why am I always hungry?

upsidedownpear

Its been a week since I joined MFP and for the first time, started counting calories. About 6 years ago, I lost 40 lbs just by leading a very active life style and lots of sports (probably it was my age back then - 21). A couple of years ago, I lost about 20 lbs by exercising. I put on all this weight back in graduate school from series of events in my personal life and emotional eating. I think what that led to was increased apetite! I have realized that its impossible for me to lose weight now the way I earlier did - by exercising and not really counting calories.

I see a lot of people here that have only 1200 and 1300 calorie limit per day and still seem to say that they are full by the end of the day. I am hungry every two hours and barely making it to my daily goal. My diary is open to your comments. Is it habitual? will I get there eventually? do I need to condition my stomach to this eating? I am traveling for work this week and on a vacation next week. Please help!

TinaS88

It takes time for your stomach to get used to it.. I am over 6 weeks in and I am still hungry a lot of times :P I haven't checked your diary but I suggest eating stuff with lots of fiber so that you feel fuller longer

sophieshaped

I never found it easy and was hungry a lot.

Maybe check out low GI carbs though - you seem to have white versions of bread etc. Switch to brown and that might help you feel fuller.

dittiepe

Its been a week since I joined MFP and for the first time, started counting calories. About 6 years ago, I lost 40 lbs just by leading a very active life style and lots of sports (probably it was my age back then - 21). A couple of years ago, I lost about 20 lbs by exercising. I put on all this weight back in graduate school from series of events in my personal life and emotional eating. I think what that led to was increased apetite! I have realized that its impossible for me to lose weight now the way I earlier did - by exercising and not really counting calories.

I see a lot of people here that have only 1200 and 1300 calorie limit per day and still seem to say that they are full by the end of the day. I am hungry every two hours and barely making it to my daily goal. My diary is open to your comments. Is it habitual? will I get there eventually? do I need to condition my stomach to this eating? I am traveling for work this week and on a vacation next week. Please help!

You're eating a very carb-heavy diet. I suggest raising your protein to about 60grams per day and see if that helps with your hunger.

dosesr4winners20

I agree w tina fiber and protien will help you get through this period. Your carbs seem to be at a good level but for some people eating this much carbs makes hunger worse. I have to stay very low carb because other wise i'm hungry an hour later.

Are you drinking enough water? hunger sometimes is a sign or thrist.

Good luck and feel free to add me <33

Mcdonaldfitandfree

With the program that my husband and I are on,we are supposed to eat every 2-3 hours.
If you starve yourself, your body goes into starvation mode and makes you store fat, when you are not eating.
When you are hungry, eat. It will keep your metabolism up and by the end of the day you will be satisfied.
Make sure that what you eat, is low in carbs, high in protein and low in calories too.

Eating 3 times a day is not how we are supposed to eat.
Hope that helps.
Eat at least 3 meals and 3 snacks per day.

Hope that helps.






Taking Zeal for Life and loving it!!

jamie78

less carbs and more protein and fiber.. this will help you stay full.

time2runnn

One thing that may really help is try to get protein with every meal/snack. Aim for around 100 grams a day and see if your hunger doesn't feel a bit more in check.

meli_medina

Try adding a bit more protein and less carbs to each meal. Instead of the muffin in the morning, have a hard boiled egg or something like that. When you get enough protein and fiber, it takes your body longer to digest it, thus creating a full feeling for longer.

Good luck!

Paige1108

We're all different, so this is just what worked for me. I ate every 2 hours, no matter what, while I was in my "losing" phase. That way I never got so hungry I was willing to eat anything that wasn't still wiggling. Eventually I wasn't so hungry and have cut most of the "snacking" now that I'm in my maintenance phase.

Good luck on your journey and welcome to MFP.

KeyMasterOfGozer

I am noticing in your diary that you go over your fat grams per day, and your protein grams are pretty low comparatively to carbs and fat. Fat has 9 calories per gram, carbs have 5 calories per gram, and protein has 4 calories per gram. So if you have a high percentage of your calories be from fat, then that means you will be eating less food for the same number of calories. Carbs(except fiber) have the property that they will cause your insulin to spike in response to your blood sugar. That insulin spike will trigger a hunger response.

You will be fuller if you eat a higher percentage of protein and fiber in your diet assuming the same number of calories.

Articeluvsmemphis

From my experience. don't ever condition yourself to starving. If you're very active like I've become then you need to be eating more calories. more calories frightens me, but I try my best to eat ALOT of them. 1200 calories is just so unrealistic. the only days when i don't need a lot of food is when i haven't exercised in a while. and that hasn't happened for some time now. so i've already eaten like 600calories and it's only 11oclock and i'm hungry again. if you're hungry then eat. food is fuel, and i'm sure you're a smart woman and know that the best foods are your whole foods, and drinking plenty of water. good luck.

H_Factor

I looked over some of your food logs. Its my opinion that you are not eating enough protein, and eating too many carbs...and the wrong carbs at that. Eating protein helps keep you fuller, longer. It helps keep the insulin response to carbs controlled...which keeps cravings under control. Also, when choosing carbs, try to choose carbs with lower glycemic index values (this would be berries, apples, pears, leafy veggies, etc.) Lower glycemic index values keep insulin response in check which keeps cravings in check (the whole insulin response thing is important to controlling cravings, even if you are not diabetic).

In addition, I recommend significantly reducing...or cutting out....anything with flour in it (i.e., bread) and pasta. That stuff turns to sugar and is stored as fat in your body QUICKLY.

I would also recommend preparing more of your own food with more natural options (fish, chicken, lean beef, veggies, fruits), and less processed options....although your ability to do this will depend on your lifestyle somewhat.

H_Factor

also, you're either not drinking water or not keeping track of it. drink your water. it helps...big time!

dmjackson25

I agree with the folks above- protien and fiber can certainly help. And water!! Lots of people under estimate the amount of water they actually drink. I ALWAY keep a cup of water around me- at work, at home, shopping, anywhere! I use what my fiance calls "grown up sippy cups"- those refillable ones that have straws and keep drinks cold!

Also try to eat either a meal or snack every 3 hours or so- I keep track of all my snacks, but if I find myself still hungry, I reach for celery or an apple or some carrots- they're great and won't mess up your total tracking (too much!)

Good luck, stick with it and Cheers!!!!

statia152

I agree with the others INCREASE YOUR PROTEIN. Take a look at my diary for a week, I should be getting more veggies, but I'm feeling pretty full. And lots of water, tea ... it helps fill the belly. Some fat is good, it will keep you fuller longer.

dandy_mandy

So many great ideas! Your diary looks delicious but lots of carbs and high calorie meals. I'd recommend increasing the protien and make sure you get lots of water and fiber, even if that means using a fiber supplement. Also, maybe add in some raw veggies or a salad with a meal or two each day to add more substance to the meal, without many calories. You seem to be doing a wonderful job logging your food, though . Keep up the great work!!

auntiebabs

I checked out your diary and looks to me like you've got way TOO MUCH SUGAR.
You can add one more category to what you track under SETTINGS. Really hard to stay within MFP sugar target, but you can probably do better than you are now. I think it will make you happier.

BOTH sugar and artificial sweeteners increase your appetite, so cutting back on them makes weight loss easier, because you are not hungry all the time.

If I have a DIET COKE, no way I can keep at 1200 cal.
More foods now than ever before have hidden sugars in them and are sold as "real foods"
If I'm going to eat the sugar I want a cookie, gosh darn it!

I've really been amazed at how much sugar I've found in "REAL FOOD" Food manufacturers add a lot of sugar under a lot of different unrecognizable names into products, because it's cheap and it increases your appetite, so you eat more.

(I picked up a lean cuisine one evening forgot to check the sugar went to enter it to find out it had 30g of sugar, now

A) I only get 25g a day,
my favorite cookies are 9g for 15 cookies. If I'm going to eat sugar I want to enjoy a treat!!!

Also watch out for yogurts there usually very high in sugar, by plain and add a little hershey syrup or jam or cukes & dill at least YOU will be controlling your intake.)

Nutrient Dense foods keep you full longer, while proteins and fats (happy fats... plant based) appear to pack a lot of calories for the quantity you get to eat. A small amount will keep you satisfied longer. So it may be a better balance for you .

weeziews

I never found it easy and was hungry a lot.

Maybe check out low GI carbs though - you seem to have white versions of bread etc. Switch to brown and that might help you feel fuller.

I agree with the above. You need high fiber (shoot for 3g or more per serving) and whole grains to fill you up and satisfy you longer. If you are hungry then eat, just make healthy choices. Try 6 small meals a day to keep your blood sugar level. Hunger will lead to eating too much at the next meal and going over your calories. Tweak it until it works.

CarolynB38

You could try increasing your protein intake. The amount of protein that MFP suggests is very low. Carbs tend to make you feel hungry again more quickly. Protein keeps you fuller for longer. Have you taken your activity level into account? If you have your activity level set wrong you may not be getting quite enough calories to keep you going. 100-200 calories can make all the difference if you are always hungry.

As a general guide it is a good idea for fat intake to be set at the default 30% that MFP suggests but protein really needs to be higher than 20%, some people say it needs to be around 30% and carbs at only 40%.

Another thing is to replace white breads and pasta with wholemeal varieties as they keep you fuller for longer and take longer for your body to break down. They should also reduce the blood sugar spikes and dips that might also be making you feel hungry.

Last of all, remember to drink plenty of water. It really does help. You will get used to it. Stick with it :happy:

dyannek

I was the same way as you were. I was in a 1200 calorie per day and was constantly hungry. I then started seeing a nutritionist since I didn't understand why since I only have to lose six pounds to go back into my tri workouts after injury. I cam to find out that I was not considering a food temple and what I should be eating at every meal plus I wasn't eating enough due to the types of exercising I was doing. Take a look at the types of excercises and also what you are eating at every meal - it should always be a dairy (calcium), protein, vegetable/ fruit, complex carb, & fat. I hope this works out for you and make sure you eat enough because I noticed I was not losing any weight because I wasnt' eating enough.