Cali Sweden's Diary

[babliboobabu]

Its wonderful that you are getting fitter, Cali. A fitter, healthier you.

If I were you, I would not worry too much about the naughty things as you are burning too many calories. I'm sure it won't become a habit I too have cravings and it takes over your life almost doesn't it? I don't know about you, but it's like a constant nagging "noise" in the background! Actually, I think you have done well to give in a little to the cravings but not had a massive binge.

Food, by the way looks great. Fried fish. Yum. I've not had fish for a few days now...

 

[CaliSweden]

Yes, it really is like a nagging noise that keeps saying "MORE! NOW! SWEETS! MEATS!" All day I think about is sweets and meats, and that's not how I am normally. It only happens once a month, but my goodness my appetite complete goes crazy on me. My guy says he can always tell when it's coming, because of my food cravings. I usually always crave meats and sweets, I'm HUNGRY, and feel a bit like a sloth.

 

[babliboobabu]

As quoted from "How Hormones Affect Your Nutritional Needs" on How-To Help and Videos - For Dummies

Hormones affect your resting energy expenditure (REE) —the amount of energy (calories) you use when your body’s at rest. Men and women need different amounts of calories and different types of nutrients in their diets to maintain optimal health.

Your pituitary gland, a small structure in the center of your brain, stimulates your thyroid gland (which sits at the front of your throat) to secrete hormones that influence the rate at which your tissues burn nutrients to produce energy.

If you’re a woman, you know that your appetite rises and falls in tune with your menstrual cycle. In fact, this fluctuation parallels what’s happening to your (REE), which goes up just before or at the time of ovulation. Your appetite is highest when menstrual bleeding starts and then falls sharply. Yes, you really are hungrier (and need more energy) just before you get your period.

A scientific fact!

 

[babliboobabu]

You know, we've become like nuns don't you? It seems our cycles have started to synchronise together.

 

[CaliSweden]

Thank you Ashie That really explains a lot of how I'm feeling. It makes a lot of sense. It's good to know that it's a real scientific fact, and not just me being a little piggy pig

I think I notice the cravings a lot more now then I used to, because before I didn't think about it. I'd just go and eat what I was craving without even thinking about my bum. Now it's like "Nooooooo!" My bum will be HUGE! and it's not good for my diet, or it's not low GI or low GL! So I think that's what's happening now.

Earlier I got hungry after 1 hour of eating my healthy low GL snack, while I was scraping wall paper off. I got really dizzy then, and had to go and eat a piece of chocolate. Actually I just had two pieces of dark chocolate since I posted my daily food. I felt like I was going to become the Hulk so I had to give in.

 

[CaliSweden]

You know, we've become like nuns don't you? It seems our cycles have started to synchronise together.

I've noticed that too. It does seem like we're all suffering from the beast sydrome around the same times

Mine is always tricky, I never know when it's going to hit me. Sometimes I get signs upto two weeks in advance. It's always a guessing game for me.

 

[Plumfoodie]

I agree with Ashie, I wouldn't worry too much about a little off-plan snack as you are burning a lot of calories with all the exercise you're doing. Your dinner does sound super yummy, I really like the idea of the spelt batter for the fish.

The whole synchronised cycle thing can be a pain, one of my best friends and I usually get PMT at the same time and boy do you not want to be in the same room if we disagree about something! Like you Cali I crave a lot of meat at that time but have found it is not so bad if I take an iron supplement and I also take agnus castus tincture to balance my hormones (helps with PMT/cravings and also cramps and other unpleasant things). Who'd be a woman eh!

 

[CaliSweden]

Thank you ladies I am trying to limit my off plan cravings

 

[CaliSweden]

Finally I had a better yoga day. My legs still have some sore spots and bruises, but at least I was able to hold the hard poses for 15 breaths

I've been hungry all day, and craving bad foods. I had some naughty foods throughout the day. But didn't pig out on them like I normally would around this time. I finished up the salt and vinegar crisps finally. I had a few Dorito style chips, 1.5 spoonful of ice cream, I put it on a plate, to saviour each little bite I took from it to make it last. It took the craving away without me eating a bowlful of ice cream like I normally do when not dieting. I know it's bad, but I do give myself a pat on the back for at least controlling how much I allow myself to eat the bad stuff.

Breakfast: Oat porridge with fiber, raspberries, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, soy milk and agave syrup.

Snack: 1 piece of dark chocolate.

Lunch: Last night's leftover: Spelt battered Alaskan pollack, spinach and tomato salad, plenty of lemon, and quinoa/oat/barley/basmati rice mix.

Snack: Some salt and vinegar crisps.

Snack: Cottage cheese with pumpkin seeds and a peeled apple.

Snack: 1.5 spoonful of lingon berries and digestives vanila ice cream. Some Doritos type chips.

Dinner: Last night's leftover: Spelt battered Alaskan pollack, spinach and tomato salad, plenty of lemon, and quinoa/oat/barley/basmati rice mix. 1 piece 86% dark chocolate (it's ok, but I like 70% better).

Exercise: 28 minutes fast long walk, pushups, crunches, and 50 minutes yoga.

 

[Plumfoodie]

Well done on keeping a handle on your cravings! And good news on the yoga front, it sounded like you were missing being able to do so much.

 

[CaliSweden]

The cravings are annoying. But I'm learning that just a little bit of it takes it away. So it's good that I've learned to trick my hormones like that. I don't want a +3 lbs gain. Noo way.

I really was missing doing a proper session of yoga. It was not fun not being able to hold all my poses for the whole time. I remember when I was a kid you fall and pretty the next day your body didn't feel like anything happened. Nowadays I if I fall I feel it for a good week >_<

 

[Plumfoodie]

Heh, yes, the resilience of youth! I miss it too!

 

[CaliSweden]

The joys of sleeping in on a weekend. I had my alarm set for 08:00, but we didn't wake up until almost 10:00. Didn't have time to do yoga or walk since we had to get ready to leave to the town market/fair thing. Don't really know what to call it in English, but it's called a Marknad here.

Marknads are evil things I tell you. All sorts of handmade yummy things everywhere. Also only time you can get them is when Marknad comes to town. We went there to get my OH's favorite nougats, to me they're just flavoured sugarcubes since they're so sweet We picked up a kilo of his nougats, picked up some wild boar sausage, elk(moose) sausage, reindeer sausage and beer sausage. Also before we left my guy had to get a thing of Swiss almonds. Basically candied almonds, freshly roasted, and it's so good. I ate a good handful of them. Thank goodness it only comes to town once a year, or else imagine how big everyone in town's waistline would get.

I turned down pizza tonight. Yippie! I thought my guy was going to make dinner, and my guy thought I was going to make dinner. So I knew he was talking about me making homemade mac and cheese since I bought some shredded chedder cheese, ala Amercian style. The other day at the store we found cappelli pasta made from 55% whole grain spelt flour and 45% durum, it was one of those high fiber pastas. I made a baked mac and cheese(cappelli and cheese), and it was a success. It's really nice finding new ways to make our normal favorites into low GI favorites

Breakfast: Oat porridge with fiber, blackberries, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, milk and agave syrup.

Snack: At Marknad: Good handful of candied almonds, a slice of each of the sausages.

Lunch: GI burger: All beef patty, with spinach and pickles, with condiments, and quinoa, barley, oats and basmati rice mix.

Snack: Cottage cheese with pumpkin seeds and peeled apple. A deciliter of soy milk.

Dinner: 3/4 spanish style beef chorizo sausage, spinach with lots of lemon juice, and baked mac and cheese.

Snack: 2 pieces of dark chocolate. 3 candied almonds.

 

[Plumfoodie]

What a fun day! I love markets. In the nearest big town we get an international market a couple of times a year and that's great to wander around, lots of different foods etc. I think you were very restrained and made good choices!

Your food for the day looks great, I'm loving the idea of a healthier mac & cheese and the sausages sound delicious!

I didn't realise before yesterday that what are called elk in Sweden are what we call moose in the States. There was a BBC news article about one that got drunk on fermenting apples and stuck in a tree somewhere in Sweden. Heh! It made me think of some of my shenanigans when younger but I never got stuck in a tree. That I'm aware of.

 

[CaliSweden]

Ohhhh international market sounds fun! I want to go to one I can imagine all the evil yummy things there though. Yesterday I really wanted a chocolate covered banana, but I said no. It would have gone straight to my rear. It's amazing how many things I turn away now compared to before I didn't think too much about it.

It is interesting how we call them moose but in the UK they call them elk. Because elk in the states is something totally different. Oh wow the moose made news over there too!?! It was quite a hungry and drunk moose. It was amazing how it got itself stuck really well in the tree. Luckly the man saved her. I used to climb trees a lot when I was young too. Just like you I was lucky to not get stuck. Though now if I climbed a tree I would most likely get stuck >_<

 

[CaliSweden]

We had to go pick up more wallpaper glue today, so we took a trip into the small city. While we were there I ate at MAX and had a Delifresh Chicken burger, it was really good and light, with lots of veggies in it, and multigrain bread.

Also I've been keeping my cravings in check again today. Not as a bad because I'm sinning only a little, but I'm sure on weigh in day it'll show that I've been having not so low GI friendly things.

Breakfast: Oat porridge with fiber, strawberries, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, milk and agave syrup.

Snack: 8-10 pieces of candied almonds.

Lunch: Delifresh Chicken burger from MAX.

Snack: Some sausage slices. Later on after yoga a peeled apple with a teaspoon of peanut butter to spread on the apple.

Dinner: Grilled pork, leftover homemade low GI mac and cheese, spinach and cucumber salad with lots of lemon.

Snack: 2 spoonfuls of lingon and digestive ice cream. 2 pieces dark chocolate.

Exercise: Pushups, crunches, and 60 minutes of yoga.

 

[babliboobabu]

There was a BBC news article about one that got drunk on fermenting apples and stuck in a tree somewhere in Sweden.at are called elk in Sweden are what we call mo Heh! It made me think of some of my shenanigans when younger but I never got stuck in a tree. That I'm aware of.

LOL, I bet you have some tales to tell.

 

[babliboobabu]

Well done Cali on showing restraint and indulging ever so slightly in your cravings Food sounds delicious and I too like the idea of a healthier macaroni cheese. Yum.

We have German market here for most of December. It's a lovely atmosphere but mega expensive so I end up just doing loads of browsing and soaking up the pre-Christmas goodwill in the air.

 

[CaliSweden]

The German market sounds really nice. Makes me think of the Christmas market in the small city here, but I've never been. Maybe this year I can go check it out

 

[Plumfoodie]

LOL, I bet you have some tales to tell.

Not voluntarily! LOL!