This is my journal for yesterday. I don't understand my body and I don't know how to fix this problem. HELP!

I gotta find a way to handle TOM better than I have this month. Last night I was so hungry I just kept eating and eating. I usually do this the day before my period starts and the first day I'll eat 3000 cal. Anyway I went for a walk after work, came home made a hamburger patty, still hungry so I had a very large greek salad with lots of olives and cheese, still hungry had a serving of porkrinds and dip, still hungry had a protein shake made with 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream and 2 packets of splenda, still hungry had a second shake. As I drank the second shake I started to feel satiated. I guess its good I kept all the eating lowcarb, I don't know why nothing seemed to satisfy my hunger. Would I have been better off just eating a candy bar? This led to me waking up at 2 with lowblood sugar so I had a lowcarb tortilla with a little butter on it. I felt extremely bloated this morning. This marks my one month of lowcarbing. Here are the results. Can't weight in, will do that when I go to the gym next.

Lost 1/2" off waist
lost 1-1/2" off hips

But this is an increase in inches compared to 2 weeks ago. Oh well Tom kind of screws everything up!

I was tempted to quit the forum was telling myself this morning that I need a break, so the one positive thing today is that I didn't listen to myself!

Women really need to go through 2 full cycles to see how TOM & LCing affect them. THe first cycle is likely to be unusual or missing, then gets back to normal in most cases for the 2nd month.

I think you did VERY well to stay LCing in your eating. Maybe you WERE just hungry. And we know that we CAN eat when hungry as long as we make LC choices.

I have found that a day of much hunger is often followed shortly by a loss. Certainly the TOM water retention will release in a few days.

Hang in there and the Whoosh Fairy may come down your chimney (quite a trick if you live in an apartment.)

Leigh, when I read 4 chicken breasts it did make me laugh, thats a good idea, I did not expect to eat a usual days worth of food for dinner.

Tofi, this cycle was weird, very early. I do hope the whoosh fairy is coming that would be great. Imagine eating the largest meal I've ever had and losing weight.

Thanks for the reassurance that I haven't developed an eating disorder.

probably a dummy question but if u eat more meat aka protein ..dont that affect your fat percentages vs protein vs carbs?

am on my TOM too same as you guys. brain says full but tummy wants to ravage on more food. i will try if i can not stand it and finally use the bacon that was sugar/honey cured which i bought by mistake.. sigh might be bad. i think i wont.

I'm always eating right before (and sometimes during) TOM also. Yes, eating more protein does throw the %'s out of whack UNLESS you cook the protein in butter or use mayo on it or something. I ate TWO beef patties w/ my favorite spicy mayo after supper the day before my last TOM and could have eaten another two probably but went to bed instead I gotta tell you, that mayo saves me because it's great on everything and ups my fat intake.

But eating these kinds of things won't effect your hard work the way eating two big salads (or two dozen donuts ) would at least!!

Julie

Gosh... it must be everyone's TOM here... lol I just ended mine a few a few days ago... and now that you mention it... there was something wierd about it... I stopped almost 2 days earlier than normal... hmm... I don't have a problem with that! lol But... I usually crave chocolate around that TOM - that's because your body craves the sugars and carbs during that time... but I didn't have a problem straying or anything. It's great that while you recognized you were still hungry, you kept to healthy low carb stuff! Kudos! =) And I'm glad you decided to stay! =) Give your bod some time to settle in, and I'm sure things will get better for you! =)

Moonshea =)

LOL! Its mine also Ive done a good job this time, Im proud of myself. I am craving sweets soooo bad, so I gave in and ate some chocolate (low carb of course)
Its not to know that im not alone on this matter.

It is great to know I'm not alone. At least next month it won't come as a complete surprise when I eat 6 dinners in a row. I will try to keep it to protein and fat. (I love fat)!

Count me in on the TOM time. I just started induction again yesterday too! Ack! I make sure that during this time, when I think I am hungry, I am usually just thirsty - so I drink a big glass of water. For me it usually helps.

TOM must be going around!
What helps me to feel satisfied is extra fat - avocados especially seem to work for me. If I just eat protein like chicken or tuna, I feel like I will never want to stop eating. Cream cheese in limited amounts will also help stop me from a major binge, although I know it can cause stalls.

This snack also has helped me from eating something really 'bad' through TOM:

mix heavy whipping cream w/ a little stevia and vanilla, add berries and a tablespoon or two of creme fraiche (a type of sour cream). yum, and if not on induction legal.