Eight Foods To Eat When Aunt Flo Is In Town...

Here's how the story goes... You're drinking your eight glasses of water a day, eating healthy, exercising properly, and keeping your carb intakes low - you're as motivated as ever to get ready for the hot summer weather, new Victoria Secret bikini already purchased and hanging on the wall. But then, something happens. An annoying, vexatious, and unpleasant visitor knocks on your door, and hands you an obnoxiously pretentious present in which you did not ask for on your wish list. Yes, I'm talking about that horrible monthly gift that graces us women with it's presence every twenty-eight days. It turns your self-controlled and in-check cravings into reprehensible, and shameful, out of control munchies. Chocolate, ice cream, chips, candy and all things junk food are what you yearn for - by the time seven days have passed, there is zero food morsels left in your house. Trust me, I speak from experience. Though, I've come to the conclusion that we should absolutely not let this evil and vile 'visitor' take over our life and make us do these preposterous acts. To help all you ladies out, I've researched a few foods that are healthy and won't mess up your diet that you've been working so hard on for the past few weeks.

Brown Rice 

Carbs are something we all hunger for, especially during our time of the month. We crave carbs when we are PMSing and on our period because we have low-energy. To solve this, most of us turn to sugar to treat the craving. A healthy alternative is to eat fibre-rich complex carbs to keep up your energy levels, such as brown rice. Brown rice is not only really tasty, but there are so many different ways to prepare and eat it.  Also, it's loaded with magnesium which is said to reduce bloating and contains lots of vitamin B. 

Yogurt 

When Aunt Flo is in town, she is very demanding, pressing and energy draining - basically by the time she leaves, you've had twenty naps in seven days and you're still falling asleep in class. To reduce these symptoms, a simple solution is to eat a lot of yogurt or drink lots of milk. Along with decreasing fatigue, low-fat dairy products are good sources of calcium that can reduce breast soreness and cramping. An added bonus, is eating these foods with high doses of calcium in them can help lighten your flow. 

Leafy Greens 

During your time of the month, eating plenty of leafy greens such as spinach, kale or swiss chard have lots of good benefits. Any type of leafy green is rich in iron and vitamin B, and have a high fibre count - these can help with digestive issues during your period. Greens also contain lots of calcium which is good to alleviate depression and irritability during PMS. The good thing about greens is it's easy to incorporate with any meal whether you are having a salad for lunch or spinach at dinner. 

Nuts

 When your monthly gift arrives, sitting on the couch with a giant bowl of crunchy and salty chips while you're curled up in a blanket watching The Food Network sounds like a dream, right? Well, we all know that those chips are totally not good for us. But fear no more, there is a healthier alternative to your chip craving that still satisfies those salty taste buds. Nuts contain magnesium which help reduce bloating and also help to shorten and lighten your period. They also are a great source of iron, to help keep you from getting iron deficiency. Nuts like almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts and brazilian nuts are great to snack on when you feel like something salty and you don't want to stuff your face with oily and greasy potato chips. 

Avocados

It's inevitable, when Aunt Flo comes for a visit, you will not be able to escape the horrible cramps that she brings along with her. One way that's known to reduce those ugly period cramps is to consume lots of vitamin E. Avocados contain lots of vitamin E which helps reduce pain during your monthly gift. Avocados also contain acids and compounds known as 'plant sterols' which have an effect on hormones such as estrogen and progesterone that control the regulation of menstrual cycles. If your period is irregular, avocados can help regulate it. So whip up some guacamole, or slice them up plain - either way, they are a great source of nutrition and aiding for your period.

Bananas 

You can never have too many home remedies to help reduce those pesky cramps, and another way to help soothe your tummy pains during your week of suffering is to eat bananas. Bananas are loaded with potassium and magnesium which help reduce cramps and decrease bloating. Not only are bananas good for cramps, they also contain vitamin B6 which - you'll thank me later for this fact - helps keep your skin looking young and healthy! (And we all know how we feel about our skin at this time.) 

Water

It's extremely important to stay hydrated on your period, so drink lots and lots of water - do avoid cold water though because it could increase painful cramps. If you get dehydrated on your period, this could also induce painful cramps, and we definitely want to avoid this at all costs. If you're not a water drinker, or you just want to make it a bit more interesting to drink, add lemon to it. Lemons can help ease the pain of cramps and can also lighten your period - it's also a great cleanse for your system. 

Dark Chocolate

I couldn't write one of these lists without including dark chocolate because let's face it, at the end of the day, we need just a little bit of chocolate to keep ourselves from going crazy, right?  Dark chocolate (65% or more cocoa), believe it or not, is actually good for soothing those cravings during your monthly gift - so do indulge, please. (Ok, don't get too crazy though.) It is also linked to boosting serotonin in your body and contains endorphins which helps improve and enlighten your mood. (And we need all the help we can get in that category, right ladies?) Another awesome fact about dark chocolate is it can actually help with cramps and PMS. Chocolate contains magnesium which can ease cramps and increase energy. So next time you are having a crazy craving for a chocolate bar, on your monthly gift, or not, you need not feel guilty if you sneak a little piece.  

I hope this list helped you out a little and I hope you try out some of these remedies to help yourself through this painful and unpleasant time of the month. Whether you're reducing your cramps, or lightening up your mood, every little thing helps, right? Leave me a comment and let me know of any remedies you have, or if you tried any of the above and they worked well for you!