way hungrier after 98lbs lost, tips?

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mom2my4boys
mom2my4boys Posts: 148 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi,
I've lost 98lbs since July 2013. I still have atleast 27lbs before i reach the top end of my healthy BMI range. The problem is when i weighed 275lbs i switched my regular diet out with a healthier diet. (think Mcdonalds to lean meats and 1/2 plate of veggies, or chocolate bar to cup of grapes ect) In the beginning i always felt full, hunger wasn't an issue at all. Now, i'm genuinely hungry but am losing at an incredible slow pace. (not staying under my calorie goal regularly) I believe i have a fair amount of muscle for a girl,physical job, active with my 4 kids.Calorie goal is 1610, gym schedule is 45mins X 5 day a week, drinking 3-4L of water a day.I really want to meet my goal but i'm struggling...

So, what are you guys eating? I'm usually always low on fats but don't wanna sacrifice the 100cals of olive oil for more food. Suffice it to say i'm struggling mentally and i'm hangry! Thanks for your tips :happy:

Replies

  • fushigi1988
    fushigi1988 Posts: 519 Member
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    You are quite active, so you might need a bit more calories than 1600.
    And congrats on the journey so far to become healthier
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
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    It's hard to tell without seeing your diary, but you might want to try more nuts and nut butters. Honestly I'm in the same boat (been struggling to lose my last 3 pounds for 3 months), but I've found that often some nut butter with oatmeal or an English muffin will really fill me up. I typically don't eat that much fat either (same as you, I don't use much oil), but nuts are worth the calories (and I'm not a huge nut fan, so I've been mostly sticking to hazelnut butter and chocolate covered hazelnuts).

    You could try to switch to full fat dairy as well, for some people it helps with satiety (me.. not so much). Also make sure to eat a lot of protein. Ideally if you have a snack, you want to try to have some protein and fiber to be full (so, not just a yogurt, but a yogurt and an apple, for example). And eat a LOT of veggies.

    But yeah, otherwise, same boat.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Congratulations, that's fantastic success! Are you eating back some of your exercise calories?
  • mom2my4boys
    mom2my4boys Posts: 148 Member
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    I don't have a HRM or anything so i only enter 1/2 of what the cardio machines tell me i burn. So, in 45 mins i usually burn 500-600 calories according to the machines, but only enter 250-300 burns. So, only eating 1/2 exercise cals. I regularly wake up at 3am starving craving a peanut butter sammich. Often i don't log this 250-300 cals. (might explain why i'm not losing the 1lb a week i'm supposed too!) I also forgot to add that i do the weight machines 2-3times a week that i don't record a calorie burn for.

    edited to add: maybe it's time for me to suck it up and buy a HRM and be hungry? (combined with more accurate logging) Is there any truth to the whole eat more to loose more theory?
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
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    Did you change your goal after you lost weight? 1680 plus exercise calories seems like a lot, that's probably why you're not losing (well, that and the not logging everything).

    Of course that doesn't help your hunger issue.
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
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    What is an incredibly slow pace to you? You've lost almost 100 lbs in the last 14 months by my calculations, and I'm wondering if what's seeming incredibly slow to you is still pretty rapid.

    It's normal for someone who's far into obese territory to be able to lose faster than someone who is only overweight. The biggest reason is that they have more fat to lose in the first place.
  • Kate7294
    Kate7294 Posts: 783 Member
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    While I haven't had as much to lose. I know I had to up my calories recently. MFP had dropped me down to 1420 but my BMR was 1570. So I tweaked my setting from sedentary no exercise to 30 minutes x 5 days a week. Put my calories back up to 1640. I'm still losing at 1640. You may want to check your BMR or eat those exercise calories back. If I put in my info into the machines at the gym I do take the whole amount the machine gives me without cutting them in half. If I do something else say 30 minutes of an exercise where I use MFP to judge calories burned then I only take around half.
    I'm not sure this is accurate but saw this formula and tend to use it to calculate other burns. CW x 2 / 60 = calories burned per minute
    Ex. I'm currently 179 x 2 / 60 = 5.96 calories burned per minute
  • mom2my4boys
    mom2my4boys Posts: 148 Member
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    Yes, i believe my calorie goal changed when i switched from 2lbs a week to 1lbs a week. I'm loosing at an average of 0.5lbs a week now. I'm wondering if it's normal to be hungry for those last 30lbs? I can't see myself sticking with this constant hunger for another year. Like i said, struggling... Also, what's everyone eating to stay full? Veggies and lean meats are great and delicious but only keep me full for a few hours. I guess i just need to do some experimenting with more accurate logging for a month and then experiment with subtracting/adding calories. It was SO easy in the begining! :noway:
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
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    Yes, i believe my calorie goal changed when i switched from 2lbs a week to 1lbs a week. I'm loosing at an average of 0.5lbs a week now. I'm wondering if it's normal to be hungry for those last 30lbs? I can't see myself sticking with this constant hunger for another year. Like i said, struggling... Also, what's everyone eating to stay full? Veggies and lean meats are great and delicious but only keep me full for a few hours. I guess i just need to do some experimenting with more accurate logging for a month and then experiment with subtracting/adding calories. It was SO easy in the begining! :noway:

    First I'd recalculate your goal, it just seems like a lot still. Do you weigh your food? It's possible that you're overestimating how much you are eating, which could explain the hunger.

    How long have you been that hungry for? I'm asking because I have some weeks when I'm really hungry too, but it typically doesn't last more than a few days.

    I'd try more variety in your meals too. I know that the extra 100 calories from complex carbs are totally worth it for me in my meals, as it keeps me full much longer than if I just go with meat and veggies. Also when I mean 'veggies' I typically mean up to 3 servings of veggies at a time... the day when I'm not too hungry are the days I eat one pound or more of veggies.

    Go for low calorie/filling foods too, like egg whites. A huge egg white omelet with veggies will keep me full for a while (as long as I have a whole grain bagel or potatoes with it).

    Can you open your diary? It would really help if we can see what you're eating.

    Again though... I totally get it. It was so easy in the beginning, and now it totally sucks.
  • fushigi1988
    fushigi1988 Posts: 519 Member
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    Waking up at 2-3 am is a sign you need more food
  • BekaBooluvsu
    BekaBooluvsu Posts: 470 Member
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    You are quite active, so you might need a bit more calories than 1600.
    And congrats on the journey so far to become healthier
    This^^
  • jennifurballs
    jennifurballs Posts: 247 Member
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    I would try using spray olive oil so you can use those calories for protein and fiber, which might help with the hunger and still give you your olive oil. If you're not already doing it, spread what you're eating into 5-6 smaller meals. This will help with hunger and boost metabolism.
  • mom2my4boys
    mom2my4boys Posts: 148 Member
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    Hi!
    I just wanted to come back to you ladies and say thanks for the great idea's. The hunger seems to have gone away. Weird as i was ravenous the day i posted that. And it didn't have anything to do with hormones. If it returns, i will for sure try some of your idea's. For the moment i'm going to concentrate on logging every single bite and finding more accurate calorie entries for what i'm eating. In the beginning it didn't matter so much if the entries i was choosing weren't accurate. (i usually over estimated things) I guess as i get closer to goal, i'm going to have to put a little more effort into accuracy. Thanks again, and here's to the last 27lbs! :drinker:

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