I may have a problem...

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adamnn
adamnn Posts: 23 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have absolutely no sense of portion control, and if I do try to control how much I eat I'm just hungry...all the time.

It's been this way for as long as I can remember. I'm a generally very active person as my job is very labor intensive and I also lift weights 4 days a week. But lately I feel like I've just been maintaining this unappealing body and I know it's because my diet is far from being on point.

So, does anyone have any insight on how to handle my type of situation? Any tips or advice is completely welcome and thanks in advance MFP community!

Replies

  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    Eat at a smaller deficit and maybe get used to being a little hungry from time to time if your deficit is reasonable and you still get hungry and more satiating foods -- usually protein and fat -- don't help.
  • Chasity6
    Chasity6 Posts: 183 Member
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    Have you tried adding more healthy fats and fiber to your diet to help keep hunger at bay? Use a food scale to make sure you are using adequate proportions. Increased protein helps others. But for me as long as I eat adequate protein, fiber and increased healthy fats I don't have the starved feeling all the time that I used to have with calorie restriction.
  • Chasity6
    Chasity6 Posts: 183 Member
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    Take one day at a time and try different things to see what keeps you full longer.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    It really is mind over matter. Telling yourself that you "can't" exercise portion control is just another way of letting yourself off the hook. You're in charge, not your food. Try resetting your thinking to realize that you're not forced to eat all the food. It's a choice you're making. You can make another choice.

    Is it difficult? Sure. But maybe not as difficult as you think it is.

    I used to think I couldn't control myself around chocolate. Until I realized I could. Then it became easier.
  • queenofpuppies
    queenofpuppies Posts: 189 Member
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    are you drinking enough water? Maybe you should add more water breaks at work. I found that increasing my protein intake has really helped me not feel hungry. Try snacking on beef jerky or nuts.
  • besee_2000
    besee_2000 Posts: 365 Member
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    Ugh, I feel for you. It is a constant struggle for me. When I was less active 1200 was easy peasy. Now I am a lot more active but struggle keeping at 1500 or so depending on my activity. It has become a mental game. "I have enough to have one cookie, awesome!" 5 or so cookies later I'm not any happier. I think I've desensitized my sweet tooth and it needs more to satisfy the same level of my reward center in my brain.

    I can give some suggestions and maybe they will work for you better!
    Eat slower and mindfully. Think of every bite. Eat with chop sticks to slow eating. (Soup will take you a lifetime!)
    Put fillers in your meals. Add broccoli to your pasta and use less pasta.
    Find healthier alternatives. The internet is full of lighter dishes of food favorites. I would recommend Skinnytaste.com
    Follow-up to that, Stop going out to eat. This is hard for a lot of people. If you make a big enough batch of something though you don't have to make a meal more than a few times a week. Cook up a bunch of chicken breast at once and put away in sized containers.
    Get a food scale.
    If you can't control it don't have it in the house. This is my problem. I always lie to myself that I can eat "just one" but I fail. I have sized out chips to individual snack bags but it was a lot of work vs just not buying it.
    Last but not least. Have forgiveness.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    Pick a reasonable goal... Set yourself as active and pick 1 pound a week loss. Then focus on protein, fat, and fiber, and eat a lot of veggies. I'm hungrier on days I eat too many carbs too (especially sweet things that have a lot of sugar but not much protein and fat, or bread).

    Usually it's really about adjusting what you eat as much as how much you eat.
  • MondayJune22nd2015
    MondayJune22nd2015 Posts: 876 Member
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    Calculate the Calories of what you consume on average a day & then every week or 2, reduce your Caloric intake by 100 Calories daily until you reach your desired deficit. This will help soften the blow or even eliminate the hardship, of trying to lose weight! Will it take longer to lose weight? Of course but it will also better help you, to continue with your weight loss.

    Another trick, isn't to substitute your food choices but the density, of them. For instance I love tacos & fajitas but the shells & tortillas are very Calorie dense. So I make a taco salad instead with lettuce rather than the shell, being the base of the meal & break 1/4 of a shell, to use as a topping or I make a fajita instead with the vegetables rather than the tortilla, being the base of the meal & break 1/4 of a tortilla, to use as a topping. Therefore I didn't eliminate any of the ingredients, I just ate less of the high Caloric density foods & more of the low Caloric density foods.
  • daniwilford
    daniwilford Posts: 1,030 Member
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    MondayJune22nd2015 wrote: »
    Calculate the Calories of what you consume on average a day & then every week or 2, reduce your Caloric intake by 100 Calories daily until you reach your desired deficit. This will help soften the blow or even eliminate the hardship, of trying to lose weight! Will it take longer to lose weight? Of course but it will also better help you, to continue with your weight loss.

    Another trick, isn't to substitute your food choices but the density, of them. For instance I love tacos & fajitas but the shells & tortillas are very Calorie dense. So I make a taco salad instead with lettuce rather than the shell, being the base of the meal & break 1/4 of a shell, to use as a topping or I make a fajita instead with the vegetables rather than the tortilla, being the base of the meal & break 1/4 of a tortilla, to use as a topping. Therefore I didn't eliminate any of the ingredients, I just ate less of the high Caloric density foods & more of the low Caloric density foods.

    This is great advice. I did something similar when I took a maintenance break last of July to 1st of August. If I take another maintenance break or when I get to goal I think I will do it in reverse.
  • adamnn
    adamnn Posts: 23 Member
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    You guys are awesome!

    Thank you so much for the great advice!

    I guess it doesn't help that I'm my own worst critic when it comes to my physique and diet.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    In addition to make sure you are eating enough fullness-enhancing foods, which is protein, fat and fiber for many people, are you eating slowly enough? Chew, chew, chew!
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    By the way, this article was posted in another one of the forums, but you might find it worth a read:

    http://greatist.com/connect/how-eat-just-one-cookie
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    Being super active makes me super hungry too. It might help to pre-portion your meals and log as you go, so you are aware how much you are eating. And making sure you are eating enough.

    Eat before you head out to your super-active job. Have some high protein snacks with you through the day, like a protein bar, beef jerky, or hiker's mix. Then you won't be ravenous at the end of the day.

    When things are slowed down and you are relaxing, try filling up with salads, water, or popcorn. If being full is the feeling you want.
  • afatpersonwholikesfood
    afatpersonwholikesfood Posts: 577 Member
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    Are you overweight? I know your profile says that you have 30 pounds to lose, but everyone has different goals, and they aren't always realistic. I notice guys on here a lot that want to weigh less than they ought to.

    What does MFP have your calorie target set at? How many pounds per week is that supposed to be for you?

    Is the activity level you entered on MFP appropriate for you?

    What kinds of food are you eating?

    I know you got a lot of general advice, but I don't know if anyone asked you this stuff.
  • Ashtoretet
    Ashtoretet Posts: 378 Member
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    A big problem of mine was overeating, sometimes from boredom, sometimes from stress. When it's boredom I've learned to just tell my brain that it's not going to get food and has to get over it, and here's a new show to watch/game to play instead. And eventually the desire to eat slowly goes away and by that time it's an appropriate meal time so problem solved.

    When it's every day stress, I just force myself to feel the discomfort/unhappiness. It's something a lot of people never do anymore because it's obviously not fun, but it's good for us, it's discipline. It helps for me to plan my "calorie schedule" around this notion that I'm going to be stressed when I get out of work. So sometimes I just forego eating when I'm at work so I can come home and eat a more satisfying meal.
  • 123juliaj123
    123juliaj123 Posts: 75 Member
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    I used to be always hungry until I cut back on carbs and upped my protien, now I can eat in a sensible way without feeling desperate for the next thing to eat and Im not constantly thinking about food as I used to be. Enormous difference since cutting carbs right back for me
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Do you pre-log and pre-prep your days?

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