What the hell is the purpose of high fructose corn syrup in bread???? I'm so upset. I thought I was making a healthy choice by getting the seven grain bread...then I read the ingredients when I got home. Grrrrr.
Breakfast: Breakfast burrito, consisting of eggs, cheese, sirloin steak, hash browns, and salsa. I didn't get the combo; just drank water instead. This was from Jack in the Box.
Snack: Rotisserie chicken
Lunch: Lemon herb chicken w/ broccoli/cauliflower
Snack: One serving of goldfish/three individual skittles
(sugar withdrawals!!!.)
Dinner: More lemon herb chicken w/ broccoli/cauliflower
Snack: 2 Celery stalks w/ peanut butter.
I didn't drink anything other than water.
Also walked to my work location at Disneyland instead of taking the tram. This was on top of taking the bus. Also took the stairs as opposed to the elevator.
I'm got a small headache yesterday, which I know was from lack of sugar, because it went away when I had the skittles.
I want to point out something about your diet. Headaches can be caused by a variety of biological and potentially medical factors. One of these is a diet that is too low in carbohydrates, and/or lack of water in the diet.
Water seems not to be lacking your diet, obviously.
I am referencing Carbohydrates because they seem low in your diet.
I have reviewed some of your diet lists, and just copied the one here in this post.
Your diet is very low in carbohydrates and from what I have read thus far, and what I currently know about you, this leads me to believe this is the potential cause of your headaches.
Carbohydrates (no matter its source) are biologically changed to a form of sugar in the body, and when you ate the Skittles (which has refined white sugar as the main ingredient), it is a type of sugar that is quickly digested and absorbed in the blood and this would raise your blood sugar releasing Insulin, which would partially explain the reason behind your headache disappearing.
As much as Skittles assisted your headache, it doesn't do you any favors--in stabilizing your blood sugar. It makes it worse, IMO.
What happens is a rapid rise in your blood sugar (where you will feel great and energetic--for a short time), then it levels off (Insulin doing its work), and then it falls (stimulating your appetite and bringing a cravings rush).
A rapid rise and fall in blood sugar is not "friendly" to your cravings for food.
What you want to do is to eat with the idea of keeping your blood glucose stable as much as feasibly possible, and this will lower some of your craving problems, and follow it up through being prepared when a hunger craving hits, by having food items purchased from the grocery store with the sole purpose of combating this problem when it surfaces.
And,
you use the education behind certain foods to attempt to keep you blood glucose stable (and attempt to avoid sharp rises and falls of your blood sugar levels), and you should see a positive impact on your hunger cravings.
It will not eliminate them (because of the calorie deficit present), but it will make a huge and favorable impact.
The absolute best appetite suppressant is: Stable Blood Sugar Levels.
The second best, is eating the right food that tends to swell in the stomach, take longer to digest, and knowing that a combination of food (like eating protein, carbohydrates and fats together) "tends" to lower the GI than it otherwise would if you ate a carb rich food by itself.
In other words your blood glucose would rise quicker eating (an apple, for example) by itself, as compared to eating this apple with a portion of chicken, IMO.
You listed a good set of veggies in your diet, but you should consider adding a fiber supplement, and increasing it a tad, if its below 30 grams. Also read on fiber......its is powerful, and can assist in combating hunger cravings, and can give you a feeling of fullness much longer, and will aide your goal path other than being a healthy item to consume.
In order to control or attempt to eliminate your cravings, you need to understand why you have them and get-over-it through proactive self-participation.
Lets look as some of these briefly. I will repeating myself in some of this, but it is worth repeating.
Why one can have cravings when deficit dieting:
1. The body is deficient in energy (calories) and has to look to itself for a source of energy (be it muscle and/or fat source). The body is literally feeding on itself to provide vitality in response to a energy shortage and is trying to meet the outside/inside demands placed upon it.
2. Sometimes unstable blood sugar levels can cause intense hunger cravings. The more stable the human blood sugar the more "stable" your hunger cravings will be. Sharp increases and declines in blood sugar levels can give one intense hunger pains that can be difficult to overcome.
The way you can combat this problem, is through understanding various food items and the big three macro nutrients: Carbs, Protein, and Fats, and how they "can effect" one's blood sugar levels. And, knowing WHEN its appropriate to have an increase in blood sugar levels and when its not.
For example:
Post workout nutrition. One just got done with a rather demanding fitness workout, and placed alot of demand on the body and its muscles. The muscles are depleted and broken down. There is a need of replacement nutrition, and it should be given rather quickly. It is a good time to consume fruits (simple carbs [sugars]), and protein, at this time. The "correct fruit" will elevate blood sugar rather quickly and since the body is in "present need" will shuttle the appropriate carbs where needed, and this isn't detrimental nor will add to one's hunger complications.
If anything, IMO, I believe it would "assist" against hunger cravings (later) because you are giving the body what it needs at the appropriate time and will not yell at you later or be an "assistor in lowering your energy levels" by continuing to be broken down through inadequate and timely nutrition.
Eating frequent meals with adequate and selective food items will be a major piece in your hunger puzzle. You determine your
Maintenance Line of Calories, and divide the number of meals with your
Maintenance Line of Calories to determine the approximate number of calories per meal.
Eating frequent meals is great in an ideal and perfect world. However, we all know we live in an imperfect world that can disrupt what we do, and eating frequently as planned is one of them. This can cause one to "improvise" and "adjust" on-the-fly, and "should be" expected and not lead one to surprise.
While eating frequent meals is recommended, if this cant happen or is disrupted in some way, and you had to adjust, this ISNT going to make you hit the curb on your fat loss quest. The most important factor when the dust settles, is whether one IS or IS NOT in an energy deficit at the end of the day. In some cases, having eating patterns irregular can assist one in fat loss dependent on dieting logistics. Just try to eat as often as your lifestyle allows adjust your meals when you have to--with applying knowledge learned.
3.
Lets add 1 and 2 together. If the body is deficient in energy levels and being forced to locate fuel from itself (deficit in calories)--and--the blood sugar levels are sharply increasing and declining (at times),
"this is a most deadly combination to cause intense hunger cravings".
4. Even if you level blood sugar (through what you eat within your diet and calorie manipulations), one will still be left with the body being deficient in energy, and will be calling on you to eat; however, its the lesser of the two, IMO, and is the place one wants to be at most of the time when deficit dieting to lose fat tissue, as it is truly easier to deal with.
==========================================================
On-going and continued education in:
1. Information on various techniques to combat cravings.
Read, read, and read some more. Absorb it and apply it. When you read an article on certain techniques to handle food cravings, and it appears it may not fit within your life style, is their a way you can:
A. Modify, change, or manipulate the idea or concept in some fashion to work with your personality and within your current lifestyle?
KEEP YOUR PERCEPTION UNTAINTED.
B. Manipulate lite fitness training to your goal advantage?
Sometimes just keeping the mind occupied on something else for a small duration of time can be enough to combat the current food craving and reduce it to tolerable levels; however, this can require a certain amount of self discipline (along with manipulating your foods to your advantage) in order to be successful.
You could jump on a bike for very Lite cardio session (a few minutes), and consume a no-calorie or very low calorie beverage to fill the stomach and get the blood pumped. Take a walk. Play a video game you like, and on and on with the potential possibilities.
Look within your environment and see things others cant see--that will assist you toward your goal path.
Develop clear strategies to deal with weaknesses. Allow your strengths to improve your weaknesses. And, you can use FOOD to assist your weakness by using your strength of being proactive.
Some proactive anti-food craving tactics:
When you view these brief guidelines, I would like you to keep an open mind and think about ways you can manipulate these guidelines to fit within the circumference of your personal life style. In other words, you can take some or all of the guidelines and modify/change them to a degree that is more applicable or suitable to your individual environment.
A. Change your frame of mind when going to the grocery store:
--->
1. Hunger Defense Perception One:
Look for food items that are bulky (that will fill a large portion of the stomach capacity) and carry the nutritional quality that fits within the macro nutrient value you seek (all macro nutrients), that fit within your life style for:
A. Home.
B. Work.
C. School.
Educate yourself on
various types of foods that take long periods (or a longer period, if you will) to digest than others. that fits in the health and nutrition scope you personally seek. Investigate the "reasons" why this is case, though investigating the nutrients in these types of food. For example, "fiber rich" foods can take longer to digest and give a sense of being full.
(If you want I can provide a list of suggestions)
--->
2. Hunger Defense Perception Two:
Specific shelf and refrigerator items specifically purchased to assist one's self during the times when food cravings are a problem. These are bulking items that are low in calorie content BUT carry a nutritional punch in accordance to its caloric value.
1. When hunger is a problem its important to know where you are at in your
diet in the calorie equation, in order to "effectively" use one of your proactive and goal-keeping food purchases for:
A. Home.
B. Work.
C. School
(If you want I can provide a list of suggestions)
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I wrote this rather quickly, and its not exhaustive. Maybe I will write a more detailed post on how to fight hunger cravings (more specifically, if I am asked)
Open your mind and be filled with great awe and have more faith than a simple tree.
Our lives are made of seasons and some will make us grieve,
but if we just have faith, we will never be without our leaves
(Chillen)
There is no getting around it, you have to eat.
And, there is no getting around it, if you deficit dieting and eat clean, your going to have cravings.
One MUST "have consciously aided intellect when dealing with the biological and mental cravings to EARN their goal".
Learn to master them, as they are apart of you; this is the KEY to your success.
Lets face it: If you deficit diet your body is going to "yell at you": it just doesn't like using "itself for energy", and likewise, if you overeat the body will "yell at you" by adding energy stores because it has "no current use for itself".
You must be the
"Master of both disasters".
If you have questions, please feel to ask them. I will answer them.
Best wishes to you, my friend.
From my heart to yours.
Chillen
