No hunger while it's hot - how to get the goal?

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chandnikhondji
chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
in Food and Nutrition
it's way too warm to eat. Usually I'd think that's great so i can get used to smaller portions and stuff.. but ehm.. having more than 1000 calories left a day is not good. The last 3 days i ate stuff i did not want to eat because i was not hungry so it would not be too much under my goal.. but i can't force myself to eat.. it made me feel really icky to force eat so i am not too much under my goal.. I do not like sweet things so the typical 'peanut butter' or other sweets trick does not really work.

Like today i had ca. 1180 calories with breakfast and dinner.. i have ca. 1500 left, it is already late and i am not hungry because it's too hot...

How do you handle that? Does the heat make you less hungry? And how do you reach your calorie goal?
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Replies

  • SquidInTraining
    SquidInTraining Posts: 196
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    The heat does seem to hamper my appetite - I usually try to coax myself into eating by starting with something cool and light, like a cold cucumber soup or a gazpacho. Usually, by the time I'm through that, I feel refreshed and am ready to eat something a little more substantial.

    I'm with you on not being a huge fan of sweets! My palate definitely leans more towards salty and savory. I do appreciate some not-so-sweets with nuts, though, like a dark chocolate brownie with walnuts or pecans every once in a great while.
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
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    I've always faced the problem of diminished appetite during the summer. I think as long as you're getting 1200 cals a day, you'll be okay. Try to eat things that are still healthy, but very calorie dense (nuts, protein shakes, beans, etc). Now is the time to bust out the trail mix & chili!
  • Samantharose8akaDebbie
    Samantharose8akaDebbie Posts: 407 Member
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    I agree with the protein shakes. You could actually make them with a ot of ice so they would be very cold.........aka refreshing.
  • chandnikhondji
    chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
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    I actually have no idea what protein shakes are *lol* i hear about them all the time on this site, but never saw them in RL in a shop. But from what i see on the internet, i can't afford that (no income two people house hold). Are there ways to make something like that out of fresh things? All i found are powders for horrid amount of money.
  • 4lafz
    4lafz Posts: 1,078 Member
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    I see you had 1180 calories with breakfast and dinner. You are not eating enough times during the day. Snacks and small meals 5-6 times a day are important to keep metabolism up. Just an apple or a tube of string cheese can do it. If you only eat twice a day you will lose less and more slowly as your body is holding onto the calories and fat! When summer hits - try cold foods. Make a nice white meat chicken (either freshly grilled or canned) salad with grapes, celery, nuts, cranberries and your favorite low fat or fat free dressing (I like Amy's Raspberry). A big ice cream scoop size with a few leafy greens is a full meal!
  • 4lafz
    4lafz Posts: 1,078 Member
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    Just saw your post about Protein powder - usually milk, pasuerized egg whites (in the section that has Egg Beaters) and skim milk will do it. Found this on the internet:

    Egg White Protein Shakes
    •Egg white protein shakes are usually a low-calorie, low-sugar alternative to whey protein shakes and provide about 25g of protein depending on how much egg white is used. Egg whites can be used in liquid or powder form

    Egg White Sunrise
    1 Cup Liquid Egg Whites
    ½ Cup Orange Juice
    ½ Cup Pineapple Juice
    Optional: ¼ Cup Mandarin Orange Slices
    Optional: ¼ Cup Pineapple Chunks

    Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. The carbohydrates in this recipe can be reduced by using freshly squeezed orange juice and 100 percent pure pineapple juice.
    Nutritional Information provided by CalorieKing.com (without optional ingredients): 245 calories, 0.5g fat, 28.7g carbs, 28g protein.

    Hazelnut Egg White Shake
    1 Cup Egg Whites
    ¼ Cup Liquid Hazelnut Coffee Creamer
    1 tbsp. Nutella

    Blend the coffee creamer into the egg whites until they are fully combined, then add the Nutella and blend until the mixture is smooth. This is relatively high in carbohydrates, but they can be reduced by using a sugar-free version of the hazelnut creamer. If the thought of drinking coffee creamer doesn't appeal to you, replace it with ¼ cup of fat-free milk and 1½ tsp. of hazelnut extract or flavoring.
    Nutritional Information: 364 calories, 12.4g fat, 32.4g carbs, 27.5g protein
  • chandnikhondji
    chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
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    About that keeping the metabolism up i hear lots of different things. From people here and from doctors. I eat when i am hungry, i cannot force an apple down when i am not hungry. And the ones say it is important to eat to those times to keep it running, others say it does not have any influence. And of course i know that eating 2 times a day isn't good, that is why i am asking how to get over that *lol*

    I seriously tried to have this 5-6 times a day.. i can't i feel really bad when i eat 5-6 times a day. When i eat something that is not breakfast, dinner or supper, it goes into the "snacks" btw. just to clarify that. There are days when i have a little snack here and there but i can't do that regularly. But that was really not the question here..

    I just cannot eat when i am not hungry. Not even an apple or a salad, no matter how cold they are and that is my problem why i am asking how people get along with "no hunger when it is hot".
  • chandnikhondji
    chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
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    Thank you about the info on the Protein shake, i'll see if i can get the things together and try it :)
  • chandnikhondji
    chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
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    4lafz: i just noticed that my answer to you could be seen as rather ungrateful and wanted to say that i did not mean it like that :) I just thought that i know the things of how bad it is not to eat enough and that the problem does not lie in not willing to eat but in not being hungry because of the heat.

    I will try the protein things, and i will try to have something cooler when i'm hungry and hope it helps cooling down a bit, so i won't get not hungry for the rest of the day :)
  • elmct57
    elmct57 Posts: 594 Member
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    have you tried sipping a chilled fruit smoothie during the day?
  • longhorns2
    longhorns2 Posts: 23
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    bump
  • chandnikhondji
    chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
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    have you tried sipping a chilled fruit smoothie during the day?

    I tried things like yogurt with frozen berries. It was nice and refreshing but did not really help. I'm not a smoothie fan though, so i did not try those.

    I still have some berries and yogurt i might just try get some of that down to get a bit higher before i go to bed.
  • chandnikhondji
    chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
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    Wanted to say thanks to everyone who replied. Lack of sleep (also because of the heat) makes me always a bit grumpy so i appeared like that my apologies. If not - in my eyes i sounded like it at some points so i still do it *lol* I got some berries and yogurt and a vitamin drink i had and got at least over 1300 cals and will fall into my bed soon.

    Thanks again for the tips, i'll try some of them in the next days and hope it helps :)
  • lilmissy2
    lilmissy2 Posts: 595 Member
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    I certainly do not have that problem... but I think one solution may be to drink things? Not sugary-waste-of-calories drinks but maybe low fat milky drinks or whole fruit smoothies?
  • chandnikhondji
    chandnikhondji Posts: 136 Member
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    yes i think when the hunger is really not there to eat i will try to take in the calories with something to drink.

    It's really not useful for me to force myself to eat right when i got away from the "i eat because it's there and because i'm breathing" thing :)

    But with some fruits and milk i'm sure i can make some nice shakes or something :)
  • HealthyChanges2010
    HealthyChanges2010 Posts: 5,831 Member
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    About that keeping the metabolism up i hear lots of different things. From people here and from doctors. I eat when i am hungry, i cannot force an apple down when i am not hungry. And the ones say it is important to eat to those times to keep it running, others say it does not have any influence. And of course i know that eating 2 times a day isn't good, that is why i am asking how to get over that *lol*

    I seriously tried to have this 5-6 times a day.. i can't i feel really bad when i eat 5-6 times a day. When i eat something that is not breakfast, dinner or supper, it goes into the "snacks" btw. just to clarify that. There are days when i have a little snack here and there but i can't do that regularly. But that was really not the question here..

    I just cannot eat when i am not hungry. Not even an apple or a salad, no matter how cold they are and that is my problem why i am asking how people get along with "no hunger when it is hot".
    5-6 mini meals isn't for everyone, it can benefit some but for others they prefer 3 meals a day so they don't lose control and snack to much, like you shared. For others a couple healthy snacks works better for them. Spreading cals throughout the day does keep the blood sugar levels on a more even keel but doesn't have any thing to do with keeping our metabolism boosted, that's simply a myth you're right, it's said over and over on here but it really isn't a fact at all. There's a great list Steve/Banks wrote up, 10 things we need to know that talks about it.

    I am totally with you with eating in the heat, it's far more difficult, but cool food, fruit salads, green salads with hard boiled eggs, cheeses, various cold proteins such as that.

    A smoothie can really be anything you want it to be, a frozen banana sliced up put in a blender with a cold yogurt and a few berries, change it up by adding OJ etc. Do a search on here for Smoothies and skim through and I'll bet you'll find quite a few recipes you'll be able to make perhaps with things you already have in your home. Personaly I don't ever eat eggwhites in my smoothies. ICk but some do and if it's what they want, well.. :noway: :tongue: You might try starting out more simple though if you've not had any type of smoothie before, just my thought:wink:

    Have fun with the search I'm sure you'll get lots of ideas!
    Becca:flowerforyou:
  • 4lafz
    4lafz Posts: 1,078 Member
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    No worries - I don't take all the advice I receive on this board either! It's just one person's opinion. I only know that my sister, who is over 300 lbs, eats only one to two meals a day and cannot seem to lose weight. I gave her the same advice and she also says she can't force eating when she is not hungry. It is my belief that the brain/body tricks you because it is used to you only feeding it twice a day so it tells you you are full when it is holding onto calories and fat! Just like people who say they are never hungry in the morning so they skip breakfast. I used to be one of those people - now I eat but it is usually an hour or so after I get up. It would be an interesting experiment for you - to see if you lose more eating small meals throughout the day. Sometimes a change is all we need. Regardless of whether you take my advice or others - I wish you the best in your journey!
  • July24Lioness
    July24Lioness Posts: 2,399 Member
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    About that keeping the metabolism up i hear lots of different things. From people here and from doctors. I eat when i am hungry, i cannot force an apple down when i am not hungry. And the ones say it is important to eat to those times to keep it running, others say it does not have any influence. And of course i know that eating 2 times a day isn't good, that is why i am asking how to get over that *lol*

    I seriously tried to have this 5-6 times a day.. i can't i feel really bad when i eat 5-6 times a day. When i eat something that is not breakfast, dinner or supper, it goes into the "snacks" btw. just to clarify that. There are days when i have a little snack here and there but i can't do that regularly. But that was really not the question here..

    I just cannot eat when i am not hungry. Not even an apple or a salad, no matter how cold they are and that is my problem why i am asking how people get along with "no hunger when it is hot".

    i am one of those people that does Intermittent Fasting......................Research it, it is good stuff.

    I, personally, don't believe in the whole eat 5-6 times a day.............it makes me feel awful too.

    The best advice I can lend to you is............Listen to your body. Drink lots of water and eat only when you feel hungry. Your body is the best guide to what is best for you. If that means, eating 1 or 2 times per day, then so be it.................If it means on another day you eat 3 or 4 times that day, then so be it.

    Your body will guide you and tell you what it needs from you. Listen to it. I refuse to eat (regardless of how low or high calorie) if I am not hungry...........

    But when I am hungry, I eat.
  • July24Lioness
    July24Lioness Posts: 2,399 Member
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    Here is a good article to read in regards to the whole eating 5-6 times a day thing...............


    Does eating more often really speed your metabolism?


    You've probably heard it before. Eat six small meals a day to help jump start your metabolism so you are burning more all day long! What a great way to lose weight. Unfortunately, this isn't quite right.


    In studies done comparing different groups of individuals, all eating the same calories only spread out through different meal frequencies, it has been found time after time that the number of times you are eating does not really matter all that much.


    It is true that your body expends energy in the process of digestion. But here's the thing, the more food you eat, the more energy it is going to expend. So lets say you are eating your six small meals a day, all consisting of three hundred calories. You might burn off 30 calories per meal just digesting that food.


    Now let's say you eat 3 meals a day instead, but since total calorie intake is the same 1800, these meals are 600 calories each. Now you are still burning about 10% of the calories off through digestion, but this time, it works out to be 60 calories per meal.


    Since 30 X 6 = 180 and 60 X 3 = 180, in all actuality you have still expended the same number of calories through digestion over the course of the day, you have just done it at a different frequency.


    Some individuals are now even starting to adopt diet plans where they only eat two times per day, once as soon as they wake up and once before going to bed again. This goes against all the traditional muscle building advice of eating 5-8 times per day to keep the amino acids coming and keep you in an anabolic state. With this plan though, these people are finding that they have little or no hunger, their thinking is clearer, focus is better and they are able to lose fat and gain muscle as long as these are eating the right number of calories and macronutrients in their meals and it is timed well with their training (normally the training takes place just before a meal so that you are providing the body with a large influx of nutrients immediately after to stimulate muscle growth).


    I'm not recommending that you go and adopt a twice a day eating policy if you don't want to, just trying to point out that this notion that by eating small meals throughout the day you are going to send your metabolism through the roof is wrong. Likewise, if you go for a period of 5-6 hours without food, your body is not going to resort to eating away at your muscles. We simply have enough stored fuel that this will not happen, contrary to popular belief. If you can go the overnight period without eating and see no loss in muscle mass, you definitely can go 5 hours during the day without any issues.


    So next time you hear someone tell you that it's better to eat six meals a day as opposed to your normal three, tell them thanks for their advice and leave it at that. Do what works best for you and your lifestyle. As long as you are taking care of pre and postworkout nutrition (these are two meals where the timing does matter), the remainder of your day's calories can be spread as you like.


    Do note however that there are some other benefits to eating more frequently such as blood glucose control but strictly speaking in the realm of metabolism speed as it is the topic of this article, it doesn't make any difference.
  • yvonnej1
    yvonnej1 Posts: 904 Member
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    I'm afraid I don't have anything useful to add but I sympathise with you. Most days I struggle to reach my calories but my goal is only 1300, there is no way I could eat 2700 like your goal is, that's a LOT of calories. Like you I find it harder when it is hot also I have been in pain with my back lately and that affects my appetite. I think the earlier suggestion of finding drinks that are healthy but contain calories is a brilliant one and I will try this myself.

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