unable to maintain any deficit because of overpowering persistent hunger

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  • oat_bran
    oat_bran Posts: 370 Member
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    RoxieDawn wrote: »

    I saw that too, as she has been trying to eat a deficit but making up for that the next day or days after wards keeping her weekly calories out of a deficit. Not saying going up and down in calories every other day is a good thing. It can only compound things further.

    And just note that I also believe that there is or may be a physiological and psychological aspect that has been stemmed by what ever is the root cause of this. I will not go into detail as I do not want this to be taken out of context.

    I am just pleased that OP has a direction to move forward.

    Yeah I think that most weeks I end up with no deficit or even a bit over my maintenance because of overeating. Sometimes I even have 'refeed' days accidentally or intentionally (sometimes for one day sometimes several days in a row) because I hope it would help with hunger, but it doesn't really change the situation. For example, yesterday I intentionally allowed myself to eat as much as I wanted and ended up 1000 calories over my TDEE and today I'm to trying to eat at a deficit and I'm really hungry again. I'm thinking that if I manage a deficit today after all' tomorrow will be even worse. And it's this really acute, mouth watering I need-more-food-now kind of hunger even though I just had a 450 meal. It wasn't always like this. Back in June and July I could maintain a 500 or even a higher deficit quite comfortably... So I'm thinking I definitely should try seeing a doctor.

    Could it be because I quit smoking recently? The reason I didn't bring it up is because I was never a big smoker, I would only smoke 0-4 cigarettes most days, some days none. And I could easily not smoke for several days or weeks without having any urges to. Plus the hunger problem started a little before I quit smoking...

  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
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    longstocking wrote: »
    RoxieDawn wrote: »

    I saw that too, as she has been trying to eat a deficit but making up for that the next day or days after wards keeping her weekly calories out of a deficit. Not saying going up and down in calories every other day is a good thing. It can only compound things further.

    And just note that I also believe that there is or may be a physiological and psychological aspect that has been stemmed by what ever is the root cause of this. I will not go into detail as I do not want this to be taken out of context.

    I am just pleased that OP has a direction to move forward.

    Yeah I think that most weeks I end up with no deficit or even a bit over my maintenance because of overeating. Sometimes I even have 'refeed' days accidentally or intentionally (sometimes for one day sometimes several days in a row) because I hope it would help with hunger, but it doesn't really change the situation. For example, yesterday I intentionally allowed myself to eat as much as I wanted and ended up 1000 calories over my TDEE and today I'm to trying to eat at a deficit and I'm really hungry again. I'm thinking that if I manage a deficit today after all' tomorrow will be even worse. And it's this really acute, mouth watering I need-more-food-now kind of hunger even though I just had a 450 meal. It wasn't always like this. Back in June and July I could maintain a 500 or even a higher deficit quite comfortably... So I'm thinking I definitely should try seeing a doctor.

    Could it be because I quit smoking recently? The reason I didn't bring it up is because I was never a big smoker, I would only smoke 0-4 cigarettes most days, some days none. And I could easily not smoke for several days or weeks without having any urges to. Plus the hunger problem started a little before I quit smoking...

    I'm not entirely certain that smoking plays a part in this.

    Something struck me about the way you described your hunger. and I think you might benefit from a little self-examination to go along with everything else (seeing your doctor, and taking a diet break for the psychological benefit of doing so).

    Try ordering The Beck Diet Solution. There's also a workbook available to go with it. It sounds like some of your issue might actually be helped by her CBT approach to dealing with eating.

    The reason I'm saying this is because it sounds like you're not experiencing true hunger, but rather hedonic hunger, or just wanting to eat. There's a reason for that, but it's up to you to uncover it.
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
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    Cigarettes are an appetite suppressant. Stopping smoking could well have increased your appetite, now you have to learn how to cope with that! Good luck!
  • oat_bran
    oat_bran Posts: 370 Member
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    tomteboda wrote: »
    Cigarettes are an appetite suppressant. Stopping smoking could well have increased your appetite, now you have to learn how to cope with that! Good luck!

    Yes, I'm aware that cigarettes are generally considered an appetite suppressant, even though I never noticed a big difference between the times I smoked and didn't. The thing is, I've stopped smoking for periods of time, long and short, many times before and I've never seemed to have this hunger problem. Also, like I said, this last time the problem started before I quit smoking.

    But it't true that it could be a combination of factors including smoking.
  • Trendline15
    Trendline15 Posts: 48 Member
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    How many carbohydrates are in your diet? The doctor in my weight loss program wants to "wean me off of sugar." Sugar means sugar and carbohydrates per the food label. The doctor said I am hungry (and subsequently overeat) because my insulin is high. A high insulin level is caused by the intake of sugars and carbohydrates. She also recommended that I eat all the protein (eggs, meat, fish, chicken, etc.) and non-starchy vegetables that I want. I can have any type of berries, but not other fruits. She started me on 500 mg of Metformin taken in the morning with breakfast (eggs). The goal is to limit myself to 40 grams or less of carbohydrate and/or sugar per day.

    I have only been on this diet for a couple of days. But, it seems to be working, and I have not been hungry (like I used to be). I used to be able to keep to my daily calorie goal for 2-3 days. Then, my diet would go to heck, I would feel deprived, and start eating everything in sight.
  • oat_bran
    oat_bran Posts: 370 Member
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    cbryant1000 wrote: »
    How many carbohydrates are in your diet? The doctor in my weight loss program wants to "wean me off of sugar." Sugar means sugar and carbohydrates per the food label. The doctor said I am hungry (and subsequently overeat) because my insulin is high. A high insulin level is caused by the intake of sugars and carbohydrates. She also recommended that I eat all the protein (eggs, meat, fish, chicken, etc.) and non-starchy vegetables that I want. I can have any type of berries, but not other fruits. She started me on 500 mg of Metformin taken in the morning with breakfast (eggs). The goal is to limit myself to 40 grams or less of carbohydrate and/or sugar per day.

    I have only been on this diet for a couple of days. But, it seems to be working, and I have not been hungry (like I used to be). I used to be able to keep to my daily calorie goal for 2-3 days. Then, my diet would go to heck, I would feel deprived, and start eating everything in sight.

    My insulin and sugar levels were within norm last time I made tests (a year ago). At the moment, carbs constitute about 50% of my intake which is quite a lot. I've tried lower and very low carb intakes before and was miserable the entire time (hungry and just feeling nasty in general). The longest I've lasted was slightly over 2 weeks. I doubt it was just a keto flu, but either way I'm not ready to go through this again. I seem to feel much better eating carbs. But I am considering trying to lower my carb intake a little but, to 40 percent maybe and see how it makes me feel.

  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    longstocking wrote: »
    tomteboda wrote: »
    Cigarettes are an appetite suppressant. Stopping smoking could well have increased your appetite, now you have to learn how to cope with that! Good luck!

    Yes, I'm aware that cigarettes are generally considered an appetite suppressant, even though I never noticed a big difference between the times I smoked and didn't. The thing is, I've stopped smoking for periods of time, long and short, many times before and I've never seemed to have this hunger problem. Also, like I said, this last time the problem started before I quit smoking.

    But it't true that it could be a combination of factors including smoking.

    But you're lighter now. You have less fat reserves. It's a combination of things and I bet it has a role in it.
  • vanmep
    vanmep Posts: 410 Member
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    I just recently had an experience where I did a huge hike up a mountain that took about 4 hours. The day of the hike I was not especially more hungry and I ended up with something like a 1500 deficit for the day which I though was pretty amazing and I looked forward to weighing myself the next week. However, I found that for the next week I was absolutely ravenous and I was not at all able to stick to my daily deficit which is not normally a problem for me. I realized that my body was recovering from the stress of that hike and it took about a week for my body to adjust and after that I wasn't experiencing that level of hunger any more. I am certainly no expert but I wonder if the level of exercise you are doing is just too stressful for your body to keep up with?
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    vanmep wrote: »
    I just recently had an experience where I did a huge hike up a mountain that took about 4 hours. The day of the hike I was not especially more hungry and I ended up with something like a 1500 deficit for the day which I though was pretty amazing and I looked forward to weighing myself the next week. However, I found that for the next week I was absolutely ravenous and I was not at all able to stick to my daily deficit which is not normally a problem for me. I realized that my body was recovering from the stress of that hike and it took about a week for my body to adjust and after that I wasn't experiencing that level of hunger any more. I am certainly no expert but I wonder if the level of exercise you are doing is just too stressful for your body to keep up with?

    Yeah I hear you, lol. I did a 8 miles rugged hike last week end too (it took 4 hours too) and I've been starving all week... it didn't help that I was too sore to do much the next couple days either (and I spin 1.5 hour 4x a week so it's not like I never work my quads). But it's PMS too, so it doesn't help.

    But yeah! It was much easier to lose weight for me when I just did very moderate exercise - like a 3 miles walk a day or something. I stopped losing once I increased my activity because I'm just too hungry to keep a deficit. I really believe that at some point, exercising just makes you too hungry.. but of course I'm not really willing to cut it back to find out if it's true or not because I'm too scared of gaining.

  • merrymary615
    merrymary615 Posts: 6 Member
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    On September 4, I started doing 5:2 and have lost 9-10 pounds. I eat regular five days and then eat only 500 calories on each of the other two days. On the non-fast days, I do not gorge myself, but I also don't keep track of calories and have had pizza, cookies, ice cream, hamburger & fries. On the fast days (usually Monday and Thursday), I might have a crunchy taco and some raw veggies for lunch and a large Wendy's chili for dinner. Today I am having a Hormel Compleat dinner for lunch (200 calories), some fresh strawberries for an afternoon snack, and a WW meal and small salad for dinner. Weird, but I look forward to my "fast" days. I feel better, it's easy, and it's something I can do long term. Besides losing weight, the health benefits are great, too.
  • oat_bran
    oat_bran Posts: 370 Member
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    merrymary615 wrote: »
    On September 4, I started doing 5:2 and have lost 9-10 pounds. I eat regular five days and then eat only 500 calories on each of the other two days. On the non-fast days, I do not gorge myself, but I also don't keep track of calories and have had pizza, cookies, ice cream, hamburger & fries. On the fast days (usually Monday and Thursday), I might have a crunchy taco and some raw veggies for lunch and a large Wendy's chili for dinner. Today I am having a Hormel Compleat dinner for lunch (200 calories), some fresh strawberries for an afternoon snack, and a WW meal and small salad for dinner. Weird, but I look forward to my "fast" days. I feel better, it's easy, and it's something I can do long term. Besides losing weight, the health benefits are great, too.

    I've heard about this approach! It sounds interesting. I could give it a try and 'fast' on days when I don't exercise.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    longstocking wrote: »
    merrymary615 wrote: »
    On September 4, I started doing 5:2 and have lost 9-10 pounds. I eat regular five days and then eat only 500 calories on each of the other two days. On the non-fast days, I do not gorge myself, but I also don't keep track of calories and have had pizza, cookies, ice cream, hamburger & fries. On the fast days (usually Monday and Thursday), I might have a crunchy taco and some raw veggies for lunch and a large Wendy's chili for dinner. Today I am having a Hormel Compleat dinner for lunch (200 calories), some fresh strawberries for an afternoon snack, and a WW meal and small salad for dinner. Weird, but I look forward to my "fast" days. I feel better, it's easy, and it's something I can do long term. Besides losing weight, the health benefits are great, too.

    I've heard about this approach! It sounds interesting. I could give it a try and 'fast' on days when I don't exercise.

    That would never work for me!
  • SusanMFindlay
    SusanMFindlay Posts: 1,804 Member
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    cbryant1000 wrote: »
    How many carbohydrates are in your diet? The doctor in my weight loss program wants to "wean me off of sugar." Sugar means sugar and carbohydrates per the food label. The doctor said I am hungry (and subsequently overeat) because my insulin is high. A high insulin level is caused by the intake of sugars and carbohydrates. She also recommended that I eat all the protein (eggs, meat, fish, chicken, etc.) and non-starchy vegetables that I want. I can have any type of berries, but not other fruits. She started me on 500 mg of Metformin taken in the morning with breakfast (eggs). The goal is to limit myself to 40 grams or less of carbohydrate and/or sugar per day.

    I'm assuming you have some form of insulin resistance. If not, I'd be concerned about a doctor prescribing you a medication used to treat insulin resistance just for a weight loss plan.

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