Help! Hungry ALL the time!

archie313 · February 2016

I'm a certified health coach and a molecular biologist. And yes, I have weight to lose too. Knowing what to do and doing it can be two different things:)

Exercise is great for our health, but it doesn't burn a lot of calories. Our weight is largely dependent on the food we eat. If you're hungry all the time perhaps you're not eating enough food and/or you're not eating food that can sate you. I'm leaping to the conclusion that you're not on a restrictive diet that forbids certain things. If I'm mistaken, please let me know. This site gives you the amount of fat/protein/carbs that you're eating. Aim for 30/20/50%, respectively. And I'm sure you've heard it before, but for the most part, don't eat things that have a label. Whole foods are healthy and you can eat a lot of them--not so much measuring is needed when you're eating healthy, whole food. It's really the key to losing weight without suffering and making sustainable, forever changes.

Complex carbs will give you energy because the sugar in them is metabolized over time. Examples are whole grains (NOT packaged food with a "whole wheat" claim) like brown rice, oats (especially steel cut oats), barley, wheat berries, and quinoa. Quinoa's a seed, not a grain, but it'll give you the same result. Actually, quinoa has oodles of good things in it. Corn counts too, including popcorn (be thoughtful about what you put on it). Other complex carbs include fruit, veggies, and legumes (legumes also have a decent amount of protein). Aim for things that are high in fiber. But carbs aren't enough to satiate. Fats and protein are needed.

Healthy fats include low fat dairy, avocados, seeds (hulled hemp seeds are delicious), nuts (they're high in calories, but healthy and filling in small doses) and olive oil. Women need at least 46 grams of protein/day to keep all of our biochemical pathways operating smoothly. Good choices include poultry, fish, low fat dairy, beans...and quinoa. Lean red meat is always on lists of healthy options. However, those of us who regularly eat red meat are ~30% more likely to get colon cancer. Things that come from pigs are red meat, too.

Have you tried fruit and green smoothies, especially if made with unsweetened vanilla almond milk (lots of calcium, 30 calories/cup). Some lemon juice will cut the "greeness" taste if that's an issue (it is for me). Another thing to consider is to eat an apple (hopefully you like them?) with a little peanut or almond butter when you're hungry. If you're still hungry afterwards, so be it. But at least you got some fiber, complex carbs for energy and healthy fat and protein for your effort, without a lot of calories.

One last thing: check out http://inspiralized.com for lots of tasty, healthy recipes. It's a great site (no affiliation).

Didn't mean to go on and on. But being hungry all the time is awful and definately NOT sustainable--who wants to live that way? I hope some of this was useful.

You Got This!!

Rocknut53 · February 2016

archie313 wrote: »

I'm a certified health coach and a molecular biologist. And yes, I have weight to lose too. Knowing what to do and doing it can be two different things:)

Exercise is great for our health, but it doesn't burn a lot of calories. Our weight is largely dependent on the food we eat. If you're hungry all the time perhaps you're not eating enough food and/or you're not eating food that can sate you. I'm leaping to the conclusion that you're not on a restrictive diet that forbids certain things. If I'm mistaken, please let me know. This site gives you the amount of fat/protein/carbs that you're eating. Aim for 30/20/50%, respectively. And I'm sure you've heard it before, but for the most part, don't eat things that have a label. Whole foods are healthy and you can eat a lot of them--not so much measuring is needed when you're eating healthy, whole food. It's really the key to losing weight without suffering and making sustainable, forever changes.

Complex carbs will give you energy because the sugar in them is metabolized over time. Examples are whole grains (NOT packaged food with a "whole wheat" claim) like brown rice, oats (especially steel cut oats), barley, wheat berries, and quinoa. Quinoa's a seed, not a grain, but it'll give you the same result. Actually, quinoa has oodles of good things in it. Corn counts too, including popcorn (be thoughtful about what you put on it). Other complex carbs include fruit, veggies, and legumes (legumes also have a decent amount of protein). Aim for things that are high in fiber. But carbs aren't enough to satiate. Fats and protein are needed.

Healthy fats include low fat dairy, avocados, seeds (hulled hemp seeds are delicious), nuts (they're high in calories, but healthy and filling in small doses) and olive oil. Women need at least 46 grams of protein/day to keep all of our biochemical pathways operating smoothly. Good choices include poultry, fish, low fat dairy, beans...and quinoa. Lean red meat is always on lists of healthy options. However, those of us who regularly eat red meat are ~30% more likely to get colon cancer. Things that come from pigs are red meat, too.

Have you tried fruit and green smoothies, especially if made with unsweetened vanilla almond milk (lots of calcium, 30 calories/cup). Some lemon juice will cut the "greeness" taste if that's an issue (it is for me). Another thing to consider is to eat an apple (hopefully you like them?) with a little peanut or almond butter when you're hungry. If you're still hungry afterwards, so be it. But at least you got some fiber, complex carbs for energy and healthy fat and protein for your effort, without a lot of calories.

One last thing: check out http://inspiralized.com for lots of tasty, healthy recipes. It's a great site (no affiliation).

Didn't mean to go on and on. But being hungry all the time is awful and definately NOT sustainable--who wants to live that way? I hope some of this was useful.

You Got This!!

This is the best thing I've read for awhile. Good, common sense response to OP.

1brandn · February 2016

im on 1200 calories a day as well. Drink plenty when you eat helps you to feel fuller, fizzy water works for me, lots of fruit, muesli, egg white omelletes are excellent, loads of salad especially mushrooms fill me out, and for me the key is excercise. Feel way less hungry after a proper workout. Im gyming 3-4 times a week, and a good feed after the gym, baked sweet potato and salad fuels me up. Im not eating back calories. 1200 calories is working for me, just check nutrition and make sure you are covering your bases....

write2thelass · February 2016

sherrifoster123 wrote: »

I really like the Skinny Taste website for healthy meal ideas. I have found some good recipes there that are filling but lower calorie.

elaineamj · February 2016

I am only 5ft tall so have to make do with less calories. I like skinnytaste - I got some awesome lowcal recipes there that easily fit in 1200 calories and left me satiated. Tonight's dinner was a 250 cal chicken and wild rice soup - filling and absolutely delicious.

That said - I have lost 10 lbs in the last month (much faster that I want) and I have bowed to everyone's collective wisdom. Since I am burning about 400-500 cals a day in exercise, I have upped my cals to 1600-1700/day (depending how much exercise I do). I'm kinda excited as I was starting to get a little frustrated staying within 1200 cals. I wasn't hungry, but it was so strict I pretty much cut out all but the very very occasional treat. With only 1200 cals, I absolutely had to make sure every mouthful was filled with nutrition and would fill me.

kimny72 · February 2016

OP, how much weight do you have to lose? You said you lost 9 lbs in one month, which is @ 2 lbs per week. Unless you have alot of weight to lose, that could be too aggressive. If you are hungry, eat a little more! Many people find protein and/or fat helps them feel more satiated, so add a couple hundred calories of chicken or fish or nuts or yogurt. Make sure you are getting enough fiber. It's not worth it to struggle to lose weight faster, you risk burning out.

dabb95 · February 2016

Thanks for all the great information, I will give them a try. I might have to up my calories a little. I actually only need to probably lose about 15 more pounds. I do have a question about using my steps that I do at work. I usually do about 10,000 steps a day but I don't use them but should I?

Domicinator · February 2016

My favorite meal for the last several months has been 2 servings of 0% Fage, a serving of granola, and a tablespoon of honey. Easy to weigh out on the food scale, super filling, and super delicious.

mandikaysmom · February 2016

dabb95 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the responses. I think of I had good low calories things to eat the 1200 calories wouldn't be so hard. I really don't buy a lot of "diet" type foods. I just try really hard to portion what I do eat. My measuring cups and spoons are always dirty, lol!

Quest Bars bought from Academy are low cal/high protein. Premiere Protien drinks sold at Pharmacies in Walmart, Costco, Sams have 30 grams of protein and only 4 carbs. Under 200 calories. These were both suggested by my weight loss doc and I like them both. (Several flavors in both items).

Cristless quiche with spinach, cheese and bacon or ham is also a staple in my diet! Meat meat meat!

Help! Hungry ALL the time!

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