How much hunger do you consider acceptable?

CattOfTheGarage

Just thought this might be an interesting question to ask, as we've had a few questions on the subject of hunger recently. How much hunger do you consider just a normal part of life when losing weight, and how much is too much?

I'm on a 500 calorie deficit. I don't find I can manage without any hunger on that deficit, but if I find I'm hungry for half an hour before meals, I reckon I'm doing well. Being hungry for an hour before I eat is OK, but starts to be annoying. Any more than an hour and I reckon I've got it wrong, either the earlier meal was not filling enough or just not big enough.

I do put up with that, however, if I'm going to have a big dinner in the evening, like a meal out our takeaway, or a party. Then I'll deliberately eat the bare minimum for the rest of the day and spend a lot of that day hungry. But I couldn't do that regularly.

Any thoughts? Are you a "never let yourself be hungry" person, or a "no pain no gain" type who just pushes on through? And what are your best hunger management tips? Mine is whole grains, white bread or cereals are not an everyday food as I burn through them like a furnace through toilet paper and i'm hungry an hour later, or less.

VintageFeline

A little hunger before meals is totally fine and normal. Sometimes if I'm up later than I should I'll be a little hungry before bed.

If I make terrible choices and am hungry all day my own damn fault.

Ongoing, prolonged hunger? Nope. Never signing up for that. I'd rather go over goal a little than be permanently hungry.

upoffthemat

I honestly have found I don't mind a little bit of hunger. I feel better a little hungry than over-full.

sonyadilworth

I'm not gonna lie I'm pretty hungry. I'm on quite a low calorie diet so that is to be expected. I'm just getting on with it. I have only 9 pounds left to go so don't want to change what's been working so far

cwolfman13

whether it be when I was losing or now in maintenance, I rarely go beyond slightly hungry...if I'm slightly hungry, it is time to eat to the level of being satiated or satisfied....accordingly, I rarely eat until I'm "full"...



of course, you also have to be able to tell the difference between actual hunger and emotional...

pondee629

I found that I wasn't hungry as much as I "could eat". You know the feeling, not starving, not hungry but yeah, I could eat. If I got hungry enough where I needed more than just a snack, I'd eat something. Log it, and try to make it fit.

alyssa0061

Somewhere between hungry and hangry, for most people, I think. I like to feel hunger before meals. I don't like to be hungry all the time. Like @makingmark, I find the slight hunger more preferable to the distended over full feeling. Now, anyway.

steviejanedrake

I personally like to have a bigger lunch and dinner so I usually don't eat very much for most of the mornings. I get pretty hungry between breakfast and lunch time but I would rather have an apple in the morning so I can eat a sandwich rather than two tablespoons of hummus and some veggies haha. I guess it's just personal preference

cross2bear

Monday night when I got home from work, I was "starving" as per the chart above. Still havent been able to figure out why. Normally I am in the "Hungry" range by 6pm, when I normally eat dinner. I dont mind feeling like that - it serves to remind me of the effort and time I have put into getting my weight where it belongs, and not to screw up!!

dgobbett

I try the best I can with my hunger pangs but they crop up from time to time. For me I find it all depends on my routine. If I am working out I tend to get really hungry after my workout and even though I eat about 30 minutes after I am still a bit hungry all the way up until dinner time. I just grin and bare it.

If I know I will be eating large due to an event, I do as you mentioned and eat light and more or less prep for it. I have been finding myself over eating because of hunger lately and ask for similar advice.

1) If its not in the pantry you can't eat it - this is so true and obvious but don't buy it, and you can't eat it.

2) Water - sometimes people mistake being hungry for being thirsty, try drinking water first and see how that sits before giving into the hunger.

3) Manage your hunger with low calorie options like veggies, you can eat 2-3 cups consisting of only 100 calories, this will make you feel full the fiber helps as well

4) Protein - I started using whey isolate after workouts and found I don't feel as hungry afterward so it is helpful for sure.

5) Personal Mantra or goal - When I am hungry, and looking for something I ask myself "how much will it take to make me feel good?" and I think "will that amount make me feel bad afterward?" I am realistic most of the time and it helps me decide whether I need it or want it.

Also it doesn't hurt that I have a photo of myself 50lbs larger sitting right at the entrance to my kitchen (happy coincidence - not intentional)

SezxyStef

VintageFeline wrote: »

A little hunger before meals is totally fine and normal. Sometimes if I'm up later than I should I'll be a little hungry before bed.

If I make terrible choices and am hungry all day my own damn fault.

Ongoing, prolonged hunger? Nope. Never signing up for that. I'd rather go over goal a little than be permanently hungry.

This...so much this. I might be a bit peckish about 11:30 am..right before lunch so I will have a greek yogurt but it was logged anyway...and if I am hungry right around 4pm I will eat another yogurt...again already logged.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

whether it be when I was losing or now in maintenance, I rarely go beyond slightly hungry...if I'm slightly hungry, it is time to eat to the level of being satiated or satisfied....accordingly, I rarely eat until I'm "full"...



of course, you also have to be able to tell the difference between actual hunger and emotional...

and this is great...

AlabasterVerve

I expect to be hungry before every meal. Eating when I'm not hungry - really, physically hungry not just an I could eat feeling - ruins/spoils my appetite and I don't get that unmistakable full and satisfied feeling when I've had enough to eat so if I'm not hungry I don't eat.

Mostly. Sometimes I eat purely for the pleasure of eating. But generally I eat two meals a day and try to eat more fat than protein and more protein than carbs and that keeps me full and satisfied.

Joanna2012B

@cwolfman13 that is a great post. I too only allow myself to get slightly hungry and only eat until I am satisfied!! It seems to be working cause I have lost 30lbs on a 1500 calorie diet.

endlessfall16

Most of the time I don't feel the kind of hunger that you describe (annoying and you must eat).

If that rare hunger feeling occurs, a simple sandwich + a drink will easily solve it. (I think a big problem with overweighters is they do not stop there. They would (unnecessarily) eat more than a sandwich until they would feel noticeably filled up or full).

Except the time after a meal where I feel full, I have trained my body to only feel the kind of emptiness/neutral feeling that you get when you first get out of bed in the morning. At that morning time I just crave a hot cup of coffee for a caffeine fix.

ncfitbit

I'm working on this very thing. My kids have begun their summer vacation so I find that meal times are pushed around for convenience, but it is hurting my ability to stay on track. This week I'm trying to make sure I have a lot of high volume, filling foods available so I can extend my mealtimes if necessary. Of course if I have more snacks than usual my meals have to be fewer calories than usual but I think it's worth it to avoid feeling famished. If I let that happen, all bets are off and I will eat anything within reach! I'm just a few days in, but I'm finding that a green salad and lots of water really helps bridge the gap between meals and I'm going to pick up some apples so that I can have some portable snacks as well.

CattOfTheGarage

Ah, but food is ALWAYS on my mind, hungry or not. If I'm not eating it, I'm cooking it, reading about it, boring people with food history lectures or making up recipes in my head.

If I took food related thoughts as an indication of hunger, I'd never stop eating.(Come to think of it, maybe that's what got me into this mess).

kommodevaran

I have used "the hunger scale" a lot, and it's a great help. However, I believe sensations of hunger and fullness is subjective, and how much of each is tolerable, is individual. However, to some extent, you can train yourself to tolerate and even enjoy feelings of hunger. It has a lot to do with habits, knowledge, and attitude. If you feel confident there will be food, you know that you won't starve to death in one day without eating, and you look forward to what you'll be eating, it's probably easier to manage. Meal planning is good for your mind, your body and your wallet.

I have never experienced more hunger when dieting. Quite the contrary, watching what I eat automatically leads to eating better and more nutritious food.

I'm neither "never let yourself be hungry" nor "no pain no gain". I aim to be pleasantly hungry before meals, and eating well means that I don't get ravenous, dizzy, irritable, even if I have to wait an hour after I'm ready to eat. I do well by having four meals per day; I eat whenever I want to eat, but try to space them reasonably and finish my last meal before midnight. My diet is varied but consistent, meals are built around protein, fat and vegetables, and I also eat plenty of fruit and some nuts every day. Cooking a lot from scratch seems to be an easy way to get in the nutrition I need without overeating.

kirstenb13

I'm someone who can apparently deal with hunger (actual hunger) pretty easily, even when I was still overweight I was still often genuinely hungry during the day, I never liked to eat constantly, I always like a few big meals better. Now I definitely get hungry before meals, but it doesn't really bother me. I know that it will go away again and then I'm fine for another few hours if I don't get a chance to eat. I'm able to function perfectly well when hungry, I can work out and what not and it doesn't make me over eat at the next meal either.
Emotional hunger is my challenge really.

zamphir66

I'm "slightly hungry" a couple times a day, no big.

I've also found that if I don't respond to "hungry," I trickle back down to "slightly hungry" most of the time. Only rarely do I feel the "starving" sensation. This has led to my unintentionally fasting here and there.

My ex-wife, OTOH, seemed to *only* experience emotional hunger. The day had to be carefully planned around precisely what, where and when we were going to eat, much like an addict arranges each day and night around their addiction (not to start that debate!). If we somehow messed up and she was half an hour or, god forbid, an hour late getting calories into her system, she became a complete trainwreck. Not judging her -- it just seemed pathological to me.

kshama2001

sonyadilworth wrote: »

I'm not gonna lie I'm pretty hungry. I'm on quite a low calorie diet so that is to be expected. I'm just getting on with it. I have only 9 pounds left to go so don't want to change what's been working so far

@sonyadilworth have you been changing your weekly weight loss goals as you lose weight? With only 9 pounds left to go your goal should be set to a half pound per week.

Losing weight doesn't need to be painful. I don't have aggressive weight loss targets, focus on foods that satiate me, and am only hungry right before meals.

Alarae21

When I get hangry, I know I need to eat, lol.

Mostly I don't get hungry really except perhaps between 12-1pm, as I eat my lunch directly after my half hour walk at 1:30pm.

Sometimes I get super hungry after the gym in the evenings, but honestly that's rare. Exercise suppresses my appetite for the most part.

WBB55

Lately I've only been getting "hungry" when I'm cooking or smelling cooked foods. For the most part eating is more about a schedule. Lacking stimulus of cooked foods nearby, it takes probably 6-8 hours of not eating before I notice I'm "hungry." My average daily deficit for the past 6 weeks has been about 400 calories.

If I drink a lot the night before or have something more carby than usual, then I might be hungry the next morning around 10 am.

19feg96

This is such a helpful thread! I think I tend to bored-eat a lot lol

nvmomketo

Minimal. Maybe a bit of hunger befre a meal but that's it.

The first couple of points on that Emotional Hunger chart also describes reactive hypoglycemia - an "I gotta eat NOW" feeling along with shaking and light headedness. Often does NOT accompany physical hunger signs.

aikodiavlo

Snack within 4 hours between meals, so you don't overeat

sonyadilworth

kshama2001 wrote: »

sonyadilworth wrote: »

I'm not gonna lie I'm pretty hungry. I'm on quite a low calorie diet so that is to be expected. I'm just getting on with it. I have only 9 pounds left to go so don't want to change what's been working so far

@sonyadilworth have you been changing your weekly weight loss goals as you lose weight? With only 9 pounds left to go your goal should be set to a half pound per week.

Losing weight doesn't need to be painful. I don't have aggressive weight loss targets, focus on foods that satiate me, and am only hungry right before meals.

I'm only 4 foot 11 and my calorie target has stayed at 1200 every time I'm update it . My maintnenance level is only 1430.

ValkyrieLula

I try to split my primary meals with scheduled snack times. Because of these, I generally get mildly hungry between an hour to an hour and a half before meals, which is acceptable for me. However, if I'm starving in the morning before breakfast, I generally will have a glass of tea to tide me over for 20-30 minutes while I go through my morning routine.

But I do have a habit of boredom grazing. This is one of the reasons I pack my own snacks for the day. I have a set amount of snacks and am less likely to get something from the cafeteria.

Shana67

To be honest, I feel slightly hungry most of the day. And when I REALLY notice it, I remind myself that my body is burning up fat/calories, and I feel that it is worth it

tlflag1620

Hunger is not acceptable to me. Perhaps that's why low carb works so well for me. I'll gladly give up most sugars and starches since the trade off (for me anyway) is never having to go hungry. When I feel hungry, I eat. I don't wait around to find out if it will "pass".

gothchiq

For me, it needs to not cause stomach pangs/ acid stomach/ blood sugar crash. I can tolerate it when it is not at that level, though I obviously don't enjoy it at all.

knelson095

My body tends to go from 'I could eat' to starving with no in-between. I think my hunger signals are broken.
The other day I wasn't particularly hungry and decided to have a go at mowing my lawn. I have a man-power only push mower so it can be pretty hard work...but my lawn isn't huge and it wasn't hot. Anyway, I got about half way done and went inside to take a break and had a huge crash. It was later in the day than I realized and I was way beyond starving and anything I had to eat sounded awful. I had to go sit for a minute until the feeling passed enough that I could manage fixing anything. Usually it's not that bad, but I've learned to try and stick to a time schedule instead because I just can't trust my hunger signals to tell me if I'm just peckish, or about to die. (Figuratively.)

ETA: It kinda felt like I might die that day, so maybe not so figuratively...lol.