Why am I so hungry?!

twilight473

HELP!! What should I be eating more of so I don't feel like I'm hungry all the time?? I think i depriving myself of something because I'm pretty hungry by dinner sometimes and on the weekends. So I have a tendency to fall off the wagon on the weekends. I do have healthy munchies through out the day - hard boiled eggs, cottage cheese, fruit, veggies, etc. I drink water all day long and eat pretty healthy for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I'm going for walks right now as my exercise since I work full time and go to school part time. Any ideas???

HotSouthernMess

i felt the same way most days then realized i want eating enough. i had originally set my activity level as sedintary because i have a part-time desk job and the rest of the time i am a SAHM. i changed my level to lightly active because i am constantly moving chasing after the kids and what not and it seemed to help. (though i dont know your situation) it seems on here the only way to be able to eat more is to exercise more. but i'd like to hear suggestions too...

emrogers

try some good fat. Usually when we're dieting hardcore we lack good quality fats. natural no salt PB, Olive Oil, Fish oil, etc. Sometimes I'll have a tbs of PB and that'll do it for me. Hope this helps.

LindsayChick

I totally know the feeling. I try to munch on baby carrots and bell peppers or have something filling like a banana or apple. You could also try some fiber 1 cereal in light yogurt. All those options are super filling and low cal, and really help me. Oh, and I try to drown myself in water which helps too! Good luck!

sydsav2003

I have an online friend who is a very successful trainer and he always yells, "Youre eating in a caloric deficit...you're supposed to be hungry!" Which is very true. Think about it...if it were that easy and you didn't feel hungry, why wouldn't everyone lose weight!!

With that being said...it has been recommended to me: Follow the old adage, Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, dinner like a pauper. Eating a BIG breakfast helps keep your hunger at bay during the rest of the day. Also eat SMALL meals every 3 hours. Make sure there's plenty of protein in there, that will help you feel fuller. Be careful with those healthy fats...I used to grab a handful of almonds whenever I felt hungry, healthy snack, right? Well, I ended up consuming 2 lbs of almonds every week adding 1700 calories every week! I call them "healthy little devils"!!

Anywhoo...I also suck on sugar free cough drops (though they are 5 cals. a pop). I will also munch on ice...my dentist hates this!

Hope this helps! Good luck :-)

twilight473

Thank you all for your suggestions. I try to eat a big breakfast but never have time to make one in the morning. it's usually a yummy low cal wrap with somekind of low sodium lunch meat and cheese on the go. I usually eat a big lunch and a little or decent dinner....eating a big dinner @ night isn't the key to losing weight for me.
I just need to work on the control on the weekends. It's so easy to fall off the wagon and enjoy that extra piece of pizza or alcoholic drink. Thanks again everyone for the help! Good luck to you all as well!

kao708

I find that foods higher in fiber and protein work well.

girlonthewing6

Eat more protein. It fills you up more than carbs, and keeps you feeling full for longer.

ctharp59

the book I am reading The Amen Solution by author: Daniel G. Amen

states that these things can impact your cravings and desire to eat:
not enough sleep - getting less than 7 hours a day lowers blood flow and increases cravings
low blood count - increases anxious and more tires and that tends to cause us to want more food
low level of vitamin D - associated with obesity, depression and cognitive impairment and these usually increase cravings to fix this increase sunshine and consider taking D3 supplements
blood pressure - too high lowers your brain function and when it functions lower we make bad decisions...

... still reading, makes sense, perhaps if I can view this as some kind of a math problem I might be able to make more progress

bizco

Pizza and alcohol? You're using up your calorie allowance on high-calorie, sodium-laden, low-nutrient, fatty foods and drinks. No wonder you're hungry. Are you tracking sodium in your diary? Try to stay under 2,000mg. Are you tracking fiber? Aim for 25-35g per day. Since you're exercising, you need to drink more than 8 cups of water every day. What kind of carbs are you eating? Ctharp is spot-on about needing 7-8 hours of sleep to aid in weight-loss. If your diary was public, we could provide more helpful tips. But it sounds like you already know the answers. Making poor choices on the weekends negates your good work during the week.

Imthatg1rl

Its okay to have one day that you let yourself slide. If you deprive yourself of the things you really enjoy you are more likely to fall back into old habits. Don't think diet, think lifestyle change. Its a slower approach but you will have lasting results
Also, I know this sounds silly but I snack on oatmeal, its high in fiber. Another thing I do to help food cravings is sipping herbal tea or green tea (depending on the time of day)

Thank you all for your suggestions. I try to eat a big breakfast but never have time to make one in the morning. it's usually a yummy low cal wrap with somekind of low sodium lunch meat and cheese on the go. I usually eat a big lunch and a little or decent dinner....eating a big dinner @ night isn't the key to losing weight for me.
I just need to work on the control on the weekends. It's so easy to fall off the wagon and enjoy that extra piece of pizza or alcoholic drink. Thanks again everyone for the help! Good luck to you all as well!

JACE145

I agree with the comments that you can help the hunger by having smaller meals throughout the day. Add in no sugar tea, more water than the rda and exercise NEEDS to be in there. I will exercise more if I want to eat more or have a drink that day. Walk to the bar and back and learn to have one drink or wait until you have reached a monthly goal weight to drink that one drink. I also agree that protein and fiber fill me up much better. From what I have read the body will adjust your metabolism down if you are eating exactly 1400 or 2000 or 1200 cal/day. You need to confuse your body with both new exercises and calorie intake. One day a week or so you should eat a meal you really want....fettucinni, pizza, etc and don't feel guilty about it. If you have a long day with work and school you will be burning more calories. Conservatively record your calories and your cardio-even "walking" to class. Never use that elevator and involve your friends and family as able. Almost everyone who I have showed this app to ends up using it. I bought a $79 scale the other day that records body fat, body water, etc. You should not just measure your progress by weight but by how you feel and how much more tone you become and how your clothes fit. Soon your problem will be the expense of new clothes and finding a new exercise to keep you interested and motivated. Make it fun and stay driven. As one of the other fitnesspalfreaks mentioned it is and should be a long-term lifestyle change. Pretend you are preparing for the olympics.

Go_Lise

I have an online friend who is a very successful trainer and he always yells, "Youre eating in a caloric deficit...you're supposed to be hungry!" Which is very true. Think about it...if it were that easy and you didn't feel hungry, why wouldn't everyone lose weight!!

I've had this problem all week and after tweaking a few things in my daily intake of food, the above says it all. You're eating less than usual so yeah, you'll be hungry! This was definitely the case for me!

7vargovl

My trainer says to eat six small meals a day and two of those should be a serving of oatmeal with or without some fruit like blueberries or a banana. Lots of lean protein and about 80 oz. of water daily (it is a lot of water but you get used to it). I really don't feel hungry, eating about 1500 calories a day. If you want to eat more bank some calories by getting some cardio in daily, then you can have a little something extra. Good luck!!

Kaitar

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