Monday, August 23, 2010

Cravings and Appetite

So, a couple observations I've noticed this week. Well, today really....

The first is that despite all the advice out there that says to eat protein for breakfast because cereal doesn't sustain you and you're hungrier quicker, I say poo. I decided to test it.

After finishing yoga yesterday at 9:30am, I had a great breakfast of an egg, smoked salmon and reduced fat cream cheese bagel-type thing, with a banana and an apple. It was yummy, but I was ravenous by 11:30.

Today, I finished yoga at 9am and had a bowl of Special K with strawberries, blueberries and a banana. I felt full after I ate it and I wasn't hungry again until 1:30pm. And to be honest, that has been pretty consistent but I was doing the protein thing just because I thought I should. Maybe it's Special K in particular? I'll test that in the coming weeks with other "healthy" cereals.

Then, I've noticed over the last few days that lunch needs to be a pretty good-sized meal for me. If I don't feel full after lunch, I have a tendency to want to snack all afternoon. And when I have lots of yummy fruit to eat, that's fine....but sometimes you run a little low or just want something different.

And lastly, I had chocolate today for the first time in about a week. And to be honest, it's crossed my mind a couple times but I haven't had a serious craving for it, so I just haven't eaten it. But today I had 2 fingers of a Kit-Kat bar (I split it with Jim) even though I wasn't feeling the need for chocolate per se; and I shouldn't have because now I want more chocolate. As soon as I finished it, I could feel myself going, 'more! more!' I ate an apple instead, but I still wanted chocolate afterward. I felt a bit like I had succumbed to an addiction, fallen off the wagon, or given in to stupid temptation. So yeah, I think I'll save chocolate for the really desperate craving times and not tempt myself when I'm doing pretty good at other times.

What have I learned from this? That you have to do what works for you...and you have to be willing to test yourself to find out what actually does work. So far, my motto in this journey has been "anything in moderation" and I still stick to that, but it still requires me to 1) know myself and 2) make good choices. And know that chocolate is like a drug.

By the way, I had avocado last night with my turkey breast sandwich and it was yummy. A bit high in calories and fat, but also really high in fiber and vitamin C. It's not something I'll do every day, but when they're on sale I may have a bit once a week or so. I was never really a fan before and now I'm a convert. Still not keen on guacamole though, I don't think. But fresh avocado is da bomb.

3 comments:

  1. Very interesting Jayme. I totally agree with you about the chocolate. I have Type 2 diabetes and try to stay of sugar completely. For me, it takes 2-3 days to come off sugar and during that time I feel really tense and irritable and the cravings are awful. However, when I get over that period I could go forever without eating anything sweet. Its best for me to avoid anything sugary.

    As a diabetic I need carbs with every meal for energy as I'm not eating sugar - maybe its the same for you. Have you read anything about the GI diet/way of eating? I find its really good. I have 30g of porridge (the real stuff not the instant stuff) every morning with blueberries and/or raspberries or sometimes I have broken up hazelnuts, almonds and walnuts and I find that keeps me going for ages. Oats are a slow release carb par excellence. When I eat the nuts regularly (goot for oils) my complexion is much better and people have even told me my skin looks really good!

    Just some thoughts ... :-)

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  2. hey jayme! i'm somone who must have LOTS of protein in the AM, but i must also have carbs. i'll and egg white or 2, but also have special K sustain or oatmeal.

    something else you might want to test- when you do in fact crave chocolate, have a really good plain chocolate. get the 70% kind. it's MUCH lower in sugar and might actually fulfil the CHOCOLATE craving, not the sugar bit...i'm still working out what's best for me and it's been months- but good months :)

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  3. thanks, amy. for now, i'm staying away from chocolate but when the craving does come back, it's good to know that the darker chocolate (which i prefer) is a better choice. when i started a few weeks ago, i ate a small bowl of cocoa pops with skim milk, which seemed to curb the craving as well....so i'll build up a list of options to go with when the need arises!

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