Hey ladies (and gents, if you'd like to weigh in on PMS. Ain't no thing...)

Do any of you deal with cravings the week before your TOM? I'm a week or so out and today I ate... Everything. Everything is actually an understatement. I'm better about thinking this one wild n' crazy day will ruin the work I've done but I still feel terrible. I sometimes feel so powerless, like I can't give in a little, I have to go all out.

How do you guys deal with crazy cravings? I suppose I should do extra time at the gym this week to make up for this day. But I'm so bad lately. Uuuugh. Thanks for letting me complain a bit!

The cravings a week before your TOM are due to low serotonin levels. Low serotonin is caused by low estrogen, which is why you crave carbs.

Be "diligent" about what you eat. Feed your body whole grains and healthy carbs and you'll be surprised that the cravings can be satisfied with normal portions. Eat sugars and refined carbs and you're going to find yourself even worse off (blood sugar spikes and crashes will worsen the cycle).

If your PMS is REALLY bad then think about picking up a natural progesterone cream and using that the two weeks before your period. It can make a world of difference. Check out the work of Dr. John Lee or at least the articles on his website: http://www.johnleemd.com/ If you're on BC pills then it could be suppressing ovulation which would could impact your progesterone levels.

Thanks for the advice on the healthy carbs! I'm bad about getting carbs in because I've thought for so long that carbs are eviiiiiil. I'm not on BC so hopefully that makes the cravings a little less some months.

Nice avatar, grumpy cat makes me giggle. She rocks.

Oh, yeah... I used to, really bad, before I started dieting. I would eat like a monster (and act like one, too). For some reason this diet (IP with alternative protein products) has curbed all my cravings and I don't crave anything, really. Just a bit of chocolate, but that's constant, not just PMS-related.

Uggghhh, yes going through that right now as well! It is a struggle to not let myself get out of control and eat everything in sight. I am busying myself by cleaning the house right now and posting here. Girl scout cookies were delivered the other day and I am going to have to get them out of the house because they are in extreme danger, lol!

Sleeping. Lol. I tend to get very tired during my TOM. I'd rather stay in bed than get up n' eat (at least during the first 2 days anyway)

As far as curbing cravings....eh, working out helps the most. Then I tend to eat healthier because I don't want to "ruin" the workout.

I just grin and bear it minus the grinning part. I know that it makes me a grumpy gal but I'd be an awfully sad one if I backtracked on progress so overall I'l happier when I just grumpily trudge onwards.

I've noticed this, too. Thankfully, my cravings come within about a 48 hour window and I can talk myself out of them..... most of the time..... It also helps to not have anything 'bad' in the house.

I've found that it helps to just give in for a day or so and then 'get back on the horse'.

I am sooo hungry the 7 or so days prior. I thought I read somewhere that your metabolism increases in that time period. I try to eat a little more but stay on plan and keep working out. I also make Paleo desserts to help me feel satisfied.

@sassyblonde: Paleo deserts, you say?! Do you have any recipes? I try to keep paleo as much as I can but I'm not always the best.

I'm always hungry when I'm PMSing and when I'm ovulating. I eat an extra 200 calories these days and it hasn't hurt.

I get mad cravings for chocolate when I'm PMSing. But not any kind chocolate. I don't know what kind of chocolate I keep craving, it's pretty frustrating. I actually googled it yesterday. I've read that you're supposed to eat a bit of dark chocolate to make the craving go away but I'm still side-eyeing that article. If you can limit it to one day during PMS just eat what you want. You won't die or undo all your work.

What renew says about seratonin levels - i hope that's true. It fits with my understanding but i haven't actually read any articles that talk about that. I haven't yet looked at the link posted and will too soon.

Anyway since as someone suffering from depression, i have noticed that low mood and greater appetite go together and i have also noticed that i can sometimes have a greater appetite around my periods so i really think there is something in this theory.

However, my advice for dealing with it would be to fill up on non-sweet foods. ADjust your calories upwards for the day but try to stick to a strict program of eating good food at fairly fixed hours - i mean meals and not constant snacking. If you prepare yourself in advance for this scenario, it might not be so hard to follow. You know its only for a few days and if you know what to do your resolve may be more effective.

Also have other strategies that you think will help avoid eating.
Be busy. Don't get bored.

Look after your mood before this time comes along so that you may suffer less with the pms.

You'll find many articles discussing the link between serotonin and estrogen in perimenopausal women. Not a huge leap to extend similar reasoning to PMS symptoms. A woman's estrogen levels are lowest just before her period.

The problem is that the relationships between [especially] female hormones and mood has not been studied as much as you'd think. Well, perhaps more importantly, there are studies but they don't understand what exactly they're observing because the inter-relationships between hormones and neurotransmitters has a fluid quality, the same hormone can create a positive mood vs a negative mood depending on other hormones and neurotransmitter states. The kicker is, it's not one size fits all. Science only knows how to apply empiric theory, which simply doesn't work when it comes to mood, emotion or hormones. They can make generalizations, but they can't drill it down to black and white.

Here's a nice little piece that touches on what I'm clumsily trying to express: http://www.psycheducation.org/hormon...ogenbasics.htm

When I went to a weight loss clinic the doctor gave me 5-htp because he said that my depression/anxiety was affecting my weight. He said it would raise my serotonin levels and help me resist my cravings and I have to say that he was pretty dead on, but I only take it when I'm stressing or at night before bed so I can say no to that bowl of cereal I don't need.

Perhaps this would help with PMS time too?