I need tips to curb hunger ASAP please?

I find it better to get up and do something, keep yourself busy to take your mind of it, or drink plenty of water. But if it really is food you want then I find lean protein will keep you fuller for longer.

It's not hunger unless you've been habitually eating far below the minimum. There are other reasons for repeatedly reaching for food. Take some time to figure out what those reasons are and find new ways to address them.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/jgnatca/view/halting-a-binge-session-715131

If you're binge eating for real, there may be deeper issues that you need to look at. That said, 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.

Pickles. Eat a pickle first. Two if you have to.

Great big veggie salads with 2 tbsp. of low cal dressing. An egg for protein is ok but don't load it with cheese, pasta, and such. The pickle idea is also good. That can actually go IN the salad if you like it that way. I'm much less likely to binge on crap if I'm chock full of vegetables.

SergeantSausage wrote: »

I find that Self Control works for everyone who actually tries it, right?

Saying "no" when appropriate is a necessary survival skill.

I saw this was flagged. I'm not 100% sure why?
Okay, I'm not a huge fan of the 'harsh but fair' way of giving advice that is very popular on MFP - BUT this makes total sense to me.

OP, in the nicest way possible - you need to ask yourself how important your goal is to you. The importance of your goal will determine whether or not you stick to your plan. Having said that, make sure you are not depriving yourself. Deprivation regularly leads to 'binge eating' - but a lot of this process is down to having a strong will and a burning determination. You can do it!

I saw a while back on these boards how someone wrote something along the lines of nothing tastes better than the first bite. For some reason that quote resonated with me and became ingrained when I reach for food. It's true and stops me from mindlessly eating. I'll have maybe a bite or two instead of a huge amount.

OP - is you binging really random, or can you find a pattern to it? Are you bored, tired, stressed, thirsty (surprisingly being thirsty can feel like hunger) ? Try to see if you can find a pattern to your binges, and take steps to mitigate it. If not, try snacking on low calorie whole foods. I like to eat before going to bed. I usually watch tv for about an hour before sleep, and like to munch continuously during that hour. I try to save the bulk of my calories for that time, but if I don't have many calories left I will have air popped popcorn, or a pomegranate, or something similar that will take me a long time to eat while still being low calorie. Good luck!

MommyL2015 wrote: »

I second the pickles. Really low cal and crunchy good!

Yep, pretty much the only thing in them is a lot of sodium. When I am eating my boring workday eating schedule of a hardboiled egg or piece of string cheese at each break, 1 of each at lunch with a greek yogurt or protein bar, the pickle is a nice punch with a basically zero hit to my food numbers.