What does being "full" feel like?

acasner26

Hey everyone! I guess what I am wondering is what does it really feel like to be full? For the 27 years that I've been alive I have always just ate and ate and ate untill I was so stuffed I couldn't move. I really don't even know what "full" feels like, the feeling that you have eaten enough but not gorged. I hope this makes sense!! I have the mental problem of eating. I think I am still hungry when really I am sure that I am full but I have no "feeling" to prove that. Ahhh this makes no sense but hopefully you get the point:)

katemiddletonisawesome

Eat a small meal, then take a break. Wait 20 minutes - you'll feel what "full" should feel like. Although, once in a while, I DO crave the good ol' fashioned "so stuffed my pants are ripping" feeling. Stick with the 20 minute waiting thing and it really does work.

Beezil

Yeah, you just gotta try eating more slowly. Your stomach needs about 20 minutes to recognize and tell your brain when it is full. Chew thoroughly, take small sips of water in between each bite and make sure to put down your silverware between each bite too. This helps me if I'm eating too fast to slow down.

PANZERIA

I used to be like that.

(please don't be offended by this!!! I'm trying to help and I'm not trying to insult! Honest!)

The reason you probably never feel full is because your stomach has expanded to adapt for your large meals. Try cutting back your meals - buy a food scale and really count every single calorie that goes into your mouth.

Here's another thing for you - your body doesn't actually feel 'full' until twenty minutes AFTER you eat. Crazy, huh?

I kept strict with the diet; I used to have two or three servings of dinner per night! I was so hungry! Now, unless I haven't eaten ANYTHING all day, I can't make it past one serving and a yogurt/fruit for dessert.

All it takes is re-training your body. You'll feel grumbly in the tummy for a few weeks until your stomach muscle shrinks, but it'll be worth it!

rodegghero

Try eating half of what you put on your plate and waiting a bit to see how you feel.
Full feels different to everyone..and to know what full feels like you also have to know what hungry feels like
There are some really good books on emotional eating that tackle this...see what your local library h

sleepytexan

Eat a small meal, then take a break. Wait 20 minutes - you'll feel what "full" should feel like. Although, once in a while, I DO crave the good ol' fashioned "so stuffed my pants are ripping" feeling. Stick with the 20 minute waiting thing and it really does work.

while you're waiting that 20 minutes, brush your teeth with a strong minty toothpaste; you'll clean your teeth and mouth of leftover flavors, and the mint will help curb additional cravings.

blessings.

Pollywog39

I do not enjoy being "full" anymore. When my stomach is stretched and I feel tired and bloated? No thank you.

I agree with the other posters - you need to eat a normal-sized meal, wait 20 to 30 minutes, and see how you feel. You will probably not be hungry, and that means you're full

acasner26

Thank you all for the replys!!! I am going to look into getting a book on binge eating and emotional eating because I for sure have issues with food!

lizgreenhill

chew your food slowly, also try to chew it for atleast 10-20 seconds the longer you take to eat the quicker it will seem to get full. eat small meals or eat meals with fiber and protein they are fillling . drink a cup of water before you eat too it will curb your appetite . Good luck to ya

adross3

I agree. I don't like to be full. I eat 6X a day and love it. I feel groggy and tired when I eat to much. I eat to fuel my next meal depending on what I do between meals.

denisegolden

i spent most of my life not knowing what "full" feels like and then i had gastric bypass surgery and i can hardly remember what "hungry" feels like...the whole 20 minutes thing works...i get my 3-4 oz. of protein, two 1/4 cup servings of veggies and a bite or two worth of whole grains, i eat about half over 20 minutes and wait an additional 5 minutes and then evaluate how my stomach feels, usually i am "full" or maybe can eat another bite or two and then thats it...i do not drink with meals as it causes the food to leave the stomach more quickly than i want it to. heres a helpful motto, "dont eat until your full, eat until you are not hungry"

Gdzgal771

i agree!! it takes 20 minutes for your brain to decide you're full. make sure you are eating slowly- chewing food well like your

momma told you- and you WILL know when you've had enough.. WE CAN DO THIS!!! :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

fiberartist219

I believe there is a difference between "full" and "satisfied". I try to stop when I'm "satisfied". I think "full" is where you want to take a nap after eating. "Satisfied" is where you are no longer hungry, but you don't necessarily feel a lump in your belly.

If you eat slow, you will be more likely to tell a difference in how much you are eating.

I always start eating when I am completely hungry, and food consumes my thoughts. I try to eat before I get dizzy or shaking, because that is just TOO hungry. I get mean when I get that hungry.

Then, I eat until I can imagine myself doing something other than eating. Once my mind starts to wander off my tasty plate of food, my mouth should wander away from it too. When my husband and I start saying, "What do you want to do after this?" it means that the meal is almost over, regardless of how much food is still in front of me.

When I'm at work, and I am eating lunch, the meal is almost over when I think to myself about the emails I have coming in, or the way I want to plan my afternoon.

I feel like learning to feel when you are done eating is almost as helpful as learning to count calories. I have stopped counting calories, but I still continue to lose weight. It's like the calorie counting taught me how much I should be eating, and then I made some lifestyle changes to make it so that amount of food felt like anything other than hungry.

There are several steps between hungry and full. Eat slow, and you will find it.

amyllu

Lots of really good advice there Acasner and may I suggest something that has helped me immensely as I always had a problem with actually leaving anything on my plate having been brought up in the war years where the mantra was "waste not want not" and I would eat everyhting and feel soo bloated and uncomfortable for hours.
Now I can eat and realise when I am BEGINNING to get full and that was by listening to Paul McKenna's CD from his book "I can make you thin" even to the point of putting down my knife and fork whilst eating, which I used to think was ridiculous, now I do it wothout even thinking about it which means that I am eating so much slower and therefore chewing more before gulping it down.

fiberartist219

It also helps to not do other things while you are eating. I don't know if that is an issue for you or not. Just make sure the TV is off, the computer is off, the phone is put away and there are no magazines sitting in front of you. This will help you pay attention to what you are eating.

I'm not sure if this helps, since you said you had some other issues, but maybe by doing nothing else while you eat it will bring some of those issues to surface and help you figure things out.

I truly believe that you will overcome your issues and learn to eat in a healthy way. :flowerforyou:

leannmcclain3887

I suffer from binge/emotional eating and i deal with the same issue
I try to eat slow
chew a piece of gum after eating
Waiting 20 mins

Poisonedpawn78

One thing you might want to be aware of too is the types of foods you are eating can effect how full you feel. For example

1 can of coke is 140-150 calories depending on brand. it will take up 355ml of space in your stomach
lets compare that to say watermelon, if you equal the volume of 355ml/grams you would only have about 105 calories. To have an equal 150 calories you would fill up about 500ml/g of space making you feel fuller. Plus all of the other healthy elements of a watermelon like vitamins, fiber ect compared to a can of pop.

For me feeling "full" is the moment that i go from feeling hungry to not. the absence of feeling so to speak. This is the part that i have to retrain my brain on. to stop before i get to that point where you feel so stuffed that you need a nap or want to lay down just to digest.

kayeroze

I used to eat until I was super stuffed as well. I find getting a fork and knife or whatever utensils are necessary (I use a fork and knife for wingstop for example) helps slow down the pace, and when you're ravenous and you want to eat quickly, have a full bottle of water or like 20 oz handy and eat one to two bites before taking a sip until the hungry feeling slows down. Try not to eat in front of a screen at first (if you do this) and instead focus on the meal and how it makes your body feel. Full is when you're satisfied, not hungry, but not stuffed either. And if you continue you to eat, it's because of how the food tastes at that point or the idea that you have to finish your plate.

kommodevaran

I used to overeat because otherwise my mother would get mad at me. Yeah, it sounds crazy and it was. I brought that with me into adulthood. That's almost crazier.

Then I found MFP, and learnt about the hunger scale, worked with it alongside food logging, compared my physical sensations with what I knew I had eaten and knew was appropriate for me, and figured out how appropriately full was supposed to feel like. Full doesn't feel like much. It's almost an anti-feeling. Then I had to learn to trust that I had had enough when I felt "nothing" and knew that that was enough.

Ten steps of hunger and satiety is a lot. I have landed on these four that suit me better: Hungry - not hungry - full - stuffed. I want to be hungry before meals. I want to not be hungry anymore after I've eaten. That doesn't take much food, and it doesn't take much precision. Most of the time, between meals, during, and just after, I can't really tell if I'm hungry or not, maybe I'll just feel "empty", and I keep telling myself that that is fine. I want to feel full at least once per day. But I only need to not be hungry. At the other end, I want to avoid getting stuffed. I have been afraid of getting stuffed, but now I know that I won't get stuffed as long as I stop eating while eating still feels good and the food tastes good. I used to eat until it hurt and the food grew in my mouth. I never do that anymore.

It's been a lot of work, and I'm not finished. I still feel uneasy now and then. I still have to think back to what I've eaten and to when and what my next meal is going to be. But it's definitely easier now. And it's been exciting and very interesting, so it never feels like the work it actually is.

YaGigi

Eat slowly and it'll help your brain understand when you are full.

There's Mayr health clinic in Austria I went to couple times. And they strongly believe in chewing.

Chew your food a lot. Mayr believed that digestion starts in your mouth. And that you need to drink your food, meaning you chew it so much that it becomes liquid.
You take a small bite and you chew it for 25-30 times before swallowing.

I found that if I eat by that technique I get full and actually consume less food. Try it, don't be lazy about chewing, it can seem boring but it'll help to send signals to your brain about getting full.

Also in Europe it's good manners to eat slowly, enjoying your food and your company. If you eat your food slowly, appreciating every bite of it, enjoying your conversation with friends, enjoying your surroundings, you wouldn't overeat and would get more pleasure from your meal.

Have fun!

kimothy38

Ive started fasting it I'm full after a few minutes of eating. For me I lose the enjoyment of the food and its flavour coz I know I'll feel sick if I get going. I can graze for hours tho if its a few bites at a time.

trigden1991

katemiddletonisawesome wrote: »

Eat a small meal, then take a break. Wait 20 minutes - you'll feel what "full" should feel like. Although, once in a while, I DO crave the good ol' fashioned "so stuffed my pants are ripping" feeling. Stick with the 20 minute waiting thing and it really does work.

A small meal wouldn't make me feel full.

Running_and_Coffee

Try eating a 6 oz chicken breast with 2 cups of green veggies cooked with 1 tsp. of coconut oil. Drink plain water with it. This kind of food is filling and there's nothing in it that would trigger you wanting to eat more. I have done a few days of meals like these every few months when I feel like the "munchies" have taken over me.

lemurcat12

This thread is from 2011. The conversation is interesting, so carry on, but just don't expect OP to be taking advice at this point!

kommodevaran

I was replying to the reviver/anyone interested.

fitmom4lifemfp

good lord. dead thread.

kommodevaran

It isn't dead if people keep commenting. The question is also always relevant. Or is there an expiry date on threads?

RaeBeeBaby

Yes, I just noticed this thread is 6 years old! I also think it is a very interesting topic and worth delving into again.

Not trying to be funny, but I'll answer the question for myself. Being "full" as in Thanksgiving-stuffed-to-the-gills full just feels disgusting to me. I do not enjoy that feeling whatsoever. It makes me feel ill both physically and mentally. There have been moments in my life that I have eaten to that level, but it has never felt good or even satisfying. I have always regretted it afterwards and asked myself WHY?

This may seem like an extreme measure for some, but one suggestion I have for people who are used to eating that way is to do a fast for a couple days. Not a complete food-less fast, but just eat very small meals for 2-3 days and give your stomach a chance to feel a different feeling. It's not going to kill you to eat very little for a couple days and see what hunger feels like. Then go back to eating regular sized meals and see how that goes. I occasionally fast for religious reasons and, while I'm a little hungry for a day, it gives my brain an opportunity to see what that feels like. It makes me appreciate the satisfied feeling so much more. I think it's good for the soul and also good for the body to have a break from working so hard to process the food, especially if you're used to eating huge meals.

scarlett_k

PANZERIA wrote: »

The reason you probably never feel full is because your stomach has expanded to adapt for your large meals.
....
You'll feel grumbly in the tummy for a few weeks until your stomach muscle shrinks, but it'll be worth it!

This isn't true, but it's one of those things that gets repeated a lot. Your stomach stays the same size throughout your adult lifetime regardless of whether you eat until you're stuffed or don't eat anything. There's a host of 'things' going on that make your body used to a higher intake of food, and make you feel hungrier (or fuller) depending on how much you usually consume, but your stomach absolutely does not get larger.

EmbeeKay

scarlett_k wrote: »

PANZERIA wrote: »

The reason you probably never feel full is because your stomach has expanded to adapt for your large meals.
....
You'll feel grumbly in the tummy for a few weeks until your stomach muscle shrinks, but it'll be worth it!

This isn't true, but it's one of those things that gets repeated a lot. Your stomach stays the same size throughout your adult lifetime regardless of whether you eat until you're stuffed or don't eat anything. There's a host of 'things' going on that make your body used to a higher intake of food, and make you feel hungrier (or fuller) depending on how much you usually consume, but your stomach absolutely does not get larger.

Wow, I had *no* idea that wasn't true! Off to google now.

oat_bran

scarlett_k wrote: »

PANZERIA wrote: »

The reason you probably never feel full is because your stomach has expanded to adapt for your large meals.
....
You'll feel grumbly in the tummy for a few weeks until your stomach muscle shrinks, but it'll be worth it!

This isn't true, but it's one of those things that gets repeated a lot. Your stomach stays the same size throughout your adult lifetime regardless of whether you eat until you're stuffed or don't eat anything. There's a host of 'things' going on that make your body used to a higher intake of food, and make you feel hungrier (or fuller) depending on how much you usually consume, but your stomach absolutely does not get larger.

I remember reading that while the stomach doesn't change actual size, it can change its "elasticity". Meaning that if you stretch your stomach with larger meals, it gets less "tight" and you need more to feel fuller. But eating less over a period of time can make it tighter and it gets easier to feel the food pressing on stomach walls and therefore feeling full with less food.