I'm so hungry!!

These are my really general tips for hunger:

1. Make sure that your calorie goals are actually set appropriately. Don't skip this step. A lot of people set goals that are too aggressive and then wonder why they're having a hard time. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

2. Look for foods higher in protein, fat, and fiber. These help us stay full and more satisfied longer. If you're using MFP's default settings, try to consider protein, fat, and fiber as minimums to reach every day rather than maximums to stay below.

3. Drink plenty of fluids. Some people really do confuse thirst and hunger.

4. Get plenty of rest. This includes sleeping enough and taking rest days from the exercise. Sometimes our bodies look for food when they're exhausted.

5. Play around with your meal timings. Some people do really well on 5-6 small meals a day and others feel like they want to gnaw their own arm off eating like that. Skipping breakfast, eating breakfast, 16:8 fasting, 6 small meals, 3 larger meals, snacks, no snacks, meal timing won't make a big difference to your weight loss, but it may help your hunger levels, mood, concentration, gym performance, etc. throughout the day. Don't be afraid to try a different way and see if it helps.

6. Wait it out. If you know you're eating enough and the other steps above aren't helping, you may just have to wait it out. Our bodies send out hunger signals partially out of habit. If you eat at a certain time every day your body will start to get hungry at that time. The good news is that these signals can be retrained to stop telling you to be hungry all the time. The bad news is that you may just have to be hungry for a little bit while that happens.

7. I also think it's important to remember that there's a habitual component to hunger. This goes along with point #6, but if you eat because you're bored or you're used to eating in front of the TV or in the car or whatever it is, then you can replace those habits with others that are better for you. Things like keeping water on hand to sip instead of snacking or picking up hobbies that keep your hands busy or that get you out of the house more can help out a little while you're retraining your hunger cues. You might need to pay attention to why you're eating/hungry or what you're feeling when you eat and try to replace food with other things, but it can be really beneficial over time.

What time zone are you in that you're concerned that's not enough for the rest of the day? You can eat two rather large meals of chicken, broccoli and rice for 950 calories.

I usually drink hot green tea in between my meals. This helps to suppress my hunger and sweet cravings. I would also recommend to spread out your meals so you can eat more, meaning eat between 5-6 small ones about 2-3 hours apart. That should help! Good luck!

WBB55 wrote: »

What time zone are you in that you're concerned that's not enough for the rest of the day? You can eat two rather large meals of chicken, broccoli and rice for 950 calories.

You could eat a lot of variety in 2 meals for 950 calories.

You can make a filling sandwich wrap for 300-350 calories and still have 600 left for dinner.

WBB55 wrote: »

What time zone are you in that you're concerned that's not enough for the rest of the day? You can eat two rather large meals of chicken, broccoli and rice for 950 calories.

This! That's breakfast, lunch, and dinner for me. Not saying that our physiologies are the same but I think a proper meal can be made with 950 calories.

I try to eat the majority of my calories in the morning...so I have plenty of time to digest them and finish the day with a small/post workout dinner...but when I have insatiable hunger, I grab hard baked eggs. I find them super filling.

Do you know how much broccoli, cauliflower (even carrots, corns, peas), celery, onion and chicken or fish or other lean meat you can fit in 900 calories? -- quite a bit actually, especially if you don't use oil or butter to stir fry it with (you could use PAM, for example), or you could even microwave it (fish with veggies)

eat tabbouleh!! :-) parsley salad

sandhya95 wrote: »

Thanks, I'm going to take all your suggestions into consideration. I have only been using MFP for a few days now and I don't like feeling hungry and frustrated so I guess I have to work on getting over that. Also, I am vegetarian, have a pretty big appetite and have a hard time feeling full unless I have bread or rice. I'm drinking coffee now then going to try to head out for a long walk to get the rest of my steps in!

i guess that makes it harder if you are a vegetarian. protein helps me keep full. I have a similiar problem about always being hungry. i started drinking a protein shake (muscle milk) inbetween breakfast and lunch, it helps keep me full. I have been working out since september but started to finally drop a few pounds as soon as i added a protein shake. plus it curbs my sweet tooth you can always give that a shot!