I am a newbie and feeling completely overwhelmed! Anyone else planning a pink sway this summer?
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I am a newbie and feeling completely overwhelmed! Anyone else planning a pink sway this summer?
Hi there and welcome! It's a lot of info for sure, just ask questions when you're unsure on something, everyone is super helpful. It seems that the best practices are LE diet for 12 weeks or more, 6-7 days of 60 minute cardio, 1 attempt in the fertile period and alcohol and coffee/caffeine if you can.
I'm hoping for an attempt in June or July although my hubby doesn't know that yet, lol. He's kinda, sorta on board but hasn't given me the go ahead. He does know that I've started a "girl diet".
ME! I plan on trying late July/early August! Everything is very overwhelming. I ended up buying a personalized plan last week. I feel this will make things clear. I definitely think the LE diet will be easier to follow than the IG diet.
^^Ditto^^!
I think what to do varies so much that it's good to have a clear guide of what YOU should do. I purchased a plan too so I can see what Atomic recommends for me personally. It might be different from what she'd recommend for you.
It will fun going on this journey with other ladies! Prayers and fingers crossed that we all get healthy, sweet little girls!
I am! Trying to use these few months we've got before then to get my plan figured out!
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Hi and welcome! Don't be overwhelmed, just let me know how I can help!
Thanks ladies! I honestly feel better already!
DH doesn't have a gender preference, but he knows how much I long for a DD so he's agreed to do whatever I tell him (sheesh, I wish HE was the one that needed to diet/exercise/etc!) He has a doctors appointment coming up, once we're given the "green light" to start TTC I think I will purchase a plan as well, although I am not certain which one yet...
I am not too worried about the diet itself, but I am worried that it's going to be difficult to make 2 dinners each night (DS is 11). OK, I am sllllllightly worried about my chocolate/ice cream/cookie addiction...:tissue:
What I am dreading is the exercise... I am sedentary. Period. LOL. somewhere in the depths of the garage is an elliptical that I will have to send DH to recover this weekend. I REALLY don't want to exercise, but I feel like if I don't do everything possible (especially since I am only going to try over the summer) I will end up feeling guilty and full of regret. If it doesn't happen the "good ol' fashion sway way" we will go HT, adopt, or focus on enjoying a youthful "empty nest" lol (I will be 36, DH will be 37 when DS goes to college).
Speaking of... How much alcohol is suggested?
That's great that DH is on board! I don't think you'd need to necessarily make two dinners each night. Just have your meal without meat or add in an iceberg lettuce salad for yourself or have a smaller portion. It might take some more meal planning but it can be done. I usually eat what everyone else is having except for the odd time. It's going well so far except for when we do take-out pizza night. HUGE calories.
Will it help to watch a couple of TV shows while you exercise? I'm not exercising now (hoping to fit it in some way, somehow) but when I used to be a hardcore gym addict, I would usually watch TV with my headphones in and 60 minutes would fly by while I watched a morning talk show or a couple of 30 minute sitcoms.
I still have my cookies and ice cream! I just make sure I keep my cals low during the day and the ice cream fits in nicely in the evening as a third "meal".
I think I read that 1-3 drinks per night is good but not necessarily every single night. I haven't paid much attention to that to be honest as I generally have a glass of wine every night anyway, lol.
Beau, how long have you been dieting?
Oh good thinking! We have lots of pasta dishes so I think forgoing the meat will work :) We actually had pizza tonight, definitely haven't started the diet yet LOL
Yes! I will absolutely be watching tv while I exercise. DH and I usually watch a couple of shows after DS goes to bed, so I am going to put the elliptical in the living room [eyesore]...
So relieved I can drink wine! Do the calories count? (LOL since its supposed to "help" my sway does it count "against" my diet?)
Has anyone started or plan to use supplements?
I've been dieting for about a month now. Not strictly as that's not my style at all but also b/c I'm trying to ease into it since it's totally opposite from the way I used to eat (typical boy mom diet!). I haven't gone fully vegetarian and I'm not sure I will. I am trying to cut back on red meat though. I didn't think I ate a lot of it but I kind of do. Last night we had slowcooker roast beef (so so good!) and I just tried to have a smaller portion of meat but I didn't weigh it or anything. Low carb veggies don't have to be counted though so I had a pile of roasted asparagus :)
Alcohol does have to be counted unfortunately, haha. But, again, I kind of use it as a third meal in the evening. I really don't enjoy having it with dinner.
I haven't started any supplements yet although I do plan on picking up some folic acid. I was thinking about fiber supps but I'm waiting to see what Atomic says in my personalized plan.
Oh gosh, a month!? My goal has been to ease into it too, but thus far that has just been skipping breakfast (which isn't unusual for me, but it makes me feel like I'm getting the ball rolling hehehe).
I started the folic acid but haven't started the fiber yet... I think after DH's dr appointment I will get the feeling of "sh** just got real" and have to buckle down. I got nervous when we first decided to sway and bought cranberry, saw palmetto, rePhresh (x2), spearmint leaf caps, a bbt thermometer and about 200 ovulation strips... ANYTHING besides starting to exercise! I do plan to use some sort of antihistamine bc I worry about cm...
Well the big things for me were skipping breakfast and the no snacking thing. So I've cut out breakfast (except for a coffee with a little creamer) and no snacking. I haven't really been strict on limits yet but I've tracked a few days so I know I'm pretty consistently at or around 1500 calories per day. I'm struggling a little with the fat limits which surprised me.
Ya know, I was really worried about CM at the beginning too b/c I always have a LOT around ovulation but after just a month of loosely followed diet, I've noticed a HUGE change in my CM this month. This is my normal ovulation day and I've been quite dry when I'm typically seeing lots of EQCM. Antihistamines haven't been getting good results and are generally the first thing people drop it seems. I planned on using them too but seeing my CM (or lack thereof) this week has changed my mind on that.
Are you drinking coffee? I added in 2 large cups per day. I didn't drink it at all when I conceived my boys so I feel like it's good to add for me.
I downloaded the myfitnesspal app, aaaaaand that's as far as I've gotten LOL, haven't even OPENED the app yet! Im really impressed that the diet has helped cm, I usually have a lot too.
I haven't started the coffee yet, I drink a TON of Diet Dr. Pepper but I plan to start coffee soon - which will suck during the summer, so iced coffee :)
Honestly, it's been so long since I was pregnant I really don't remember what I was eating/drinking/doing back then! I've really been trying so I could do the opposite, but I can hardly remember what I did last week let alone a dozen years ago :think:
I downloaded the myfitnesspal app earlier this week; it has been eye opening to see how many calories I actually consume on a day to day bases. :tissue:
Beau, I struggled majorly with keeping fat low. It is by far the hardest part of the LE for me. I used to eat SO much fat. For me it helped to know that keeping fat, especially saturated fat, low is the single most important dietary factor other than maybe overall low cals. I buckled down and once I got into the habit of eating differently I found it manageable.
I will probably still be swaying up until July. I've been taking sway & TTC breaks the past 2 years but I'll be 35 next month so no more of that.
Oh I didn't know that Maiden! I will definitely keep a closer eye on fat then. I didn't realize I ate so much fat either. My cals have been low enough but I think I'm pretty consistently over on fat. Blergh.
You realize you have up to 60 g fat and still in LE Diet range though, right?Quote:
Originally Posted by Beau82
A lot of people say that and then I hear they were worried because they ate more than 10 g fat. NOT ENOUGH
30 g fat is minimum. I used to say 25 but that did not seem to be enough. People stop ovulating on anything below 30, it seems, even when getting enough pro and cals
You don't have to exercise if you don't want to. I didn't (couldn't, didn't have time) and still got DD.
NO need to make two dinners, the LE Diet when done properly involves lots of real food and not rice cakes and cranberries. I just made a normal dinner for everyone, and then I'd have everything but meat. Worked very well and no one ever even noticed anything any different.
You can have chocolate, cookies, icecream as a part of overall diet limits. The reason why this diet works for people (even just for weight loss, as many of us have used it for that even when not swaying) is that you keep eating things you like for the most part and so you don't feel as deprived.
I really need to be more consistent with tracking on MFP. I did a couple of days here and there and went over. Mind you, that was around Valentine's Day when I had a lot of homemade (loads of butter) cookies and chocolate around. Maybe it was just those days that I went over. I'm going to say this here b/c I think it may help:
I WILL track every day this week so I can see what an average, full week looks like for me. I have a kitchen scale so I should use that more to see exactly how much I'm eating instead of just guesstimating.
afrevert23 - I was shocked too when I realized how many calories I was consuming with all of my snacking. The handful of peanuts I would have a few times per day was 330 cals EACH TIME! I was easily eating 1000 calories per day in peanuts alone.
I used to eat 1/2 - 1 lb of butter each week, and at least 100g fat daily. Swaying is the only time I've ever reduced fat in my life. It is a really huge change for me.
The elliptical is in the house!!! LOL, and for today, that will count as exercise :)
Is anyone using a fitbit or jawbone to track nutrition and workouts?
Ugh, over fat by 11g and forgot to include the chocolate chip cookie I had. Still have some work ahead of me!
Pretty- I just use My Fitness Pal to track exercise.
You know not to count fat in fruit and vegetables, right?? (including potatoes)Quote:
Originally Posted by Beau82
As long as you're eating less fat than you WERE, it's all good and try not to beat yourself up. It's a process that takes a couple weeks to settle into before you really get the swing of it and that is ok to have a bad day now and then. :)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Beau82
:agree: and someone was just asking me "why can't I just eat less"?? The LE Diet CANNOT be people just "eating less" because many of us boy moms are snackers who probably eat 3000 cals a day or more (I do and I'm on the smaller side) So we try to "eat less" without realizing that yeah maybe we cut 200 cals but are still way outside of LE Diet range. Just track for a couple weeks and then you'll have a much better feel for it and can let the tracking aspect fall by the wayside at that point.
I didn't know that actually. That's good to know, I love potatoes and sweet potatoes. Unfortunately, yesterday was just bad and the only fruit I had was a banana, no veggies at all. The croissant with 14g of fat did not help. I also had a little too much cheese which accounted for 20g of fat :omg: So cutting those two things out alone would have put me well under my limit. I knew the cheese was too much, I just got carried away as it was late in the day and I was really hungry.Quote:
Originally Posted by atomic sagebrush
I do think I've generally lowered my fat intake since last year though. Snacking on almonds and peanuts really made that high.
Keep in mind that the type of fats really matter too. The fats from almonds & peanuts are significantly more pink friendly than from dairy, so you may want to eat more of those and less croissant/cheese.
Me! DH just got a vaso vasectomy last wednesday. He has 3 sons from previous marriage I have zero.
He knows about swaying not that I kinda started already and waiting for my personal plan.
Would like to try and get pregnant asap. Not sure if the end of April would be good at 9 weeks diet or rather wait for May or june.... 18 May het will have his frist sperm count. ....
TTC a girl.
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Really? I thought nuts should be avoided. Atomic recommended the PCOS diet for me and I'm supposed to have full-fat dairy occasionally. Are nuts still ok now and then? I do miss them! I'm struggling a bit with all the ins and outs and differences between LE and PCOS.Quote:
Originally Posted by maidentomother
My comment applies more to standard LE, as PCOS version has both more fat and more fat from animal sources. I do think it's still good to increase pink friendly fats & decrease blue friendly ones, but perhaps not to the same extent? I've read conflicting recommendations on what's best for PCOS ladies dietwise (in general, not on this site), so maybe atomic can weigh in?
I didn't realise you were doing the PCOS version, lucky you! I'd love to have the extra fat, more chicken etc. But I am the opposite of PCOS, basically. Except I still O late and have a short LP. :(
Yes, I'm very confused with the PCOS diet. I feel like I just got the LE diet figured out so I just have to sit down and sift through this one. I know I have to have whole grains (and I just filled my freezer with white bagels, lol) and the slightly higher fat will be good. But I don't understand how higher fat will help me lose weight quicker. I'm happy though! I was really bummed at the thought of only drinking skim milk, I do love full-fat milk, haha.
I don't have PCOS (that I know of anyway) but I think she feels it would be a better way to go since I have a lot of weight to lose (30lbs, so daunting!).
It's not confusing, it's only because I have to answer so many questions preemptively in the essays but really, just like with the LE Diet standard form, the core is very basic. Most people do not need to go the whole nine yards because most people do not have severe PCOS in this forum and are either on the diet for preventative reasons or for egg quality.
Same amount of cals
Up protein to 50-60 g
Up fat to 50-60 g
These above changes in effect cut carbs without even trying to.
Then, for your carbs, use whole grains and/or white rice/potao (some people do better on white rice and it seems to be not as bad as wheat for PCO tendencies) and fruit and vegetables.
And full fat dairy instead of skim because skim milk has something about it that seems very bad for blood sugar levels.
Some people (and I'd count them in the majority) still want to stick to the old-school sway diets and for them, nuts are a no-no because they're said to sway blue. Nuts are pretty healthy as well. BUT there are no forbidden foods and yes everyone can have nuts as part of the overall LE Diet.Quote:
Originally Posted by Beau82
It's the limits, the limits, the limits that matter and not the foods. Additionally as Maiden mentions, the type of fat may matter too and vegetable based fats like those in nuts may help a pink sway more than the type of fat in butter (like in croissants)
I know, I know, croissants are bad, haha :prof: :nono: They were half price, I couldn't pass it up!
I was just thinking of avoiding nuts b/c of their high cals. Very small amount for a big portion of calories for the day. And for me personally, once I have a few, I can't stop. So a small handful quickly turns into 4 fistfuls.
I've read a little more and I do get it now. I've had a glass of full fat milk the last two days and it's so tasty. Forgot how much I missed it! Also glad to see white rice is ok. I'm not a big fan of brown rice.
They're not bad, they're fine on a day you've had gobs of protein but not a lot of fat or cals!! :)
White rice is ok. Unless a person has very severe PCOS (and I mean, diagnosed, not just a rumor of an innuendo) then you're fine having white rice.
On days which my will power has wavered (i.e. diet cheat days) is it better to skip the work out (since there are additional/extra nutrients that can be used for muscle building/hormone forming) or should it be a day that I should exercise more?
Also, I am concerned about my testosterone levels (acne, lovely lady beard :holysheep:) is it worth tinkering with or could it just make the situation worse?
Yummmmm... croissants....
I would definitely exercise more...but not too much more. You can't build muscle doing cardio on the LE so don't worry about that.
The diet alone may very well help with potential high T symptoms, though you could consider Vitex and/or peppermint tea.
I love fresh peppermint tea and so does my husband to be. Can you drink as much as you want of it?
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This is what Atomic says in the post on peppermint tea:
"How to use mint – Dosage for DW - 3 cups a day, AF-O only. You may want to take it with meals because it contains compounds that block absorption of nutrients from foods and also may lower blood sugar."
I think I also read that too much can cause ovulation issues so it's probably best not to go overboard with it.
Thanks Beau82 we normally have 2-3 cups after dinner and in the weekend this could be double.. I will make sure
Not to go overboard
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