Morning ladies. Hope you are all having a lovely Sonoma-ish morning.

How is everyone doing with their eating? Need a recipe? Have a question? Post Post Post and I am sure someone will be along to help!

I'm generally doing quite well but I'm craving sweet stuff as it's about TOM (and I mean really craving) I'm drinking green tea and have had planned fruit (and have had a single chocolate)

Any ideas/ hints/ tips for killing the sugar rush??

Drink a cup of herbal tea, There is one that has an orange/spice flavor, that usually will kill my cravings when I have some.

I don't have any ideas, hints, or tips, but wanted to say that I am doing well with food too except for sweet cravings right now. And Clareh is much better than me -- I think I ate my weekly allowance of dark chocolate already today.

Has anyone else had fun "experimenting" with various types of dark chocolate? Hubby and I are almost through a "Pound Plus" of dark Belgian chocolate that we got at Trader Joe's. Yesterday I bought a 2.82 ounce bar of "Unique Origin / Guaranda" bitter dark chocolate at Trader Joe's. The description on the back of the package makes it sound like a wine. And I thought it was quite tasty ... I have been looking at a box of single-origin dark chocolate that I will probably buy next week.

The best chocolate ever is Green and Black's Mayan Gold, which is fair trade dark chocolate with a hint of orange. They also do an espresso one which is 72% cocoa solids. Please don't anyone tell me they're not OP!

I hope you get these in the States- well worth a try. Oh well, if they're not at least it makes up for the fact that we don't have Trader Joes!

How do you guys have chocolate in the house and maintain discipline with it??
We're only allowed "one bite-size piece a day, no more than 3 times a week".

I think the secret is making the bite size piece as good and as chocolatey as you possibly can get. Chocolate isn't really my downfall though and there's plenty of stuff I don't have in the house.

We'd probably better talk about vegetables or something that's more OP!

Well ... I generally tend to modify things to fit me. And since starting Wave 2, I have a bit daily if I feel like it; I am willing to accept slower weight loss to have a bit of chocolate on occasion. Now I don't feel the need to have chocolate each day ... but it's there if I need it. I do not have wine every evening so I figure it balances out, calorie-wise.

Surprisingly, I can stop at one piece (except today ). My experience with dark chocolate is that, because of its richer and more intense flavor, a bite-size piece satisfies.

Clareh, when I was in London about 1.5 years ago, I had Green and Black's and loved it. In fact I bought a bunch and brought it home to share with family and friends; the customs guy thought I was nutz with a big bag of chocolate. Don't think I had the Mayan Gold variety, though. Will check to see if I can get it here. I think 72% is good; the varieties I have purchased range from 71% to 75% (milk chocolate is usually less than 40%).

Yeah, you're right. I figured there was a reason no one had brought up chocolate.

I buy the Dove Dark which comes in small pieces, individually wrapped, and in a bag. I store it in the freezer. My teeth are very sensitive to the cold, so I won't eat frozen chocolate. If I have to set it out to come to room temperature, at least I have time to think about whether I really want it

I also personally don't see a problem with having one small piece each day. It's part of the polymeal, which is proven to reduce heart disease and extend our lifespans. The polymeal what researchers believe are the prime components of the Mediterranean diet that actually provide the health benefits that we're striving for with this type of lifestyle. Check out this thread for more information.

I buy the Dove Dark because Suzanne told me to.

Thanks for the info, Suzanne. I think I will go finish my 2.82 ounce (80 g) bar to celebrate. Just kidding ... will save it for when I really *need* it.

I am wondering about the antioxidant effect. Some packages at Trader Joe's, including those I bought, indicate the percentage of cocoa. Those I purchased average from 71-75%. Do you think that is related to the antioxidants contained in that particular batch of dark chocolate? That would be wonderful. Meanwhile, I am going to add the Dove Dark to my next shopping list.

We have Green and Black's here in Maine.... It is yummy! I buy it in the Wild Harvest section of Shaw's. If you live in New England you might find it at Star Market (same company). Both companies were bought out last year by Albertson's... check your store's health food/fair trade section.

Kristina

If I really, really have to have chocolate, I will have it with dinner, and I've been shredding some, not even a whole small piece onto my fruit that I have with dinner. It's enough to let me know that it's there and I'm satisfied. DH on the otherhand will eat his piece and what I don't use of mine.

I found Green & Black's at Target of all places. I bought the Maya Gold (Clareh is right, it is delicious!!) and the 70% Dark. Target also has Dove Dark Chocolate on sale: two 11-ounce bags of the pre-wrapped pieces for $4.00. Like Suzanne, I will put those in the freezer so hopefully I won't eat more than I should. But after reading about the Polymeal yesterday, I will stop feeling guilty for having a bite-size piece almost daily.