Sweets one day, hunger the next
Jthanmyfitnesspal
Posts: 3,522 Member
I'm finding that if I indulge in carbs one day, I'm hungry the day after.
Today is a case in point. Yesterday was a big carb day and today I'm plagued by hunger. At 10:30, I'm still hungry, despite having a good breakfast at 8. I'm realizing that this is exactly why I've gained weight in the past and I need a new approach.
Suggestions welcome.
Today is a case in point. Yesterday was a big carb day and today I'm plagued by hunger. At 10:30, I'm still hungry, despite having a good breakfast at 8. I'm realizing that this is exactly why I've gained weight in the past and I need a new approach.
Suggestions welcome.
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Replies
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If you open your food diary it might help. A "big carb day" means different things to different people.0
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Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »
Sounds like you didn't get enough protein, fat and fiber. It's not the sweets causing hunger, it's the lack of balance and nutrients. If you had a fairly balanced day and all you did was add a few hundred calories of dessert that would be different. Your body is trying to tell you that you didn't give it what it really needed yesterday.0 -
Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »
Sounds like you didn't get enough protein, fat and fiber. It's not the sweets causing hunger, it's the lack of balance and nutrients. If you had a fairly balanced day and all you did was add a few hundred calories of dessert that would be different. Your body is trying to tell you that you didn't give it what it really needed yesterday.
Yeah I agree with that.0 -
When you eat processed foods that are high in sugar and carbs your body isn't getting the nutrients it needs which in turn causes cravings and hunger. The more junk you eat the more you will crave junk. You should always log your meals, even on cheat days. You would be amazed at the amount of empty calories you are consuming and it might make you think twice before eating that dessert. High carb days for me include extra fruit, rice cakes, brown rice, sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables. That is a "high carb" day. I wake up feeling full of energy and completely satisfied. If I drink wine and eat unhealthy carbs full on processed flour and sugar, I wake up feeling tired, hungry and sluggish. Rethink your carbs.3
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"Junk" food. LOL
Try adding in more protein and fat on your cheat days. Also, log that stuff anyway so you can get better at cheating and learn what does and doesn't work for you.0 -
"Junk" food. LOL
Try adding in more protein and fat on your cheat days. Also, log that stuff anyway so you can get better at cheating and learn what does and doesn't work for you.
"unhealthy carbs" as well.
OP, I had my first ever properly planned refeed day a couple of years ago and the next day I had another one, which was unplanned. My hunger levels went drastically up, it wasn't anything I'd ever experienced before. So this hasn't just happened to you if it's any comfort.0 -
When you eat processed foods that are high in sugar and carbs your body isn't getting the nutrients it needs which in turn causes cravings and hunger. The more junk you eat the more you will crave junk. You should always log your meals, even on cheat days. You would be amazed at the amount of empty calories you are consuming and it might make you think twice before eating that dessert. High carb days for me include extra fruit, rice cakes, brown rice, sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables. That is a "high carb" day. I wake up feeling full of energy and completely satisfied. If I drink wine and eat unhealthy carbs full on processed flour and sugar, I wake up feeling tired, hungry and sluggish. Rethink your carbs.
Funny, that never happens to me. I swear that anti carb people just look for any excuse to convince themselves that carbs are bad.
Yesterday I ate pretty much 90% desserts, pancakes, bread, ice cream... (it was my birthday!). I actually had a kick *kitten* workout after that meal too, imagine that.
Anyway, this morning I wasn't very hungry at all and ended up having breakfast a bit later than I usually do. I'm actually feeling great, didn't need 3 cups of coffee as usual, and I don't think I'll have much of an issue sticking to my deficit today. Also been doing pretty good on my workouts.
OP, I think the key is to make sure to have a balanced breakfast after you have a day like that... Mine was whole wheat toast with nut butter and an apple. Plenty of fiber, good fat, some protein.3 -
Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »I'm finding that if I indulge in carbs one day, I'm hungry the day after.
Today is a case in point. Yesterday was a big carb day and today I'm plagued by hunger. At 10:30, I'm still hungry, despite having a good breakfast at 8. I'm realizing that this is exactly why I've gained weight in the past and I need a new approach.
@usmcmp, @nicole_j and @_Waffle_
Suggestions welcome.
Yes @Jthanmyfitnesspal this can be the case for others too. Because of my health concerns beyond just weight loss I just wound up going off sugar and all forms of grains. I do not recommend that for casual weight loss because it was a hellish two weeks. Thankfully the cravings just then faded and have not returned 18 months later.
The points made by @usmcmp , @nicole_j and @_Waffle_ are sensible starting points that worked for me as I fine tuned my macro and learned in some cases not all calories are the same to mine body and mind. Login to learn is key to be able to tweak down the road.1 -
There's a few things that go into it. When I used to have really bad binges during my more restrictive days of dieting, I would be so incredibly "hungry" the next morning. This compounds because you want to eat less in your mind the day after, so it sort of perpetuates a binge-cycle.
Drink LOTS of water. You're probably a bit dehydrated. Your body is also probably expecting more food again, so there may be some strong chemical signals going on.
I think I read something about not digesting and absorbing all the nutrients, so if you over-eat too much in a small window, it leaving your intestines full of food without satisfying your nutrient receptors, but that could just be someone's hypothesis.0 -
bclarke1990 wrote: »Your body is also probably expecting more food again, so there may be some strong chemical signals going on.
Oh, yes there are!
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When you eat processed foods that are high in sugar and carbs your body isn't getting the nutrients it needs which in turn causes cravings and hunger. The more junk you eat the more you will crave junk. You should always log your meals, even on cheat days. You would be amazed at the amount of empty calories you are consuming and it might make you think twice before eating that dessert. High carb days for me include extra fruit, rice cakes, brown rice, sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables. That is a "high carb" day. I wake up feeling full of energy and completely satisfied. If I drink wine and eat unhealthy carbs full on processed flour and sugar, I wake up feeling tired, hungry and sluggish. Rethink your carbs.
So very true. At least for me it is. Great response!1 -
Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »I'm finding that if I indulge in carbs one day, I'm hungry the day after.
Blood sugar's spiking and then crashing, which you perceive as hunger.
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You can't learn about you if you only log when it is easy or when you are good. You can get a lot of insight on the days you consider bad days.2
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When you eat processed foods that are high in sugar and carbs your body isn't getting the nutrients it needs which in turn causes cravings and hunger. The more junk you eat the more you will crave junk. You should always log your meals, even on cheat days. You would be amazed at the amount of empty calories you are consuming and it might make you think twice before eating that dessert. High carb days for me include extra fruit, rice cakes, brown rice, sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables. That is a "high carb" day. I wake up feeling full of energy and completely satisfied. If I drink wine and eat unhealthy carbs full on processed flour and sugar, I wake up feeling tired, hungry and sluggish. Rethink your carbs.
Woo woo.....
I find carbs the most filling and give me the most energy. Once your body has broken down and digested your food I wonder how it tells the difference between "good" and "bad" carbs.0 -
A nutritionist I took a class from recommended every meal include protein, produce and some healthy fat. It seems to be a decent rule of thumb. It might help you get through the hungry day.2
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When I get like this I have boiled eggs, oranges and l-glutamine. It nips the hunger in the bud.0
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Snacking on mustard and pickles helps kill my appetite, but I'll retain more water to dilute the salt, for a day or two.0
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after reading the above post, mustard and pickles def killed my appetite for a few days.. that just sounds nasty and might kill anything that might come near me after eating that.2
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When you eat processed foods that are high in sugar and carbs your body isn't getting the nutrients it needs which in turn causes cravings and hunger. The more junk you eat the more you will crave junk. You should always log your meals, even on cheat days. You would be amazed at the amount of empty calories you are consuming and it might make you think twice before eating that dessert. High carb days for me include extra fruit, rice cakes, brown rice, sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables. That is a "high carb" day. I wake up feeling full of energy and completely satisfied. If I drink wine and eat unhealthy carbs full on processed flour and sugar, I wake up feeling tired, hungry and sluggish. Rethink your carbs.
Funny, that never happens to me. I swear that anti carb people just look for any excuse to convince themselves that carbs are bad.
Yes, that!
I'd estimate the OP's "problem" is 80% in the mind, and 20% needing a bit more fat or protein.Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »I'm finding that if I indulge in carbs one day, I'm hungry the day after.
Today is a case in point. Yesterday was a big carb day and today I'm plagued by hunger. At 10:30, I'm still hungry, despite having a good breakfast at 8. I'm realizing that this is exactly why I've gained weight in the past and I need a new approach.
Suggestions welcome.
I suggest that you gained weight in the past because you ate too many calories.
Calories.1 -
I think it's much more about neglecting a balance of macros than it is about one particular macronutrient group being the culprit. I've found if I neglect protein-rich foods for more than a meal that's much more likely to trigger later hunger, but, I exercise pretty hard every day and so that's my body just telling me I need to keep supplying it with what it needs.
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Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »bclarke1990 wrote: »Your body is also probably expecting more food again, so there may be some strong chemical signals going on.
Oh, yes there are!
This happens to me. Nothing to do with carbs -- it's just that I tend to be more "diet hangry" after a day where I eat at or over maintenance. I assume it has to do with the body calibrating it's expectations of food intake, because if I can maintain my deficit on the hangry day, I'm fine 9 times out of 10 the one after. Though the conversation here about it being neglected macros would make sense to me.
It's just a matter of gritting one's teeth and making the right choices for their needs, in my experience.1 -
I'd estimate the OP's "problem" is 80% in the mind, and 20% needing a bit more fat or protein.
Hunger, a very complex sensation, is 100% "in the mind," yet, for me, it has very real impact on my daily life. Calorie counting is an intellectual method for overcoming your body's hunger, which otherwise can drive you to over eat.
Despite the comments, I can report that, for me, eating sweets one day increases my hunger the next.1 -
Realizing that this was happening to me was a huge breakthrough that allowed me to learn how to control my eating habits for the first time in my life. I've lost 130 pounds and 3 years later, I still find that it is true.
When I go over on carbs, I am hungry the next day and I have to be very careful to not over eat or I will start a downward spiral that it is hard to come out of.
It is very real for ME, not in my head. It's how my body works.5 -
If that's how your body works, it's good to know. Still, even when traveling, you can use your phone to log -- and logging can help you get an even better picture of what works and what doesn't. I logged on the app during a vacation without a scale the first week that I put myself on maintenance, and have done it on trips since.
If you don't feel that you can log, say, in front of your boss or whatever, just do it as soon as you can. (Though my guess is that, if your employer is paying your insurance, your boss would probably be happy to see you working hard at becoming healthier.)0 -
You are not alone! I don't think it's carbs for me though, just any time I overeat or eat stuff that isn't good for me. The next day, I have the urge to keep eating like that.
I don't understand the biochemistry of it, but I know that the next day I definitely have to put more energy into eating well when normally it's part of my routine. After that first day, if I go back to eating well, I'm usually back to normal.
I think when you can identify the problem, it makes it much easier to find and stick to a solution. Recognize that you ate a lot of junk and that tomorrow it will be more effort than normal to stick with your diet. Your cravings the next day aren't telling the truth.0 -
For me, anything that converts to sugar and/or is "junk" food starts my cravings and hunger up ... and takes me 3 days to get past those. There are lots of biochemical reasons for this, but all I need to know is that I feel really awful after I overindulge in anything like that and it doesn't satisfy hunger, but makes it worse. I usually follow up with a ton of protein and no carbs, even complex ones, for a few days. I find that works for me.2
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When I get like this it's always because I haven't come anywhere near my protein goal, not because I've had 'too many' carbs (I always eat a lot of carbs). I was absolutely ravenous yesterday, could not stop snacking all day. Sure enough, for the two previous days I'd been significantly lower than usual on protein, though carbs and fat were close to what I would call 'normal' for me. Last night I went to the London Marathon expo (I'm not running, I just wanted to see if there were any good deals going) and sampled pretty much every protein bar available. Today? Not even a *hint* of a hunger pang. It's not exactly scientific, I know, but definitely *for me* it's getting sufficient protein that makes the difference
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Agree.When you eat processed foods that are high in sugar and carbs your body isn't getting the nutrients it needs which in turn causes cravings and hunger. The more junk you eat the more you will crave junk. You should always log your meals, even on cheat days. You would be amazed at the amount of empty calories you are consuming and it might make you think twice before eating that dessert. High carb days for me include extra fruit, rice cakes, brown rice, sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables. That is a "high carb" day. I wake up feeling full of energy and completely satisfied. If I drink wine and eat unhealthy carbs full on processed flour and sugar, I wake up feeling tired, hungry and sluggish. Rethink your carbs.
Funny, that never happens to me. I swear that anti carb people just look for any excuse to convince themselves that carbs are bad.
Yesterday I ate pretty much 90% desserts, pancakes, bread, ice cream... (it was my birthday!). I actually had a kick *kitten* workout after that meal too, imagine that.
Anyway, this morning I wasn't very hungry at all and ended up having breakfast a bit later than I usually do. I'm actually feeling great, didn't need 3 cups of coffee as usual, and I don't think I'll have much of an issue sticking to my deficit today. Also been doing pretty good on my workouts.
OP, I think the key is to make sure to have a balanced breakfast after you have a day like that... Mine was whole wheat toast with nut butter and an apple. Plenty of fiber, good fat, some protein.0 -
Agree.When you eat processed foods that are high in sugar and carbs your body isn't getting the nutrients it needs which in turn causes cravings and hunger. The more junk you eat the more you will crave junk. You should always log your meals, even on cheat days. You would be amazed at the amount of empty calories you are consuming and it might make you think twice before eating that dessert. High carb days for me include extra fruit, rice cakes, brown rice, sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables. That is a "high carb" day. I wake up feeling full of energy and completely satisfied. If I drink wine and eat unhealthy carbs full on processed flour and sugar, I wake up feeling tired, hungry and sluggish. Rethink your carbs.
Funny, that never happens to me. I swear that anti carb people just look for any excuse to convince themselves that carbs are bad.
Yesterday I ate pretty much 90% desserts, pancakes, bread, ice cream... (it was my birthday!). I actually had a kick *kitten* workout after that meal too, imagine that.
Anyway, this morning I wasn't very hungry at all and ended up having breakfast a bit later than I usually do. I'm actually feeling great, didn't need 3 cups of coffee as usual, and I don't think I'll have much of an issue sticking to my deficit today. Also been doing pretty good on my workouts.
OP, I think the key is to make sure to have a balanced breakfast after you have a day like that... Mine was whole wheat toast with nut butter and an apple. Plenty of fiber, good fat, some protein.
It is great that no kind of carbs seems to trigger a toxic response in your bodies. If that fact ever changes and any barbs start to create inflammation responses in your bodies some these posts may start to make sense.
I am not anti carb for others but I am for myself. Anyone who has lived with high pain levels and 40 years of serious IBS symptoms that resolved after leaving off sugar and all grains will naturally have an understanding of the subject. Hopefully you will never have to go through hell because for some reason some types of carbs started triggering things like arthritis, IBS, etc but if they do then you may grasp a better understanding of what some of us have had to learn the hard way about carb toxicity.1
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