staring to "diet" - coping with hunger and cravings
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Hot tea or hot liquid works WONDERS!0
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Best things I've found are upping my protein. And to get my chocolate fix I get Luna Protein bars or the Zone Protein Bars. Also, Chobani Greek Yogurts have 14g of protein and some awesome flavors!0
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Cravings is the body telling you that it needs something that it's missing. When you get a craving, figure out what an equivalent is in nature. Craving anything sweet? Try some strawberries or another sweet fruit. Craving something salty? Try some raw spinach or other leafy green. Once your body figures out what nutrients it gets from these cravings, your craving will morph to be more health conscious naturally.
For hunger between meals, have more protein in your meal or eat some peanuts as a snack between meals.
Remember that diets fail and that successfully losing weight is a lifestyle change of what we eat daily.
Not necessarily. Cravings can also be a sign of addiction. Not everything we crave is good for our body. An allergist told me cravings occur when we are attracted to foods that cause allergic reactions in us.0 -
Listen to your body. If you're hungry, you aren't eating enough. Are you drinking enough water? you should drink about half of your body weight in ounces of water; even more if you're exercising and sweating a lot. Are you eating enough protein? Protein, fiber and healthy fats help you feel full longer. Are you eating simple carbs and processed foods? These foods don't have much nutritional value, and your body doesn't have to work very hard to break them down, thus making your hungry again soon after you've eaten them. Sticking to whole foods: lean meats, healthy fats, fresh fruits and veggies and complex carbs, gives you more bang for your buck and will help ensure your success in this weight loss journey. Good luck!0
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I believe in this....eat at maintenance and move more to get your deficit. I don't believe in starving myself at all.0
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It's been 3 months of logging, and I rarely feel hungry anymore, so I want you to know that it does get better.
I would have forgotten the craving and hunger pangs if it were not for my earlier blogs.
My suggestion it to reduce gradual, start at losing .5 pounds a week, then move it up as it gets easier.
If you don't want to do that then exercise lots and eat those calories, which is what I did. I exercised to eat more.
Other things I changed. At first I thought that eating a large breakfast would keep me fuller all day. Not true for me. I am the most hungry around 3 pm. So I eat a small breakfast, sometimes just a boiled egg. And I leave my calories for when I am most hungry. It is better to listen to your body then follow the rules that we hear about. You want to find out what works for you.
When I am hungry, and I feel that I shouldn't be, I start with drinking water, or tea or coffee. If that doesn't cure it, I will eat some fruit or veg. I give myself time between a craving and actually eating. Sometimes it is habit that drives our cravings.
And oddly enough I find that exercise decreased my appetite. Go for a walk, when you get back drink something, and wait to see if you are still hungry.
This is a learning experience. Listen to your body, try new things. You will do great here, it works.0 -
I would strongly recommend cutting out sugar and artificial sugar from everything not fruit, vegetable, or dairy. I only say that because it worked for me. I haven't had more then a few cravings in months among other benefits.0
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This is the perfect answer!!!!0
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When I need to feel full, Miracle Noodles. 0 calories 0 carbs.
There are many non carb low carb cookies on the internet.
Drink water, Nuts a handfull of berries, hint water, stevia for sweetener, drink more water.
Eat smaller meals if you are able, divide up for every 4 hours. Know how healthy you are
going to be and just how devastating you will look!
Log it online.....0 -
melons...watermelon...cantaloupe...mmmmm...low in calories, big in sweet, and quite filling...0
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as you can see, everybody has their "thing" that works for them. That's what you need to find.. what works for YOU! If you try some of these things and one works but two othes don't, don't feel like YOU failed, it just isn't what works for you, your mentality, your lifestyle, your way of living. The important part is that you just keep trying until you find that right combination.
I used to "diet" as well and I would try to be so perfect, holding myself to way too high of a standard for even health nuts to achieve on a daily basis. When I got help the first thing they taught me was not to have "diet" days because they eventually lead (at least me) to a binge. I was being so restrictive that it was just setting myself up for failure.
Now I eat every 2-3 hours without ever going over 3 hours without a snack or a meal (or I try my best, again, I'm not perfect and I don't try to hold myself to perfect standards). This keeps my bloodsugar and energy level up all day long. I eat breakfast within 30 minutes of waking up to start my day and metabolism.
When I eat a snack, I don't try to fool myself into indulging in something small but calorie packed (like a cake pop for instance, so a bite size, calorie packed food) and then expect my body to wait another 2-3 hours before eating again without being hungry. If you're going to eat a snack, it has to be of significant value, like a portion of fruit (an apple, a pear, a banana, 2 small kiwis, 30 grapes, etc). I can eat a slice of bread with a slice of cheese on it for a snack. Whatever it is, it had to be enough to get me through without expecting my body to do things that it really cannot do.
Another thing they taught me when I sought out help was, if I wanted to eat something not exactly healthy, the key was NOT to eat less of it (like half an order of small french fries for example) but just to eat is less often. Again this goes back to the whole "your food has to be significant" in portion. That doesn't mean super sizes, it means proper sized, so not a large bag of fries from McDonalds but the entire small bag is okay once in a great while. If you're going to have a less then healthy snack, then do it, and then move on. If you're going to have a less then awesomely healthy meal then do it and then move on. Keep those less than healthy meals and snacks in mind for the next day or two
(or three even) and try to stay away from them during that time. Finding that delicate balance was key for me. Now I love eating healthy foods for the most part and don't let the guilt have a place in my head for those less than healthy days.
I am coming from a place of serious food issues that was helped out by professionals. Obsession, binging, hiding foods, etc. Maybe this isn't where you are and this doesn't really apply to you, but maybe it does. Either way I'm happy to share any time you have questions, just send me a PM or friend request.0 -
I enjoy dark chocolate jell-o pudding cups with strawberries dipped in. Definitely satisfies a craving for me. Aside from that I let everything balance out and give in to "cravings" when I have them. Avoiding foods completely is just making you unhappy.0
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Laughing Cow Cheese Wedge, and Celery Stick
Nuts, unroasted, unsalted!
I generally have one or the other at 10 and the other at 3
I eat lots of protein and green veggies --- zucchini, spinach etc0 -
Hot tea or hot liquid works WONDERS!
hot tea works for me as well! I like lipton green tea with mint. yummy!0 -
Dont think of it as a diet, think of it as the way youll eat forever, thats the only way youre going to keep off the weight you lose. Teach yourself to eat in moderation, have a little bit of the things that you fancy. Telling yourself youre never going to have cake again is a lie and likely to result in you eating cake and feeling guilty for going over your calories. Likewise telling yourself you cant have cake until youre thin is going to end in you losing the weight, going back to your old eating habits and gaining it back. If you tell yourself that you can have cake, but have a small piece and do more exercise, that is going to lead to you managing your cravings, losing weight and keeping it off.0
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Assuming you're eating enough nutrition-wise, I find dark chocolate helps those insane sweet cravings. If you're new to dark chocolate, start at 70% and work your way up; starting at 85 or 90% might be too bitter for you. Anyway, it's chocolate, so it satisfies the sweet tooth (for me), but it's so potent that a little bit goes a long way. I'll power through an entire milk chocolate bar in the time it takes me to eat one square of dark chocolate, and the dark chocolate is so much more satisfying.0
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uggg tell me about it!!! The hunger sometimes is overwhelming. I find if I eat lowfat cheese, it tides me over until my next meal. Cheese is my go-to.
If I'm craving a treat, I usually have these FiberOne brownies. They are only 90 calories and pretty yummy.0 -
Hello all.
I always find that I'm so hungry the first couple of weeks when I start watching what I eat ... and find it difficult manage the cravings for sweets - sometimes it's unbearable.
I would love to hear what foods (snacks or meals) you eat; and how you cope with this struggle while getting started on a weight loss program.
Thank you for your help and comments.
Just like you I felt hungry during my first week of counting my calorie intake. This happened because I didn't know how to eat smart yet. Now I am rarely hungry I eat better than ever and the weight is coming off beautifully
If you are craving a lot of sweets look for those 100 calorie snacks. Even Aldi has them. Fruit also satisfies a sweet tooth. One of my most favorite "sweets" thes days is Oikos Greek Yogurt Caramel, soooo yummy!
Special K makes a 90 calorie bar that is also delicious, try those to satisfy the sweet cravings 0 -
I found that frozen grapes hit the sweet spot for me, I would wash a cup of them and let them freeze..then I would pop 2-3 at a time. That, chewing a minty gum or brushing my teeth would keep me from eating more0
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Hello all.
I always find that I'm so hungry the first couple of weeks when I start watching what I eat ... and find it difficult manage the cravings for sweets - sometimes it's unbearable.
Cocoa or cinnamon roast almonds. Just sweet enough, but also so filling.
Or just keep a few single serving packs of a sweet you crave. Unless it will trigger a binge, eating a couple of cookies, small pieces of chocolate, or whatever shouldn't derail your diet. Skinny Cow and Weight Watchers make tasty low cal candy and ice cream treats. I bought some Pet brand orange sherbert and vanilla ice cream bars for my grandson over the weekend and they were only 70 calories each! Less calories than the "diet" stuff and so yummy!
Also, you might want to consider watching what you eat all the time instead of just periodically. It really gets much easier when it becomes habit.0 -
I started on MFP the same way. I was ALWAYS so hungry I couldn't have stayed under calories if I hadn't done the following: I had to change WHAT I ate in order to stay within calories. I had to ADD many foods, like extra protein, and other nutrients as well as avoid high sugar, low nutrition 'empty' calories. Also, I had to eat more often during the day, never going more than 3 hours without eating. Each 'meal' had to include a good protein, good fat, and low glycemic carb. I also had to add more vegetables at lunch and dinner - making sure I had at least two or three each time.
At first, it was hard to train myself to eat smaller portions, but since I was eating at least 6 times during the day, and I was getting enough calories and nutrition plus added volume in the increase of vegetables it helped with the hunger pangs. Also, once I eliminated many of the foods that made me over hungry and that created cravings, it became POSSIBLE to manage portion control. Without these changes, I never would have been successful. Eliminating the food that were keeping me fat was hard at first, but now I don't even miss them.0 -
When I feel hungry and know I need to calm down my craving I eat a cold hard boiled egg,
Dont know why but cold works better for me doesnt open up my appetite And ill have club
soda with a splash of orange juice and afterwards suck on a cepacol cough drop.
Works for me0 -
OMG!!! YOU START CUTTING BACK CALORIES AND YOU START TO FEEL HUNGRY?????
tell me more.0 -
So what you are saying is when you are hungry, you stop it by eating...Meh, seems legit.When I feel hungry and know I need to calm down my craving I eat a cold hard boiled egg,
Dont know why but cold works better for me doesnt open up my appetite And ill have club
soda with a splash of orange juice and afterwards suck on a cepacol cough drop.
Works for me0
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