Successful Weight Loss Tips: Monthly Cycles, Carbs, Cravings and Crankiness!

Whether you are working with a personal trainer, an online weight loss program or trying to navigate your own way through the mounds of fitness and weight loss information available, it’s important to understand that when you have your monthly cycle there’s alot more going on that you need to work with. Flow with it instead of forcing your way through it. Successful weight loss tips are worth your weight in gold, and weight loss tips to help you get through your monthly cycle successfully are worth even more!

You’re doing fairly well with your eating and your exercise , happy with your progress and WHAMMMM-O … Thank you Mother Nature, you are delivered your monthly gift and along with it low energy, serious mood swings and an appetite that feels like you could eat a horse. Great. Now what?

Carbs: It’s not your imagination , your body IS craving more carbs just before and during your cycle due to hormonal changes. Instead of fighting them and then grabbing the closest bag of Dorito’s, plan for them and choose healthy but flavourful complex carbs to help reduce some of these cravings such as: brown rice, whole wheat WASA bread, brown rice bread, quinoa and oatmeal.

Cravings: Where do we even start? Typically during our cycles we crave chocolate, fats and salt as well as carbs. In a nutshell, we crave flavour and satiety. So again, don’t fight it – flow with it and ensure you have the best possible options available.

70% dark chocolate – a little piece goes a long way;
Unsalted nuts, sesame oil and Bragg’s Liquid Soy in your salad or on your stir-fry;
Water and herbal tea – keep your fluids up to help keep your bloating and water retention to a dull roar;
Frozen fruit or no-sugar fruit jams are good options to help fight sweet cravings; and,
Hot air popcorn helps with the crunch factor. It can be seasoned with Bragg’s for abit of salty flavour.
Here are three flavourful and delicious meal ideas to help with your cravings while not sabotaging your weight loss success:

Greek yogurt (my favourite is Libery 0% Orange Mango), Go Lean Crunch cereal and fresh blueberries;
Oatmeal, E.D. Smith sugar-free syrup and a couple teaspoons almond butter; and,
Craving-Killing Cookies!!! Quick, easy & satisfying recipe below.
Crankiness: Low energy and mood swings are just part of the cycle. Successful weight loss doesn’t have to end there. Recognize that you may need to take a nap or two, treat yourself to a bath or massage and show yourself that you care! EXERCISE helps both energy levels and crabby moods. I always tell my clients, “Energy breeds energy!” If you don’t feel up to a high-intensity workout then do a moderate one. Get some fresh air, and simply M-O-V-E!

Craving-Killing Cookies*

1 large egg

1-1/2 cups natural peanut butter (I try to get away with 1 cup)

1-1/2 scoops vanilla, chocolate or unflavoured protein powder (I use my Visalus brand as I know the quality is there)

1/2 cup Xylo-Sweet or raw cane sugar (you may only need 1/4 cup if using a sweetened protein powder)

1/2 cup almond meal (I use ground flax seeds)

1 tsp baking soda or baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, lightly beat egg, add remaining ingredients and mix well.

Form into little balls with a spoon or your hands and place on lightly greased baking sheet.

Bake for 12 minutes. Balls will puff up and lightly brown. Cool for a few minutes before eating.

Makes 16-20 cookies.

Per cookie: 100 cal, 6g fat, 7g carbs, and 5g protein.

Try a couple cookies with a nice cup of hot tea – amazing!

*Original recipe printed in Oxygen magazine, November 2010.