Weekend Splurging & Low Carb Question

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-04-2003
Weekend Splurging & Low Carb Question
12
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 1:16pm

Well, I have just got to do something to control my TOM urges because I ate like an absolute pig.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 1:30pm
Here is what I normally eat on a given day:

Breakfast: Mypolex lite protein shake or a breakstone cottage cheese snack size (7 am)

Snack: handful of raw almonds (these don’t have any salt) (between 9 and 10 am)

Lunch: Large salad with low fat cheese, chicken/ham/steak on top (depending on my mood) Lite salad dressing, tomatoes and cukes or any other veggies on the salad and usually a sugar free jello (noon)

Snack: two lite string cheeses or a handful of almonds or sometimes cottage cheese

Dinner: Steak/Chicken/Pork whatever I am in the mood for, green beans/salad some type of vegetable other than starchy veggies (like peas, corn, squash) (6 pm)

Snack: I don’t usually eat after dinner but if I am hungry I will make a ricotta dessert from the South Beach diet book which is very satisfying and very tasty.

As you can see, mostly veggies and proteins in my diet, once a week I’ll have whole wheat pasta or some other carb, I also will have some fruit here and there as well. I don’t drink fruit juices however as they are loaded with sugar.

Also on the weekends at least one day I eat whatever I want and don’t worry about it, I learned this from Body for Life to have one “free” day to not have to worry about it. When I first started I ate everything under the sun bad for me, but then you just wean back on that because you don’t crave it as much.

Also, during the week, that is an average menu I will eat, but if I want chocolate say because I am pmsing, or someone brought in cake, I will have it. I will have a small amount and if I go over my calories for the day so be it, I don’t beat myself up anymore, its helped a lot not to beat myself up for little slips here and there.

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-26-2004
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 1:56pm
I found a piece in my new book about eating healthy and it may help you to understand why you are eating junk at TOM time. So here goes, hope it helps!!

High levels of extrogen may be linked with the prementrual carb cravings.

Women also may crave carbs because they are hungrier. Before Tom a woman's metabolic rate may increase by 100 to 500 cals. That addition can be the equivalent of another meal. But when we feel bloated and fat from the premenstrual water weight gain most women go on a reducing diet. The result is double deprivation. We have a physiological need for extra calories just when we feel bloated and want to lose weight and subcontiously eat less.

The book suggests to give ourselves permission to eat up to 500 additional wholesome calories the week before TOM. Like hot cocoa and raisins as a snack or toast and jam. Also if you let yourself blow your healthy eating but limit it to no more than 500 cals. it may be more manageable.

So see Miranda, we are all normal after all. Men are crazy but we women are normal, LOL. When we crave chocolate there is a reason for it. It is not all in our heads. It is hard to ignor these cravings. I struggle for about a full week with these cravings, but it helped to have a caloric limit to the cravings. If I counted the calories in a chocolate bar or chips and stopped at 500 I felt better about the cheating.

Hope that helps, KIM

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-06-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 2:23pm
Miranda - don't be too hard on yourself. We all have those days. I'm trying to follow the zone diet. It was hard at first b/c I love breads, pastas etc. But, I'm getting used to trying to get more of my carbs from veggies and fruits. My portions at meals seem smaller than what I'm used to, but I'm pretty satisfied. I've had the most success on days where I planned out what I'm going to eat as opposed to coming home from work hungry and trying to figure out what's for dinner and stuffing my face with the first thing in the cabinet that I can reach. The weight's not coming off quickly, but sometimes I eat more than what the diet recommends and also I think I'm building some muscle. I noticed when I eat all carbs like candy or even dry cereal, it makes me want to eat more. Adding the protein and a small amount of fat to each meal and snack is helping me feel satisfied.

Breakfast: 2 eggs, 1 1/2 cups of frozen mexican veggies with two tbs salsa, 2 macadamia nuts.

lunch: 3 oz protein, 2 slices light bread, a little mayo, 1 cup of strawberries

snack: 1/2 C cottage cheese, 6oz diced peaches in light syrup, 2 macadamia nuts

Dinner: 3 oz protein, 1/2 c fresh baby spinach, 3 grape tomatoes, 6 stalks asparagus, a little olive oil and vinegar, 5 olives

snack: 1 oz cheese, 1/2 apple, 1 tsp natural peanut butter

I used to just eat low fat and try unsuccessfully to increase fiber. I'm amazed that I can eat nuts and olive oil and lose weight. I think that small amount of "good" fat is helping my skin too. The Zone counts nuts as fat, not protein, so the amounts to eat are not large. If I remember correctly, you don't do dairy. You can try protein powder, lunchmeat, tuna, smoked salmon, turkey burgers, tofu, chicken etc. My husband was laughing at me the other day b/c I had oatmeal for breakfast and when I finished that I ate two small meatballs to get the protein in.

GL

Debbie




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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-02-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 2:52pm
hmmmmmmm.....well Miranda I have been following a low carb lifestyle for over a year now, and I believe me, I have days that I fall off the wagon. Right before my period I am ravenous and I really go nutso....but that is one or two cheat days a month, not a week so it doesn't really effect my weight. You may want to do a really clean induction to cut your cravings for carbs. One or two weeks of being really strict may put you in a better place so that you don't have days of being out of control. Having a cheat day can be pretty dangerous because it can start the ball rolling so that you are cheating the whole week. plus there are different definitions of cheating...to me cheating means I had a piece of white bread or a slice of cake, for others it means the whole loaf of bread or half a cake.....

try not to be so hard on yourself. You had some bad days , now its time to get back on track. You can do this! If I can anyone can.

Jazzdiva

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 4:53pm

Oh Miranda- so sorry you feel you had a dreadful weekend- all because of TOM! Gulit is an awful thing, isn't it? But you know that you really don't have too much to be guily about...you have had some great weeks of eating and working out recently, and I really think what Kim posted (from the book, or wherever she read it) was SPOT ON! I think we all know that TOM wreaks havoc on us at times (and not

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 9:29pm
Miranda,

First, according to Atkins, ya gotta do the fat! In fact, if you notice, high fat products (such as cream cheese and cottage cheese) have fewer carbs than the same ones that are low fat or fat free. Check it out next time you are at the grocery store. I know this is totally counterintuitive to what we've learned since the 80's but it works! I eat avocadoes, bacon, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, almonds, and the fat is what is filling about these foods. I wouldn't suggest trying to do low carb and low fat at the same time. I'm sure there are many different opinions out there, but this is what I have learned, at least from Atkins. And yes, my hair and skin like the extra fat!

Second, I'm right there w/you with those TOM urges. Only I go from salt cravings to sweet cravings then back to salt cravings. So I get totally bloated up. Have you heard of the herb Dong Quai? It is basically a woman's ginseng. The more common ginseng out there is male ginseng, which women take w/out realizing. Dong Quai will really regulate your body, and will help w/pms and cramps. My cravings tend to be less severe when I take it. My friend is an accupuncturist and automatially prescibes it to all of her female patients.

A sample menu for me on a normal day that is not too crazy at work:

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs or a soy protein shake

Lunch: salad w/ranch dressing

Snack: almonds or 2 T. peanut butter

extra snack: low carb "candy bar"

Dinner: Chicken or fish or tofu w/vegetables

Dessert: Cream cheese w/splenda and cinnamon\

Keep in mind that I'm not this good 100% of the time! Hopefully my new job will lead to less work stress so I don't fall back on food as much. Also, you have to kind of snack a lot w/low carb or you'll get so hungry that your 1st response is to go for the carbs.

:o) Sylvia

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-04-2003
Tue, 04-27-2004 - 11:39am

Ladies, you are awesome!!!!

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-12-2004
Thu, 04-29-2004 - 9:50am
Don't be so hard on yourself. i know when it's that time i just count out eating properly. Here is my sample menu:

breakfast: low carb tortilla, scrambled hot sausage, eggs, cheese, mushrooms, bell peppers, sour cream and a little salsa

snack: low carb smoothie

lunch: salad (i try to go to different restaurants to get a little variety. i tried the Martha's Vineyard salad from Arby's yesterday that was pretty good)

snack: sugar free Jell-o

dinner: last night and tonight we are eating chicken salad inside a low carb tortilla. but if i usually don't get home until 6 and i am in bed by 9 so i just drink a low carb shake on the way home.

desert: strawberries dipped in sugar free chocolate. :)

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-04-2003
Thu, 04-29-2004 - 11:23am

Thanks everyone!!!!

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 04-30-2004 - 1:26am
ht cook artichokes: you can steam them for about 45 minutes the old fashioned way or microwave them...I think it's like 4 or 5 minutes. You can tell they are done if the leaves pull off easily. enjoy!!

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