Ladies: Mother Nature Demands Massive Amounts of Chocolate

kw0205

I just got some of the Hershey's Simple Pleasures and 2 pieces has 60 calories and it just the right amount to make the world a brighter place!

It's true - I keep a bag at the house in a drawer that is just mine ... :-)

mycrobemini

I went to a chocolate tasting class a couple months ago and found the answer (for me at least). The craving is chemical, and you aren't going to satisfy that chemical need with anything under 70% cocoa. It can be cheap or expensive (unless you're a chocolate snob), but as long as it is 70% or higher, one small serving should fix the craving. I've found I have to give it a few minutes...i.e., eat a square and consciously wait 5 minutes...and the craving is gone!

I really like Ghirardelli's dark stuff, and another tasty one I found is the Green & Black Organic 85% dark chocolate (they sell it at Whole Foods).

Subowski

I haven't had a legit monthly visit for 3 years now either (Mirena IUD), but I do get occasional cravings...tonight I felt dizzy and out of sorts, so i caved and ate a load of Cadbury's chocolate buttons.

I now have an oesophageal spasm threatening, but I don't feel dizzy or crabby any more. )

loril13

Early onset menopause at least 5 years ago took away the visits. But I still get chocolate cravings. I just give in. A piece or two of candy will usually fit into my calorie goal. Or if I know I will be doing something extravegant (like going to the Chocolate Bar) I'll go for a longer run, or do a Zumba video, to burn off extra calories.

kirstinlee

This is something I always keep in my freezer, time of the month or not. I swear by it:

Take a banana, slice it up, and put it in the freezer.
When frozen solid (about two hours), put the slices in a blender or food processor along with unsweetened cocoa powder.
Blend until smooth.
Enjoy your chocolate soft serve! :happy:

Something magical happens to bananas when you freeze them and then pulverize them that makes them the consistency of ice cream. Not sure what it is, but I'm not complaining! And if you eat the whole container, all you've eaten is a banana and pure cocoa. Bananas even help with cramping because of their potassium... it's a total win-win situation.
You can even add healthy add ins: all natural peanut butter, strawberries or cherries, dark chocolate chips, ground flaxseed... anything goes.

SanteMulberry

When that lovely time rolls around each month when all you want to do is curl up in the fetal position and fill every inch of your being with chocolate, what do you do? Give in? Eat just a little? Or refuse and force everyone around you to deal with your bitterness of being a woman and suffering from hormone overload and cocoa deficiency (I swear that's a real thing)?

Me, I just enjoyed the crap out of a Mr. Big and am plotting a plate full of raw veggies for dinner tonight. However, I'm not sore about this at all. I actually LIKE a plate of raw veggies for dinner sometimes

Eat low sugar dark chocolate - won't mess too much with your blood glucose and mood, packed with minerals. Most commercial chocolate is way more sugar than cocoa, akin to self medicating with 'legal highs'.

And take a tough look at your diet all month round, are you getting enough/ a balance of all the minerals, plenty of fibre, essential fatty acids especially long chain omega-3s? There really is plenty that can be done for hormonal fluctuations and PMS with consistently good nutrition.

As it turns out, chocolate is really rather good for you. There are substances in it that help your body to repair damaged DNA.
The recommended "dose" is one ounce per day. I make my own very healthy chocolate from unsweetened baker's chocolate. Take 4 oz. of baker's chocolate and melt it in a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler, you can make one from putting a pyrex glass bowl atop a smallish pan of boiling water (just make sure that you don't get ANY water in your chocolate or it will turn "chalky"). When the chocolate is melted, stir in 1 tsp of vanilla (real vanilla tastes best) and 2 rounded tablespoons of "dextrose" (dextrose is the industry name for pure glucose--it is also sometimes called "corn sugar"---not to be confused with High Fructose Corn Syrup). A one ounce piece is about 100 calories and is very satisfying because you use non-addictive glucose instead of the very addictive sucrose (table sugar) as the sweetener. Most of the calories (about 80) come from the chocolate itself and not from the glucose. Glucose does not give you the metabolic hit that sucrose (which is 50% fructose) does. Our bodies do not deal well with a large quantity of fructose. On the other hand, the body knows well what to do with glucose and easily converts it into energy. As long as one doesn't eat a lot of it, it will do little to raise blood sugar precipitously. Eating fructose is much more problematic. Some experts say that we should limit our fructose consumption to 25 grams or less per day (the amount in a couple of pieces of low fructose fruit and some vegetables like carrots and tomatoes). Eating table sugar puts us way over that level. As an example, a normal piece of carrot cake will give you about 130 grams of sucrose (of which 75 grams is fructose). By the way, a piece of "Carrot Cake A La Mode" from The Keg Restaurant will load you with 260 grams of sucrose (of which 130 grams would be fructose). That's 1.25 CUPS of sugar and a whopping 2,245 calories! Sucrose is "The Fat Switch" because of its fructose content.

This chocolate tends to be on the bitter side and is something of an acquired taste.

SanteMulberry

I haven't had a legit monthly visit for 3 years now either (Mirena IUD), but I do get occasional cravings...tonight I felt dizzy and out of sorts, so i caved and ate a load of Cadbury's chocolate buttons.

I now have an oesophageal spasm threatening, but I don't feel dizzy or crabby any more. )

I have eliminated my esophageal reflux by cutting my carbohydrate intake to 100-200 grams per day and cutting out sugar altogether. I used to have terrible spasms.

llama_sammich

They say if you are craving chocolate your body wants the nutrients found in almonds. I personally grab the nutella or a can of chocolate frosting plus milk straight from the jug...NO SHAME!

But it kind of works out because the more you move the less the cramping tends to hurt (with me at least) so staying active during that hellish week is motivation for less pain (and more chocolate)

I thoroughly enjoy this. You're my new hero

pikachuFL

I used to hate getting my period when I was trying to lose weight because I knew I would have minimal weight loss that week due to water retention. However, I discovered that if you can fight the cravings and not give in, you can lose a huge amount of weight the following week. As for chocolate, I used to budget a small amount of chocolate either once a week or every few days to keep the need from building up and overwhelming me.

I had to get a hysterectomy last year for health reasons so now I don't have to deal with that mess. Thank goodness! This is my first diet since my surgery so I'm hoping this time I'll be able to reach my goal without those issues to deal with.