How do you cope with "hanger" while trying to lose weight?

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pink_mint
pink_mint Posts: 103 Member
edited February 2015 in Health and Weight Loss
(Hanger = hungry anger)

It looks like the only way I can be successful at weight loss, at this time anyway, is to eat within a range that leaves me in a foul mood at all times. Do others experience this? How do you deal with it? Do you get used to it?

I don't like feeling irritable all the time, but if I eat enough to feel ok I can't lose any of these at least 30 lbs I need to lose.
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  • zoomtech16
    zoomtech16 Posts: 100 Member
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    It really depends on my type of hunger. I have the hunger where my stomach just grumbles a little, and normally I just let that sit because it kind of makes me feel like I'm losing weight. Then I have the hunger where I'm going to throw up, and that is when I have to stuff a nutrigrain or something down my throat. Those are usually when I have my cheat meals. People recommend eating a lot of small snacks throughout the day, so that way you never actually get hungry.

    Also make sure you workout doing some cardio so you can always grab yourself some extra food! That's my favorite part of MFP!
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    edited February 2015
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    I like your analogy on the hungry anger... A lot of people here on MFP deal with this differently and have a lot of different things to say on this..

    I do and have dealt with this. For example, I exercise a good bit and I had to learn how to eat right in order to keep with the way I exercise.

    1) You listen to the hunger pangs and try to identity true hunger or maybe your are thirsty. I try to drink water and see if the pang goes a away. 90% of the time I just needed to drink.

    2) I drink a lot of water through out the day. Almost half a gallon a day. But you can (I do) over drink water and retain a lot because of exercise so drink modestly.

    3) Eat something calorie dense like veggies (carrots, celery - with a dip or no dip) and see if you can subside some hunger with filling up on this.

    4) If after all of this, you may need to entertain the idea your body is needing you to refuel with some calories with a protein snack or small meal..

    Listen to your body (true hunger) and feed it when needed. You have to evaluate your relationship to food as well (are you eating for true hunger, emotional eating), etc..

    You may need to adjust your daily calories if you are truly not getting enough nutrition and remember it takes true discipline to not eat the way your used to if you REALLY WANT to loose weight and make a life style change, then you will start to learn to work around the hunger -- IT DOES GO A WAY in about three to four weeks on a new diet/new way of eating.

    Start here and see if you can find some tips:

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Try pre-logging your days to include snacks, to avoid this problem.
  • ar9179
    ar9179 Posts: 374 Member
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    I eat a high fat diet between 1300-1600 cal. Rarely have hunger pains and never hanger...which is why I do it. I HATE feeling hungry.
  • KHaverstick
    KHaverstick Posts: 308 Member
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    I definitely know what you're talking about. Years ago when I was dieting, I somehow always thought I needed to eat low fat everything (leftover mindset from the 80's when that was the thing to do). What I finally realized is that a little fat goes a long way toward keeping me satisfied and sane. My solution was to eat enough fat, and incorporate snacks throughout the day. I eat something probably every 2 hours or so when I'm awake, and I try to always make sure I'm eating some protein and fat with my snacks/meals. If I eat a snack that doesn't include fat/protein (even if it's something like veggies), it seems to make me even hungrier shortly after eating. These changes have made a world of difference in my hunger. I'm very rarely "hangry" anymore.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
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    Maybe your weight loss goal is too aggressive.
  • knitapeace
    knitapeace Posts: 1,013 Member
    edited February 2015
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    I definitely had a night or two in the beginning where I bit one or two people's heads off and went to bed because there was no point staying up if I couldn't eat anything! LOL! It does get better, but definitely evaluate the aggressiveness of your goal if it keeps up for too long (only you can judge how long "too long" is). If your deficit is more than 500 calories per day maybe you should consider going ahead and having a bit more food that day. And no one's going to come to your house and berate you if you go into the red once in a while. Listen to your body so you won't throw in the towel before you've had a chance to see what you're capable of.

    Oh my gosh, PS: I see you're breastfeeding. EAT. Your body is telling you it needs more nutrition to feed that baby!!
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    pink_mint wrote: »
    (Hanger = hungry anger)

    It looks like the only way I can be successful at weight loss, at this time anyway, is to eat within a range that leaves me in a foul mood at all times. Do others experience this? How do you deal with it? Do you get used to it?

    I don't like feeling irritable all the time, but if I eat enough to feel ok I can't lose any of these at least 30 lbs I need to lose.

    figure out how to eat as much as you can and still lose weight, even if its only sloooooooooooow.

  • krysannboggs
    krysannboggs Posts: 48 Member
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    How I deal with being hangry: I eat more food and become more active.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    edited February 2015
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    I try never to be hungry. I eat three meals and 2-3 snacks. I eat in a way that I don't feel either hungry,or that icky sour stomach low blood sugar thing. I eat enough. When I was losing, I ate enough. Maybe I lost more slowly, but I was happy and comfortable. THAT was key for me.
  • Lib_B
    Lib_B Posts: 446 Member
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    Xanax. :)
  • FitFitzy331
    FitFitzy331 Posts: 308 Member
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    queenliz99 wrote: »
    Maybe your weight loss goal is too aggressive.
    one_fit_cookie wrote: »
    How I deal with being hangry: I eat more food and become more active.

    Both of these. If you're feeling hangry on a consistent basis and not once in a while, you need to re-evaluate your goals. Eat more and exercise more.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
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    I make sure my blood sugar never gets too low because that's what makes me act like a pile of turds. Use lower calorie foods for volume and strategically use higher calorie foods with either more fat or carb content to keep the blood sugar (and your energy levels and attitude) up. I snack often. And work out so you can eat more if you need it.
  • FitWarrior7
    FitWarrior7 Posts: 332 Member
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    Chew everyone's head off. Win.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    If it causes you to be angry and in a foul mood all the time you are doing it wrong.
  • Lib_B
    Lib_B Posts: 446 Member
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    Truthfully - when I keep my carbs down (I'm not paleo or keto or anything like that - not I judge anyone who chooses that) but when I keep the refined stuff to a minimum and eat things like a big salad with chicken and egg for lunch, it helps. I eat greek yogurt as a snack. Fruits do nothing for me. I incorporate them into my diet, but to snack on an apple does nothing for my hunger. I find protein and as someone else said, a healthy amount of fat, keeps hunger at bay. Also, plenty of sleep (with an infant - that may be tough :) ) At night, I do go to bed early because I tend to make better food choices the next day and it keeps me out of the kitchen eating my kids' oreos.
  • healthy_life2015
    healthy_life2015 Posts: 215 Member
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    I don't think you should be hangry all the time. I feel for you! I used to eat A LOT more but after getting through a couple of days of being hungry, I really feel satisfied with much less. That's not to say I don't want to go back for seconds, but it's my mind that wants it and (usually) not my body. How many calories are you eating a day? Can you share a "typical" day with us so we can comment on what you are eating and where you could make changes while still sticking to the same calorie goal? I think if we had a little more information, we could make better suggestions.

    Also, I noticed from your profile that you are breastfeeding. Obviously this makes a big difference. I can't comment on balancing weight loss and breastfeeding from personal experience, but I do know that my aunt was very successful in losing weight while breastfeeding (she started dieting when her child was older and eating real food but he continued to have one bottle a day) since her body naturally needed more calories so she could be at a larger deficit. All of this is to ask whether or not you have talked to your doctor? We can tell you whether or not we think you are eating the right amount of calories or the right balance of nutrients, but I'm sure your doc can help you achieve your weight loss goal while keeping you and your baby comfortable!
  • pink_mint
    pink_mint Posts: 103 Member
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    I need to update my profile because I just weaned my baby a month ago (no longer breastfeeding). I am one of those women who cannot breastfeed and lose weight at the same time, if I try I will simply lose my milk. So now that I am done with that I am eating about half of what I was eating before but still have lost not a single pound and it is depressing as I am 30 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight. I am 180/ 5'5" now and before I was 150 lbs, would like to get down to at least that. I am also wondering if my hormones have not "recalibrated" yet. It is very frustrating because I don't think I am eating enough to be stuck at this current weight. Exercise is nice, but extremely difficult for me to find a way to make happen right now.

    I don't have time right now to type out what I eat in a typical day but maybe I can get to that soon.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    I think if you're at the point where you're hangry on a regular basis, you aren't eating enough. Could be an issue with the hormones after stopping the breastfeeding, hard to say. But being hangry sucks for you and everyone around you, so if it were me, I'd up calories to a more tolerable level for another month or so and see how things go, then if you're not losing, start lowering cals slowly, 100 or so each week and see how it goes.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
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    Exercise lifts a foul mood. It also lets you eat more.

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