only eat when you're hungry?

blott1987
blott1987 Posts: 21 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I always hear people say to only eat when you are hungry and to stop eating when you are satisfied. Not when you're full. I've been doing this for about 2 months now and I've noticed that my calories are hardly ever over 1,000 per day after I've done my workout. Should I be eating more even when I'm not hungry so I don't go into starvation mode? I'm fairly new to this and I want to lose weight and get to my goal the right way.

Replies

  • ryank81283
    ryank81283 Posts: 8
    starvation mode is wayyyy to commonly used, you could do a 24 hour water fast without going into starvation mode. You want to eat at a healthy deficit though as your body can only burn so much fat so fast. With that low of calories your body will start burning muscle for fuel.

    maybe add some more calorie dense things to what you eat. use olive, oil, cheese, peanut butter stuff like that. there's no way i could hit my calorie goals only eating celery and chicken breasts
  • striveforhealthy
    striveforhealthy Posts: 137 Member
    How many times are you eating a day? Are you eating larger meals or splitting them up and eating many throughout the day?
  • learnerdriver
    learnerdriver Posts: 298 Member
    Yes and No.

    I joined MFP so I could figure out how much I was eating- I was never hungry, but netted at around 800 cals per day.

    I make myself eat during the day to get my numbers up- breakfast is my biggest challenge.
    Snacking at night is my downfall, so I do check whether I'm actually hungry before I have a late night snack.
  • blott1987
    blott1987 Posts: 21 Member
    I have three larger meals and I snack twice in between them. My snacks are usually fruit and veggies with maybe a string cheese thrown in.
  • jenswan70
    jenswan70 Posts: 40 Member
    I've been eating on a set schedule, so that I don't get hungry. I found that if I get hungry, I'll eat more than I really want or need.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    Hunger is not always an accurate indicator. Anorexics often report not being hungry at all when they are literally starving. Some obese people feel hungry all the time when they do not need to eat.

    Consistently under eating can affect your hunger It can also have a negative impact on your metabolism.
  • keepsakesbyconny
    keepsakesbyconny Posts: 33 Member
    I say stick to what you're doing...You've lost 28lbs - GREAT JOB..somethings working right for you!! What works for one may not work for the next person... find what's working for you!
  • endoftheside
    endoftheside Posts: 568 Member
    I am really reluctant to go under my BMR unless I am actively sick in a way that makes me unable to eat (for instance, have a cold, not really that hungry, but still eat at least BMR, have the stomach flu, not so much). I don't really feel hunger usually, I would be much more likely to get foggy headed than huuun-greeee (and if I do get to the point of feeling hungry I would overshoot the calories), so I try not to rely on hunger that much.

    If I end up hundreds of calories short at the end of the day, I try to find something that fits in my macros to eat.

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