How I beat my period bloat in three weeks

Weight gain and bloating are pretty standard PMS symptoms, but that doesn’t mean you should have to live with them. I’d been riding that rollercoaster for nearly a decade, and frankly, it was getting old.

What concerned me was how there was almost nothing that I could do to control them. I felt like I’d tried everything: cutting back my salt and sugar intake, popping some purple PMS-relief gummies the Flo app sold me on and I even adjusted my workouts to align with my cycle, easing up during my luteal and menstrual phases.

At some point, I finally gave up and bought myself a pair of jeans in the next size up so I could just stop fighting with the dreaded period bloat. I write about health and wellness for a living, and know that I’m fortunate that I’ve never dealt with intense cramps, headaches and other PMS symptoms that some women experience. But the water retention and weight gain, which always seem to hit the few days before my period, have been a constant struggle I could never seem to shake.

That is, until I heard about Nourish, a telehealth site that connects users with a personal telehealth dietitian, mobile nutrition-tracking app, recipe ideas and plenty of other resources to help them hit their goals. Nourish set me up with a dietitian who specializes in the areas I was looking to optimize — women’s health and weight stabilization.

And just a few weeks after starting Nourish, I’ve already seen the proof it works. After a few meetings with my dietitian and a couple of weeks of implementing her advice, I’m already seeing that period bloat melt away.

What is Nourish?

Most Americans have insurance that covers working with a registered dietitian, but fewer than 1% utilize this benefit. Many also don’t know that it exists (admittedly, I was one of these people). When Nourish launched in 2021, its founders set out to take on the broken U.S. healthcare system by creating a bridge to better care.

In a nutshell, Nourish’s overarching mission is to make it easier and more affordable for people to eat well and live longer, healthier lives. The type of support they offer depends completely on the person. When users sign up for Nourish, they can select their goals — whether it’s to lose weight, improve sleep, build an exercise routine or eat more intuitively.

Nourish pairs users with a registered dietitian for telehealth appointments and hyper-personalized, clinical care. But, beyond one-on-one health counseling, Nourish users can utilize a fleet of resources, including a mobile app that provides unique recipe ideas, a curated to-do list, AI-driven daily nutrition tracking and progress charts that sync with the Apple Health app.

The best part about Nourish? Almost 95% of patients pay $0 out of pocket. The service is fully covered by insurance and available in all 50 states, which means there’s really nothing to lose by trying it out. Signing up is simple, and after a quick questionnaire, you can choose your dietitian and set up your first appointment.

My review

I’ve been meeting with my Nourish dietitian every week, and have used Nourish’s mobile app for almost three weeks. Since starting Nourish, I’ve been tracking my meals and leveraging Nourish’s recipe idea section to select ingredients and cook meals that help my body during my cycle. Read on to see exactly how this personalized health service works.

How Nourish works

Signing up for Nourish was straightforward. Beyond standard steps like entering my insurance details and confirming my location, I answered basic questions about my current health habits, diet, and goals. The prompts were familiar — things like “How many days do you work out on average?” and “What’s your typical vegetable intake?” There were also questions covering mental health, medical history and caffeine and alcohol consumption.

Near the end of the questionnaire, users are prompted to select their specific goals. For me, that included managing PMS symptoms like bloating and weight stabilization, along with improving gut health and practicing intuitive eating.

After that, I was presented with a list of available dietitians to choose from. If I wanted, I could have started sessions as soon as the next day — there was plenty of availability. I browsed the profiles and picked a dietitian specializing in women’s health and weight management. Honestly, booking an appointment has never felt that quick or effortless.

On my first call, which took place over Zoom, my dietitian introduced herself, spoke a bit about her background, and then opened up the floor to my concerns and goals, in which I quickly recounted the last decade of frustrating PMS symptoms, including everything from “feeling like I gain give pounds overnight,” to “becoming a whole different person the week before my period.”

She nodded along, listened, and asked some more questions about my medical history and relationship with food. I told her it has been generally positive, besides the fact that I sometimes skip breakfast, crave too much chocolate, and skip the home-cooked meals in favor of whatever sounds good in the moment, especially the week before my period.

During that introductory session, she said she would put together a list of meal recommendations that were packed with protein and healthy fats, which could help offset some of my sweet and salty cravings. She also suggested that I start tracking my food intake on Nourish’s mobile app and incorporate more quick and easy breakfast ideas to avoid skipping that first meal of the day.

After we finished up, I went ahead and downloaded the app and logged into my account. All my information was waiting there, right down to my to-do list, and a section where I could browse different recipe ideas. There’s also a message channel, where users can connect to their dietitian if they have any questions or need to reschedule their appointments.

I’m not someone who follows recipes to the T, but I did spend some time browsing for inspiration. This isn’t the place for your basic chicken-and-rice dish — my daily recommendations included everything from sesame salmon and asparagus with nori, to baked fennel and chickpea mayo. You can also filter by dietary preferences and allergies, which makes it easy to find meals that actually suit your needs.

Mostly, the recipe recommendations helped convince me that I could whip something together from my own kitchen, rather than resort to a late-night Uber Eats order. My dietitian did make it pretty clear that some of my PMS symptoms can be exacerbated by eating a diet high in processed foods and sugar (ie, whatever I order when I’m eating out or ordering in).

For the next few weeks, I tried to limit my consumption of artificial coffee sweeteners, vegetable oils, and carb-heavy dishes. Every time I had a craving, I reached first for a protein snack — something like a bag of Quest Chips or a scoop of peanut butter. Originally, I’d imagined that I would end up still eating that sweet treat I wanted, but I was surprised to discover that a quick hit of protein did fill me up.

Over just two weeks, I got pretty consistent with AI-powered meal logging, and it paid off. The Journal tab in the app makes it easy: users can snap a photo of their meals or jot down a quick description, and the app takes it from there. It scans the ingredients and automatically logs everything into your daily nutrition tracker (that includes calories, protein, carbs, fat, fiber and even hydration).

The feature is surprisingly intuitive, and I found myself making better choices almost without thinking. Part of it was the gamification; filling the rings each day felt like closing my Apple Watch activity goals. But it also came down to accountability. My dietitian reminded me that managing PMS isn’t just about the week before your period — it’s about building healthier habits throughout the month.

Just two weeks into the process, I’m already seeing results. My weight typically fluctuates by three to five pounds the week before my period. But this month, that didn’t happen. I also felt more energized, a little less moody, and more comfortable in my clothes. None of this is rocket science. I probably could have done it without Nourish if I really wanted to. But would I have? Honestly, I’m not so sure.

How Nourish compares to competitors

There are several telehealth sites that offer similar services to Nourish. Apps like Wellory and Healthie also provide a space for people to connect with healthcare providers, but I’d argue that they’re not quite as convenient, intuitive or affordable as Nourish.

Nourish distinguishes itself with a broad in-network insurance model. By partnering with major payers, including Medicare, Aetna, and United, most Nourish users are able to access their care for free. About 95% of patients pay $0 out of pocket, which speaks for itself. Nourish also employs 3,000 dietitians who are employed as W‑2 employees (rather than contractors), and the quality of care speaks for itself.

Nourish’s platform is impressively user-friendly, thanks to its seamless AI integration. Logging meals is quick and intuitive, and session notes with your dietitian are automatically transcribed — so nothing gets lost, and no time feels wasted.

Pros and cons

Final verdict

For someone as busy as me, Nourish offers real value. Between a demanding 9-to-5 and chasing after a toddler, my own health often falls to the bottom of the priority list.

Nourish helped fill that gap — not just through regular check-ins with a dietitian, but by keeping me more in tune with my daily nutrition and overall habits (ie, meal logging). None of this felt forced; using Nourish was actually pretty fun. Maybe, even addictive. But, in a healthy way — not in a shameful way.

The app also offers a range of tools I didn’t even fully take advantage of, like symptom and movement tracking, as well as recommendations for people managing allergies or syndromes like PCOS and ADHD. It’s hard for me to find any major flaws with the service. I’ve seen some reviews from people who didn’t feel their dietitian was the right fit, but that wasn’t my experience.

Nourish is truly tailored to individuals’ needs, and I believe that what helped me see real progress in easing my PMS symptoms. Considering it’s a free service, I’m genuinely impressed with what Nourish offers.

How we tested

I met with my Nourish dietitian weekly and used Nourish’s AI-powered meal logging feature for roughly three weeks. While testing the service, I considered how user-friendly it was, the quality of care provided and the overall impact Nourish had on my health.

• User-friendliness: As with any telehealth app, it’s very important that users can navigate the website offerings, app features and sign-up process with ease. With Nourish, I evaluated the time it took for me to sign up and input my insurance information, and considered the questions asked during the introductory questionnaire. I assessed how easy it was to find a dietitian that suited my needs, navigate the platforms (on desktop and mobile) and book/change appointments. Finally, I tracked how simple it was to log my meals and find different resources through the Nourish app.
• Quality of care: Nourish is primarily an online health service, but real, credentialed dietitians are still at the heart of this kind of personalized care. I looked into each provider’s education, licensing and experience, as well as the variety of specialists available. During my sessions, I paid close attention to my dietitian’s professionalism, communication style and how effectively they addressed my concerns with practical, evidence-based guidance. I also made note of how easy it was to get in touch with my dietitian for additional support through the process.
• Impact on health: For me, the goal of using Nourish was to learn how to better manage my PMS symptoms. I tracked short-term changes in my eating habits and mindset, as well as the education I gained around intuitive eating and my personalized nutrition needs (daily calorie, protein, carb requirements, etc.). For longer-term outcomes, I focused on whether my efforts led to noticeable improvements in managing my PMS symptoms and how motivated I felt to maintain the progress I was making.

This article was written by Miska Salemann, New York Post Commerce Writer/Reporter. As a health-forward member of Gen Z, Miska seeks out experts to weigh in on the benefits, safety and designs of both trending and tried-and-true fitness equipment, workout clothing, dietary supplements and more. Taking matters into her own hands, Miska intrepidly tests wellness products, ranging from Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint Longevity Mix to home gym elliptical machines to Jennifer Aniston’s favorite workout platform – often with her adorable one-year old daughter by her side. Before joining The Post, Miska covered lifestyle and consumer topics for the U.S. Sun and The Cannon Beach Gazette.