Delayed hunger - is there such a thing?

elizabethblake

I swear I'm experiencing delayed hunger. Here's my workout schedule:

M, W & F - 20 minutes HIIT cardio, 30 minutes weight-lifting combos
T & T - 20-30 minutes HIIT cardio

On M, W & F, I struggle to eat back my exercise calories without resorting to junk food (have GOT to ban ice cream from the house!).

On T & T, I am RAVENOUS, even though I do a lighter workout on those days.

Am I crazy? Has anyone else experienced this? Is it terrible if I go over my calories by 100-200 on lighter workout days?

My thought is, if I am truly, honestly hungry, I should feed my body healthy foods. I guess I really want to know if this happens to anyone else.

cjjones007

Not remotely crazy
I'm ALWAYS more hungry the day after strength and resistance training - your body is calling for more fuel (mainly protein) to repair the muscles and depending on how well you "ripped" em will depend on how hungry you are (from my experience)

UpEarly

I went backpacking last weekend, and burned insane calories on both Saturday and Sunday, but I was not hungry at all. But Monday - I was *ravenous*. I think delayed hunger definitely exists!

Lleldiranne

It makes sense to me too. When I took weight off after baby #3, I ate the same calories every day regardless of how much I exercised (I was quite active and exercising 5-6 days a week, but varied what I did). I didn't use MFP or anything, just found what worked for me.
So, maybe it will work better for you to even out your eating so that you don't feel the pressure to eat extra (junk food, especially) on your heavier workout days, but have some more calories for the next day when you are feeling a bit hungrier.
Just for reference, I'm 5'0" and went from 135 to 118 in 10 weeks, IIRC, on 1600 calories a day)

rybo

I'm always far more hungry the day after a really long run than the day of.

elizabethblake

I went backpacking last weekend, and burned insane calories on both Saturday and Sunday, but I was not hungry at all. But Monday - I was *ravenous*. I think delayed hunger definitely exists!

My husband and I used to backpack all the time (and I am SO looking forward to going this fall now that I'm lighter and stronger!) and you're right, the hunger always hits the first couple of days afterwards.

I'm jealous that you're able to go this time of year, we've got temps in the upper 90s and humidity to match!

elizabethblake

Okay, happy to know it's not just me! I'm going to double my protein the day after a heavy weight workout (eat a whole chicken breast instead of half) and that should help keep me away from the ice cream.

Thanks everyone!

UpEarly

I'm jealous that you're able to go this time of year, we've got temps in the upper 90s and humidity to match!

It's almost that hot where I am (Virginia)! Thankfully, the higher elevations where we usually camp shave 5-10 degrees of the heat. It's not as pleasant as spring or fall backpacking, but it's bearable. :-)