Do you think types of cravings matter?

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NoelFigart1
NoelFigart1 Posts: 1,276 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been unbearably HUNGRY today. I tend to differentiate hunger and just... ya know, wanting to eat, by what will satisfy it.

If chicken breast or an apple will satisfy the hunger, it's probably, well... hunger. If it's what is typically recreational food for you (chips, ice cream, chocolate, whatever) then it may not actually be actual hunger but something else.

Do you ever take types of cravings as indicators to re-examine your eating? I do. If I'm craving chicken breasts, I do wonder if I'm getting the right amount of protein!

Not sure what I am going to do with this. Possibly start eating back some of my exercise calories. I generally don't, but I'm ramping up training. Not sure yet, but maybe I might.

Do you ever encounter anything like this? If so, what do you do?

Replies

  • Barbs2222
    Barbs2222 Posts: 433 Member
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    I've been hungry since I started tracking again. Whenever I decide to restrict my calories I start eating breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack and snack. Well I don't eat that way normally I prefer 2 large meals a day because at least when I eat them I'm full for a good long time. So now I'm only eating from 3:00 until 9:00 everyday. It's only till 9:00 because I like to drink. I have to say I'm pretty hungry from 1:00 to 3:00 but I've noticed if I eat a good portion of protein late the day before I'm way better off. Anyway I do think cravings absolutely matter. I think your body craves what it wants. Sometimes that's comfort right? :) When that's the case I just have to think to myself that I want to be comfortable in my jeans. I know this way of eating doesn't work for everyone but it's what I'm doing. For me Breakfast turned on the eating machine that didn't want to stop and made the cravings worse.
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,160 Member
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    Animals tend to eat what they crave so it may be the same with us. Since 50% of protein becomes glucose craving it could perhaps be a form of sugar cravings.

    Barbs makes a good point. Dieting can wake up cravings that we had forgotten about. I think this is the main reason dieting is a bad idea. I am trying to stop that mental process and move to a new eating lifestyle that eliminates the long term need to diet after 40 years of failing at dieting.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    I'm somewhat sick today and have been craving oatmeal of all things, so am just going with it. It's probably that it's warm and comforting and easy to eat rather than anything else, but I have been lower on carbs than usual the last couple weeks, so maybe I was overdoing it for me. (This may not be the same thing, though, as being sick I'm not feeling hungry at all, just like oatmeal is all I want to eat.)

    I usually give up meat for Lent, and by the week before Easter I'm craving lamb like mad almost always. Looking back I've probably been lowish on protein while doing that, but I suspect it's just wanting what I haven't been having there.
  • angelgirl3012
    angelgirl3012 Posts: 1
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    Absolutely! It's like a pregnant woman, the cravings tell you what you're deficient in nutrient wise. Listen to your body and try and figure out what you're craving and then substitute with a healthier option.
  • mxmkenney
    mxmkenney Posts: 486 Member
    edited January 2015
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    I crave chocolate all the time, even when I am eating a healthy balanced diet. Is there a nutrient I'm deficient in that chocolate satisfies? Or am I just addicted to it and like an alcoholic with booze, and the cravings will never really go away? Well either way, I'm not giving it up - just trying to fit it in my calorie allotment.

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