How do I conquer the hunger?

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Smiley0311
Smiley0311 Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been counting calories with fitness pal but I am so hungry at the end of the evening. I am not losing any weight either. Can someone fill me in on what I am doing wrong.
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Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    How long have you been counting your calories?

    What is your daily calorie goal (per MFP?)
  • ultrahoon
    ultrahoon Posts: 467 Member
    edited August 2015
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    Trying to make sure I have some fat and protein in every meal, and staying hydrated has worked wonders for me (in terms of feeling full that is).
  • Smiley0311
    Smiley0311 Posts: 6 Member
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    Nine days now, it has me on like 1440 calories but I play volleyball (two days a week) and pickle ball (two or three days a week).
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Smiley0311 wrote: »
    Nine days now, it has me on like 1440 calories but I play volleyball (two days a week) and pickle ball (two or three days a week).

    Are you eating back any of the calories you're burning through exercise? What activity level did you choose when setting your goals?
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    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. If you're using MFP's default targets, this includes eating back at least a portion of your earned exercise calories. 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.
  • NEWMEKELLIB
    NEWMEKELLIB Posts: 49 Member
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    are you eating back 1/2 of your exersize calories? and drinking AT LEAST half of your body weight in ounces of water? If you are very active you may not be eating enough.... and your body may hold on to all the calorie consumption as starvation mode. I could be totally wrong about all of it... give it a few more days and see how you feel, its normal to feel different when starting something new. Fat a protiens at every meal does help
  • Smiley0311
    Smiley0311 Posts: 6 Member
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    I am eating back the calories, My activity level is low because I have a desk job.
  • Smiley0311
    Smiley0311 Posts: 6 Member
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    diannethegeek wrote: »
    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. If you're using MFP's default targets, this includes eating back at least a portion of your earned exercise calories. 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.

    Thanks for the advice, I will be looking into these tips. I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle :#
  • Bshmerlie
    Bshmerlie Posts: 1,026 Member
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    That's troubling if you are constently hungry but still not losing weight because that means you can't really cut back anymore. So you need to find foods within your calorie allotment that will help make you feel ful. Try and change up how often you are eating and who much at each meal. When I first started I read that it would be best to eat several smaller meals every 2 hours. But in reality I found that I was constently hungry. So instead of 200 calories seven times a day I went to 400 calories three times a day and then 200 calories of inbetween snacks and that made a huge difference in how I feel. With 1400 calories that doesn't leave a whole lot of wiggle room for candy or less nutritious foods. Make sure you are eating foods that are high in protein and fiber as these will help keep you full longer. Also make sure you are drinking plenty of water throughout the day. There are times where we can confuse thirst for hunger. If you are not losing weight you are ultimatley going to have to reduce the amount of calories that you consuming but first I would work in finding ways to not be hungry with the amount your are eating right now. If you can't do that there is no point in reducing it any further as you will simply give up at some point. Human beings are creatures of habit. Once you can find those foods that help keep you full then slowly reduce the calorie amount until you start losing weight. Remember this is not a sprint...it is a marathon. So those of us who simply keep going are to be the ones who ultimatley reach their goal weight. The sprinters are going to burn out and stop. You need to find an easy routine that you know you can stick to for the long haul even if it is a slower pace that you initially thought it would be.
  • Smiley0311
    Smiley0311 Posts: 6 Member
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    Thanks Bshmerlie for pointing out some things I need to work on.
  • glitzy196
    glitzy196 Posts: 190 Member
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    for me, meal timing is really important..if you just started..i would take the next couple of days 'off' and pay attention to your bodies cues.
    what that means or has meant for me..
    I am rarely hungry in the morning, or its nothing a coffee and like seriously 1 mini muffin (think 1 of the ones in a 5 pack) won't fix. I tend to not get truly hungry until about 12 to 1. I get up at 6 am. so I drink a couple of cups off coffee, first one with cream, second one without..then drink water..I might have a piece of gum

    then I eat a pretty good sized lunch, as i like the feeling of being satisfied..it might be mental but if i eat pretty close to super full..it 'lasts' a while. I then eat again about 2 hours to stay full, and have a later dinner. we usually eat around 7 or so. and around 9 i usually have a Popsicle or ice cream, just cuz. i'm honestly not hungry. if i'm hungry I usually have like an 0z of cheddar cheese. that seems to be FOR ME the most filling food that nips my hunger.

    anyhow, follow your body for hunger cues, and MFP for calorie goals. I also plan my day backwards..if you know you are the most hungry at night, log your snacks and dinner first, and then see what you have left to work with. sometimes just knowing I have a lot of food coming soon keeps me from being starving, but if i know i only have like 300 calories left for dinner (has only happened once) i'm like starving thinking about it. HELLO EGG BEATERS!!
    I could never stay focused if i was hungry! I would also derail myself big time!
  • FunSizedKJ
    FunSizedKJ Posts: 67 Member
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    If you open your diary, it may make it easier for people to make suggestions on what to tweak in your meals to help keep you full for longer?
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
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    Hunger goes away in 20-30. It just does. It comes in waves. People have all kinds of tips for how to make it go away - exercise, brush your teeth, etc. - but it will go away in 20-30 minutes if you do nothing. That's how it works.

    So, you can just wait it out.

    You can also eat less during the day and have a snack at night, if you want. Either way. :)
  • spzjlb
    spzjlb Posts: 599 Member
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    Good tips here. I personally found the first two weeks to be the hardest when I started logging and cutting my calories. I think that if you can keep being disciplined, it will get easier.

    I really need to include protein in my meals and snacks to help me feel fuller, such as plain Greek yogurt with fruit (snack or breakfast) and a salad with cottage cheese and some leftover salmon or steak (lunch).

    As mentioned above, I also think that the "hunger" is partly mental and getting accustomed to not being full. Someone once posted that her nutritionist told her that, on a scale of 1-10, never let yourself get hungrier than a "3" and more full than a "7". I find this concept to be quite helpful.

    Good luck.
  • wkwebby
    wkwebby Posts: 807 Member
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    Do you have any pre-diabetic issues? The hunger came for me when I would eat more carbs throughout the day than I should have. I have now set the carb level to be 30% of my calories throughout the day. Most of the time I can stick to it, and I haven't had those really bad hunger pangs either. Concentrating on hitting your protein numbers (mine are set to 40%) is the key. I am full and happy as long as my protein is up. It was hard to do in the first two weeks, but after that, I wasn't craving the carbs anymore.
  • Summerberry1012
    Summerberry1012 Posts: 109 Member
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    I just experienced this the last couple months, waking up just starving, and constantly hungry thinking about my next meal. It was super annoying and some mornings I couldn't fall back asleep because I was so hungry. I started logging EVERYTHING on MFP and I quickly realized I was starving myself and needed to eat WAY more calories plus eat back those calories I burned. It's taken about 3 weeks but I've been plugging in my calories, making myself eat what I have left and making sure they're not 'empty' calories but actually nutritious and full of vitamins. HUGE difference! It's a struggle because I'm not one to eat breakfast normally and I struggle with coming up with good meal ideas but after a couple weeks of meal planning I'm getting the hang of it and I can feel my body adjusting to the new routine and overall feeling a lot better. Which makes the learning process and time put in so worth it.

    Do you have a FITBIT or some other form or device you can use to track? I have a FITBIT FLEX and wearing that has made me a lot more aware of how much I move in a day; I move way more than I think I do which I found surprising. That helped me make sure my MFP account goals were setup properly and the FITBIT FLEX can be setup to adjust your MFP info automatically so it makes things super easy to figure out and gives you a better idea of where you actually are.

    Lastly, I try and log the exact same brand of food I ate... there can be quite a difference in calories and macros from one package brand of cheese to another brand (or bacon for example, not all bacon is equal lol). MFP has an awesome database and the phone APP lets you scan barcodes making it super easy to get your specific brands in. Then you get more accuracy.

    I hope that helps! Just keep trying new things until you find what works for you. :) Good luck!
  • nordlead2005
    nordlead2005 Posts: 1,303 Member
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    NEWMEKELLIB wrote: »
    are you eating back 1/2 of your exersize calories? and drinking AT LEAST half of your body weight in ounces of water? If you are very active you may not be eating enough.... and your body may hold on to all the calorie consumption as starvation mode. I could be totally wrong about all of it... give it a few more days and see how you feel, its normal to feel different when starting something new. Fat a protiens at every meal does help

    is that 99 ounces (12 cups), or 45 ounces (5.6 cups) for me? Or maybe I should stick with the often repeated and never correct 8 cups/day?

    Oh, and how come I'm not totally dehydrated when I almost exclusively drink tea (which common knowledge would tell you dehydrates you)?

    As for the OP, I would focus on eating more protein rich foods and varying meal time/size. I honestly don't mind being hungry in the morning, so I typically skip breakfast, eat an early lunch (11AM), and then eat a decent dinner (5-6PM) and have calories to blow for evening snacks.

    Just mix things up until you find something that works for you. If you have to eat more to not be hungry realize that unless you eat over maintenance all you did was delay your weight loss by 1 day to figure out what works for you. It is ok. Just try to figure things out within a week, not months later.
  • Smiley0311
    Smiley0311 Posts: 6 Member
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    These are some very helpful suggestions! Thanks everyone! Keep them coming :)
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,906 Member
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    Would you please change your diary settings to Public? http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings

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