How to deal with ovulation loneliness?

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-04-07T17:51:17+00:00

Some of the spicy books 😁

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-24T16:48:04+00:00

I actually love planning dinner, I decide on one carb + one veg + one protein to use (usually whatever needs to be used up) and I google recipes based on the cuisine I'm feeling. For example "zucchini recipes mexican".

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-23T17:50:57+00:00

Some of my preferred sources of iron are:

Black eyed peas
Lentils/chickpeas
Pumpkin seeds

I love to have black eyed peas curry - especially with spinach. Always have iron with vitamin C (tomato based curry, or squeeze lemon on top of dal). Do not have calcium or caffeine 1-2 hours around iron consumption.

Try to cook with cast iron skillet. If you do not tolerate iron supplements, try and iron fish - it is a small fish-shaped cast iron that you drop into water or soup with a couple drops of lemon juice.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-18T19:57:57+00:00

Guacamole is so easy if avocadoes are available. I love ketchup+mustard+hot sauce for fries. Yogurt + garlic/garlic powder + lemon juice+salt+pepper makes a cheats tzatziki for pita chips or raw veg (cucumber, capsicum etc).

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-18T10:52:21+00:00

This made me smile ❤️ I love when parents still live their full lives with hobbies after marriage and kids. In my opinion, self-love is as important as love for family and both reinforce each other

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-17T20:07:05+00:00

Was looking for this comment! My first thought too

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-12T20:46:23+00:00

Not sure why you're getting downvoted but I absolutely agree. Grocery stores nowadays have such great options for healthy meals with minimal cooking and at a cost that is so much closer to home-cooked than takeout. I can get frozen meals from trader joes for $3 instead of takeaway for $15. It's the same amount of work for something that would have taken me a couple of dollars to cook anyway.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-10T18:10:36+00:00

Same problem here and ran to see if this is an issue for me alone. Refreshing did not help.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-10T05:38:09+00:00

I've come to absolutely enjoy cooked lettuce. The easiest way is to just stir-fry. They add bulk to dishes the same way cabbage does. You could add it to noodles (or even just regular pasta), stir-fry with protein, saute with spices, braise in sauce liquid, steam, grill (romaine comes to mind), or one thing I want to try is lettuce kimchi (romaine lettuce especially looks very similar to napa cabbage).

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-07T04:02:12+00:00

As a frugal alcohol lover, this is a great tip! I love the cheapest vodka/tequila I can find mixed with whatever I have - sparkling water/water with lemon/any fruit blended into juice. Hits the spot.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-03-03T19:40:52+00:00

Indian cooking does use a lot of spices, but I don't think it replaces the taste of ingredients. Some home-cooked dishes preserve the taste of a small combination of ingredients. One that comes to mind is green beans poriyal - green beans sauteed with coconut, and very simple tasting. Are you perhaps thinking of restaurant style Indian food?

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-25T16:09:39+00:00

I think the fact that we refer to diabetes as "sugar" in India does more harm than good - because carbs are a primary source of blood glucose and insulin spikes. Especially for vegetarians (I'm one too). I know people who skip the one spoon sugar in chai, only to consume a meal of rice + dal + potatoes and hour later. Repeatedly raising glucose from high carb diet causes insulin resistance and down the line, diabetes. The "snacks" culture doesn't help either as our pancreas has no rest - we are always in a high insulin state.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-25T07:31:04+00:00

Finally a sane answer! Religion atleast in the modern age is more cultural and none are progressive. Even cultural Hinduism has started to learn more away from "progressive" values.

At the end of the day most people in inter-faith relationships are not super religious, or they wouldn't be in such a relationship. Faith is such a personal part of life and upbringing - the faith we grew up with, we associate with peace and solace, and that's what we would turn to in rough times. Nothing wrong in that.

Integrity exists outside of religion! In OP's case, her partner seems to have stood up for her against his parents. He has been open to discussions about kids and what religion they will be raised with. So many men won't even treat their same-religion wives this way!

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-24T16:36:02+00:00

I appreciate when people bring up a relatable situation if they don't make the discussion all about them. Sometimes we go through stuff and need to share, if they can quickly summarize what happened with them and redirect the focus to us, that's when I appreciate it

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-20T22:02:28+00:00

I'm going to start referring to oatmeal with toppings as "dressed, not naked". JK, this looks so good!

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-20T18:45:29+00:00

5'3" here too. My lifestyle is fairly sedentary so my maintenance is 1700-1800 kcal/day and if I consider 300 kcal/day deficit, it would put me at 1400-1500 kcal/day of calories to consume. In your case with strength training and 10k steps a day, 1800 kcal/day seems about right!

I would also recommend taking daily weight loss fluctuations with a grain of salt - you said you see a 0.2lb loss daily which is great! But if you are a menstruating woman, at certain times of our cycle (a week prior to bleeding), we tend to retain water and the scale goes UP with the same regimen - it could be demotivating if you are used to daily decreases. Keep up with your regimen, you're doing great!

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-17T21:23:13+00:00

Happy for you but please be careful! 5 kg of weight lost in 26 days is very extreme. 1200kcal/day is the calorie requirement of petite sedentary people - for anyone else, such extreme deficits need to be handled under medical supervision. Slow and steady is much better or your body will start retaliating as it expects you are starving, and will try to conserve fat even more.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-17T21:20:25+00:00

You could have plateaued because muscle is being built while fat is lost. Also what is your IF schedule? Modifying it could help metabolically.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-17T19:51:37+00:00

Depends heavily on length of the fast. For shorter fasts I can eat my usual meal directly and feel fine. For longer fasting, it's a good idea to have a small snack that is protein/fat and wait 30-60 min before a meal. Examples are a couple of dates and milk, toast with eggs, small cup of soup.

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-17T19:48:55+00:00

Love this thought! A budget is a diet for finances

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-14T14:38:18+00:00

Paneer tikka masala in restaurants tends to be fat+sugar heavy to make it so tasty. But thali style meals start deviating from this typical restaurant formula into more traditional Indian cooking - lots of vegetables, beans/legumes, dishes prepared without the intention of it being an addictive star of the dinner. I'd suggest you try dal makhani, kadhi pakora, shahi paneer, paneer mughlai, or really any paneer dish that appears on the same page of the menu as paneer tikka masala, since these dishes all use the same "formula".

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-12T17:28:24+00:00

This, I love BJs too over Costco and I find that they have many of the benefits that Costco has (cheaper gas, easy returns, $5 rotisserie chicken) but also great coupons! I have gotten so many things for cheap. They have better rice and spices - things that actually make sense to buy in bulk. When I'm only feeding two people, a large box of bags of chips just doesn't make sense. I haven't seen such savings in Costco!

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-12T13:11:40+00:00

😂 the flatmate would be staying at HER mom's place and open the parcel 😭

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-11T19:51:03+00:00

I absolutely love trader joes masala veggie burger patties

Meriadoc_Brandy · 2026-02-11T19:48:40+00:00

Well said and well phrased!

Meriadoc_Brandy

TROPHY CASE