Close to maintenance and suddenly HUNGRY!

heybales

I would still recommend increasing calories gradually as you approach maintenance. I say this because I had to go to the ER for bradycardia, and the only thing the doctor could tell me was to eat at least 1800 calories. I had been at around 1600 then. Slowly increasing to 1950 NET was to stabilize between 110 and 115lb, and I'm 5'3". Yes, your maintenance for 5'1" will be slightly lower, but it might not be as low as you think. If you eat at maintenance for your goal weight, you sill still be in a deficit now, just a smaller one.

Thanks! I sort of forgot about the weight-loss method of eating at the maintenance level for your desired end weight. I'm going to see what that might be and see what happens if I aim for that number instead of what I'm being given by the site. I imagine that would make this easier and more pleasant for me.

You'll barely have a deficit.

Hopefully you've selected 1/2 loss weekly already, as that is reasonable for 3 lbs to go.

May also need to do a mix of taking a diet break where you are at, let body ramp up to full steam, then take 2 weeks in diet mode, back to no diet, ect.

That may sound long, but compared to the stall that could happen anyway because of being so hungry, it's really not.

It's why body builders use the cut/bulk method - it is faster overall.

SoSheDid_

Trying the TDEE-20% method: I guess that might be a good option; the trouble with it is that the amount I exercise varies a good deal from day to day. I suppose I could try to average that out to figure TDEE and try that method for a few weeks and see how it works. However, I really do like how MFP's method encourages more exercise directly by telling you you can eat more-- that helps motivate me.

It's definitely a personal preference, whether to use the TDEE method or MFP. What I like about using the TDEE method is it just simplifies everything. You calculate in how many times you workout a week, so then I have a consistent calorie goal everyday. That works a lot better for me than figuring out and tracking how many calories I'm burning on a daily basis (especially because I weight train 3x/week and don't know how to track those calories burned). Some people really like earning more calories with exercise though, so whatever works best for you!

heybales, thanks for posting that study. I just gave it a brief glance because I'm short on time, but it looks really interesting.

Anonycatgirl

Just wanted to say I'm glad I'm not alone. I've been doing pretty well not feeling hungry but this past week, with my original goal weight* in sight--starving! Don't know if it's because I dipped below a weight I haven't been in over a decade and my body's confused, or because I'm getting more of my exercise outside and the fresh air is making me hungrier even if I'm not actually burning more calories


* I'd decided to go for 5 more pounds, which I'm seriously reconsidering because the last week I've been ready to gnaw on table legs and I'm not sure I can take this another month-plus. Maybe I'll try upping my calories a little so I'm less likely to eat the cats or something in a moment of madness.

chani8

anonycatgirl - dipping below a weight that you haven't seen in years is likely exactly the issue here, according to what I learned by watching that HBO link.

I just had the same experience. I was doing great, holding steady, then I got sick and went 5 pounds below goal weight and I've been crazy hungry ever since. Gained back 10lbs, which means I'm 5lbs over goal weight. Doesn't sound that bad....except I'm.still.hungry!!! And it's because my body/brain/hormones are freaking out that I'm in some kind of danger when I went so low cal, according to that HBO show, if I understand it correctly.

So going for losing 5 more pounds is a serious decision if you are already so hungry.

Francl27

It's been horrible the last few weeks here. Every week I have a couple days when I'm just ravenous. It sucks, and it's made losing my last 5 lbs totally impossible. Which is crazy because I'm eating more than I did the last few months. And I've lost my period apparently (no I'm not pregnant, I almost wish, at least I'd know why this happens).

rezrighter

Running out of time to read this post fully but want to put in my 2 cents...

I also have had the cravings my fix was...

Increasing fat intake. protine will help with minimizing loss of muscle. I add full cup worth of milk into my daily plan. Please note that as you exercise more, you have an increased above average resting metabolism and the formulas used will be less accurate, and give you less then you actually need calorie wise. so your deficit might actually be higher then documented.

These days I am focussing less on the scale and more on my BF% as an indicator of where I need to be.

__freckles__

It would be helpful if you opened your diary. What are your macros?

Linnaea27

I would still recommend increasing calories gradually as you approach maintenance. I say this because I had to go to the ER for bradycardia, and the only thing the doctor could tell me was to eat at least 1800 calories. I had been at around 1600 then. Slowly increasing to 1950 NET was to stabilize between 110 and 115lb, and I'm 5'3". Yes, your maintenance for 5'1" will be slightly lower, but it might not be as low as you think. If you eat at maintenance for your goal weight, you sill still be in a deficit now, just a smaller one.

Thanks! I sort of forgot about the weight-loss method of eating at the maintenance level for your desired end weight. I'm going to see what that might be and see what happens if I aim for that number instead of what I'm being given by the site. I imagine that would make this easier and more pleasant for me.

You'll barely have a deficit.

Hopefully you've selected 1/2 loss weekly already, as that is reasonable for 3 lbs to go.

May also need to do a mix of taking a diet break where you are at, let body ramp up to full steam, then take 2 weeks in diet mode, back to no diet, ect.

That may sound long, but compared to the stall that could happen anyway because of being so hungry, it's really not.

It's why body builders use the cut/bulk method - it is faster overall.

I did indeed select 1/2 lb loss weekly-- that's actually what I've been doing all along because I can't eat little enough to lose more than that each week, and stay sane. I tried losing 1 lb/week last year and was a hungry grump all the time, so I knew that in order to succeed, I definitely needed to eat more and lose more slowly.

That's a good suggestion about taking a diet break for a couple weeks, dieting for another couple weeks, etc. I've been much less hungry lately, mostly because I've exercised a lot lately and consequently have eaten lots. I'm going to assess how I'm doing weight-wise in the next few days, see what's happened with eating a bit more for the past week, and I'll keep that suggestion in mind if I feel I need to change how I'm doing things.

Linnaea27

Running out of time to read this post fully but want to put in my 2 cents...

I also have had the cravings my fix was...

Increasing fat intake. protine will help with minimizing loss of muscle. I add full cup worth of milk into my daily plan. Please note that as you exercise more, you have an increased above average resting metabolism and the formulas used will be less accurate, and give you less then you actually need calorie wise. so your deficit might actually be higher then documented.

These days I am focussing less on the scale and more on my BF% as an indicator of where I need to be.

Eating full-fat Greek yogurt is definitely one of my favorite and most filling breakfasts! I agree, eating more fat helps a lot. I'm not opposed to eating fats, and do so regularly; I also have been making a consistent effort to eat more protein. I am mostly vegetarian, with some fish and occasionally other meats on special occasions, so protein is something I have to pay a good deal of attention to.

I agree that my deficit might be higher than calculated! I have averaged losing a bit more than the chosen level of 0.5 lb/week-- it's been more like 0.7 lb/week all along-- so I am guessing my metabolism is a bit faster than average. It's encouraging to lose a little faster than I'm "supposed" to, which is why I've been sticking to the calorie goal/eating back calories method MFP uses. Lately, though, I'm often a little over my goal, so I think I'm probably eating at about the same deficit now as I was when I started. . . . if that makes any sense.

I would love to focus more on BF% than weight; basically the area of myself that causes me to want to lose 3 more pounds is my belly/hips, which still have more fat on them than I would like. My stomach area has long been a source of displeasure, thus the continued weight loss. I'm definitely going to be focusing on body recomposition soon, but I'm not where I want to be to start that quite yet.

Linnaea27

It would be helpful if you opened your diary. What are your macros?

I'm opening my diary if you'd like to have a look. Yesterday (4/8) was a family celebration, so please ignore that day!

I'll leave my diary open for a few days, but I'm not generally comfortable having it public (internet privacy reasons) so will probably close it again in a short while.

Linnaea27

Everyone-- I don't have time to post replies to each response, but I want to make sure you all know I really appreciate your suggestions and ideas and am keeping them all in mind as I figure out what to do!

Jestinia

I wish I had some encouragement, but my body likes to be fat and I don't so it's a constant hunger war. This experience is backed up in medical research on people who have lost weight and are trying to maintain.

I think the most depressing thing I've ever read in regard to weight loss is that people who do manage to keep the weight off are always hungry.

It sucks. Green tea, coffee, ketogenic diets, various pills, powders, and potions from health food stores, and an iron will can help. And if you have the least bit of allergies, you might find two Sudafed a day can not only clear sinuses, they can take the edge off your appetite, at least for a few hours. Of course, when you buy it month in, month out, everyone will start to think you're making meth in your basement, but whatever.

nxd10

I wish I had some encouragement, but my body likes to be fat and I don't so it's a constant hunger war. This experience is backed up in medical research on people who have lost weight and are trying to maintain.

I think the most depressing thing I've ever read in regard to weight loss is that people who do manage to keep the weight off are always hungry.

It sucks. Green tea, coffee, ketogenic diets, various pills, powders, and potions from health food stores, and an iron will can help. And if you have the least bit of allergies, you might find two Sudafed a day can not only clear sinuses, they can take the edge off your appetite, at least for a few hours. Of course, when you buy it month in, month out, everyone will start to think you're making meth in your basement, but whatever.

Science does not say you'll always be hungry or that you need to take all those drugs.

Frankly, I was rarely hungry when I was on 1230 calories (my calculated 500 calorie deficit) and I'm rarely hungry now. When I was or am, it's almost always because I'm doing something that uses a lot of calories but doesn't show up in my exercise log as calories I 'can' eat back (working outside in the cold, for example). Common sense can also come into play.

One of the things that I learned with logging was which foods I loved and were satisfying and which I could drop and do that within my range. More protein, lower carbs (under 40%), more fat: not hungry. Added sugar in very limited amounts and small portions. Eating very high quality food that really tastes good so satisfies the cravings for SENSATION and PLEASURE.

I come from a family of fatties ,but I'll be darned if I'm going to be miserable the rest of my life just to stay thin.

Jestinia

I wish I had some encouragement, but my body likes to be fat and I don't so it's a constant hunger war. This experience is backed up in medical research on people who have lost weight and are trying to maintain.

I think the most depressing thing I've ever read in regard to weight loss is that people who do manage to keep the weight off are always hungry.

It sucks. Green tea, coffee, ketogenic diets, various pills, powders, and potions from health food stores, and an iron will can help. And if you have the least bit of allergies, you might find two Sudafed a day can not only clear sinuses, they can take the edge off your appetite, at least for a few hours. Of course, when you buy it month in, month out, everyone will start to think you're making meth in your basement, but whatever.

Science does not say you'll always be hungry or that you need to take all those drugs.

Frankly, I was rarely hungry when I was on 1230 calories (my calculated 500 calorie deficit) and I'm rarely hungry now. When I was or am, it's almost always because I'm doing something that uses a lot of calories but doesn't show up in my exercise log as calories I 'can' eat back (working outside in the cold, for example). Common sense can also come into play.

One of the things that I learned with logging was which foods I loved and were satisfying and which I could drop and do that within my range. More protein, lower carbs (under 40%), more fat: not hungry. Added sugar in very limited amounts and small portions. Eating very high quality food that really tastes good so satisfies the cravings for SENSATION and PLEASURE.

I come from a family of fatties ,but I'll be darned if I'm going to be miserable the rest of my life just to stay thin.

I did mention ketosis as part of my strategy for losing and maintaining. But for me I have to be under 20%. At %40 I'm as insatiable as ever.

Maybe some people get lucky and aren't always plagued by hunger after losing weight. I'm not one of the lucky ones. What I cite below doesn't show successful decrease of hunger at all. It shows increase in self control for successful dieters. Can't currently find the 'always hungry' quote, will post when I do.

http://www.nature.com/ijo/journal/v31/n3/abs/0803431a.html

Conclusion: Cortical areas involved in controlling inappropriate behavioral responses, such as the DPFC, are particularly activated in successful dieters in response to meal consumption. The association between the degree of dietary restraint and the coordinated neural changes in the DPFC and OFC raises the possibility that cognitive control of food intake is achieved by modulating neural circuits controlling food reward.


Edit: Another study (admittedly small and based off an original very low calorie diet for the weight loss)

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/27/health/biological-changes-thwart-weight-loss-efforts-study-finds.html?_r=0

The results show, once again, Dr. Leibel said, that losing weight “is not a neutral event,” and that it is no accident that more than 90 percent of people who lose a lot of weight gain it back. “You are putting your body into a circumstance it will resist,” he said. “You are, in a sense, more metabolically normal when you are at a higher body weight.”

Always hungry:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/magazine/tara-parker-pope-fat-trap.html?pagewanted=all

“After you’ve lost weight, your brain has a greater emotional response to food,” Rosenbaum says. “You want it more, but the areas of the brain involved in restraint are less active.” Combine that with a body that is now burning fewer calories than expected, he says, “and you’ve created the perfect storm for weight regain.” How long this state lasts isn’t known, but preliminary research at Columbia suggests that for as many as six years after weight loss, the body continues to defend the old, higher weight by burning off far fewer calories than would be expected. The problem could persist indefinitely. (The same phenomenon occurs when a thin person tries to drop about 10 percent of his or her body weight — the body defends the higher weight.) This doesn’t mean it’s impossible to lose weight and keep it off; it just means it’s really, really difficult.






None of this means I'm saying "Just give up!" Obviously. I don't give up. And I'm not saying it isn't worth it. But to ignore the biological issues with weight loss and maintenance seems foolish to me, since that knowledge can be used to continue to combat regaining our weight.

tech_kitten

Shark week does it for me. I get super hungry and maybe not cranky, but bored, then I eat cuz I'm bored. I hate struggling with that.

newpalfan

I, too, am 5' 1" and now weigh 110.2 pounds. I am technically at my goal but I would like to weigh 108 or so to give myself a cushion. I have had the same problem as you. The weight used to come off at a pound a week and now it is leveling off and down to a pound a month with the increased appetite. I continue to log in with my exercise and calories.

pokagonblonde

I'm having the same problem!! I'm 5'2" but want to be around 115 pounds. Now that I'm close, my hunger is out of control!
I'm a runner, and I also lift weights and do kickboxing. I've actually been waking in the middle of the night starving lately. I don't know if I'm just making good muscle gains or what my problem is. Very frustrating!

Linnaea27

I wonder if this is especially a problem of smaller (shorter & lighter) people? There sure are a lot of people here about my size who are noticing the same thing!

The science around weight changes and hunger is very interesting. I think that's definitely what we're all experiencing. . . .

adorable_aly

Seems it since I'm 4'11 and having the same problem! I've upped my calories twice in 6 weeks!!

ultrafishboy

Thank you for asking this? Thought I was goin nuts! Why am I so hungry all of the time? I'm trying to up the proteins. Just changed my macros from 35/35/30 to 40/30/30. Couldn't get close to 146g of protein/day and going over on Carbs. And I'm 5'7" tall.