Irritable whilst on a deficit?

noobletmcnugget

I've noticed that whenever I commit to trying to lose weight and consistently stick to a deficit (losing about 1lb/week) my mood just deteriorates and I'm so much more irritable, anxious and down about things.

It's happening now, and happened last year when I lost some weight.

Just wondering whether anyone else has experienced this and how you cope with it?

Machka9

It's called hangry.

Sara1791

Definitely. Especially in the first few weeks. Eventually I found some foods that keep me more satisfied, my body got used to it, and I decreased my deficit to half a pound a week. I still get cranky if meal time gets delayed, but I work on not taking it out on anyone else.

ETA: & sleep became much more important. I can't elevate my mood with excess food, so I need to get enough quality sleep for energy and mental health.

kommodevaran

Assuming your goal weight is BMI 20 or higher: Consider reducing the calorie deficit, and/or eating more nutritious food, and/or not cutting out food you like.

Also make an effort to get enough sleep and relaxation, moderate exercise, do something fun every day, work on stress and emotions management.

TavistockToad

Are you getting enough fat in your diet?

TimothyFish

You might look at adjusting the balance of the kinds of foods you eat. I hear that low carb diet make people irritable, so maybe you need more carbs in your diet. Also, I find that the "runner's high" does wonders for my mood. I actually get mine from cycling, but I find that even as little as thirty minutes of exercise changes my outlook completely. There have been times I've gotten on the bike with the attitude, "Let's get this over with," but then end up going longer and farther and climbing bigger hills because I didn't want to stop. The great thing is that the emotional lift last for several hours afterward.

Francl27

Yep. It does help if I take the time to cook and make tasty meals though, but most days I still feel deprived and cranky because I can't eat what I want (just doesn't fit in my calories/macros).

noobletmcnugget

TimothyFish wrote: »

You might look at adjusting the balance of the kinds of foods you eat. I hear that low carb diet make people irritable, so maybe you need more carbs in your diet. Also, I find that the "runner's high" does wonders for my mood. I actually get mine from cycling, but I find that even as little as thirty minutes of exercise changes my outlook completely. There have been times I've gotten on the bike with the attitude, "Let's get this over with," but then end up going longer and farther and climbing bigger hills because I didn't want to stop. The great thing is that the emotional lift last for several hours afterward.

Thanks for the reply! I'm not doing low carb or anything (actually eat quite a lot of carbs). Maybe I'll experiment a bit with different balances of macros though. And I don't do any exercise apart from walk so might try doing something higher intensity. I used to go running but never got that runners high. Maybe I'll give cycling a go like you. Thanks.

H_Ock12

I was irritable the first couple of months when I started losing weight. I think part of it was from being hangry and part of it was psychological.... Irritated and hungry not because I was really hungry, but because I knew that limit was there. My body and mind adjusted to less and limits and it was smoother sailing. Hang in there!

serindipte

Your food diary is closed, so you may already be doing this.. Try making sure you bulk up on some low cal veggies to help stave off hunger without going over. Playing with the macros may help, as well, but if it's hunger then you can help that with bulkier foods.

SCoil123

When I added more fat to my diet I was fuller and more satisfied. This improved my mood.

noobletmcnugget

serindipte wrote: »

Your food diary is closed, so you may already be doing this.. Try making sure you bulk up on some low cal veggies to help stave off hunger without going over. Playing with the macros may help, as well, but if it's hunger then you can help that with bulkier foods.

Thanks for the reply! I'll give that a go. Im only really hungry in the hour running up to my meals, but I feel irritable and low basically 24/7.

noobletmcnugget

MeganAM89 wrote: »

noobletmcnugget wrote: »

I've noticed that whenever I commit to trying to lose weight and consistently stick to a deficit (losing about 1lb/week) my mood just deteriorates and I'm so much more irritable, anxious and down about things.

It's happening now, and happened last year when I lost some weight.

Just wondering whether anyone else has experienced this and how you cope with it?

How much weight do you want to lose?

I'm just wondering because if I set my goal to be losing a pound a week I'd only be able to eat about 1000 calories a day which is way too little. So if it isn't that significant maybe your deficit is a bit high?

I'm aiming to lose another 8-9 pounds. I'm set to 1200 calories a day, but usually eat more like 1300-1400 since I eat calories back that I burn walking.

I was planning on decreasing my deficit when I had 3 pounds to go.

noobletmcnugget

SCoil123 wrote: »

When I added more fat to my diet I was fuller and more satisfied. This improved my mood.

Thanks for the tip, I'll try this out. How did you incorporate more fat into your diet?

Eleonora91

This happens to me very often too and has happened since I've started losing weight years ago. In my opinion it's a combination of being hungry for the calorie deficit, feeling tired because of it at first, feeling frustrated because you know you can't eat any more and because you've had to change your eating habits, and not being able to rely on food as a relief from stress anymore. Eating healthy foods that I like and that I actually look forward to eat, having more snacks throughout the day, surrouding myself with positive people and environment and take some time off for myself has helped me to stick to the diet for a long time.

sijomial

I hate the feeling of being restricted which is why I found 5:2 dieting far easier for me than an everyday deficit.
Just being grumpy and hungry two days a week was more sustainable for me than feeling restricted 7 days a week.

You could also look at your calorie allowance as a weekly instead of daily target, eat less Monday - Friday and eat at maintenance Saturday and Sunday perhaps?

Don't be afraid to experiment. Just changing your eating patterns to something that suits you can make the process less miserable. I can easily skip breakfast for example which gives me bigger meals later in the day.

noobletmcnugget

sijomial wrote: »

I hate the feeling of being restricted which is why I found 5:2 dieting far easier for me than an everyday deficit.
Just being grumpy and hungry two days a week was more sustainable for me than feeling restricted 7 days a week.

You could also look at your calorie allowance as a weekly instead of daily target, eat less Monday - Friday and eat at maintenance Saturday and Sunday perhaps?

Don't be afraid to experiment. Just changing your eating patterns to something that suits you can make the process less miserable. I can easily skip breakfast for example which gives me bigger meals later in the day.

Hey, thanks for the response! I already shift my calories around a bit so I can eat a bit more at the weekends. And I also skip breakfast - I find that if I do eat it I just feel ravenous all day. Maybe I'll consider 5:2. It's difficult though since I live at home and have to eat the dinners made for me. But yeah, I'll experiment a little bit