Why does my stomach feel so empty on lower carbs?

amyn73

Hello All,
I've been eating lower carb (not Keto) and I've lost 12 pounds! Yay! But now that I've been doing this for a while, my body has pretty much gone to its "lean" mode. I don't get hungry too much and my stomach always has a slightly empty feeling. I'm not sure how to feel full and sated while eating lower carbs. Any ideas on foods that help with this?

Theoldguy1

Carbs are where most of your fiber is coming from. Fiber helps make one feel full.

Put some high fiber veggies in your diet.

earlnabby

Theoldguy1 wrote: »

Carbs are where most of your fiber is coming from. Fiber helps make one feel full.

Put some high fiber veggies in your diet.

Or some whole grains. Oatmeal (either Old Fashioned or steel cut) will add some good filling fiber to your diet.

lemurcat2

People have different reactions to low carb. Also, there are a huge variety of ways to do low carb.

You say you are not hungry, so I am not totally sure what the problem is -- maybe what you are associating with "sated and full" is not necessary? Are you feeling unsatisfied or a desire to eat all the time or something?

That said, I personally would consider fiber and some volume important even on low carb. When I briefly experimented with keto (it looks like you are eating more carbs than that), I made sure to get my carbs mostly from non starchy veg, and many people certainly do find that they feel more satisfied eating more fiber (beans and lentils are a great source, avocados and raspberries and some other fruits, and to some degree whole grains, in addition to veg).

You might also just be someone who feels more satisfied and sticks to lower cals easier when eating somewhat more carbs.

ElizabethKalmbach

I don't really shoot for a low carb diet, but I do quite like salad, and I have noticed that on days when I eat like... Pork and brown rice with veggies I feel full almost at the same time I finish eating (if not before.)

On days when I eat chicken on a bed of salad greens, (same-ish calorie load as the pork and rice), I don't feel full when I finish eating... But I'm done with my calories, so I stop and get back to whatever I was doing. If I check in with my stomach about 20 minutes later, I find that I *am* full, but the message is about 20 minutes slower to arrive.

Maybe spend a few days reflecting on your stomach's behavior in relation to the type of meal you ate and see how it reacts to different things. (Greens vs beans, etc.) You may pick up a few interesting tools to use in your journey to a healthier lifestyle.

NorthCascades

How does someone disagree with the OP? You think she's not really feeling hungry and lying about it to get advice because...?

nighthawk584

Not until I went to 150-250 g's of carbs was I feeling satiated. I lost 1st 50lbs on 100 c's or less and was miserable. I honestly don't know how people can go extreme low carb , for long anyway! as others have said, FIBER..get some more fiber in your diet and play around with the carb intake to see where you are most satisfied.

fitom80

nighthawk584 wrote: »

Not until I went to 150-250 g's of carbs was I feeling satiated. I lost 1st 50lbs on 100 c's or less and was miserable. I honestly don't know how people can go extreme low carb , for long anyway! as others have said, FIBER..get some more fiber in your diet and play around with the carb intake to see where you are most satisfied.

I have exactly same experience. (the reason i started using mfp was that I felt tyred and found I eat 25% or less carbs)

@amyn73 slow/complex carbs, protein helps you feel feeded in general, dont forget healthy fats but esp. avoid eating sole fast carbs (sugar, fructose)... watch you calories (too low is as bad as too high), watch you macros.. Eat regurarely and you will never starve... And never get fat...

amyn73

Thanks for the advice....I just think it's a new reality. My body is not used to feeling as it should...it's used to feeling over-fed. I just need to put some different foods into rotation. The reason I do lower carb is that my doctor suggested it after being diagnosed with a thyroid issue.

ElizabethKalmbach

@amyn73 Well, it's worth a shot. I also have a thyroid issue, (for the last 20 or so years) and low carb dieting made me miserable and as most people here will tell you, in the end, losing weight (assuming that's the only goal) is all about eating at a deficit.

It may help you to think about it from a slightly different angle. Instead of spending your energy lowering carbs, try increasing your protein to about 30% of your intake. Leave your calories the same.

When I just try to bring my protein *up* it naturally lowers my carbs if I'm staying in the same calorie range. I find that to be more a matter of portion control (2 servings of chicken on one serving of pasta as opposed to eliminating the pasta I love.) rather than deprivation - and therefor more sustainable.

Carbs *do* come with a certain amount of water weight attached, so initial losses seen with a low carb diet are often largely water weight, that will come back if you go back to eating carbs. I tell you this now, not to discourage you, but to keep you from freaking out should you have an off day or a holiday with lots of carbs. You will put on a disproportionate amount of scale weight. It is not fat. If you return to low carb, it will go away again quickly. If you decide to keep carbs in your life, you haven't undone any of your previous work. You just had to replace the water you need to process the carbs.

psychod787

ElizabethKalmbach wrote: »

@amyn73 Well, it's worth a shot. I also have a thyroid issue, (for the last 20 or so years) and low carb dieting made me miserable and as most people here will tell you, in the end, losing weight (assuming that's the only goal) is all about eating at a deficit.

It may help you to think about it from a slightly different angle. Instead of spending your energy lowering carbs, try increasing your protein to about 30% of your intake. Leave your calories the same.

When I just try to bring my protein *up* it naturally lowers my carbs if I'm staying in the same calorie range. I find that to be more a matter of portion control (2 servings of chicken on one serving of pasta as opposed to eliminating the pasta I love.) rather than deprivation - and therefor more sustainable.

Carbs *do* come with a certain amount of water weight attached, so initial losses seen with a low carb diet are often largely water weight, that will come back if you go back to eating carbs. I tell you this now, not to discourage you, but to keep you from freaking out should you have an off day or a holiday with lots of carbs. You will put on a disproportionate amount of scale weight. It is not fat. If you return to low carb, it will go away again quickly. If you decide to keep carbs in your life, you haven't undone any of your previous work. You just had to replace the water you need to process the carbs.

Not low carb myself. More moderate, but protein at 30% shows spontaneous reductions in calories in ad librium situations in studies. Protein is the most satisfying macro per energy unit.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

SOOZIE429

Healthy fats! Add them to every meal.

psuLemon

In what timeframe did you lose 10 lbs? There is a possibility that calories are too low. Or even protein. What I found is I needed fat and protein to keep me full. When one or the other was not present, I got really hungry. But I am also keto right now.

amyn73

Yep, the 10 pounds came off in about 6 weeks. So not horrible but a little fast. It could be that I'm just not eating the right combination of foods, too. Not enough fats. I kind of straddle the line between actual Keto and healthy eating with carbs. I think I need to probably pick one.

psuLemon

amyn73 wrote: »

Yep, the 10 pounds came off in about 6 weeks. So not horrible but a little fast. It could be that I'm just not eating the right combination of foods, too. Not enough fats. I kind of straddle the line between actual Keto and healthy eating with carbs. I think I need to probably pick one.

Interestingly for me, low carb is intolerable but keto has been working.

Cahgetsfit

nighthawk584 wrote: »

Not until I went to 150-250 g's of carbs was I feeling satiated. I lost 1st 50lbs on 100 c's or less and was miserable. I honestly don't know how people can go extreme low carb , for long anyway! as others have said, FIBER..get some more fiber in your diet and play around with the carb intake to see where you are most satisfied.

Me three

fitom80 wrote: »

nighthawk584 wrote: »

Not until I went to 150-250 g's of carbs was I feeling satiated. I lost 1st 50lbs on 100 c's or less and was miserable. I honestly don't know how people can go extreme low carb , for long anyway! as others have said, FIBER..get some more fiber in your diet and play around with the carb intake to see where you are most satisfied.

I have exactly same experience. (the reason i started using mfp was that I felt tyred and found I eat 25% or less carbs)

@amyn73 slow/complex carbs, protein helps you feel feeded in general, dont forget healthy fats but esp. avoid eating sole fast carbs (sugar, fructose)... watch you calories (too low is as bad as too high), watch you macros.. Eat regurarely and you will never starve... And never get fat...

Me three. I can survive through low carb for about a week - barely.

I usually need to be on at least 150C in order to feel satisfied and not have an empty hole in my stomach.

Katmary71

I thought I was low carb as I mostly eat lots of non-starchy vegetables and protein. Turns out I was eating more than I thought as I don't like a lot of fats and the volume of vegetables and added protein keep me full. I've been able to keep my blood sugar low through exercise, diet, and weight loss so I'm sticking with moderate carbs. See what works best for you.