Reading Your Stomach on Full and Empty

macnotes

What are the signs you notice when you are really, truly hungry? And how do you feel when you are full?

And to add to that, what do you eat when you are BEYOND hungry? Where you feel like you have a huge hole in your stomach like the grand canyon? I feel like I could eat an entire loaf of bread at this point, but if I do, I get pains in my stomach and over-eat. I know, I know, don't get that far....but sometimes, it just happens! For example, it took over an hour to get home on the bus because of an accident on the highway. I had some "emergency food" in my purse and it took a lot to stop me from eating the entire package of tofu jurky right then and there.

I drink water when this happens and sometimes it helps, it just seems like times when I shouldn't be hungry (because I ate already) I feel like I should eat. I'm just trying to learn the signs and see what others do. Suggestions?

anunknownmouse

I don't consider myself full until I'm in sincere physical pain, incapable of moving. That being said, I'm only ever full maybe twice a year. I never really feel THAT hungry either. Unless I go for like a solid 12 hours without eating much, I'm probably not starving. Long story short, I eat when I want and make sure I stay at my calorie goal for the day.

cannonsky

Once you finally get to eat... try to best to eat slowly... taking longer to chew and stuff like that... that way you're body will have more time to 1) enjoy the food 2) realize that you don't need the whole loaf of bread. Hope that helps, girl!

macnotes

I wonder what's going on in my stomach then, when I feel THAT hungry. I've been checked for diabetes etc.

SkettiGurl

Before I started tracking what I ate I would get home at 5:15 and be absolutely starving hungry. With 30 minutes in the house by myself I would raid the cupboards and eat whatever was easy and normally not so good for me. A handful of raisins, marshmallows, walnuts etc (as we don't keep very bad things in the house!) whatever I could find. Once I started tracking I haven't done it. I usually carry water with me now and I always have a supply of fruit leathers in my handbag for my son and I can snack on one of those when I'm in a pinch.

When I do get home I try to eat my dinner as planned and so far it's gone well...

You could maybe look at carrying some crackers in a sturdy little container in your handbag for those emergency times...that sort of thing.

abbbigayl

If it's been 2 hours or more since I've eaten then I know I'm probably getting hungry and the pains are real. If I'm sitting on the couch and I just ate dinner 30 mins ago I ignore it. On days when I get home late from work and the gym I'll snack on carrots and hummus or a banana while I cook so I don't blow dinner. For in between meals during the day I always keep cereal or fruit around.

abbbigayl

Oh and I read somewhere that when your body isnt busy digesting food it can focus on other things like healing. May or may not be true but it works for me. So when I get hunger pains I think that's okay my body is doing other great things at the moment.

Umeboshi

I can tell when I'm hungry if even my least favorite foods sound good. I'm hungry if my stomach feels empty and it's been at least 3-4 hours since I ate last.

I'm NOT hungry if junk or my favorite foods are the only things that sound good. I'm NOT hungry if I'm just not feeling full. I'm NOT hungry if I just ate (even though my stomach sometimes lies to me and it feels empty).

shaycat

I wonder what's going on in my stomach then, when I feel THAT hungry. I've been checked for diabetes etc.

I have felt that hungry. If I workout really hard in the morning ( mostly while I was doing Insanity) Then a light lunch and snacks. I am so hungry by dinner time that if it gets held back an hour I could rip my arm off to eat it. Now I try to eat later lunches and a later afternoon snack so I can wait for dinner.

macnotes

Thanks for the tips! It's hard getting to know your own system and all the queues it gives you.

Jem_Girl

When my stomach starts hurting or growling, I consider myself hungry. I don't have a sense of being hungry without an association of being uncomfortable if not actually pained in my belly. I can feel "peckish" (hubby's word), though, which leads to snacking but also to keeping the hunger pains at bay.

Full... I guess when I feel that slightly expanding feeling. The trick there is to stop as soon as I feel the expanding feeling because there's a thin line between being full and feeling like my GERD is going to act up in a bad way. Satiated, though, is when I don't necessarily feel expanding but also don't feel like I need another bite right now and could just have some more when I start to feel that empty feeling again.