I eat, but I'm still hungry

cupcakes_and_cardio
cupcakes_and_cardio Posts: 369 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all. So, I've been trying to eat on a balanced schedule (breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, etc.), but today I noticed that I was still feeling hungry; I had a bowl of vitality cereal (with strawberries) with a few slices of bacon for breakfast, a spinach, kiwi, sweet pepper salad for lunch and 100 cal pack of fudge pretzels for a snack. I still felt really hungry, almost to the point where I felt like I was going to vomit from my stomach being so empty. Why? I thought I was doing good, eating properly like this. Is there anything I could eat (that's good for me, of course) that will make me feel full? BTW, I get low blood sugar, so anything that would help with that as well? Thanks
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Replies

  • campi_mama
    campi_mama Posts: 350 Member
    EAT MOAR PROTEIN!!!!!!

    P.S. Bacon is not protein. It's delicious though :love:
  • Bekahmardis
    Bekahmardis Posts: 602 Member
    EAT MOAR PROTEIN!!!!!!
    Exactly this. It's amazing how full you can feel if you simply had a couple of eggs for breakfast (scrambled, fried in olive oil, or even a yummy filled omelet!). I have a 2 egg beater omelet at 7:30 and I'm full until lunchtime.

    And the protein balances out your sugars....it has helped my hypoglycemia immensely!
  • LeanneGoingThin
    LeanneGoingThin Posts: 215 Member
    Fiber, fiber and fiber.
  • LeanneGoingThin
    LeanneGoingThin Posts: 215 Member
    Perhaps you need to get used to eating like this. It will fade. Make sure you drink enough.
  • shannashannabobana
    shannashannabobana Posts: 625 Member
    fried in olive oil
    Or bacon grease :)

    Seriously, protein helps.
  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
    Eat more. Your lunch was teeny tiny. You can add:
    Avocado
    Hard boiled eggs
    Fish
    Chicken
    Feta cheese
    And/or
    Beans to your salad.
    Make sure your dressing has real olive oil in it. That will fill you up more and makes the nutrients in the veggies more available to your body.
  • dana9904
    dana9904 Posts: 6
    I have been doing fine all week but I have felt the same way today! Can't wait for supper time. lol
  • demonlullaby
    demonlullaby Posts: 499 Member
    i found adding protein (i chose peanut butter) helped me feel more full!
  • EmmiDahling
    EmmiDahling Posts: 104 Member
    I have to agree with the people who have already said to eat more protien. I also want to mention that as a female I get insanely ravenous about a week before my TOM. You may want to look at tracking your appetite against your monthly calendar. Sometimes that week I have to eat above my calorie goal (but never above TDEE for the week). I do try to make sure that the extra food I'm eating is lean and preferably protien. Low fat Greek yogurt with a sprinkle of dark chocolate chips is s go-to-choice because it gets in the protien and touches on the chocolate craving.
  • SarahSmilesCA
    SarahSmilesCA Posts: 261 Member
    EAT MOAR PROTEIN!!!!!!

    P.S. Bacon is not protein. It's delicious though :love:

    This... All you are eating are foods loaded with high carbs, no wonder you are hungry and sick to your stomach, it's called out of control blood sugar spikes and lulls and it will cause insulin resistance over time.

    Protein should be .75- 1 gram per pound for most women. For most women that is at least 130 grams of protein per day. Then .35-.45 grams times your body weight for fat and supplement the rest with carbs. (protein is 4 calories per gram and fat is 9, add that up, subtract it from the calories MFP says to eat and then the rest of the calories you have left can be carb calories.

    Example:

    160 lb women should eat roughly around 140-160 grams of protein per day and 50-70 grams of fat. The calories left over can be carbs. Your carb intake will be less than 80-125 grams on this method depending on your exercise. You should find relief from hunger and cravings this way.
  • cupcakes_and_cardio
    cupcakes_and_cardio Posts: 369 Member
    Thanks everyone for the input :) (I love this site for that reason!)...I bought some chocolate peanut butter whey protein about a week ago (for my post workouts) and I'm wondering if this will help to have for breakfast? I know a lot of you are saying protein and that has a bunch of it. Would that be a good idea, along with say....some toast or something like that?
  • cupcakes_and_cardio
    cupcakes_and_cardio Posts: 369 Member
    EAT MOAR PROTEIN!!!!!!

    P.S. Bacon is not protein. It's delicious though :love:

    This... All you are eating are foods loaded with high carbs, no wonder you are hungry and sick to your stomach, it's called out of control blood sugar spikes and lulls and it will cause insulin resistance over time.

    Protein should be .75- 1 gram per pound for most women. For most women that is at least 130 grams of protein per day. Then .35-.45 grams times your body weight for fat and supplement the rest with carbs. (protein is 4 calories per gram and fat is 9, add that up, subtract it from the calories MFP says to eat and then the rest of the calories you have left can be carb calories.

    Example:

    160 lb women should eat roughly around 140-160 grams of protein per day and 50-70 grams of fat. The calories left over can be carbs. Your carb intake will be less than 80-125 grams on this method depending on your exercise. You should find relief from hunger and cravings this way.

    So, I'm 202 lbs....are my answers then correct?
    202 protein, 92 fat 474 carbs
  • SteelySunshine
    SteelySunshine Posts: 1,092 Member
    For me it was adding fiber to my diet. But, I have also upped my protein mostly because I have a lot of muscle mass and added exercising so that means muscle to repair as well. I try to get a bit of fat in every meal too even if it means going above MFP settings. I am rarely hungry, but that might also be because I eat most my food in an 8-9 hour period.
  • Yukongil
    Yukongil Posts: 166 Member
    maybe you have a tapeworm?
  • SarahSmilesCA
    SarahSmilesCA Posts: 261 Member
    What is your age, activity level and height. The carb intake is too high (400 carbs would be 1600 calories of carbs alone and that is way wrong) . We need to calculate your TDEE and then your macros from there.

    Personally I would start with about 150 grams of protein, about 70 grams of fat and no more than 100-150 grams of carbs and that is if you are exercising.

    So that would be 600 calories protein, 630 calories fat and about 400-600 calories of carbs. That gives you about 1800-2000 calories a day to live on. I am currently losing on that when I exercise and my weight is around yours. On my rest days I eat no more than 1400-1600 calories and I cut my carbs way back on that day. I always keep my protein levels up.

    I can do a more accurate calculation if I have your proper TDEE. My calculations are on the low side, but I am assuming you want to lose weight.

    Also if you head over to the Intermittent Fasting Group Board Chris the moderator is a wiz at macros...he probably could nail it down right away
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Less junky food for snacks...more satiating food with fiber. Also, lots of protein and get your healthy fats.
  • bigjretrac
    bigjretrac Posts: 80 Member
    Protein & fiber are your friends :happy:
  • cupcakes_and_cardio
    cupcakes_and_cardio Posts: 369 Member
    What is your age, activity level and height. The carb intake is too high (400 carbs would be 1600 calories of carbs alone and that is way wrong) . We need to calculate your TDEE and then your macros from there.

    Personally I would start with about 150 grams of protein, about 70 grams of fat and no more than 100-150 grams of carbs and that is if you are exercising.

    So that would be 600 calories protein, 630 calories fat and about 400-600 calories of carbs. That gives you about 1800-2000 calories a day to live on. I am currently losing on that when I exercise and my weight is around yours. On my rest days I eat no more than 1400-1600 calories and I cut my carbs way back on that day. I always keep my protein levels up.

    I can do a more accurate calculation if I have your proper TDEE. My calculations are on the low side, but I am assuming you want to lose weight.

    Also if you head over to the Intermittent Fasting Group Board Chris the moderator is a wiz at macros...he probably could nail it down right away

    My TDEE is 2359, age is 25 and height is 5' 2"
    I have been forgetting to lower my intake on my "rest" days...so on those days, how low much lower should my intake be? And yes, I do want to lose weight, approx. 60lbs. Thanks for your help
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
    Add more protein to your meals, that makes me feel full longer.

    Also consider eating more. Your body will respond to several deficit days by spiking your hunger hormones, which can lead to a binge over time. Eat to maintenance for a day or two and then taper down your calories again.
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
    Add more protein to your meals, that makes me feel full longer.

    Also consider eating more. Your body will respond to several deficit days by spiking your hunger hormones, which can lead to a binge over time. Eat to maintenance for a day or two and then taper down your calories again.
  • meribethd
    meribethd Posts: 92 Member
    Protein really does make you feel more full! I have recently cut out grains (not saying you or anyone else has to do this) and have upped my protein/fats and it's pretty amazing how much more full I am between meals. Try a couple eggs, or an egg and 1/2 cup egg whites with your breakfast. Do a scramble with some ham and a little cheese and some frozen peppers. I promise, you will be surprised how much more full you are after a couple of hours.
  • eevincheezburger
    eevincheezburger Posts: 163 Member
    I was one of those people who tried to fill up on carbs, and reducing portion sizes made me starve. If you add protein (or substitute protein for the carb, but I don't recommend that), you will feel full MUCH longer. A bowl of cereal leaves me hungry every time now that I'm used to whole wheat oatmeal, peanut butter, and protein powder (if I don't have time for eggs) in the morning.
  • j75j75
    j75j75 Posts: 854 Member
    EAT MOAR PROTEIN!!!!!!

    P.S. Bacon is not protein. It's delicious though :love:

    This... All you are eating are foods loaded with high carbs, no wonder you are hungry and sick to your stomach, it's called out of control blood sugar spikes and lulls and it will cause insulin resistance over time.

    Protein should be .75- 1 gram per pound for most women. For most women that is at least 130 grams of protein per day. Then .35-.45 grams times your body weight for fat and supplement the rest with carbs. (protein is 4 calories per gram and fat is 9, add that up, subtract it from the calories MFP says to eat and then the rest of the calories you have left can be carb calories.

    Example:

    160 lb women should eat roughly around 140-160 grams of protein per day and 50-70 grams of fat. The calories left over can be carbs. Your carb intake will be less than 80-125 grams on this method depending on your exercise. You should find relief from hunger and cravings this way.

    So, I'm 202 lbs....are my answers then correct?
    202 protein, 92 fat 474 carbs

    She probably meant to say .75-1.0 grams of protein per lbs of LEAN muscle mass. I doubt you are 202 lbs of solid muscle, or are you?? LOL!! Anyway, calculate your BF%, calculate your LMM, eat .75-1.0 grams of protein per lbs of LMM :smile:
  • Paleo_wolf
    Paleo_wolf Posts: 28
    Make sure your getting enough cals. When ppl start mfp they rush to lose weight and set their daily goal to 1200 when they should be eating way more. Make sure your not unintentionally starving yourself just to lose weight.
  • _AllieCat_
    _AllieCat_ Posts: 515 Member
    Get enough calories
    Get enough healthy fats
    Fiber!
    Protein!

    Oh, and lots of water throughout the day helps too.
  • teelynn35
    teelynn35 Posts: 239 Member
    Protein & fiber are your friends :happy:


    ^this
  • TheCaren
    TheCaren Posts: 894 Member
    More protein, less 100 calorie packs (they are empty calories that offer no benefit and just encourage the "snacking" mentality, IMO). For 100 calories you can have other things that will add to your nutrition, fiber, etc. Again, just my opinion. I should say though, if you see me post much on here I loathe hundred calorie pack foods. Don't get me wrong. Love the foods. Just hate the mentality that "gee it's only a hundred calories so it can't be bad". For me it comes down to this. You crave what you eat. Eating snacky foods begats cravings for snacky foods. So until I learned better eating habits, I tried to avoid those items. I don't believe in deprivation type eating, which can lead to binges. But I just learned what foods encouraged me to eat better than other foods.

    Also, I have reactive hypoglycemia (low blood sugar caused by how I eat). Pair your sugars with protein and it should help you get your blood sugar under control, if this is your issue. When I eat an apple, I have some deli meat, or cheese with it. My doc suggested it and I'm not totally clear medically why it works, but it does. And I have suggested it to others who have had similar results.
  • arsvirgo
    arsvirgo Posts: 3
    Those 100 calorie snacks suck for you! Unless you're at the movies and are trying to avoid the popcorn, stay away from those. So much unwanted sodium and carbs. I find cucumber (which has lots of amazing benifets to it like a natural fat burner and energy booster will help satisfy you) along with that have a low calorie cheese stick (it has protien and less carbs. Just choose a low fat one). How about nuts and strawberries. 1/4 cup almonds (stay away from peanuts and cashews) and 1 Cup strawberries will help those hunger cravings. Fiber helps too so whole grains with protein. Eat every few hours. 6mini meals a day. Try not to eat crabs after 5 pm because it will help not wanting those awful midnight cravings.Also just give it time. GOOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
    Ha ha-crabs after 5 pm!
  • cupcakes_and_cardio
    cupcakes_and_cardio Posts: 369 Member
    LOL....I caught the crabs part...oops, that sounds bad, too! haha...anyway, I'll start by ditching those 100 cal packs because I knew they did nothing for me, I mean they're like 6 mini pretzels, what's that gonna' do for your hunger anyway, right? So, almonds, strawberries, cucumbers, peanut butter, oatmeal....any other food suggestions? Thanks everyone, very helpful!

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