Giant Appetite

crossrunner1497
crossrunner1497 Posts: 19 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Sorry if this is not the correct forum, but I wasn’t sure where to put this post.

So I am not sure why, but I have a much larger appetite than most people. I am active, but not like elite athlete standards. I don’t feel satisfied off of “regular” portion sizes, so I eat lower calorie alternatives so I can get a lot more volume (I can eat 6 cups worth of salad and such no issue). I avoid all junk food cravings due to this (I had a cheat day one day to try it out, and it just went too far- 5000+ calories). My friends and family think I need to force myself to eat small portions to be like a “normal person” and that large portions are what are causing me to be heavier than I would like (even though I keep the calories in check). I’m not sure if there is something wrong with me or if this is just the way my appetite is. Has anybody had experience with this or know anybody that has had struggles with this as well? Thanks.

Replies

  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    There’s a whole community of volume eaters in here. I don’t know if they moved somewhere else, but here’s at least one major discussion chain.

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10563959/volume-eaters-thread/p103
  • PennycillinEQ
    PennycillinEQ Posts: 32 Member
    I'm too new to give advice, but I have to agree with the previous poster that IF works well for this volume eater. Also, eating slowly. I have a crossword puzzle or sudoku with my 1pm "break fast" if I am home alone (have to put down the fork to pick up the pencil)
  • psychod787
    psychod787 Posts: 4,099 Member
    crossrunner1497 wrote: »
    Sorry if this is not the correct forum, but I wasn’t sure where to put this post.

    So I am not sure why, but I have a much larger appetite than most people. I am active, but not like elite athlete standards. I don’t feel satisfied off of “regular” portion sizes, so I eat lower calorie alternatives so I can get a lot more volume (I can eat 6 cups worth of salad and such no issue). I avoid all junk food cravings due to this (I had a cheat day one day to try it out, and it just went too far- 5000+ calories). My friends and family think I need to force myself to eat small portions to be like a “normal person” and that large portions are what are causing me to be heavier than I would like (even though I keep the calories in check). I’m not sure if there is something wrong with me or if this is just the way my appetite is. Has anybody had experience with this or know anybody that has had struggles with this as well? Thanks.

    I also wanted add, I am not sure if you come from a back ground of an eating disorder or not. If you do, it is normal for family to worry about you. In my case I went from Morbidly obese to anorexic. I don't use the A word lightly, I was diagnosed by a therapist. When I started the dietary pattern I eat now, they were just glad to see me eat and it didn't take much explaining to them that my weight loss maintenance goals were more important to me than eating a SAD. I might suggest talking to them about the dietary pattern YOU prefer. I wouldn't call a whole foods vegan a person with disordered eating. They eat that way because they want to. Best of luck op. I hope you find the peace you are looking for.
  • crossrunner1497
    crossrunner1497 Posts: 19 Member
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    42g radishes
    194g cucumbers (hi @paperpudding :love: )
    100g fresh green onions
    100g red peppers
    400g grape tomatoes
    330g tri-color coleslaw mix
    220g canned sockey salmon
    130g Bicks mustard pickles (fridge clean up)
    98g mazzetti sweet rosé vinegar
    3g dried oregano
    1g black pepper
    31g Wasa Fiber Rye
    47g Biscoff cookies
    17g dark swiss chocolate
    2 cans of coke zero
    burp
    I actually haven't yet entered all this on MFP, I came upstairs to do so before getting distracted by the forums... given I'm maintaining and had a fairly active day the only question is whether I have room for more cookies and chocolate! :blush:

    I think the above sees your 6 cups, maybe even raises by a couple! :lol:

    Hasn't stopped me either from losing, or from maintaining.

    Is your current physique as depicted in your avatar? if yes... where are you planning to cut weight from?

    If today's reality is currently significantly different, still, based on the life history you discuss in your blurb, If I were you I would be extremely careful if I were to decide to cut calories.

    Independently, both the activity of counting calories and the act of cutting calories (especially if you apply either a prolonged or a large deficit) both can independently act as triggers that bring back things better left as your past history.

    So, in your shoes, I would have extreme second thoughts about potentially opening scabs that are currently closed... and would not really want to do so without being in touch with a specialist who could help guide me through any potential issues--should any pop up down the road.

    Take care!

    ETA: @psychod787 I think you managed to out lb me in spite of my multiple lb salad... but then again you're bigger and stronger and eat at a lower "ENERGY DENSITY" (your use of "ED" above) even more often than I do!

    Thank you for this! I am always worried that my large appetite is just something abnormal about me. My friends and family always tell me that I should force myself to shrink my stomach, because only obese people have large appetites, and that’s how I will end up.

    Yes, that picture of me is current. I have more fat on me than that picture would show. It’s just the angle. I want to get to around 120lbs, and I am 140lbs now.

    I am being careful about making sure I don’t cut too many calories, as I don’t want to trigger any of my past history. That’s also one of the reasons I don’t want to listen to my family and eat small portions to shrink my stomach. But their comment about me becoming obese scared me. 😅

    And that food you had all sounds so delicious!

  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,735 Member
    If your calories and food quality fit your goals, then it really doesn't matter what the volume is. I eat a lot for someone my age and size. I also burn a lot of calories, so I've been maintaining my weight for several years. As someone mentioned above, if you want to eat a bit less but feel more full, eating more protein can help. When DH and I were long distance hiking, he lost weight at a great rate and was constantly starving. Our diet was very high in carbs and sugar. When we added more protein to our meals, he stabilized his weight and wasn't constantly ravenous.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,046 Member
    crossrunner1497 wrote: »
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    42g radishes
    194g cucumbers (hi @paperpudding :love: )
    100g fresh green onions
    100g red peppers
    400g grape tomatoes
    330g tri-color coleslaw mix
    220g canned sockey salmon
    130g Bicks mustard pickles (fridge clean up)
    98g mazzetti sweet rosé vinegar
    3g dried oregano
    1g black pepper
    31g Wasa Fiber Rye
    47g Biscoff cookies
    17g dark swiss chocolate
    2 cans of coke zero
    burp
    I actually haven't yet entered all this on MFP, I came upstairs to do so before getting distracted by the forums... given I'm maintaining and had a fairly active day the only question is whether I have room for more cookies and chocolate! :blush:

    I think the above sees your 6 cups, maybe even raises by a couple! :lol:

    Hasn't stopped me either from losing, or from maintaining.

    Is your current physique as depicted in your avatar? if yes... where are you planning to cut weight from?

    If today's reality is currently significantly different, still, based on the life history you discuss in your blurb, If I were you I would be extremely careful if I were to decide to cut calories.

    Independently, both the activity of counting calories and the act of cutting calories (especially if you apply either a prolonged or a large deficit) both can independently act as triggers that bring back things better left as your past history.

    So, in your shoes, I would have extreme second thoughts about potentially opening scabs that are currently closed... and would not really want to do so without being in touch with a specialist who could help guide me through any potential issues--should any pop up down the road.

    Take care!

    ETA: @psychod787 I think you managed to out lb me in spite of my multiple lb salad... but then again you're bigger and stronger and eat at a lower "ENERGY DENSITY" (your use of "ED" above) even more often than I do!

    Thank you for this! I am always worried that my large appetite is just something abnormal about me. My friends and family always tell me that I should force myself to shrink my stomach, because only obese people have large appetites, and that’s how I will end up.

    Yes, that picture of me is current. I have more fat on me than that picture would show. It’s just the angle. I want to get to around 120lbs, and I am 140lbs now.

    I am being careful about making sure I don’t cut too many calories, as I don’t want to trigger any of my past history. That’s also one of the reasons I don’t want to listen to my family and eat small portions to shrink my stomach. But their comment about me becoming obese scared me. 😅

    And that food you had all sounds so delicious!

    Keep in mind that there's a difference between "unusual" and "abnormal".

    Sounds like, in your family, your eating preferences are unusual, but some of your family *think* they're abnormal. It's pretty common for people to think their way is normal and the only right way, but not be objectively correct.

    I'm glad folks here have reassured you that your preferences are normal. (I agree, BTW.)

    It's good to figure out what works best for you as an individual, even if your best strategy is unusual. Some people miss out on a lot of life satisfaction by not being willing to be unusual, IMO. 🙂
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,198 Member
    Keep in mind, depending on how long you've been doing this, that extra volume of low energy density food tends to only go so far in terms of blunting hunger if you're in a hypocaloric state (deficit)

    Also that sometimes fat and higher density items have their place.

    When it is operating properly our body still manages to tabulate calories better than MFP.

    Btw, dem legs still scream relatively low fat levels ... have you had a look at the uterus thread? I'm sure someone will link!!!!
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,198 Member
    Is it time for cat gifs? Not quite!

    It took me 2+ years of weight loss and a couple of years maintaining before I arrived at the exact same conclusions an ex MFP friend recently posted in an info graphic! I would just change the order of a couple of entries pushing volume closer to the top!

    9vg5hokfb08g.jpg

  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    I PREFER high volume. It is choice.
    I CAN eat lower volume. I do this often and yes I am sometimes disappointed but I can let it go really quickly. High volume is too expensive in some scenarios and inconvenient in others.

    If I felt COMPELLED to eat high volume I would consider it a problem.

    I have allowed an occasional large overfeed day but for the most part I do not engage in volume eating with higher calorie food.

    I have also noticed that it helps at times to switch back to lower volume for a week. After a week of lower volume the switch back to higher volume carries a renewed punch.

  • QuilterInVA
    QuilterInVA Posts: 672 Member
    There is a book called Volumetrics that is a diet for volume readers. I used it years ago. You can get it used on Amazon or ThriftBooks.
  • deputy_randolph
    deputy_randolph Posts: 940 Member
    I can eat a lot. For example, I generally cook 4 servings of broccoli as my single serving of broccoli.

    "Normal" people do often comment on the amount of food that I eat...I think it's more of a surprise to people that I eat large portions and am not overweight.

    I prefer to eat 3 times a day with less snacking between. I've found that since I adopted this way of eating (and got away from the small portions spread across mulitple meals), my fasting glucose has dropped 20 points.

    My weight has not been adversely effected by eating more or less frequently. Finding the pattern of eating that works best for you might require some trial and error.

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