in any low carb diet. As WebMD explains, when large amounts of ketones are produced, your body can become quickly dehydrated. It is recommended to consume at least 2 quarts (approximately 2 liters) of water a day, and during the summer heats consider increasing that amount even more to avoid dehydration. 

6. Keep it going after the challenge

If you finish those 10 days and then keep eating as if you did before, you will achieve nothing. Actually, you may even make things worse. If you feel like you need to compensate for all the carbs not eating during the previous 10 days, you may end up eating more carbs and sugar than you would during your regular diet.

So, keep it going. You don’t need to be so strict, but use the newly established eating habits to change your lifestyle and achieve long-term results. Instead of conducting a lot of small challenges or completely restricting the intake of certain food groups, rather focus on establishing healthy life habits. You can always continue following rules of this challenge, but make one day in a week a cheat day, where you can eat some food you miss the most.

Takeaway

10 days is just a beginning. This challenge is here to help you put your mind in the right place and start your journey towards a healthier lifestyle. You can reach unbelievable results if you put your mind to it. Madbarz is here to support you on your transformation journey that begins with this challenge. Madbarz Premium comes with Nutrition guide with 65+ healthy recipes, as well as workout plans tailored for your goals and needs. Everything you need to change your lifestyle completely.