hunger

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Leila2289
Leila2289 Posts: 23 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I don't know if I am just not eating the right foods or my body is not used to being fed constantly but I keep getting so hungry! Does this go away? Any advice?

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  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    How many calories are you eating per day? Are you getting sufficient fiber and protein? Are you eating back exercise calories?
  • Trish1c
    Trish1c Posts: 549 Member
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    Eat smaller meals more frequently. I was miserable trying to stick to 3 meals. When I added in mid morning & afternoon bites -- nothing extreme just some carrots, a piece of cheese, some nuts or a bar of some sort -- I felt so much better.
  • Leila2289
    Leila2289 Posts: 23 Member
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    1200, and it doesn't show me the fiber measure on here...is there a way to do that? I also eat fiber supplements. And I haven't been exercising :/
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Leila2289 wrote: »
    1200, and it doesn't show me the fiber measure on here...is there a way to do that? I also eat fiber supplements. And I haven't been exercising :/

    Are you on the website or the app? If you're on the website, you should be able to see your fiber by going to your "Reports" area. Is the 1,200 calorie goal from MFP? That's the absolute lowest a woman should go so you might be able to get more calories. Did you tell MFP you wanted to lose 2 pounds a week? An aggressive goal will give you lower calories -- by choosing a more reasonable goal, you may be able to eat more calories each day.
  • silvilunazul
    silvilunazul Posts: 59 Member
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    Choose filling foods that are low calorie but nutritious. I eat mountains of non starchy vegetables, large soups, beans, protein pancakes, lean protein such as seafood and fish, monster egg white omelettes...
  • Leila2289
    Leila2289 Posts: 23 Member
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    what are protein pancakes? and i am on the website. i put in 1.5 lbs, with 1 lb it was only like 40 calories more
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Leila2289 wrote: »
    what are protein pancakes? and i am on the website. i put in 1.5 lbs, with 1 lb it was only like 40 calories more

    You can also choose half a pound a week. How many pounds overall are you looking to lose?
  • Leila2289
    Leila2289 Posts: 23 Member
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    at the least 26. At that weight I would be healthy more weight than that would be more of a personal appearance thing
  • dmt4641
    dmt4641 Posts: 409 Member
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    If losing only 26 lbs you may want to set your goal to .5 lb a week. When I cut calories coming off maintenance or over eating I am starving for a week, then it gets better. A few tips:

    Make sure you are eating enough protein. .8 grams per pound of your weight is a good amount. The amount MFP sets is not enough. Try to eat vegetables, fruit, getting whole foods, will keep you full longer than something like a bagel. Healthy fats added in as well.

    And you can start exercising to get a few exercise calories.
  • Leila2289
    Leila2289 Posts: 23 Member
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    How long till the starvation goes away?
  • 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. 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.
  • lisabridwell
    lisabridwell Posts: 31 Member
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    Sometimes our bodies send out similar signals for hunger and thirst. When you're hungry, try drinking about 16 oz of water and wait a few minutes and see if you don't feel hungry.
  • ogtmama
    ogtmama Posts: 1,403 Member
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    Trish1c wrote: »
    Eat smaller meals more frequently. I was miserable trying to stick to 3 meals. When I added in mid morning & afternoon bites -- nothing extreme just some carrots, a piece of cheese, some nuts or a bar of some sort -- I felt so much better.

    That's funny, I was going to suggest the opposite. With many small meals I was never satisfied, I far prefer 2 large meals with a small snack in between.

    Some people are more satisfied using protein, some fats, others like to eat large volumes of food so salads and steamed veggies work.

    Find what works for you, so long as it's in keeping with your calorie deficit you can't go wrong. Good luck!

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