Should you eat even if you are not hungry?

thanks. i try not to, when i do i get sick.

anorexic? ... i am far from being anorexic. i do not know if this threat is for me. but if you believe i am anorexic, you are completely wrong. i am at the best weight i have ever been. i want to continue doing a great job because i have worked hard. if you think im sick, you should see me. i am healthy, but i do not want my body to shut down that is why i am asking this questions.

Eating less than 1200 calories will NOT cause starvation mode if you're more than 10% body fat.

You are gravely misinformed in SO MUCH of what you post. I am scared for you honestly. But at the same time your posts always piss me off because you go into threads like these and encourage people to develop your very unhealthy anorexic eating habits. For the sake of your emotional health I truly hope you get the help you need and better educate yourself on fitness, health and diet.

You need to really watch what you post. One of the rules of MFP is to not promote super-low calorie diets, which your posts come very close to doing.

Your posts about breakfast being the "Worst meal of the day" and decreasing adrenaline is just RIDICULOUS I have no idea where you come up with some of the things you post but I think you need to expand your research.

i love this thread! thank you so much. i will definitely do my best to incorporate these foods into my daily intake. i love fruits and vegetables and eat them frequently so it should not be that hard.

This happened to me... eat more calorie rich foods i.e. nuts, peanut butter ,etc, but make sure they are healthy. Even some fruit are, relatively, high calorie. Keep doing this, and you'll gradually get your appetite back.

I learned this the hard way.

im 5'4

Eating less than 1200 calories will NOT cause starvation mode if you're more than 10% body fat.

This makes perfect sense, i never go n2 starvation mode and always wondered why, my bodyfat % is high and i suspect this is true for a lot of ppl who don't strength train-- the MFP. Member who started this post may be short. She didn't list her height but i see her as pretty short and don't think she should " force feed"....esp not to the point of feeling sick.
Oh Boy, ppl who feel nausea usually can't swallow.
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yes, i did. there are some really great ideas, suggestions and research. i am glad to know that i will not go into starvation mode. lol i definitely will keep many of them in mind.

im 5'4

Eating less than 1200 calories will NOT cause starvation mode if you're more than 10% body fat.

This makes perfect sense, i never go n2 starvation mode and always wondered why, my bodyfat % is high and i suspect this is true for a lot of ppl who don't strength train-- the MFP. Member who started this post may be short. She didn't list her height but i see her as pretty short and don't think she should " force feed"....esp not to the point of feeling sick.
Oh Boy, ppl who feel nausea usually can't swallow.

Did you look at the responses to the post? If not, I suggest you do.
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this is one of the best threads I have read. thank you.

Feelings of hunger are far more complicated than indicating a physical need for food. Various physical, mental, and emotional factors come in to play.

If some people always ate when they were hungry, they would gain 2 lbs a week. If others never ate unless they were hungry, they would end up in the ER.

If following your hunger signals doesn't even get you to 1200 calories, then yes, you need to eat when you're not hungry.

Good point. I should have added:
1. Learning to differentiate desire to eat, for various reason, from true hunger is a very important part of learning your body's hunger signals.
2. Man made, artificially concentrated foods can be more calorie dense than foods found in nature, so it's easy to fool your body's satiety mechanism if you are eating processed foods.

Re #2: That is not what he was saying at all.

thanks ladies. i eat breakfast every day between 8 am - 10 am never later than that. I always eat lunch as well, because i do feel hungry by 1 or 2 pm, but once it is dinner time I am not hungry at all.

Try to get your metabolism to work. I don't know when you eat breakfast but the time of your first meal after waking up does affect how your hunger will be the rest of the day. Breakfast is very important because it keeps your metabolism working and if your metabolism is working, you will get hungry when you need to (and you will loose weight). Also, stay of greasy foods because those can decrease your appetite.
Hope this helps

I second this notion
I've always been a "naturally heavy morning eater", but my schedule for school changed so I would miss breakfast, and consequently wouldn't be hungry at all during the day. Eating a fibrous lunch and/or early morning snack is my preference because breakfast jump starts my metabolism so much so that I'm starving within about 2 hours, and eating a fiber dense breakfast fills you up enough until your next meal, but not so much so that you'll want to skip it.

this is great to know. i am new to this whole losing weight process. so i am learning as i go. i used to not be very active and eat a lot. now that my eating and exercise habits have changed, i am definitely trying to learn more about my body and how to maintain my weight loss. if i sound a little absurd it is only because this is all new to me. i am glad that people like yourself can educate me a lot more. quote]

yes, i did. there are some really great ideas, suggestions and research. i am glad to know that i will not go into starvation mode. lol i definitely will keep many of them in mind.

im 5'4

Eating less than 1200 calories will NOT cause starvation mode if you're more than 10% body fat.

This makes perfect sense, i never go n2 starvation mode and always wondered why, my bodyfat % is high and i suspect this is true for a lot of ppl who don't strength train-- the MFP. Member who started this post may be short. She didn't list her height but i see her as pretty short and don't think she should " force feed"....esp not to the point of feeling sick.
Oh Boy, ppl who feel nausea usually can't swallow.

Did you look at the responses to the post? If not, I suggest you do.

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'Stavation mode' in any context used (rightly or wrongly) is not a black and white line. In the context of a VLCD you run the risk of losing more LBM than on a more moderate deficit. It is not a case of 'going into starvation mode or not'. You don't lose LBM at one calorie level and not at 1 calorie more - it is a continuum. This is also true for hormonal imbalances and metabolic adaptation,
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