Okay, so the PCOS miracle I'm really looking for is pregnancy, obviously. But today my period started and that's pretty amazing. It is day 30 of my cycle!
A 30 day cycle is just incredible. Absolutely perfect. Just what I need. Once I keep this up I just need to figure out if I'm ovulating. Plus a shorter cycle makes it a lot easier to time sex effectively.
This is great news and I'm excited that the diet is really working. (And you can tell from my last post that I really am going dramatically up and down between hope and despair each day!)
I have been struggling to keep up with my meal plans. I wanted to use up the food I had to not waste but trying to work from leftovers and what I had on hand is tricky when I can't depend on my usual go-to meals (grilled cheese and tuna fish sandwiches). I need some new go-tos! But I also need new go-tos for each cycle phase. That should be a post soon.
But I'm going to try to get back to having a plan for each day so I know what to make for myself and my husband and I'm not struggling to get him enough food.
Sunday (today)
Snack: kale chips
Dinner: yam and black bean soup with orange (afr)
Monday
Breakfast: chocolate peanut butter chia seed parfait
Lunch: wild rice with cranberries and mushrooms
Snack: cranberry DIY larabar
Dinner: black bean soup
Tuesday
Breakfast: parfait
Lunch: stir fry with kale, mushrooms, carrots, onion over brown and wild rice blend
Snack: watermelon pieces
Dinner: miso soup and almond butter banana popsicles
Wednesday
Breakfast: graham cracker with nut butter and cranberries
Lunch: rajma with brown and wild rice
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: miso soup and sticky rice cakes with red bean paste
Follicular Phase Switch
Thursday
Breakfast: graham crackers with nut butter and clementine
Lunch: sweet potato and avocado onigiri
Snack: avocado wontons
Dinner: Going out with father-in-law
Friday
Breakfast:
Lunch: creamy mushroom fettuccine (afr)
Snack: cashew cookie dough lara bar
Dinner: boca burger with lots of toppings
Saturday (Husband out on boat)
leftovers
Grocery List:
(for monday)
bananas
wild rice
cranberries
mushrooms
dates
almonds
(for rest of week)
miso
peanut butter
clementines or orange
wonton wrappers
avocado
cachews
chocolate chips
whole wheat flour
portabello soup
nori
Asian market:
red bean paste
glutinous/sweet rice flour from long grain
Showing posts with label pcos diet meal plan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pcos diet meal plan. Show all posts
Sunday, May 17, 2015
Friday, May 15, 2015
Meals Last Week
I've been mostly cooking leftovers this week. I made this amazing stir fry and I had forgotten how much I love mushrooms. Sweet carrots, flavorful mushrooms, singed broccoli...it was perfection. I ate it with some brown rice.
This is a pumpkin and coconut cream parfait. Yes, it is as amazing as it looks. I'm not the biggest fan of pumpkin taste but this is good. Would have been better if I had done two things better. One, I didn't freeze the pumpkin ahead of time as the recipe recommends. Two, I didn't realize I had Coconut Milk and not Coconut Cream as the recipe calls for. So I was using my hand mixer on it for about twenty minutes before I realized that it was never going to thicken up and turn into whipped cream. Such a shame! But it was still good as a liquidy mess :)
The graham cracker with toppings has become such a great go-to meal for me whether for breakfast or lunch. I spread peanut butter on it and then add things like applesauce, fruit, granola, and nuts. Delicious!
I also made some nacho spinach chips for my lunchbox here. They didn't stay crispy in with the other stuff so next time I need to put a lid on their compartment, I think.
I tried the vegan crepes with asparagus and mushrooms but my asparagus had gone bad so it was just mushrooms. And I tried to substitute Urad flour for the all purpose white and it tasted kind of weird. The crepes were easy to make, though, and I think with normal flour they would taste great.
Today is day 28 of my cycle. My temperature is still high. I'm waiting anxiously to see what news the next week or so might bring me.
My weight is down another couple of pounds. I'm at 144.5 now, which is 28.5 lbs below my heaviest weight.
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Cycle Day 27
Well, here we are at last. Poised on the day before the end of a two week wait. Tomorrow will be day 28 of the cycle that started when I began this diet.
Of course not all women have a normal cycle of 28 days, so it could still be fine if I don't get my period for another week.
I'm trying so hard not to get my hopes up, but it's not working. I'm super anxious and hopeful that I'll see my period tomorrow. (Or that if I don't it means I'm pregnant!)
My temperatures have remained high (for me) and I've never seen that before. Every other time I've tracked my temp would go up about the right time and then a few days later crash back down. This is a good sign. Although now I'm worried about the batteries in the thermometer and if it is giving me an accurate reading. I guess it's just another example of me being afraid to be too hopeful.
In terms of eating I've been saving money this week and mostly making things from what I have on hand. I thought I had asparagus because it was in the freezer but when I went to make my asparagus meals I discovered that it had gone bad (I'd probably had those bags for a couple of years!)
So I haven't been eating the proper foods for this cycle, though I have still been eating healthy. I do have a pile of sweet potatoes in the pantry and that is a food for this cycle so I think I'll see what I can make with those for today.
Of course not all women have a normal cycle of 28 days, so it could still be fine if I don't get my period for another week.
I'm trying so hard not to get my hopes up, but it's not working. I'm super anxious and hopeful that I'll see my period tomorrow. (Or that if I don't it means I'm pregnant!)
My temperatures have remained high (for me) and I've never seen that before. Every other time I've tracked my temp would go up about the right time and then a few days later crash back down. This is a good sign. Although now I'm worried about the batteries in the thermometer and if it is giving me an accurate reading. I guess it's just another example of me being afraid to be too hopeful.
In terms of eating I've been saving money this week and mostly making things from what I have on hand. I thought I had asparagus because it was in the freezer but when I went to make my asparagus meals I discovered that it had gone bad (I'd probably had those bags for a couple of years!)
So I haven't been eating the proper foods for this cycle, though I have still been eating healthy. I do have a pile of sweet potatoes in the pantry and that is a food for this cycle so I think I'll see what I can make with those for today.
Monday, May 11, 2015
Sweeteners and Glycemic Index
Because PCOS is a condition that is related to/similar to Diabetes, the diet is similar to that for people with Diabetes. This means you're looking for foods that have a low "GI" (gylcemic index), that is foods that burn fuel slowly in your body rather than giving you a spike in blood sugar.
That's why we steer clear of simple carbs and white sugar. But I was looking at all the various alternative sweeteners out there and wondering where are they on the GI scale compared to white sugar?
I found this helpful chart that lists all the sweeteners out there by their gylcemic index.
After that it has a discussion of the zero GI sweeteners like Stevia. The conclusion seems to be that Stevia is probably a good choice for us (although it always seems to come mixed with other sweeteners that are higher GI, which makes it average out fairly high too. I did see a Stevia plant for sale at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. I wonder if one could create their own sweetener?)
Truvia may be the best as it is mixed with erythriol and that has a GI of only 1.
I was disappointed to see that my favorite sweeteners like Maple Syrup, Honey, and Molasses were still pretty high on the list.
That's why we steer clear of simple carbs and white sugar. But I was looking at all the various alternative sweeteners out there and wondering where are they on the GI scale compared to white sugar?
I found this helpful chart that lists all the sweeteners out there by their gylcemic index.
After that it has a discussion of the zero GI sweeteners like Stevia. The conclusion seems to be that Stevia is probably a good choice for us (although it always seems to come mixed with other sweeteners that are higher GI, which makes it average out fairly high too. I did see a Stevia plant for sale at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. I wonder if one could create their own sweetener?)
Truvia may be the best as it is mixed with erythriol and that has a GI of only 1.
I was disappointed to see that my favorite sweeteners like Maple Syrup, Honey, and Molasses were still pretty high on the list.
Saturday, May 9, 2015
Meal Plan & Progress
So we ended up not even getting to the meals Wednesday to Friday of last week. Even though I should be doing Luteal phase meals now I'm going to still do those plans from last week.
I think that I might have a totally normal cycle this time! I'm on day 22 and yesterday I felt deeply sad for no reason plus I have a little tiny bit of acne developing. These things suggest to me that I'm in PMS, which would be just about right for a "normal" 28 day cycle!
This cycle I tried to use ovulation sticks but I can never seem to get a clear understanding of what's happening with those things. I really need to go back to taking my temperature. I did it this morning so that's a start. I just feel frustrated that I can't instantly have the temperature history to know what this morning's number means but that's entirely my own fault.
I still feel my hope and my fear swinging wildly back and forth. One moment I feel full of hope that we're are finally close to getting pregnant and I'm fixing all our issues. Another moment I feel the familiar despair that it's never going to happen and it's too late for me. (It's not. I'm 33, which is old but not too old).
It's Mother's Day tomorrow and it feels like a punch in the gut. My customers want to wish me a happy Mother's Day and so are more likely to ask if I have children.
But anyway, if I do get a period next week that will be pretty amazing and a great sign that I am probably ovulating.
From last week:
Wednesday Sunday
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: rajma and brown rice
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: grilled asparagus
Thursday Monday
Breakfast: graham cracker with nut butter, applesauce, and strawberries
Lunch: quinoa kale bowl with mushroom and asparagus
Snack: trail mix
Dinner: asparagus leek and green onion soup
Friday Tuesday
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: breakfast for lunch: sweet potato hash browns and coconut "bacon" flakes, vegan pancakes topped with strawberries
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: Savory Asparagus Crepes with Easy Vegan Hollandaise Sauce
A nice short grocery list means I have the chance to buy some extras that I have good deals for. Like claritin and nature valley bars. Maybe I can even buy that raspberry bush this week!
Also with a few more pet purchases I should get the $7 back coupon that's advertised at Weis this month.
I think that I might have a totally normal cycle this time! I'm on day 22 and yesterday I felt deeply sad for no reason plus I have a little tiny bit of acne developing. These things suggest to me that I'm in PMS, which would be just about right for a "normal" 28 day cycle!
This cycle I tried to use ovulation sticks but I can never seem to get a clear understanding of what's happening with those things. I really need to go back to taking my temperature. I did it this morning so that's a start. I just feel frustrated that I can't instantly have the temperature history to know what this morning's number means but that's entirely my own fault.
I still feel my hope and my fear swinging wildly back and forth. One moment I feel full of hope that we're are finally close to getting pregnant and I'm fixing all our issues. Another moment I feel the familiar despair that it's never going to happen and it's too late for me. (It's not. I'm 33, which is old but not too old).
It's Mother's Day tomorrow and it feels like a punch in the gut. My customers want to wish me a happy Mother's Day and so are more likely to ask if I have children.
But anyway, if I do get a period next week that will be pretty amazing and a great sign that I am probably ovulating.
From last week:
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: rajma and brown rice
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: grilled asparagus
Breakfast: graham cracker with nut butter, applesauce, and strawberries
Lunch: quinoa kale bowl with mushroom and asparagus
Snack: trail mix
Dinner: asparagus leek and green onion soup
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: breakfast for lunch: sweet potato hash browns and coconut "bacon" flakes, vegan pancakes topped with strawberries
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: Savory Asparagus Crepes with Easy Vegan Hollandaise Sauce
New meals (Luteal)
Wednesday
Breakfast: pumpkin pie parfait
Lunch: orange cauliflower and brown rice
Snack: oven baked onion rings with chia seed breading
Dinner: Sanctuary Salad (ranch style) (afr book)
Thursday
Breakfast:
Lunch: lettuce wrap tacos with fake beef crumbles
Snack: girl scout cookie lara bar
Dinner: carrot soup
Friday
Breakfast:
Lunch: stir fry with whatever veggies are left and brown rice
Snack: vegan cookie dough blizzard
Dinner: yam and blackbean soup with orange (afr book)
Grocery List:
pumpkin puree
walnuts
molasses?
romaine lettuce
boca crumbles
peanuts
vegan chocolate chips?
cauliflower
radishes
sunflower sprouts
cherry tomatoes
extra firm silken tofu
dill
vegetable broth powder
onion flakes
orange juice
A nice short grocery list means I have the chance to buy some extras that I have good deals for. Like claritin and nature valley bars. Maybe I can even buy that raspberry bush this week!
Also with a few more pet purchases I should get the $7 back coupon that's advertised at Weis this month.
Friday, May 8, 2015
Meals 5/5/15
The eggplant "bacon" was...okay. It was flavorful. But it didn't get crispy like you want in a blt. It was my first time trying eggplant and I wasn't thrilled with it but I did think that I'd be willing to try it in other applications.
For the sandwich I decided to do half with the eggplant bacon and half with the coconut bacon flakes and see which I liked better. I thought the bacon flakes would get a better crunch but I didn't end up liking either side. I didn't eat very much of this sandwich.
I added "shaved brussle sprouts" from the Appetite for Reduction book. I've made four recipes from it so far this week and they've all been good. No surprise I liked these. I don't know if they were meant to get quite this black but that's how I like my veggies: pan fried until blackened!
I want to start keeping an eye on whether I'm getting enough fruits and veggies every day. With eating reduced carbs and sugars plus no meat or dairy you would think the only thing left to eat would be fruits and veggies yet I still seem to manage to avoid getting enough. I've been eating a lot of nuts.
Did I get five servings of fruits and veggies?
- Apricot in breakfast and snack
- Eggplant in "b"lt
- Brussle Sprouts in lunch side
- Red Bell Pepper in soup at dinner
- Spinach in "b"lt
- Tomatoes in "b"lt
- Spinach and strawberries in dinner salad
I didn't exactly eat much of my lunch but I did well in serving myself enough varieties of fruits and veggies!
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Medication
I am currently not on any medication for my PCOS.
Nor am I on any medication for my close-to-pre-diabetes symptoms.
I'm kind of a natural hippy chick type and I absolutely hate being on medication for anything. I try to avoid it as much as possible and accomplish health with food and lifestyle. However, I am on one medication right now.
I am taking medicine for my thyroid. I'm on a small dose. It took about six months of blood tests and experimenting to get the right dose but now my thyroid levels are normal and I'm capable of losing weight for the first time in about five years.
A lot of people with PCOS and/or Diabetes are on Metformin. I may eventually get on it too. But I'm trying to heal myself with diet first and see how far I can get.
If diet is not enough to get me ovulating then I will look into hormone injections and fertility procedures like IUI and maybe the new one IVM that is supposed to be particularly good for people with PCOS.
So I'm not opposed to getting onto medication eventually for PCOS but I'm not there right now.
(Another complication to that is that we lost our health insurance and so I'm not seeing the fertility doctor right now and the endocrinologist was only for getting my thryoid functioning correctly. He was not a reproductive endro).
Nor am I on any medication for my close-to-pre-diabetes symptoms.
I'm kind of a natural hippy chick type and I absolutely hate being on medication for anything. I try to avoid it as much as possible and accomplish health with food and lifestyle. However, I am on one medication right now.
I am taking medicine for my thyroid. I'm on a small dose. It took about six months of blood tests and experimenting to get the right dose but now my thyroid levels are normal and I'm capable of losing weight for the first time in about five years.
A lot of people with PCOS and/or Diabetes are on Metformin. I may eventually get on it too. But I'm trying to heal myself with diet first and see how far I can get.
If diet is not enough to get me ovulating then I will look into hormone injections and fertility procedures like IUI and maybe the new one IVM that is supposed to be particularly good for people with PCOS.
So I'm not opposed to getting onto medication eventually for PCOS but I'm not there right now.
(Another complication to that is that we lost our health insurance and so I'm not seeing the fertility doctor right now and the endocrinologist was only for getting my thryoid functioning correctly. He was not a reproductive endro).
Monday, May 4, 2015
Meals this Weekend and Mood Changes
My Sunday meals did not get done at all since I didn't get all my grocery shopping done in time and we had a friend in town visiting. I ended up making the sweet potato hash browns with coconut bacon and vegan pancakes. I threw in an egg because we still have some to use up.
The pancakes were phenomenal. Very light and fluffy. Super easy to cook. I like them better than my standard pancake recipe.
The coconut bacon also turned out great. My husband says they taste like a mixture of coconut and bacon and he likes both those things.
The coconut bacon also turned out great. My husband says they taste like a mixture of coconut and bacon and he likes both those things.
The hashbrowns were not as much of a success. The idea of cooking them in a waffle iron sounded so awesome. But it did not work at all for me. Despite using up all the rest of my paper towels (I usually use cloth paper towels), I couldn't get enough moisture out.
This morning I woke up at 5:00 am to get lunch finished before my husband left at 7:15. I just barely made it! I'm really glad I got a new food processor because I used it for four different things this morning: bread dough, pesto, mousse, and diy lara bar.
This is portabello mushroom burger (marinated in balsamic) on whole wheat bun (actually mixed flours because I ran out part way through!) with a home roasted red pepper and homemade pesto. Avocado chocolate mousse (I forgot to add the strawberries for hubby's lunch!). And a homemade version of an apricot almond Lara bar.
I'm on day 17 of my cycle and my mood has been really bad. It feels like nothing is going right the last couple of days. I feel like sleeping until it's over. It's PMSy feelings but it's far too early to be getting PMS, I think.
I'm recording it on my fertility tracking app and waiting to see what it might mean.
Thursday, April 30, 2015
Meal Plan 5/3/15 to 5/9/15
As I use up the meat and eggs and milk that I have at home I am moving into the vegan change to my diet. I won't be buying more of the meat and dairy.
Also I should be in the ovulatory phase around now so I'm going to do those foods this week.
Sunday
Breakfast: brussle sprout sweet potato hash (minus the eggs)
Lunch: portabello mushroom burger with roasted red pepper and pesto Make these rolls
Snack: lara bar apricot almond
Dinner: strawberry spinach salad (afr book)
Monday
Breakfast: graham crackers with nut butter, apricots and chocolate chips
Lunch: quinoa with roasted red pepper sauce
Snack: avocado chocolate mousse with strawberries
Dinner: strawberry spinach salad
Tuesday
Breakfast: lara bar
Lunch: "b"lt with eggplant bacon and shaved brussle sprouts (afr)
Snack: almond apricot trail mix
Dinner: red pepper soup (afr)
Wednesday
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: rajma and brown rice
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: grilled asparagus
Thursday
Breakfast: lara bar
Lunch: quinoa kale bowl with mushroom and asparagus
Snack: trail mix and mousse
Dinner: asparagus leek and green onion soup
Friday
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: breakfast for lunch: sweet potato hash browns and coconut "bacon" flakes, vegan pancakes topped with strawberries
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: Savory Asparagus Crepes with Easy Vegan Hollandaise Sauce
Saturday LEFTOVERS
Breakfast:
Lunch:
Snack:
Dinner:
Weis is selling raspberry bushes right now! I really want one. Even though I've never been a fan of berries. It seems like a great easy plant to have for a food garden. And I can learn to like raspberries (my husband already likes them). I have to see if I can fit it into my food budget.
Grocery List:
staples
olive oil
produce
brussle sprouts
sweet potato (4)
onions
portabello mushrooms
red bell peppers (6)
strawberries (bogo, so get two)
dates (whole foods?)
dried apricots
small eggplant
avocado (2)
baby bella mushrooms
asparagus
kale
carrots
spinach
other
pine nuts
almonds (whole foods)
quinoa
tahini
vital wheat gluten
nutritional yeast (get at Wegman's) 5.49 (or whole foods?)
liquid smoke
coconut flakes
vanilla extract
almond milk and soy milk (whole foods?)
agave nectar
Weis has many of the vegan friendly food options. I've been amazed by how many vegan and gluten-free options there are there! But I think Whole Foods may be cheaper for certain things. I also was not able to find nutritional yeast there.
Also I should be in the ovulatory phase around now so I'm going to do those foods this week.
Sunday
Breakfast: brussle sprout sweet potato hash (minus the eggs)
Lunch: portabello mushroom burger with roasted red pepper and pesto Make these rolls
Snack: lara bar apricot almond
Dinner: strawberry spinach salad (afr book)
Monday
Breakfast: graham crackers with nut butter, apricots and chocolate chips
Lunch: quinoa with roasted red pepper sauce
Snack: avocado chocolate mousse with strawberries
Dinner: strawberry spinach salad
Tuesday
Breakfast: lara bar
Lunch: "b"lt with eggplant bacon and shaved brussle sprouts (afr)
Snack: almond apricot trail mix
Dinner: red pepper soup (afr)
Wednesday
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: rajma and brown rice
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: grilled asparagus
Thursday
Breakfast: lara bar
Lunch: quinoa kale bowl with mushroom and asparagus
Snack: trail mix and mousse
Dinner: asparagus leek and green onion soup
Friday
Breakfast: graham cracker
Lunch: breakfast for lunch: sweet potato hash browns and coconut "bacon" flakes, vegan pancakes topped with strawberries
Snack: lara bar
Dinner: Savory Asparagus Crepes with Easy Vegan Hollandaise Sauce
Saturday LEFTOVERS
Breakfast:
Lunch:
Snack:
Dinner:
Weis is selling raspberry bushes right now! I really want one. Even though I've never been a fan of berries. It seems like a great easy plant to have for a food garden. And I can learn to like raspberries (my husband already likes them). I have to see if I can fit it into my food budget.
Grocery List:
staples
olive oil
produce
brussle sprouts
sweet potato (4)
onions
portabello mushrooms
red bell peppers (6)
strawberries (bogo, so get two)
dates (whole foods?)
dried apricots
small eggplant
avocado (2)
baby bella mushrooms
asparagus
kale
carrots
spinach
other
pine nuts
almonds (whole foods)
quinoa
tahini
vital wheat gluten
nutritional yeast (get at Wegman's) 5.49 (or whole foods?)
liquid smoke
coconut flakes
vanilla extract
almond milk and soy milk (whole foods?)
agave nectar
Weis has many of the vegan friendly food options. I've been amazed by how many vegan and gluten-free options there are there! But I think Whole Foods may be cheaper for certain things. I also was not able to find nutritional yeast there.
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