Hungry hungry

anne_4889

Hi! I‘m a few weeks in and doing pretty good but yesterday and today I‘ve been really hungry. What do you do if you ever feel like that?

angelsja

I drink lots of water with & in-between meals

anne_4889

I was also wondering about my water. Do you really notice if that affects your hunger?

angelsja

anne_4889 wrote: »

I was also wondering about my water. Do you really notice if that affects your hunger?

For me it helps quite often people mistake hunger for thirst so if I feel "hungry" I drink a big glass of water (2 pint glass) and it helps also hot beverages help so you have the feeling of something warm in your stomach

kimny72

anne_4889 wrote: »

I was also wondering about my water. Do you really notice if that affects your hunger?

The only time it helps me is if I'm not really hungry, and I find a flavored drink like tea or adding Mio additionally helps with that need to just taste something. Sugarless gum can do that too.

Are you sure you're eating enough? How many lbs a week are you trying to lose, and how much total weight? If your goals are too aggressive, consistent hunger will be a clue to that.

Most people find some combo of protein, fat, and fiber helps satiety. So see if you are low in any of those and bringing up the stragglers may help.

If you are just starting out and drastically changed your diet, it may take your system a little time to get used to it. You can try to ease your way in with smaller changes over a couple of weeks rather than a big change all at once.

iowalinda

Are you really hungry or is it more of a "I just want to eat" type of thing? If it's the just wanting to eat thing, I get myself out of the vicinity of food by either leaving the house or taking a nap. If you are truly hungry, try bulking up your meals with lots of veggies.

diannethegeek

These are my really general tips for hunger:

1. Make sure that your calorie goals are actually set appropriately. Don't skip this step. A lot of people set goals that are too aggressive and then wonder why they're having a hard time. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

2. Try different macros. A lot of people look for foods higher in protein, fat, and fiber. These help us stay full and more satisfied longer. If you're using MFP's default settings, try to consider protein, fat, and fiber as minimums to reach every day rather than maximums to stay below. Others feel better with high volume, higher carb diets (I trend this way during my period, personally). That's okay, too. See what makes you feel best.

3. Drink plenty of fluids. Some people really do confuse thirst and hunger.

4. Get plenty of rest. This includes sleeping enough and taking rest days from the exercise. Sometimes our bodies look for food when they're exhausted.

5. Play around with your meal timings. Some people do really well on 5-6 small meals a day and others feel like they want to gnaw their own arm off eating like that. Skipping breakfast, eating breakfast, 16:8 fasting, 6 small meals, 3 larger meals, snacks, no snacks, meal timing won't make a big difference to your weight loss, but it may help your hunger levels, mood, concentration, gym performance, etc. throughout the day. Don't be afraid to try a different way and see if it helps.

6. Wait it out. If you know you're eating enough and the other steps above aren't helping, you may just have to wait it out. Our bodies send out hunger signals partially out of habit. If you eat at a certain time every day your body will start to get hungry at that time. The good news is that these signals can be retrained to stop telling you to be hungry all the time. The bad news is that you may just have to be hungry for a little bit while that happens.

7. I also think it's important to remember that there's a habitual component to hunger. This goes along with point #6, but if you eat because you're bored or you're used to eating in front of the TV or in the car or whatever it is, then you can replace those habits with others that are better for you. Things like keeping water on hand to sip instead of snacking or picking up hobbies that keep your hands busy or that get you out of the house more can help out a little while you're retraining your hunger cues. You might need to pay attention to why you're eating/hungry or what you're feeling when you eat and try to replace food with other things, but it can be really beneficial over time.