Any tips for hormonal ravenousness??

bonnieUK · Post by **bonnieUK** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 10:55 am

Hi peeps

I'll try not to go into too much detail here

, but one week each month I get struck by a severe attack of insatiable, 24 hour ravenousness (I don't just mean feeling a bit peckish, this is more like every cell in my body demanding more calories 24/7). Surprisingly this month it hasn't made me fall off the No S wagon, but I have generally eaten much larger meals, and included more calorie dense foods such as oils, nuts, coconut (dried, creamed, oil you name it), nut & seed butters etc. In an attempt to refrain from snacking and eating seconds (luckily at this time I donâ€™t crave sugar on top of everything else!).

My question is, when this happens, should I just go with it, eat bigger, fattier meals and give in to my bodyâ€™s craving for more calories (without beaking the S rules of course) or should I be trying to retrain my body not to get these week long attacks of perma-munchies in the first place? Iâ€™ve had this issue since the age of 13 though, so Iâ€™m not expecting it to go away any time soon!

I know itâ€™s only one week a month, but I worry this week long calorie fest undoes the good work of the previous weeks.

Thanks

silver · Post by **silver** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 3:16 pm

i have had the same problem from the day one 16 years ago. it was very difficult . the only recipe i have is: i carry a bottle of water with me at all times. keep drinking constantly. and i keep my mouth occupied that way. it doesn't work 100%. it's about 70%, which is quite good, i think. the only problem is that you have to stay near a bathroom. i discovered it about 7 years ago. since then i didn't manage to loose weight that way but i managed not to put on anymore.

hope it works for you too

bonnieUK · Post by **bonnieUK** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 3:34 pm

Thanks for the tip

I'll try it. I do drink a lot of water, but could always fit in some more. I also get a lot of water retention during what I like to call "crazy week"

, so I guess I should be drinking lots of water anyway.

silver · Post by **silver** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 4:13 pm

i also get this water retention. that just a few more days near the bathroom

. and before my period i go through a few days of constipation and the water also helps that.

just don't forget to literally CARRY that bottle. try not to put it down unless you really have to. if there is something in your hand, you can't hold a chocolate bar. and if you feel like putting something in your mouth, that bottle is just too handy. i can't explain why ice-cream craving can be satisfied by water but more than 3 out of four times it can. in my case, anyway.

kccc · Post by **kccc** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 12:52 am

I also think that sticking to meals but making them bigger - as you're doing - is a good strategy.

I've sometimes found that extra protein at meals makes a difference too.

xJocelynx87 · Post by **xJocelynx87** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:39 am

Sorry people,
but increasing meal size will do NOTHING for those chocolate cravings!
Sigh...unfortunately...

bonnieUK · Post by **bonnieUK** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 9:41 am

silver wrote:i also get this water retention. that just a few more days near the bathroom . and before my period i go through a few days of constipation and the water also helps that.

I sometimes get a variety of digestive upsets on my PMS days, I saw an accupuncturist a while back for that and he said it has to do with iron levels being low on these days (before you even start bleeding apparently), meaning the digestive system has less energy to function well. I found taking an iron supplement just on these days helps. (I take Spa-tone, it's the most digestion friendly iron supplement I've found).