Starving

ToniaH75

Today is my first day on this journey. I have had breakfast and lunch and a small snack and i still have 925 calories to go which will be used for dinner. The problem i am having is i am so hungry. Will your body get used to this or am i not eating enough? Any ideas?

NaeTeaspoon

What on earth do you have planned for dinner? I usually have far less than that so I can either have more snacks or a big lunch - keeps me feeling fuller for longer

ShellyBell999

OMG girl eat something!!
There are sooooo many filling foods you can squeeze into 925 calories.
Proteins are an excellent way to stay fuller longer and the veggie list is lengthy when it comes to filling in gaps without calorie overage.

Being hungry is only going to lead to binge eating then feelings of failure.
Keep your determination up by eating foods that give you the most for your efforts. Google is an excellent tool.

Opening your diary so others can offer tips and ideas will also be helpful for you.

Best of luck to you!!

katya_be

My guess is you set your calorie goal to 1200 calories?

ToniaH75

Today is my first day it's a learning process..lol Thank you for the laughs and the help. 925 calories doesn't seem like much to me..

madhatter2013

Are you actually hungry or do you just think you are because you're used to eating a lot? Try drinking a glass of water. After you drink a tall glass of water, wait for 20 minutes. if you still feel hungry after that, eat something like fruits or veggies. Being your first day on your journey, you need to learn your hunger ques again. I was the same way when I first started. it's all about will power and the ability to learn to listen to your body.

katya_be

925 is a lot for dinner! If you even out the calories you will feel full if you eat small meals more often. But it all depends on the person. Some people do better with one meal a day and intermittent fasting, I do better with small breakfasts, large lunches and larger dinners

ToniaH75

My calorie goal is 1,415 for my height and weight. Your right it could be because im so used to eating

rand486

Your appetite definitely adjusts.

I suggest you find low calorie, filling foods and ways to flavour them if you don't like them plain. I use:

* Half a grapefruit
* Broccoli
* Cauliflower
* Carrots
* Celery
* Popcorn (I like it plain, but look into the seasonings in the spice aisle if you need flavour)
* Mustards and/or hot sauce (super low calorie, lots of flavour)
* Sugar-free Jello
* Coffee/Tea/Hot water with lemon juice

It gets pretty easy if you stay hydrated.

kendalslimmer

If you calorie goal is 1200 try this: 300 breakfast, 300 lunch, 100 snack, 500 dinner. So maybe for breakfast you could have porridge and berries (very filling), meat + a salad, or soup + a slice of bread for lunch, a piece of fruit, raw veggies, popcorn, or a yoghurt for your snack, and fish + veggies + potatoes + white sauce for dinner etc. Good luck sweetie, don't starve and remember you can eat your exercise calories back! Xx

DeliD25

Depends on what cals you are aiming for and how much you are exercising/burning. If you are saving your calories for a big dinner you will be hungry through the day. What is working for me is spreading it out more evenly through the day. Breakfast 300, Snack 200, Lunch 300-400, Snack 200, Dinner 300-400, and evening snack 200. Lots of water too. I have read recently you are better to eat more in the morning and lighter in the evening. Haven't tried that yet. I struggle with feeling deprived (or bored). Good luck to you on your journey!

mish26

As others have suggested, spreading your calories out will help you not be so hungry. It also helps me not overeat at dinner. If I've restricted calories all day in order to save for a bigger dinner I tend to eat too much in the evening. Good luck!

Unknown

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aNewYear123

First, you do get used to it. Second, find something low calorie to munch on. Third, you may want to plan out a few dinners so that you can see where you can cut calories there to add to your meals earlier in the day.

As you log and review your daily logs you will also start learning what foods you want to cut down or change as they are using up too many of your calories. (I used to drink 2 cups of skim milk at dinner but then realized that was 180 calories, over 10% of my daily limit. That was switched to water which let me eat a lot more during the day)

MoiAussi93

You might want to consider changing the default macros to target eating more protein. When I switched it to 30% protein I had trouble eating enough calories at first, and I was eating around 1300 per day.

Eat more protein early in the day...breakfast or lunch. It will help you stay full much longer and you won't be as hungry in the evening. Protein and fat keep you full much longer than an equal amount of carb calories.

diannethegeek

I have some really general tips for hunger that might help:

1. Make sure that your calorie goals are actually set appropriately. Don't skip this step. A lot of people set goals that are too aggressive and then wonder why they're having a hard time. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

2. Look for foods higher in protein, fat, and fiber. These help us stay full and more satisfied longer. If you're using MFP's default settings, try to consider protein, fat, and fiber as minimums to reach every day rather than maximums to stay below.

3. Drink plenty of fluids. Some people really do confuse thirst and hunger.

4. Get plenty of rest. This includes sleeping enough and taking rest days from the exercise. Sometimes our bodies look for food when they're exhausted.

5. Play around with your meal timings. Some people do really well on 5-6 small meals a day and others feel like they want to gnaw their own arm off eating like that. Skipping breakfast, eating breakfast, 16:8 fasting, 6 small meals, 3 larger meals, snacks, no snacks, meal timing won't make a big difference to your weight loss, but it may help your hunger levels, mood, concentration, gym performance, etc. throughout the day. Don't be afraid to try a different way and see if it helps.

6. Wait it out. If you know you're eating enough and the other steps above aren't helping, you may just have to wait it out. Our bodies send out hunger signals partially out of habit. If you eat at a certain time every day your body will start to get hungry at that time. The good news is that these signals can be retrained to stop telling you to be hungry all the time. The bad news is that you may just have to be hungry for a little bit while that happens.

7. I also think it's important to remember that there's a habitual component to hunger. This goes along with point #6, but if you eat because you're bored or you're used to eating in front of the TV or in the car or whatever it is, then you can replace those habits with others that are better for you. Things like keeping water on hand to sip instead of snacking or picking up hobbies that keep your hands busy or that get you out of the house more can help out a little while you're retraining your hunger cues. You might need to pay attention to why you're eating/hungry or what you're feeling when you eat and try to replace food with other things, but it can be really beneficial over time.

dfargher

A few things:

1. You will be hungry sometimes when dieting, more so than you will at maintenance because you're eating fewer calories than your body needs. Restricting too far will backfire, but it isn't bad to feel hungry between meals, especially as you near mealtime.

2. Looking at your food diary, I don't think I would feel full after lunch on those foods either. They're not unhealthy, just not particularly filling. Oatmeal will fill you up more than Cheerios, and unsweetened greek yogurt with whole fruit will be more filling than a prepackaged sugary yoplait and a diet candy bar. It's your first day, and it will take some trial and error for you to find the foods that keep you satisfied on fewer calories. Don't be too hard on yourself in the beginning, and you might consider setting a higher calorie goal at first while you are learning and adjusting.

3. Yes, your body will get used to less calories, and your tastes can adjust to healthier foods with time and practice. It's the change process that is the hardest.

gramacanada

I fully agree with the posters above. Super suggestions.
One more that works for a lot of folks.
Eat in only One place. Pick a spot and eat nowhere else.
It is generally suggested, at the table away from distractions, focus
only on eating. Tasting, smelling, feeling, seeing, smaller bites, etc.
Many scarf down their food and don't even really feel they've eaten.
Same at work pick a spot. And ..... For the most part teach yourself to not eat food others
have brought to work. So inviting. Usually calorie busters
Good luck on your journey. Starting is the main thing.

HeidiCooksSupper

I took a peak at your diary. Try to eat some protein, fat and fiber at breakfast and lunch. Starting the day with a bowl of simple carbs (cereal flakes) will just make you hungry.

LeslieB042812

Everyone has given such good advice here! If only all boards were this helpful. I would just like to add that since this is your first day the most important thing is to not give up and to really commit to tracking EVERY thing you eat (even if it's something you didn't want to eat or even if you don't know exactly what's in it and it's an estimate). When you start feeling ravenous, sometimes you just want to give up on the whole thing and go back to old habits. I would encourage you to think of it one moment at a time, as in "I will log what I am eating right now" and not long term. Don't think "I have to do this for a week" or even all day because that can be discouraging and can also lead to giving up if you do end up giving in to temptation, saying "this day is ruined, I'll start again tomorrow". If you commit to tracking this moment only, you'll find the moments add up and it gets easier and easier. Also, it will help you learn what works for you and what doesn't. Good luck!

jkwolly

NaeTeaspoon wrote: »

What on earth do you have planned for dinner? I usually have far less than that so I can either have more snacks or a big lunch - keeps me feeling fuller for longer

I actually prefer more of my foodies after my afternoon workout and for a bigger dinner plus snacks, mmmm carbs after dark.
During the day I just eat more protein and usually stay full well until after my workout

ToniaH75

Thank you for all the great advice!!!

VeryKatie

For me it took about 4 weeks the first time. After that, whenever I let myself slip into eating high calorie for a while (like the Christmas holidays for example) it takes about 3 - 4 days. It sucks, I know, but it fades..

kcerrillo

I save 500 for dinner at the most and i. At 1200 u need to eat more love!