Need help riding out the evening carb-craving

[Florei]

I've mentioned in a couple of posts that I really like the South Beach style diet. I've even stuck with it for about three weeks at a time (about three times a year), so the problem might just be that I wasn't keeping up with it long enough...but a major issue I have is that I follow through wonderfully from morning to 4pm, eating every three hours and drinking a lot of water or green tea, but at 4 pm, I become a Guided Carb Missile. I go crazy trying to dig out bread products and sugary things out of the cupboards, and I feel insanely unsatisfied with almost everything else. Carrots seem to be the only veg I'll eat at this point, and then I overload on pasta or something at dinner like a ravenous Carb Goblin.

Obviously, besides ignoring my dark urges, I'm doing something wrong/ not consuming something I need, but what?

[Kahuna]

Do you have the craving all the time i.e. every phase? Or get it worse after you add some carbs? What does your last meal look like? Write down a typicall day with meals for you and some amount of how much. Maybe we can find a problem.

[Florei]

Cravings start pretty regularly in the afternoon, after having no carbs (avoiding vegetables high in them, too). One weakness is that my family is really dependent on potatoes/pasta/bread, even when we can afford not to be; can be hard to find a greater variety of vegetables in the house most of the years since we grow a lot of our own for winter. Here's a sample of the meals "done right":

Breakfast: 7 - 1 or 2 whole eggs, about 1/4 cup lean beef/ham/chicken (trying to cut ham, but sometimes all there is)

Snacks:10 and 4 - 1/2 cup mixed nuts OR meat, small salad without dressing

Lunch: 1 - 2 cups Steamed vegetables (usually swiss chard, broccoli, squash) , more of same meat, an apple or grapes on the side.

Dinner: 7 - Usually a rice based stir-fry with a lot of veggies and some soy sauce, Thai food (homemade), some variation of meat and potatoes. We also make a lot of potato-based stews. When I'm doing alright, I eat about half of my former overlarge portions.

My drink of choice is mostly plain green tea.

When I've done everything "right", including abstaining from potatoes and whole wheat bread, those are the worst days for frenetic evening bread-eating. It feels like I really need the sugar -- so maybe it's just taking me a lot longer to get out of that dependent phase...

*edit* I do still eat cheese and a little bit of butter (2 tbspn per day, est.). The cheese is goat milk based, made at home too. I've never sensed a problem with it, and I'm pretty sensitive to large amounts of any milk in my system.

[Kahuna]

Try to get more protein and fat in the afternoon and evening, maybe add 3-4 Eggs for Dinner instead of rice. And do things "right" again, the rice and potatoes will hinder the adjustment everytime, bread will do it severly. Diary is a topic of it self, some say it is ok, other say, it has low glycamic index but a high insulin index (high insulin=bad for fatloss). Butter is ok, especially grassfed cows something like Kerrygold. If upping Protein and Fat (BOTH! 1 M/L Egg as 7gr Protien and 6gr Fat avrg.) dosn`t help, there is the slow carb approach which allows for vegetables, but also beans, like kidneybeans, black beans and lentils. You could add them, but this is not paleo confirm if that`s important to you, because they have lecithin or lecithin similiar substance, which can be reduced if you let them sit in water a few hours (should get rid of farts and stomach pain if you prone too).

Both diets are not on counting calories but you should double check it anyway, and see what you need to not lose weight. Don`t do it every day, just once with sample which a realistic. I had a problem, when i switched high fat/High prot nearly no carbs, i wasn`t so hungry and eat 1200-1300 kcal a day instead of 1800/1900 and i`m male 1,80m.

So try:

0.) Get on course, no rice, no bread, no potatoes!

1.) Add Fat und Protein, i suggest Eggs try the ammount of 3-4. Afternoon or evening.

2.) If that dosn`t help after a week and a half, try add lentils/beans.

P.S.: Can`t get more precise i`m from germany we use grams and not cups, and a cup of this meat is different from lentils for example.

[Florei]

Thanks for the reply, Kahuna. I'm not a big fan of beans because soaking doesn't seem to do much for body reactions, but I can do lentils. Anyway, I'll try adding more eggs, nuts, and fruit (ugh) to my diet and try eating a little more frequently.

My biggest concern in trying to balance my diet is in how my body reacts to certain foods at certain times of the day (yep, I have a food diary project this week). I'm not a picky eater, but my energy/muscle needs seem to require specific things. This week is going to involve the good old scientific method. If all else fails, I can lock myself in my room between 4 and 5 pm

[nightlight]

i'd definitely up the protein and good fats.

also, could it be emotional or situational eating?