600 calories yesterday total. Not hungry. WTF?

tapirfrog

NOTE 1: Please don't panic. That evening when I saw my dismal nutrition stats, I marched into the kitchen and choked down lean protein, vegetables, and whole grains until I hit my minimums.

NOTE 2: Weird. This drastic shortfall of calories but no hunger signals has happened twice this week.

NOTE 3: I apologize if there's an answer about this already out there. I searched the forums for information, but all I saw was pages of "OMG U HAZ EATING DISORDER" threads so I backed away quietly.

So. WTF? Hunger signals are supposed to kick in when you're drastically underfed, right? So why would they suddenly stop?

FWIW, I'm eating the same things I always do -- eggwhites, fish, tofu, vegetables, fruit, milk, bran flakes, flax -- and exercising the same way I've been for over a year: brisk walks, the Dailey Method CD. Progress has been slow but steady, as you can see by my ticker.

And I'm not exactly complaining, because it's nice to not have to restrain myself every single minute from eating everything in sight. But ... is this normal? This can't be normal. This sure didn't happen years ago when I was lifting heavy, but I can't lift heavy right now (old injury is flaring up) so that's not a way to re-set my hunger to normal.

Anyone have any insight into (a) why or (b) how hunger can suddenly just shut off like that?

jayjay12345654321

Possibly stress, pre-occupation with something going on, or caused my medicines you may be taking.

Marcia315

Meh. Somedays I'm starving. Somedays I don't want to eat. AS long as this isn't a daily thing, I wouldn't worry about it.

lowfatveg

I don't get hungry if I am really tired

Confuzzled4ever

I think we have days where we just aren't hungry. I'm currently staring at my salad, knowing i need to eat it, in order to hit my minimums and just not feeling it.. same with my breakfast this morning (which I didn't eat until 11 and is probably the reason I don't want my lunch)..

A day or two here or there isn't going to do any damage.. only if it becomes an everyday thing.

It's the same with the days you eat more then you should.. a day here or there means nothing.. it's when it's an everyday thing you have to worry..

I'm also slightly upset today because my son broke my table and i have to replace it and stressed over financial stuff because of it.. All of it plays into hunger or lack thereof.

nomad1000

I call this the appetite roller coaster. Some days I am "I want to eat everything on the planet...especially the chocolately things!!!" Other days I am "Meh, not that hungry. Give me some chicken, I guess." Mot days, I am in the middle, eating my allotment of calories and not being too hungry.

I just think of it as all part of the process.

(And the "Meh" days happen most often when I have lots of other stuff going on so am distracted from being hungry."

xcharbzx

There's a theory in evolutionary psychology that suggests that some people may have a gene which turns off the majority of hunger pains after a period of little food. This would be advantageous because then there's more food for your group (usually your kids and that's who you wanna keep alive) in times of food scarcity. The theory applies to anorexia but doesnt mean you have anorexia.

Could be bogus though, it's evolutionary psyc. so it's pretty much impossible to prove.

tapirfrog

Huh. So this could be completely normal? This is what normal feels like?

Weird. I have never experienced this before. I've always been obsessed with food, either with eating it or with not eating it. I've never just ... forgotten about it long past the time I should have remembered.

Okay, so I won't panic, then. If this keeps happening I'll get it checked out, but as long as it is just an occasional thing I'll have to remember that Meh happens.

Thanks.

tapirfrog

There's a theory in evolutionary psychology that suggests that some people may have a gene which turns off the majority of hunger pains after a period of little food. This would be advantageous because then there's more food for your group (usually your kids and that's who you wanna keep alive) in times of food scarcity. The theory applies to anorexia but doesnt mean you have anorexia.

Could be bogus though, it's evolutionary psyc. so it's pretty much impossible to prove.

Well, whaddya know. I am a recovering anorexic (in the way that someone who used to be an alcoholic but hasn't touched a drop in thirty years is a recovering alcoholic). Yeah, impossible to prove, but interesting that you pointed it out.

stealthq

Hunger is a lousy metric for when you need more food or less. If it were not, who would need diet advice? You'd just tell people to eat when they're hungry and stop when they're full. I think there are lots of people here who would argue that doesn't work so well.

Anorexics and those who are chronically starved generally lose all hunger pangs and need to re-feed for a while before they feel hunger again.

Cadaverous_Bones

Maybe you didn't use a lot of calories.. like were you at home sitting around or out and about? I wouldn't worry too much.

tigersword

Hunger pangs are hormonally driven. ANY kind of imbalance in hormones can throw off hunger signals, either blunting appetite or making you starving. Your body also adapts to your normal feeding cycle. If you eat the same number of meals at the same time every day, you stat feeling hungry around that time.This is why "listen to your body" or "eat when you are hungry" is terrible advice.

lehaleha

I can definitely understand! Usually I waver between 600-800 a day and feel totally full and fulfilled. I even exercise daily and am never tired or fatigued. I'm always so afraid to talk about it on here because it seems like taboo and I'll either be accused of anorexia (like you mentioned) or assaulted about starvation mode.

I lose weight at a healthy normal rate 1-2 lbs a week, nothing drastic at all. That's just the range I feel full in? Maybe you do too?

susannamarie

One day or two on very low calories won't hurt you, but if it becomes regular it's not good.

ImNothingWithoutChrist

There's a theory in evolutionary psychology that suggests that some people may have a gene which turns off the majority of hunger pains after a period of little food. This would be advantageous because then there's more food for your group (usually your kids and that's who you wanna keep alive) in times of food scarcity. The theory applies to anorexia but doesnt mean you have anorexia.

Could be bogus though, it's evolutionary psyc. so it's pretty much impossible to prove.

I totally agree. My weight has gone up and down like Janet Jackson's. And I will add that it is so true when you eat less you want less, and on the flip side when you eat more you want more. You should not force feed yourself unless you haven't ate for a few days straight. It is nothing wrong with eating low because you're only listening to what your body need, and its not like you're actually anorexic which is a different story. I do this exact thing of when I cut back, my appetite automatically matches it and I only end up eating once a day. This time around I will not engage in eating fast food, but make healthy choices instead. You're doing cool, I wouldn't worry about it.