Staying full

I tend to skip breakfast or eat a very light breakfast as well as eat a pretty light lunch so I have more calories at the end of the day for a big dinner and snacks.

One of my favorite snacks is a handful of nuts. If I'm struggling in the afternoon, that usually helps get me through. I try not to eat a snack that doesn't have some protein & fat, because otherwise I just end up even more hungry than I was before. For example, I wouldn't eat just an apple as a snack, but maybe an apple and some peanut butter. Not just carrots, but maybe carrots and some hummus or ranch dip (not fat-free). For me, adding protein/fat to my snacks goes a LONG way toward keeping me from feeling hungry all the time.

You should open your diary so we can see what foods you are eating.

I eat a whole bag of vegetables (134 calories for 3 cups of veg) and a glass of water. That fills me up, then follow it with something small that is sweet and fatty to get the satisfied feeling.

juniparr wrote: »

Hello pals,

I've recently been counting calories in an effort to eat healthier and trying to stay under 1500 a day. However, I am having a hard time staying full near the end of the day. I work and normally pack my lunch and I include snacks, normally a mixture of fruit/veggies/100-calorie packs of cookies, etc. Come end of the day however, I am STARVING and the last few days I've caved and gone to get something from the vending machines.

What are some tips on eating healthy and staying full? I've also been eating vegetarian and I am struggling with that as well.

Thank you!

I'd limit to one 100 calorie pack a day honestly, and probably replace it with something more filling (100 calories of nuts, Greek yogurt for example... if you can eat that?). If you're hungry, using 100 calories on cookies is probably not the best choice.

Also, fruit... Personally, even at 1800 calories, I find that they are hardly worth the calories. I have them in Greek yogurt typically and that's about it... Veggies are just much more filling for the same calories.

So in your case I'd have fruit OR a 100 snack pack and veggies.

Either way, I'd focus more on protein, fat and fiber for every meal. I'm not a vegetarian though so I can't help that much, considering that I eat a lot of eggs, Greek yogurt and meat...

I find it hard to sit at my desk job all day and not think about food or get hungry. I've been trying to be really diligent in filling up with water all day and making sure my snacks are full of something to keep me full: protein and/or fiber.
Sometimes I try to leave too many calories for the end of the day but I don't think that benefits me either. Then it's too much at night and not enough time to burn it off. If I can pace out my meals and snacks evenly throughout the day, I tend to not hit those "starving stages". There are days though when that just can't be helped, no matter how well you plan. Sometimes are bodies are just really hungry.

Fat! Add avocados, nuts, olive oil, coconut oil, grass fed butter, heavy cream, etc. You can make a fatty tea in the morning with coconut oil and cream (or coffee), or add avocado to eggs or a salad, and then you can use the olive oil as a dressing for a salad. It feeds satiety and keeps you feeling full longer. You might not feel like your stomach is full and bulging out, but you'll feel satisfied and so not hungry. Sometimes, I bite right into an avocado. Mmm. Now I want an avocado.

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

It varies from person to person. Not everyone is happy with the same things.
...
I skip breakfast, have a small lunch (around 250 - 400 calories) and eat the rest of calories in the evening. This works for me because I don't get hungry until around 11 or noon.

It is amazing to me that people can do this. It really must vary person-to-person. I have to eat a good breakfast every day. If don't get a good breakfast or lunch, I get shaky and sometimes a migraine.

As for snacks and staying full, I concur with the protein, etc. Oatmeal doesn't keep me full unless I add protein powder.

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

It varies from person to person. Not everyone is happy with the same things.

I skip breakfast, have a small lunch (around 250 - 400 calories) and eat the rest of calories in the evening. This works for me because I don't get hungry until around 11 or noon. I put off eating as long as possible, then have my small lunch. By dinner, I am again ravenous. But, having that big meal in the evening to look forward to keeps me on track.

I'm pretty much like this, too. I eat a light breakfast and an even lighter lunch -- both of which I really only bother with at all because I work out in the morning -- to ensure I've got more than half of my daily calories to play with for dinner and evening snacks. I'm the sort of person though who needs something food-ish to look forward to all day, and then I can endure anything in the moment.

But yeah, PEOPLE VARY WIDELY and you might have to experiment to find what really works for you in terms of stretching your calories out over the course of the day. In the meantime, think about what kind of foods you're eating during the day, because some foods are less satiating than others. Eating mostly vegetables or fruit for instance -- "healthy" sure, but by themselves not very filling or satisfying, usually. Some ideas that work for a lot of people:

1. Cheese: If you eat dairy, pre-packaged cheeses are terribly handy little bits of protein and fat that can chase away the hungries. String cheese, babybells, laughing cow wedges, for example.

2. Nuts: you might think that an ounce or less of nuts -- hardly even a handful -- won't satisfy you, but give it a shot, you could be surprised. They're very, very satisfying if you give them a few minutes to settle in your tummy LOL.

3. Nut butters: As with nuts, it's important to practice careful portion control with nut butters to avoid blowing your calorie budget out, but even just a tablespoon of nut butter like peanut butter or almond butter can "stretch" the fullness factor when eating something carby like fruits or vegetables. One apple or one banana plus one carefully measured tablespoon (16 g!) of peanut butter = not hungry for a couple of hours for sure.

4. Canned fish: particularly oily fish. If you like it, of course. I find a couple of sardines work really well for me. I get these absurdly low calorie tortillas here (50 calories!) and wrap a couple of sardines in that and it's incredibly satisfying.

5. (On that note) Low calorie tortillas: If you can find them! At my grocery store there is one variety (occasionally two!) that is 50 calories per small tortilla. By themselves, not very satisfying of course, but they make calorie-economical vehicles for great hunger-slayers like hummus, or peanut butter, or sardines, or cheese, or beans. And the ones I get happen to be high-fiber too, which really does itself help with the hungries.

I agree, a lot of people do great without breakfast. Personally I typically eat 2/4 of my calories by 3pm.