Super appetite

magicpickles

It is said that people tend to overestimate how many calories they eat during a binge, when they refuse to track it.

I haven't gotten into a regular habit of tracking for a long time. I am sick at the moment, so I'm not going to bother, but once I feel better, I will start up again.

With my height and weight and activity I do, I can eat around 2,000 calories a day and still lose weight. However, I tend to graze all day and eat big meals, or binge several times a week. I feel like I could eat 6,000 calories every day and still be hungry. I think people are surprised by how much I eat, because I am not as big as I once was.

Can you lose weight when you have a super human appetite? is it possible to make small changes that are big enough to make the difference between maintaining and losing? I don't know how I can get 6,000 worth of food into 2,000 calories.

I suspect one of the problems is that I work part time from home and the kitchen is within walking distance. I feel like the problem is that I'm not busy enough. When I'm interested or engaged in something, I don't really think about food.

I tend to overeat between 3 and 8pm. I'm not that interested in food up until that point. I only eat breakfast because I have to with my medications.

usmcmp

Skipping breakfast works for some, but causes others to overeat later in the day. You might want to play with the distribution of your calories. Focusing on each meal containing some protein and vegetables with a bit of fats will help provide a fuller feeling for most, but you may need to play with different food combinations to get the most bang for your buck on feeling full.

magicpickles

Like, I tried having an egg white omelette with 8 egg whites, and I was hungry 15 minutes later. What?!?

When I was growing up, my parents used to encourage me to have seconds at dinner if I was still hungry. It was mostly meat and veges, but it would have stretched my stomach out.

magicpickles

I will definately have to track all of my food for a few weeks and get feedback. I think I was more satisfied when I had ham in my grilled sandwiches, even though I don't like it, and was having protein shakes at breakfast. I don't do that anymore.

cecsav1

There's a difference between appetite and hunger. If you're truly hungry, you should eat. If you just want food, you need to train yourself to find another activity you enjoy that can replace mindless eating, a distraction, if you will. Focus on your personal motivation, whether it be health, looks, a combination, or something else. Drink a glass of water or take a walk when you're tempted to eat again 5 min after a meal.

If it's actual hunger, you may find that it helps to include high volume, low calorie foods in your meals. An eight egg white omelette is well and good, but throw a cup or two of spinach in there. I know "clean' eating doesn't have a clear definition and is generally froened upon in these boards, but it can help you get more food while still staying with your allotted calories.

If you're eating just because the kitchen is easily accessible, simply don't buy binge-worthy foods. Different people binge on different things, so I can't give you a specific recommendation, but for example, it's easy to eat a whole bag of chips in one sitting, some people go overboard on sweets, I particularly can't have just one serving of pasta. If the offending food isn't available, you won't eat it.

Good luck, and I hope you feel better soon!

magicpickles

@cecsav1 our kitchen doesn't really have ''binge worthy food'', its mostly just ingrediants, but I can still eat lots of crackers, or make various grilled sandwiches, kumara chips etc. Or even just eggs with tomato sauce (which has a lot of sugar). Its not just that, its portion size as well. I used to eat oatmeal, which I thought was a good choice, but I got a nutrition plan and it said I could only have 30g of oatmeal at a time... I'm not a huge fan, but 30g doesn't seem like much at all.

usmcmp

magicpickles wrote: »

Like, I tried having an egg white omelette with 8 egg whites, and I was hungry 15 minutes later. What?!?

When I was growing up, my parents used to encourage me to have seconds at dinner if I was still hungry. It was mostly meat and veges, but it would have stretched my stomach out.

An egg white omelett has little to no fiber and little to no fats. I wouldn't be full on that either. A couple of whole eggs with some whites and toast is filling. Maybe if you had lots of vegetables in the egg white omelette it would help, but you need some fats too.