Day five: I'm feeling hungry at times, and a friend is being worried about it.

MelanieCN77

Stop talking to her about it.

size102b

We are meant to feel hunger thing is if you've got a weight problem then your probably used to eating when you want so you may have forgotten what real hunger feels like
Tbh I've a weight problem I lose and gain lose and gain but I know feeling hungry when your tummy rumbles and you feel hungry that way not through boredom

I can have the same amount calories exercise daily just some days the hunger is bad I just drink more tea read walk and try ignore it

kshama2001

antinomiancelestial wrote: »

Thanks, all.

I think I've decided to make today a maintenance calorie day because I'm ravenous after having eaten almost the whole 1520 to lose 1 pound per week. My current stats are 189.4 lbs and 5 foot 6. I've lost 1 pound so far, in the past 5 days. I think part of why I'm so hungry is that I ate less than 1520 on the first few days and was leaving like 200 available calories uneaten. Today, I want to make up for that and then return to the diet because I'm wanting to gnaw on my bed sheets right now.

I think the friend is worried because the friend used to have an ED and recalls ignoring hunger as one of the warning signs that tipped off the problem. Also, the friend is part of the fat-positivity movement, and I think some people in that movement have negative perceptions about weight loss in general.

I'm about your height and weight and 1520 calories isn't enough for me unless I also exercise and eat the calories I've earned from exercise. This way, I'm only hungry right before meals.

Also, my hunger goes up a little when I ovulate and sharply premenstrually. I exercise more at ovulation and eat at maintenance for a few days premenstrually and during my heavy days.

Pushing away from the computer now to go walk in the woods despite the temperature being below freezing. I often have to force myself to exercise, and am always glad I did - I feel so better, physically and emotionally. Plus I sleep better.

rsclause

It takes Time if you have been overeating to get used to the new normal. I am a big believer in dialing in your stats and goal to let MFP determine your calorie intake. I also refuse to starve or miss any meals. I found if I eliminate sweets and limit calorie dense carbs like breads & pasta in favor of fresh produce it helps with hunger. My worst moment is between breakfast and lunch. My go to snack is almonds. They have the fat content to satisfy but are not so good I binge eat them.

metalmeow1

kshama2001 wrote: »

I often have to force myself to exercise, and am always glad I did - I feel so better, physically and emotionally. Plus I sleep better.

Like what you'd said in another post! I've never regretted working out, but there were many days I regretted not working out. You don't find the time for exercise. You make the time for it.

antinomiancelestial

Adding in more exercise is probably going to be the hardest part for me. I have never liked exercising very much, but I know it's really important to this process.

Strudders67

You can lose weight without exercising, although exercise has other benefits. If you look at the app on your phone, click the Nutrients button at the bottom, change the view to Week and look at your Net Average. That'll give you your average for the last week. Ideally, you want that to be at (or roughly at) your Goal calories. So even if you had more to eat yesterday, if you were under-eating a little bit, earlier in the week, you're probably about even. Although I try to not exceed my Goal most of the time, it's hard if I'm out for the evening or have friends to dinner - but if my weekly Net Average is OK, then I'm quite happy. Google TDEE and find out what your Maintenance calories figure is. If you're eating less than that, on a weekly basis (or even a daily basis), you'll lose weight.

antinomiancelestial

@Strudders67 Thank you for the info about TDEE. My maintenance calories are 1980, and I went over that on one day when I was ravenous for some reason, but I'm trying to get back up today and not overdo things.

crzycatlady1

antinomiancelestial wrote: »

Adding in more exercise is probably going to be the hardest part for me. I have never liked exercising very much, but I know it's really important to this process.

Actually for weight loss it's really not. There's quite a few of us who've hit our weight loss goals without exercise factored in.

Not saying to not exercise, but also realize that it has a pretty minimal impact on weight loss (besides giving you a few more calories to eat, though a lot of times exercising makes you feel hungrier...).

antinomiancelestial

That's interesting. I tried losing weight with just exercise before, but even when I felt motivated to go to the gym, the number of calories I burned never amounted to much, and I always ended up hungry.

Afura

Some people end up hungry after exercising, some don't. Bodies, seesh. Exercise is important to overall health, but is unnecessary for weight loss. I was on dr ordered no exercise, still lost weight, I just watched my food intake like a hawk.

antinomiancelestial

@Afura , that's good to know! The amount of exercise that makes me feel healthy is significantly less than what it would take to lose a pound a week, so I guess my takeaway is that I should focus on food intake rather than exercise at least where weight loss is concerned.

crzycatlady1

antinomiancelestial wrote: »

@Afura , that's good to know! The amount of exercise that makes me feel healthy is significantly less than what it would take to lose a pound a week, so I guess my takeaway is that I should focus on food intake rather than exercise at least where weight loss is concerned.

Correct. And again-exercise is not a bad thing and is good for overall health, but it's best to not rely on it too heavily for weight loss

antinomiancelestial

That's interesting. I feel like I've always been told the opposite, that a sedentary lifestyle was the main culprit when people were overweight, but then again I recently heard that soda/unhealthy food companies have sort of pushed that as a dominant cultural message so that people won't stop eating and drinking unhealthy things and making a profit for those companies.

KateTii

Hungry where you will eat a bowl of plain broccoli because you are so hungry - not so good. Eat more often or play around with what you are eating so you get a good volume/calorie/satiety breakdown.

Hungry where you want that snickers bar in the top drawer, but would ignore the bowl of broccoli - this is fine and is usually a psychological hunger.

karahm78

jennifer_417 wrote: »

Feeling hungry occasionally is normal, especially when losing weight. I honestly find it an alarming comment on our culture that someone was genuinely worried about you just because you felt hungry once.

My take on that was maybe her friend was concerned since the OP had an ED in the past, that the disordered thinking was coming back? Otherwise I don't know why anyone would be that concerned that someone was hungry once (although the OP indicates her friend buys into the fat acceptance movement so who knows)

antinomiancelestial

@KateTii - Well put. I scarfed down plain, raw snow peas this morning because I was so hungry. I'm not just craving candy bars and junk; I'm seriously hungry. It's confusing to me because I thought eating 1520 calories a week was supposed to be okay at my weight and activity level.

@karahm78 - My friend didn't know I had an ED in the past. I think the friend believes that if a person is hungry while on a diet, that person automatically has an eating disorder. I know the friend is into fat acceptance/HAES, so I think a lot of people in that movement see dieting as inherently unhealthy and unnecessary.

That said, this diet is getting unhealthy. I'm only trying to lose a pound a week, but I've been absolutely ravenous/willing to eat raw produce out of the fridge just from desperation. I'm going off a med that's known to warp appetite a lot, though, so I might need to finish doing that before I start giving this diet my all.

karahm78

It's good that you recognize that the diet is feeling unhealthy to you.... maybe dial it back to trying to lose a 1/2lb per week? Make sure you are hitting protein/fiber/fat goals to help keep you satiated, if I don't get close to those I am ravenous but if I plan to hit those numbers or come close it is a huge difference.

aerochic42

OP, You may have dropped your calories too much too fast. I know 1520 still seems like a lot, but if you were eating significantly more, you are going to be hungry. Unless you did say a week of logging/measuring of your regular food (no dietary changes) you were likely consuming more than you thought. When I started at 240 lb, I first had tried to 1300-1400 calories and was ravenous and frustrated because I went way over and didn't keep it up. A few weeks later I set the calories to like 3500, did my best to log my regular food for a week. I was eating closer to 2100-2200 calories a day. Without realizing it I had cut my caloric intake by 1/3, which also explained why I couldn't continue at 1300-1400. I lost 40ish lbs at 1700-1800 with some extra exercise. (Of course trying to restart is a whole other issue currently ,but that is a work in progress).

Also dehydration, and TOM/ hormonal changes all play a factor. As to your first question, like others have posted different macro ratios can affect satiety levels (how long do you stay full). You'll have to experiment.

TheCupcakeCounter

Good fats (coconut oil, avocado, natural nut butters), protein, and fiber will definitely help with controlling hunger. My snacks are generally raw veggies with a fat/protein (cucumbers and an ounce or so of cheese, carrots and hummus, you could also do an apple or celery dipped in peanut or almond butter) and I can eat a ton of the veggies plain for very few calories.
Also - drink lots of water