Periods & food. How do you stay in control?

mrsbibz12

Hi all,

I have been over weight, for about 4 years since I went smokefree. I hate every bit of it!! I want and need to be health. I suffered from epilepsy from a child and curvature of the spine came to me 7 years ago. My question is How do I keep in control when I have periods? I have pains all the time.

pastryari

Willpower.

When you want it badly enough, you'll do what's necessary to achieve it.

michellekicks

I refuse to let my uterus be the boss of me.

tegalicious

I refuse to let my uterus be the boss of me.

This! Unless you have a serious condition such as pmdd, you really kind of just need to suck it up buttercup and not let being on your period consume your willpower and determination to lose weight. Exercise can sometimes help with pain too. And bonus! If you exercise you get to eat a little bit more!

PikaKnight

Hi all,

I have been over weight, for about 4 years since I went smokefree. I hate every bit of it!! I want and need to be health. I suffered from epilepsy from a child and curvature of the spine came to me 7 years ago. My question is How do I keep in control when I have periods? I have pains all the time.

I'm unsure about what the epilepsy and spine issues have to do with your period. Are you saying that you are on medications for these that make your period worse? Or is your period worsened because of these conditions in which it makes it harder to control your intake?

vjohn04

Sometimes I keep it in check, and sometimes I don't. This month I didn't..... oops.

Hauntinglyfit

Well when i get my period, i think to myself:

Am i really extra hungry or just extra miserable and angry at the world and my genitals? If i decide that i am really hungry, I eat.
If not, i make my boyfriend's life hell for a couple of days.

Just figure out what your uterus really needs.

kittykat1994

This sounds a bit odd but I'm awful with chocolate.

Instead of eating a big bar of normal Cadbury's chocolate, I buy the bubbly stuff. I get the same feeling of eating a load of chocolate, but for 420 cals instead of 800.

jeneferphillips89

Well when i get my period, i think to myself:

Am i really extra hungry or just extra miserable and angry at the world and my genitals? If i decide that i am really hungry, I eat.
If not, i make my boyfriend's life hell for a couple of days.

Just figure out what your uterus really needs.

Oh my gosh, I love it! Don't let your body/mind control you, YOU control it (when it comes to things you can control that is). A craving is a craving, a want.....not a need. Decide if it is worth it to you and then act on your choice :-)

CupcakeGangsta

I just remind myself of my goals and calories. I always know I get extra hungry around that time so I don't buy the junk and snack on healthier choices. You can eat as much plant based foods as you want without feeling like a fatty following your period. - I'm not trying to sound mean because it's true. You already feel bloated and uncomfortable and the last thing you want is feeling like you gained more weight. I sometimes will drink more water and/or caffeine free tea to curb the hunger cravings. I eat more foods containing iron since I'm losing iron. This helps give me more energy and feel less sluggish. But sometimes I do give in and indulge but I always work those calories off. So basically you can eat whatever you want if you are willing to put in the work to burn it off.

Working out does help with the pain and cramps if that is a problem. Birth control can help reduce heavy periods if that is an issue too. But some birth controls also increase your appetite. So if you go that route you may have to try a few different brands until you find one you are comfortable with.

jenjoyced74

I am looking for good snacks to munch on just daily.
however when i'm getting close to that time of month, I try to work out more so I can eat more if I need too. been doing this for two weeks and i'm down 7lbs. I am feeling the munchies pretty bad today! lol

drinkthe8

I was pretty much the same way at first. When that time of the month came around I pretty much just wanted everything sweet and salty, but I found a chart online that when you crave a food your body actually wants/needs something else so whenever I wanted chocolate I'd eat something else (That was way healthier) and I'd give myself a big glass of water to go with it... It worked wonders and now I don't worry about my period, I recommend working out on your period---It really helps ease cramps in my opinion

sillyvalentine

I also say Willpower.

Mind over matter. If you don't mind, it don't matter.

Cookie_4

Well when i get my period, i think to myself:

Am i really extra hungry or just extra miserable and angry at the world and my genitals? If i decide that i am really hungry, I eat.
If not, i make my boyfriend's life hell for a couple of days.

Just figure out what your uterus really needs.

HAHA!!! Great stuff but so true. I'm struggling w my woman parts and cravings today, too. I'd say keep your goals in mind and WHY you want to attain those goals help you to put that bag of chips down. I'm not gonna lie, I had half a slice of pizza right after I finished my lunch but I stopped myself when thinking how long it's going to take me it burn those calories off at the gym.

Oh! Warm tea with lemon also helps the cravings for me!

PatheticNoetic

I'm on Mirena. I don't get them anymore.

beachcalsix

ugh I know where you're coming from. The cravings suck, just had mine last week and weighed myself. Only lost 1lb grr but better then nothing. The weird thing is I didn't overeat and I exercised because it helped my cramps but I guess bloating does that sometimes... idk. Anyways I loved reading this thread and getting lots of tips for next time.
Whenever I get mine I work out as early as possible in the day so it's over with and then I can enjoy my misery for the rest of the day lol.

hesn92

You just have to have willpower. if you want to lose weight/maintain weight bad enough, you will do what it takes.

It was hard for me to not eat sweets and other unhealthy things all the time until I got really insecure about the way my body looked. Every time I looked at myself naked in the mirror it reminded me of why I wanted to lose weight in the first place. That's what keeps me in line.

Braz76

Last year I got my new best friend Mirena inserted, since then I still get crazy mood swings and still can eat everything in the house those certain days. Alternating between sweet to savoury. I like to give in a little with my preferred cravings. This is not a pass to go crazy. I like to go with the Australian campaign of ‘Swap it, Don’t stop it’. So instead of that three scoops of ice-cream I allow one decent size one. I eat it slowly and I enjoy every bite.

suncluster

I will be testing all your tips for the next 4 days.
My body seems to flush everything out during my period - front and backside so I think that actually could be a benefit.

I am sure I will have some popcorn this week too.
More worried about lethargy than anything else

Rogiefreida

In regards to control food intake and food cravings, I make sure I have meals prepped and ready to go at all times so I have no excuses to reach for something unhealthy and I eat small meals every 3-4 hours (make sure to get lots of protein) to keep blood sugar levels well, level. I didn't believe it could work, but I have been eating like this for 6 weeks now and I have had ZERO cravings for sugar for the first time ever. Even through my PMS week last week.

I get really irritable when I'm PMSing, so I head to the gym and punish the weights with my anger. It pretty much saves everyone around me.

Willpower does have something to with it, but that wasn't enough for me until I put a plan in place that I knew I couldn't weasel out of (this applies to weight loss in general, but PMS too).

suncluster

That is a real good point. My blood sugar levels are crazy shifty during my TOM. That does not help with the cravings. Great idea.

Mitzigan94

Two weeks before my period. I up my calories by 200 or just eat at maintenance mode while exercising.

I just breathe you know. That time of the month makes me feel so darn fat. LOL

2013sk

Oh god periods!!

I had mine last week just before my friends party and I caved in big time - Just couldn't stay away from the chocolate!!

Maybe try and make it fit into your calories - Stock up on healthy veg and fruit - But that just doesn't cut it for me when its TOM.... I crave carbs and chocs big time - Its 4/5 days of eating rubbish and trying to get to the gym to make me feel better by sweating it out!

jd1208

Do you have more hunger pains or just cramps on period. If it's cramps then moving around more will help, also maybe avoid dairy and naughty food. They have been known to exasperate period pains. If it's hunger pains then eat, if you can't eat when you're hungry then that's just silly.

feliscatus84

What I try to do is drink a lot of water throughout the day and make sure to have my healthy snacks in between meals (apple with peanut butter, nutrition bar, etc). This is important because if you start feeling hungry that will be the start of the downfall.

RideRunRepeat

Sometimes it's not all about will power (although I definitely agree that plays a huge role!!!)

If you are suffering from a lot of cramps that could mean that you have inflammation in your body. Taking out processed foods (especially sugar), foods that you are sensitive to (for me that's tomatoes, eggs, potatoes), foods that you are allergic to (for me gluten) or sometimes things like foods in nightshade family can greatly decrease cramping because your body is no longer so inflamed. Usually these foods have to be completely taken out at least two weeks before your period to feel the positive effects. I'm certainly not a doctor...just someone who has become a research nut after feeling miserable for so much of my life. Trial and error and this is one of the things that was a clear success for me nearly eliminating my previously **extremely** painful cramping.

Exercising definitely helps!! The best thing for me to do when I start cramping is go for a run...at first I feel like I *do not* want to...but after a bit the cramping subsides and I feel soo much better!

Also, like one of the other posters said if you are craving one thing then it could mean that your body is deficient in some vital nutrients! Like dark chocolate is often a sign of a magnesium deficiency (magnesium will also *really* help with muscle aches and bloating issues). A craving for french fries could mean that you could need some healthy fats like coconut or avocado.

Again, these aren't for sure things but I've learned to really *start* listening to the underlying cries of my body. Obviously NOT meaning if I'm craving a brownie I eat it...but I try to figure out *why* I want it so desperately and exchange it for something similar but soooo much more healthy!! Like brownies automatically make me think of steamed broccoli...don't ask me why but that stuff is like gold on a plate when I'm nearing my TOM.

Anyway, keep up the good work! Our bodies are constantly healing us and if we just put it in the right environment you'd be amazed how much it will do to help us feel and look amazing!!

Blokeypoo

I'm afraid I tough it out.

I have been a nurse for nearly 30yrs and very few people have blood results which back up nutritional deficiencies. Of course there ARE some but they are the exception, most of us are pretty well nourished and just fancy naughty stuff because we like it and like the freedom to have it.

I think, when the going gets tough, we often give ourselves permission to do stuff or convince ourselves that we NEED it because it's what we want to hear. Or we hand responsibility to someone else who we know will say "just do it" etc.

I make sure my daily diet has choccie or whatever in it so I don't miss it and my mantra is "only at weekends" when I eat freely and did, albiet less often, even before I hit maintenance.

ETA - however, it's not the end of the world so if you crack, move on! )

sarahjuneblanke

lots of water, if your craving chocolate, have it, but it moderation, if your craving salty or meaty, have but make it yourself in a healthy version, your body knows what you need and when you are craving something you will crave it from a source you are used to getting it from. so the good way to counter that is to find a healthy food that has the same nutrient your body is craving,
for example;
every couple weeks i will really crave fatty fast food.I have been off of fast food for a couple years now. what i figured out is that i was craving either fat or meat. instead i made some fresh guacamole from avocadoes and soon instead of craving fast food when my body needed healthy fats i started craving avocadoes

see? =D

twhaley1990

Sometimes I'm not hungry on my period, sometimes I'm super hungry on my period. When it was the latter, then my goal was just to eat under maintenance. I wasn't on a time crunch to lose weight, so one week out of four maintaining did not seem like a big deal (usually I'd just eat around maintenance two of the days and be able to stay in my deficit the remainder of the cycle, though). And I could have been meticulous that entire month on reaching my deficit for 2 lbs a week and lose only about half a lb a week and then the day my period ends lose up to 3 lbs. But is just my body

Doc_V

Going through that right now. I crave chocolate and spicy and creamy and everything that's bad for me this time of the month.

Pre-logging the junk and healthier versions of what I'm craving helps so much. Today was a crazy stressful day so KNEW I would be eating some junk. Breakfast was McDonalds, but I made it the egg white muffin thing. Lunch I was home so I made a huge salad with lots of spicy peppers and vinegar, lean ham, olives, and cottage cheese. Tasted like the bad for me italian hoagie I was craving, but seriously low cal.

Aaaand I just scarfed a chocolate iced donut and five Takis for a snack (only five- the rest are living in my car so I have to go down two flights of stairs and across the street to get to them).

Dinner will be a spicy and creamy chicken in the crockpot with loads of veggies, at only about 200 cal per serving. It will fill me up and satisfy some cravings while still being in my budget. Should have enough left over for a dark chocolate bar too.

Balanced? Eh, I'll be high in fat and sodium today. But to me, to stay on track and not just say "eff it"...totally worth the splurging.

VCYoga

This month Aunt Flow came to visit and turned me into a chocolate craving nut case who cried while watching the Thor movie and forgot why she married her husband for one day.

I exercised as much as I could. It helps with cramps and if you DO need to give in to a small chocolate craving you make up for it with the exercise.

Its all in moderation.