Turned off by food?

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pianofire
pianofire Posts: 15 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I've been pretty well with sticking to my diet... if we ignore that pizza/Chinese food hugover combination over the weekend!

But suddenly I'm really turned off by food. I'm only eating an average of 1200 calories a day, so I really can't afford to cut down on food but I'm struggling to finish most things because the thought of them makes me feel sick. The only thing I've been able to stomach and ENJOY in the last few days was some about 100g of steak and a small roast potato.

Has anyone else experienced something like this? Could it be that my body has just got used to eating a very small amount? Or could it be hormonal? It is my TOTM but usually that results in eating endless icecream, not nausea!

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  • emodavis
    emodavis Posts: 44 Member
    edited July 2015
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    Are you perhaps pregnant? Like TOTM but a smidge late?
  • pianofire
    pianofire Posts: 15 Member
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    emodavis wrote: »
    Are you perhaps pregnant? Like TOTM but a smidge late?
    Haha that's what a lot of people have asked me but 100% not pregnant. I'm like clockwork.

  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
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    Maybe the flu
  • MondayJune22nd2015
    MondayJune22nd2015 Posts: 876 Member
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    Food is at times overwhelming, for instance with me; my diet has been successful because when I began (a month ago tomorrow), I was utterly disgusted; with eating the same things all of the time.

    As a child, my Mother made so many grilled cheese sandwiches; that I haven't been able to stomach them for over two decades.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
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    pianofire wrote: »
    I've been pretty well with sticking to my diet... if we ignore that pizza/Chinese food hugover combination over the weekend!

    But suddenly I'm really turned off by food. I'm only eating an average of 1200 calories a day, so I really can't afford to cut down on food but I'm struggling to finish most things because the thought of them makes me feel sick. The only thing I've been able to stomach and ENJOY in the last few days was some about 100g of steak and a small roast potato.

    Has anyone else experienced something like this? Could it be that my body has just got used to eating a very small amount? Or could it be hormonal? It is my TOTM but usually that results in eating endless icecream, not nausea!

    You gained weight by overeating, so you had no problem with food before. Now you're trying to lose weight and having problems eating enough?
    I'd guess you have a mental block - you've hijacked your own brain into thinking that food is bad because you want to lose weight. You need to get some help with this- it's not healthy thinking, and can be the start of an eating disorder.
  • pianofire
    pianofire Posts: 15 Member
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    mccindy72 wrote: »
    You gained weight by overeating, so you had no problem with food before. Now you're trying to lose weight and having problems eating enough?
    I'd guess you have a mental block - you've hijacked your own brain into thinking that food is bad because you want to lose weight. You need to get some help with this- it's not healthy thinking, and can be the start of an eating disorder.

    I wouldn't say I gained weight by overeating, I'd say the move from waiting tables to a desk job and not adjusting my intake accordingly was the issue there!

    This aversion to food has only been happening for 4ish days, so it's very unlikely to be anything permanent. It's just very unlike me, especially because I want to eat but as soon as I put something in my mouth I'm like 'ew'.

    I'm thinking I might be going through a patch of anxiety.
  • pianofire
    pianofire Posts: 15 Member
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    Caitwn wrote: »
    I'm pretty new to these boards and to weight loss, but I'm seeing people mention this here on MFP and on other weight-loss boards, and have recently experienced it myself. I wasn't stressed when it was happening. There were no negative thoughts about weight or food. It was just a matter of no appetite.

    I don't have any answers for you - I'm just letting you know you aren't alone. This is pure idle speculation on my part, so don't take it seriously...but I am thinking it's some combination of learning to recognize hunger signals differently and new ways of thinking about food and eating, and something going on physiologically due to changes in eating patterns. I know the folks just starting with keto experience appetite loss, but I'm not on keto and you didn't mention it. I think it's something else.

    The important thing is not to under-eat. A day or so isn't a big deal, but it's important to try to stay on track within your caloric allotment and basic macro requirements. So change things up a bit - maybe eat smaller, more frequent meals? Eating snack-sized meals several times a day helped me keep my intake at reasonable levels, and I found a Greek yogurt that I liked a lot (raspberry with chocolate flakes, yum) and snacked on that.

    While your appetite is lacking, try to be sure the food choices you make are tasty and things that you generally enjoy. Hang in there and just don't let this become a habit. I'm genuinely curious about it, as I believe it's a real thing.

    Glad to hear someone is in a similar position! I do think it must be a combination of psychological and physiological factors as you suggest.

    I remember just a few months ago polishing off a whole pizza, a six pack of beer and maybe a dessert no worries. The other day I ordered a pizza and could only manage two slices.

    I think once you start to see results AND you've formed a healthy habit, you just are naturally much less reliant on food as a sort of crutch to get you through the day.

    It's a pretty good feeling really, just very different!

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