The Hemp Connection:
meal plan for pcos

1 cup brown rice cooked
1 and 1/2 cup spinach
handful of basil
l1-2 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup pine nuts
2 Tbsp flax seed oil
1/3-1/2 cup water
chop garlic. Place all ingredients except for the rice in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour over 2 cups of rice and mis until evenly spread on the rice

Organic Beet Salad Ingredients:
One large Beet or 2 small
Walnuts-handful
fresh dill-2 -3 sprigs
1 lemon
Wash beets and scrub with brush over running water
Peel the beet and chop into small evenly cut cubes. Place in a steamer and boil for 7-10 minutes. Place beets in a bowl of ice water to cool. When cool remove and place in bowl. Add chopped walnuts,chopped dill and juice of one lemon, refrigerate until cold and eat when read

Network member Dori Zerlin posted this as a comment to a post and I wanted to be sure readers didn't miss it. Thanks for taking the time to write, Dori!

I also would love to share my daily eating habits and recipes since I feel that my diet is pretty tasty even though it is quite healthy too. However, I do practice what I preach quite closely. And what I mean by that is as a dietitian working at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, consulting with pre-and post-op lapband and gastric bypass patients, I teach them the importance of planning their meals ahead of time and eating balanced meals that contain a lean source of protein, a complex carbohydrate, and some heart-healthy fats. I do plan out most of my meals ahead of time and prepare them over the weekend or the night before since my weekly work schedule is tight and I have very little time for preparation let alone petty cash to spend on eating out. Therefore, this meal plan is what works for me and my lifestyle and my body type. I would not expect everyone to follow it or to enjoy it. My menu varies from day to day as well, but I am going to give 2 variations of what I might eat on any given day. I also take the following supplements with my meals spread out over the day: Krill Oil (contains omega 3-fatty acids), Calcium, Magnesium, Vitamin D (2000 IU), Basic Multivitamin, and Vitamin C.

Here is a sample with a variation for each meal or snack:

Breakfast
1 cup of nonfat plain sugar-free Greek Yogurt (by Trader Joe’s brand)
1/2 cup high fiber cereal (Organic Heritage Heirloom whole grains) or 1/3 cup of Trader Joe’s High Fiber Cereal.
1/2 cup frozen organic blueberries or strawberries
Cinnamon and stevia to taste
1 tablespoon of Salba seeds ground

or

1/2 cup yogurt (same brand as above)
1/2 cup organic non-fat cottage cheese (by Nancy’s)
1/4 cup of raw oat bran hot cereal + a little bit of water to moisten it
1 Tbl. Salba
1/2 cup strawberries
I use liquid stevia vanilla flavor to add a natural sweet vanilla flavor
(Let this chill in the fridge over night and it is delicious the next day!)

Lunch
2 slices Turkey Bacon on 2 slices of Ezekial bread
2 slices of tomato or roasted red peppers
spinach
mustard
With a salad on the side

or

Egg-white omelet w/ spinach, onions, and mushrooms, hot sauce
I cook it with 1/2 cup of wild rice or two corn tortillas and salsa and a ranchero sauce

Snack
A sugar-free dark chocolate protein bar called a Paleobar/or 10 raw nuts (almonds, pistachios, brazil nuts, etc.) with an apple or 1 cup of strawberries

Pre-workout snack
1 cup of the greek yogurt with 1/2 cup of cereal or fruit

Dinner (I don’t measure that much during dinner since I always end up taking double or more of the serving size on days I workout, so I go with my hunger here)
Usually is a large stew made up of the following ingredients:
Steamed veggies (asparagus, cauliflower, mushrooms, cabbage, etc.)
Some sort of protein (fish, chicken, turkey, etc.)
Either Corn tortillas, wild rice, brown rice, or ezekial bread
I use marinara sauce a lot to season my stews or salsa or other spices for variation
I also have a large salad with it and use some store bought salad dressings from Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods.

Snack
1 cup yogurt
1/2 cup of frozen berries
1 oz. of raw nuts
Sometimes I will also have a cup of unsweetened non-fat almond milk (vanilla or chocolate) and mix in some stevia, cereal, fruit, and nuts.

I generally do weight training 4 days a week and use the elliptical machine at the gym for about 30 minutes as well. I do a pilates class once a week if I can make it. Staying active and physically fit help me to stay in shape and is very important to me. I schedule it into my days the same way that I schedule my meals ahead of time. Therefore it goes to show you that it does take consistent hard work for even myself to get the results that I have achieved thus far. (Although it does become second nature after awhile: ).)

Breakfast:
Whole wheat english muffin with 1 oz of mozarella cheese, part skim, and 1/2 to 1 oz of lean deli ham to make a breakfast sandwich.
4-6 oz Calcium fortified orange juice
Lunch:
2 oz deli turkey with 1 slice of provolone cheese, lettuce leaf, sliced tomato, with a tablespoon, (or less) of smart balance omega plus mayonnaise on a whole wheat tortilla to make a wrap. To drink, unsweetened iced tea with lemon.
Dinner:
Boneless, skinless chicken thigh baked/roasted with seasonings. Baked Potato, small with Omega plus smart balance margarine, and broccoli, prepared in the microwave and omega plus smart balance margarine, added for seasoning with pepper. To drink, water or a glass of wine
Snack: Sun chips

I am starting this weekly feature as a response to the 25 year long quest for menus that clients consistently ask for.

I have always had a problem with menus, primarily because I have yet to see them help someone eat better. I have given them out, they get lost or tossed in the trash, or clients try them for a few days and abandon them because they couldn't follow them. Or…they bring out a sense of rebellion that sabotages healthy eating. I also think giving out menus implies that there is a"perfect" way to eat, which simply isn't true.

Clients, I believe, have a perception of dietitians as being perfect eaters, which so isn't true as well.

A menu is only an educated guess, and it cannot possibly be derived from my office with complete knowledge of what challenges arise in YOUR day and what foods are available to you. I feel I have more of a chance of undermining your success by handing you this uninformed document than I do encouraging your confidence with food.

I'd like to bridge the gap between dietitians and people who are not, by using this feature to show what realistic eating consists of. I'm going to start it off, and hopefully get other blog contributors to check in with their own diaries as well.

I want you to see that my life isn't perfect, and therefore my eating is not either. I do my best, always try to do better, and hopefully, 80% of the time, I make good choices, which include foods I enjoy eating.

Here goes…this is my day from yesterday. By the way, I eat about 1500 calories on days when I am not exercising. I do not measure my foods, so my menu does not include portions. If you want to replicate this and you do measure foods, you will need to adjust that individually. Remember, this is not an exercise in how to weigh and measure or eat exactly 1500 calories, it is an exercise in observing how other people eat.

I hope it helps! Here is my eating from yesterday.

Breakfast

Big bowl of oatmeal with sliced almonds, dried blueberries, and shredded oatmeal.
Glass of milk
Orange from my patio tree

Lunch (an elderly friend invited me over for lunch and I ate what he served even though I'm not fond of mayonnaise-based salads, knowing he was very much going out of his way to do something nice.)

Roasted chicken breast and thigh (chicken breast was very big)
Scoop of store-made potato salad, scoop of coleslaw
Banana

Snack
Stopped at Trader Joe's and sampled a bite of roast pork, liked it so had a second sample: )

Dinner

Can of tuna on whole wheat bread
Sliced tomatoes
Orange from my patio tree
Leftover potato salad and coleslaw from lunch
2 ounces of Trader Joe's chocolate with ancho chili powder

I was busy running errands and it got dark before I could get out and run, so this was a less active day for me.

Hello everyone,

I'm looking for some cysters to help beta test"The inCYSTem", a new eating program. It is a combination of PCOS-friendly menus and coaching.

Part of what I am testing is whether doing such a program will be self-supporting financially (and therefore feasible for me to spend time developing). I will be charging a fee for participation, but anyone who beta-tests the program during the month of October ($7.50, 50% projected normal price) will be able to sign up for the plan for the 6 months at this reduced price.

I hear all the time that women with PCOS want menus, menus, menus, and so I am developing a PCOS-friendly plan that you can follow independently, or discuss with anyone who is helping you with your PCOS.

The first unit will be available a week from today, October 3, 2009. To register, contact me directly at marika@google.com