What if you're just not hungry? Do you eat anyway?

daylitemag

Hey All,

I'm a newbie to LCHF eating. It is now 12:30pm and I'm sitting in my office wondering if I should eat something. I brought some Chicken Chili with me for lunch but I'm just not hungry. I ate a large breakfast (three scrambled eggs with three strips of bacon) and really don't feel hungry at all.

In the past when I have been trying to lose weight the general advice was always to eat at regular intervals. To snack between meals etc. I think those are pretty commonly held beliefs, but I'm wondering if Low Carbers (see I'm getting the vernacular already) do the same or do you wait until dinner time? For me that will be 5:30PMish. Meaning I will have gone 10 hours between meals. That seems long to me.

Cheers, G

deksgrl

I have days when I am not very hungry. But usually I make up for it the next day so it all evens out. You don't have to eat if you are not hungry. Sometimes I'm not hungry at lunch time, but then I am ready for a snack before the end of the day. See how you do. If you do get hungry, maybe you could eat a little bit of the lunch you brought, if you can't hold out until you get home.

daylitemag

deksgrl wrote: »

I have days when I am not very hungry. But usually I make up for it the next day so it all evens out. You don't have to eat if you are not hungry. Sometimes I'm not hungry at lunch time, but then I am ready for a snack before the end of the day. See how you do. If you do get hungry, maybe you could eat a little bit of the lunch you brought, if you can't hold out until you get home.

Great advice! Thanks. I will do exactly that. I will wait and if I have to I will eat part of my lunch, but not all.

KenSmith108

I do a protein shake for lunch, works out great for me.

OR

Kitnthecat

I just won't eat until I am hungry. It feels like freedom to me. If I am not hungry, I just run with it and celebrate! I know I will get hungry in the future. Some days I eat more, so I figure it all balances out.

nicintime

Eat when you're hungry. One of the great things about this Way Of Eating!

Especially as I have weight to loose, I just listen to my body and go from there. It is "easy" to intermittent fast - all other things being equal. I find that when I'm under the weather or fighting a bug I get hungry more often, and as long as I don't go over my carbs I don't worry too much about calories in that case. Normally I'm consistently under my calories.

KarlaYP

Welcome to one of the best benefits of this woe! The ability to choose not to eat because of lack of hunger is awesome! Years of brainwashing is tough to overcome. Eat when hungry (this is now your body's way of telling you it needs fuel), don't eat when you're not. It evens out.

fireball1970

Isn't it amazing to not feel hungry all the time!!! Do what feels right & make note of how you feel & how that worked for you. Then you know what to do next time.

slimzandra

Don't eat when you are not hungry, and don't over eat when you are hungry.

I think of it as fuel as needed.

You wouldn't put gas in your car if your tank was already full. And equally, it is not good to let it run on empty or run too low for too long.

KnitOrMiss

Yup, the best thing for me about this WOE (way of eating) is that I can finally hear and understand my body's hunger/needs voice again. If you aren't hungry, don't eat. You'll get hungry when your body needs food again... Forcing food down your throat when you're not hungry is quite similar to overeating when you aren't hungry or starving yourself when you are super hungry - neither of which is considered healthy... Listen and learn those signals again! I've easily gone 8-16 hours between meals sometimes - and some water and salt to push through to another meal time can be another tool you can use sometimes.

Foamroller

Well, hunger is a finicky, tricky bastatd! Depending on what kind of hunger it is, choosewhat to do. No need feed emotional hunger. No need snacking, cause peckish. Most people don't need to eat if feel full.

BUT. I have a past of bingeing. Then it was important to build healthy boundaries. Now, I lost hunger feeling almost altogether and have to remind myself to eat enough! Past weeks I'm way below BMR with exercise cals. I feel great, but I'm wary of getting malnourished.

So experiment, get to know your body and what works for it. And that it can change over time on keto. Use common sense

LinCharpentier

Thank you for the very helpful info i'm very new at this. And every bit of info is helpful.

mountainrun73

I hate eating when I'm not hungry and I don't. Tried following conventional advice to eat regularly and gained weight. Low carb lets us listen to our bodies cues!

southhamptonmike

I'm never hungry at lunch but I always have a protein shake with avacado and flax or protein powder and frozen berries w/flax. I know my body needs this even if it gives me no signal. I'm then good till the evening. I just can't see going all day without some nutrients.

KnitOrMiss

I have found that if I have my breakfast, I can easily water fast through lunch, and eat my normal dinner, and my body positively LOVES it. I simply split my calories in 2, usually 40-50% at breakfast, 50-60% at dinner. So I'm still getting all my nutrients, and my body kicks in and burns extra fat in the middle... I don't do it all the time, 1-4 days during the week, but it's a pretty nice feeling to water fast!

daylitemag

Thanks for all the great replies. I'm going to start skipping lunch sometimes or just eating a small amount of protein.

kmca1803

I think we are so indoctrinated into the cult of eating at regular pre-assigned times that initially when we don't feel hunger any more we get worried!

Until you are used to the way of eating that is low carb/keto and realise that its ok to listen to your body and eat when you're hungry and skip 'regular' mealtimes it can be quite confronting being the only one among a group that feels this way.

KarlaYP

It's wonderful wonderful "new normal" @daylitemag!! Before long you'll worry about the hungrier days because they won't be the norm anymore!

southhamptonmike

I work out at the gym at least five days a week. I need my 125 grams of protein a day. I try and divide my protein up into at least four meals a day. I try to keep my carbs under 100 grams. If I go too long without eating any protein I would have to consume double or triple at a later time which is too much for me. I watch my calories and try to get the protein I need. I try to eat a lot of sardines, salmon, avacados, olive oil, eggs and butter during the week. I also eat full fat yougurt and walnuts daily. I try to avoid all processed grains but have a ezeikel 4.9 muffin occasionally. I tried keto a few times and I wasn't capable to stay on it. This low carb way works for me. I don't skip any meals and I don't belong to a cult.