Not feeling full after you eat

FittingIntoTheseGenes

It's only been 48 hours. Granted. But almost every time I eat, I still feel hungry afterwards. I have been forcing myself to drink water and wait 20 minutes - so far so good (minus the frequent bathroom trips) Just wondering if this happened to anyone else and is this going to last forever. I HATE the feeling of feeling hungry.

acpgee

There was a BBC Horizon special about different causes of overeating, and different types of diets for each type of overeater. You sound like the type who has trouble stopping eating once you start, because you release less of the gut hormones that signal when you are full. For this type of overeater, a diet high in protein and low glycemic index was recommended, which would help produce feelings of fullness. Link to the documentary below.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/28kV5mpZvcDtJ2hyDbZ5h1p/what-s-the-right-diet-for-you

acpgee

If you can't watch the program in your location, the information on the diet that promotes satiety is here.

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/scotland/tv/rightdiet/feasters.pdf

FittingIntoTheseGenes

Thank you so much. I never thought there was a science behind it. This is really interesting.

Jruzer

Honestly, I've just learned to be satisfied with less. I could always eat a lot more than I do. In the words of author Jeff Kay,

There's not a moment of the day or night when I couldn't eat a full meal. And that includes immediately after eating a full meal.

saggyandbaggy

yes, the above is really helpful. I have found that I fill up with loads of vegetables as I can't cope with feeling hungry either. It does get less of an issue over time, it's a matter of sticking with it and even now, 90+lbs down, I still have to have a full plate at dinner time.

litsy3

I think it doesn't last forever. I still CAN eat giant meals, but if I do I feel a bit too full and don't want to do it again for ages. When you get used to smaller meals, and when you have lost weight and don't need as much food, you will feel satisfied with less. It's the long process of getting used to it that sucks.

As an example, I used to think the recommended serving size of spaghetti was a joke because I could easily eat twice that amount. Now I think it's a normal-sized serving.

SkinnyGirlFatBody

Yes, it does get better, at least it did for me. The logic I put behind it (which could be incorrect but it helps me) was that because I constantly over ate my stomach was used to having that much food and when I jumped down to less food I would be hungry for a week but now I am completely satisfied by my meal (though I could still eat another 3 helpings) and I don't feel the hunger pains. I like to envision a huge stomach shrinking down to accommodate smaller meals.

Susieq_1994

If you've just started, your body is used to a much larger volume of food. It will calm down in a week or two. Eat lots of veggies and lean protein for volume and satiety.

musicandarts

Are you eating no-fat diets? Add more fat to get that full feeling. If you are eating salads for lunch, you can eat a Snickers bar (fun size) to feel full. However, don't forget to stay within the daily calorie limit!

Feeling full, cravings etc are subjective behaviors that can be modified. They will subside once you train yourselves to eat less.

emdeesea

Honestly, I think it's more due to habit. At least for me it was anyway. I had associated being stuffed with a normal feeling because I had been doing it for so long, when in reality, you're not supposed to feel "stuffed." But because I had associated that stuffed feeling with "normal eating" for so long it did take a while to get used to eating less and not being hungry. It takes time. You just have to be patient.

GreenValli

Dakota, Welcome to MFP! I would also suggest concentrating on chewing more. I have been intentionally chewing each mouthful longer because I know I eat too fast. I discovered I feel fuller also. Hope that helps you, too.

awesomewastaken

Vegetables have never made a difference for me. I mean, I could eat a HUGE bowl of fresh salad and still feel incredibly hungry. Adding lots of protein (thanks to the advice I have read on this forum) has helped a lot. And I sometimes get those moments when I'm just SO hungry that it takes a while for my body to "catch up" with the food I've just consumed. So what I do is try to have as much protein as possible with every meal and when I'm still feeling hungry, I just wait it out for as long as I can manage.
Oh, and doing something to get your mind of food after a meal helps as well. I of course have no scientific back-up to this, but I do thing that a lot of it is mental. When you have other things on your mind you won't have time to think about food as much. Which is also why I seem to eat better on weekdays and overeat on weekends (because I just don't have anything better to do than eat). But I'm working on fixing that.

AllonsYtotheTardis

For most people, that feeling doesnt last forever. Your appetite changes.

But making sure you get enough protein and fats will help you feel full longer, and lots of veggies will fill you up at a meal without adding a lot of calories.

yesimpson

I agree with most who've said it's a matter of acclimatising to eating slightly less. It will happen in time, so keep going! I think it's quite normal and healthy to still feel like you've got a bit more space once you've finished eating though. If you're always aiming to feel absolutely full up like you couldn't handle another bite, odds are you might be overeating.

Mariachicat

In addition to drinking a liter of water before and during eating, try eating a bowl of oatmeal before rich foods. It creates low calorie bulk & works for me.

booksandchocolate12

New here, but thought I'd chime in.

I have decided that I just don't know what true hunger is. If I've just eaten a decent, balanced meal and think I'm still hungry, I try to have something to drink or just white-knuckle through it until the feeling passes.

Also, I have no off switch. I can just eat and eat. I've heard people refer to a "sigh" that they feel when they've eaten to satisfaction, but I've never felt it. I plow right through "satisfied" straight into "stuffed" before I even know what happened. I know it's partly (mainly?) because I eat so fast that I don't give my brain a chance to realize that I've had enough. This is why portion control is so important for me.

FittingIntoTheseGenes

saggyandbaggy wrote: »

yes, the above is really helpful. I have found that I fill up with loads of vegetables as I can't cope with feeling hungry either. It does get less of an issue over time, it's a matter of sticking with it and even now, 90+lbs down, I still have to have a full plate at dinner time.

90lbs that's awesome

kcd1961

Yep - that's me. I can eat to the point of being sick and still feel "hungry". Using intermittent fasting helped to learn to cope with the hungry feeling.

Liftng4Lis

Are you getting enough fats and protein?

Alluminati

Eating til I'm full and eating til I'm not hungry are two different feelings for me. It's taken me a while to sort that out.

guerrillatiger

I agree that it may take some getting use to eating smaller proportions mentally. But as some other people have mentioned eating more fats really helped me with making me feel satiated after a meal. Things like adding avocado to a meal, eating fattier proteins such as salmon and having tuna with olive oil instead of brine were easy ways for me to add fats and end up feeling full after the meal.

I would suggest trying meals with different balances of macro nutrients and see which ones leave you feeling more satisfied.

sheldonklein

OdesAngel wrote: »

Eating til I'm full and eating til I'm not hungry are two different feelings for me. It's taken me a while to sort that out.

This is the most important thing I've learned about losing weight. I've lost 60 pounds in 6 months without being hungry, but if I ate till my belly is full (loosen my belt and take a nap full), of put it right back on. Losing weight is mostly about learning the difference between the two.

sheldonklein

Double post

marykate_1203

Your stomach needs time to shrink. I always feel deprived when I start something new, it gets easier. Hang in there... they have some new fun flavors of Extra gum to help with cravings!

FittingIntoTheseGenes

Great advice and I am following most of your suggestions

MarvelousMrs

I have what I call "hungry days" where it seems like no matter what I eat, I'm still hungry. Monday was like that for me. I make sure to have lots of healthy snacks at work so I don't find myself at the vending machine! It does get easier... hang in there!

MsJennyffer

MarvelousMrs wrote: »

I have what I call "hungry days" where it seems like no matter what I eat, I'm still hungry. Monday was like that for me. I make sure to have lots of healthy snacks at work so I don't find myself at the vending machine! It does get easier... hang in there!

I thought I was the only one!

unlikelyathlete

This is a really interesting topic. If you're the type of person that really doesn't like to have hunger pangs (I don't like them either!), you might be better doing the frequent small meals, and preemptively eating before your body has a chance to be hungry. I know that I have to kick in some serious willpower and talk myself down from a heavy treat when I have even the smallest growl in my stomach.
I think it can also be tough (for those of us who like not to be hungry) to discriminate between what satisfied but not stuffed feels like, versus "I ate enough to stave off the hunger but I'm going to be hungry again in about an hour". If I'm not full enough to feel physically that my stomach is full, I have trouble perceiving the gradations between that and empty.

vomckey

I am new here, but not new to dieting. When I am hungry (especially at bedtime), I remember something I read from Oprah years ago.. A grumbly tummy is eating fat during the night.

So I just have a green tea with lemon and let my tummy grumble on.

Sweets1954

The first few days after I started I felt hungry all the time. I think I gradually got use to the "new" way of eating and I don't have that issue as much any more. Now it's days were I'm not hungry at all and then days when I wake up hungry and feel hungry all day. That doesn't happen often though. I found if I slowed down when I was eating I usually felt fuller faster.