Thank you Ann.

I learned the hard way when I was training and running marathons - rest days are just as important as training days. So when I urge people to get "obsessed" with HIIT sessions, that also means having the discipline to take a day off, or a recovery day.

And that can be hard because exercise can be addicting. That can be a good thing if done properly.

And indeed, it can be very hard to get refined sugar intake to zero. Just like salt, sugar sneaks its way into many things.

A few years ago I realized sugar was used in many tomato-based sauces used for pizza, spaghetti sauce, lasagna, and others. There are sugar free sauces, like Rao brand, but ya gotta read the labels.

My biggest culprit was Coca Cola. I love that stuff. But each can (12 oz.) contains 39 grams of sugar. Even the supposedly healthy (and tasty) Clif bars have 18 grams of sugar. I didn't completely abandon coke, but it's a treat now rather than a daily thing.

So diligence is key. Any reduction in sugar consumption is a good thing. In addition to weight gain, sugar also causes inflammation in the body through a rather complex process. I'm 70 now and have osteoarthritis. I don't need any more inflammation.....

Joe