How do you maintain low calorie diet without starving?

Just eat as many 0 calorie foods as you can bc they dont count

Yes they do. A calorie is a calories. What do you mean they don't count?

keyword..."0 calorie foods"...now what these "foods" are I couldn't begin to tell you because I thought food, by definition, provided energy, nutrients, etc. Apparently I was wrong.

I enjoy this radio program .... and I found this helpful for long term weight loss. http://www.fat2fitradio.com/2009/12/fat-2-fit-83-eat-more-weight-less/

Hi there

I know your feeling I am constantly looking for food between 4 to 6 pm.

Have you tried drinking more water each time you get a c raving, or is it possible you can nibblie
on some carrot sticks. I find this helpful

Green tea also sends the hunger bugs away.

May I ask are you in a very active job....

1200 is not the magic number. I don't know why MFP tells people to eat 1200.... that's too low for most people. Calculate your TDEE and subtract 500 from that. When I was losing weight I was eating around 1500-1600 plus I would exercise and eat back all the calories that I burned. So some days I was eating closer to 2000 calories. I lost weight at a steady rate and have kept it off.

Having been a grad student recently myself, I understand that fresh produce is not always within budget. But frozen produce is reasonably priced and is on sale at grocery stores fairly regularly.
I came across this link with general guidelines for healthier and more filling eating, basically summing up what many people have already posted.

http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/energy_density.html

I think that now that you are more aware of what you're eating, you will make food choices that are better for you.
And oh yeah, stock up on apples. They're a magical food, in my opinion!

Good luck!

lots of veggies and meat.

I feel hungry a lot also. I'm trying to 'make friends' with that 'hunger pang' feeling, rather than thinking it's dangerous. I tell myself that pang is the feeling of losing weight, and it's good!

But here are my tricks for avoiding the feeling:
(1) I make breakfast the biggest meal of the day, and load on the protein. It has "staying power" to get me through to lunchtime.
(2) When I feel hunger pangs in the afternoon, I drink a giant glass of water.
(3) Lifting weights seems to kill my hunger pangs, so that's kind of a motivator to get to the gym.

I have been working out and dieting all summer with very little results, by the way. At the beginning of the summer I set my stats to lose one pound per week and guess what? I lost zero pounds per week. So I reset my stats to drop two pounds per week. I immediately started losing weight, but I also started feeling hunger pangs. Maybe it just comes with the territory.

Oh, and eat pasta like you would Ice cream.....sparingly. Those are CHOCK FULL of calories, sodium, and carbs.

HUH? Sorry, no, this is just false. There is NOTHING wrong with pasta, in moderation, just as there's nothing wrong with brown rice, quinoa, or lentils. What's with the carb bashing?

Click:
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/5798/2
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/5784/2

since when is 220 calories or 183 mg of sodium a lot?

My point is what are you gettin in return for them calories? Carbs? Protein is barely there. And that serving (mind you, the source listed is USDA) is only 1 cup. Sorry but 1 cup doesnt do it for me....maybe for someone that is petite. I am not sure what her body type is, but pasta and bread doesn't really work for me. to be satisfied, I would have to have a bowl, which is about 3-4 cups. Add in any oils or cheese that is used in cooking/eating the pasta, and you are up there. To me, they are pretty empty calories. I have gotten rid of pasta and bread, but I will still have rice, as it has great potassium content, althought not as much as potatoes or greens.

well, that is YOUR perspective...that doesn't mean it has no redeeming qualities. you can easily bulk up pasta by adding in broccoli or spinach...topping it with lean protein and tossing it all together with marinara sauce. many ww brands are 180 calories per serving...so 1.5 servings is only 270 calories, add in 3-4 oz chicken for 120 calories, and 1/3 cup sauce for another 50 and 2 servings broccoli for 60...that's a rather large portion at a total of 500 calories. If someone LIKES pasta it can fit and shouldn't be completely cut out.

More feedback:

(1) in the grocery store, stick to the outside aisles. If you go into the aisles, that's were all the mega-empty-calorie foods are. You'll feel more satisfied and less hungry if you stick to the meat aisle, dairy aisle (except ice cream and cheese), and fruits and vegetables.

(2) Avoid being able to see junk food. Visuals are a powerful motivator to eat food that's bad for you. After months of complaining, I finally convinced my (adorable) husband to put the Oreos in the cupboard. Don't leave them out where I can see them! That has made a big difference.

To each his/her own, I guess. lol. There are plenty of foods in the world. Just gotta find out what works for you.
As for me....I busted *kitten* today on the trail, so I am rewarding myself with about a pound of chicken, with a side of potatoes and Black beans!

True that! "You can't have the same things only less." Not all calories are created equal. Some are actually designed to make you eat more than you need. (Hi, Frito-Lay!)

I got most hungry during the evening. I try to eat lower cals for breakfast and lunch. So I can really pig out for dinner and before bed. I have dry ceral for breakfast in a baggies cause that makes a long time to eat. yogurt and light cheese stick for lunch. low cal stuff like that. So for dinner I have 700 cals left it's sweet!

I like the heat. Keep raw jalapenos, serranos, or habaneros around. VERY low calorie and keeps the stomach occupied.