Forever Hungry...
Chazzlette
Posts: 13 Member
Hey everyone,
In the last year, I've managed to shed 37lbs, I've gained and lost a few times in the proccess. I started at 215lbs, now at 178lbs. I'm finding that the more weight I loose, the hungrier I am ALL THE TIME. It's driving me mad, because I do eat, and I eat well, I use this app very closely, weight my food/portions, log everything, and stay under my daily goals. My calorie intake at the moment is 1230 for the day. I have an active job as a chef (yep, really hard not to eat everything all the time), and I do roughly 6hrs exercise a week +, cardio and weight training.
I'm wondering if I'm not eating enough, or just being greedy? When I get these hunger pangs, its usually after I've already eaten, so I usually drink plenty of water, and if it doesn't go, Ill have something like a cracker, or a mint/gum or try to ignore it.
Another thing I'm wondering, is how much do I really need to worry about my sugar intake? I don't eat sweets, drink fizzy drinks, or fruit juices, but I always seem to be close to my sugar goal every day. I eat fruit every day with breakfast, and a snack or 2 of a satsuma or some berries. etc., so is it a huge worry about going over when my sugar intake is from fruit?
In the last year, I've managed to shed 37lbs, I've gained and lost a few times in the proccess. I started at 215lbs, now at 178lbs. I'm finding that the more weight I loose, the hungrier I am ALL THE TIME. It's driving me mad, because I do eat, and I eat well, I use this app very closely, weight my food/portions, log everything, and stay under my daily goals. My calorie intake at the moment is 1230 for the day. I have an active job as a chef (yep, really hard not to eat everything all the time), and I do roughly 6hrs exercise a week +, cardio and weight training.
I'm wondering if I'm not eating enough, or just being greedy? When I get these hunger pangs, its usually after I've already eaten, so I usually drink plenty of water, and if it doesn't go, Ill have something like a cracker, or a mint/gum or try to ignore it.
Another thing I'm wondering, is how much do I really need to worry about my sugar intake? I don't eat sweets, drink fizzy drinks, or fruit juices, but I always seem to be close to my sugar goal every day. I eat fruit every day with breakfast, and a snack or 2 of a satsuma or some berries. etc., so is it a huge worry about going over when my sugar intake is from fruit?
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Replies
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1230 is not a lot of calories, especially for someone with an active job. How much weight do you have left to lose, and how much are you losing per week recently?0
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1,230 is too low for a person who has an active job and is exercising six hours a week. How much weight are you losing per week on average?
I regularly exceeded my sugar goal when I was losing weight (sometimes from fruit, sometimes from items with added sugar) and I lost weight just fine. Unless you have a medical reason to limit sugar or you find that limiting it helps you meet your calorie goals, there's no real reason to worry about it.0 -
To answer your other questions, satiety is different from person to person. Are you hitting your protein, fat, and fiber goals? Those are all things that can help you feel less hungry on lower calories. I don't even pay attention to my sugar intake, but if you are getting a lot of sugar and too little protein, fat, and fiber it could definitely leave you hungry.0
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Did you set MFP to the right activity level? I'm more sedentary than you and weigh less than you and can eat 1600 and lose. You aren't eating enough. And no, natural sugar isn't a worry. But, if you don't want to eat that much sugar, replace a snack with more protein instead of fruit.0
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I do meet my protein goal most days, as I eat plenty of fish and yoghurt. Fiber too, I reach that and sometimes exceed it. I'm losing maybe 1/2lbs a week, sometimes I gain for no reason thought ): I've slowly taken my calorie intake down over time from 1500 to 1230, should I increase it? I don't feel particularly lethargic, no more than usual anyway.
I find when I have a day off I can easily not eat much, where I wake up later, but with my job I'm up at 6, get breakfast then I'm hungry again at 9/10. I snack often also0 -
Chazzlette wrote: »I do meet my protein goal most days, as I eat plenty of fish and yoghurt. Fiber too, I reach that and sometimes exceed it. I'm losing maybe 1/2lbs a week, sometimes I gain for no reason thought ): I've slowly taken my calorie intake down over time from 1500 to 1230, should I increase it? I don't feel particularly lethargic, no more than usual anyway.
I find when I have a day off I can easily not eat much, where I wake up later, but with my job I'm up at 6, get breakfast then I'm hungry again at 9/10. I snack often also
Do you use and a food scale? Would you be willing to open your diary?
I used to think I was eating 1400 cals a day but I couldn't lose weight. Got a food scale, started using it religiously, and realize I was actually eating 200-300 cals more than I thought. If you're not using one, the best thing you can do is commit to it for at least a couple of weeks to make sure you are eating what you think you are.0 -
Yea I weigh everything to the gram really, I find if I don't ill easily put away 3 portions haha, ill try to open my diary, I'm not sure how0
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I find myself feeling more full and happy if I boost my fat on the hungry days - for me that usually means reaching for an avocado!!!0
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Chazzlette wrote: »Yea I weigh everything to the gram really, I find if I don't ill easily put away 3 portions haha, ill try to open my diary, I'm not sure how
I'm going to be honest and say, I've got nothing else. If you are really only eating 1200 cals, you have an active job, and you aren't consistently losing weight, I think you should consider getting some blood work done and seeing if there is a medical reason.1 -
please open up your diary0
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It sounds like you may need more healthy calories! It never hurts to get blood work done, like klmny72 mentioned.0
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I'm pretty much with everyone who thinks your calories are too low. See what MFP suggest as your caloric intake.0
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Deleted as I read the numbers wrong!0
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I refuse to feel hungry. ***Congrats on the loss!
I have my weight loss goal set losing 0.5 lbs a week because this is not a race and I want to be able to sustain. If you're always feeling hungry - try setting your weekly loss goal less aggressively.
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It could be that the foods you're using from the database are incorrect and you're eating more calories than what you have logged. Have you double checked your entries with official websites like https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/? This helped me a lot when first getting started. A lot of the entries here are wrong and I found I was often choosing the lowest ones I could find. That was just cheating myself.0
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Lots of recommendations, but no stats.....
OP, what's your age and height? (You've given us CW). Only then can recommendations have the context they need.0 -
Chazzlette wrote: »
I think I have now (:deannalfisher wrote: »please open up your diary
You did, thanks!
I agree with the comments to eat more. How tall are you? Unless you are a Little Person, 1230 isn't nearly enough calories for a 21 yo with an active job. What's your activity level set at? How much more weight do you want to lose total and what's your weekly weight loss goal set to?
If after you bump up your calories you are still hungry, try tweaking your macros. Yesterday, they were set at 60 carb, 16 fat, and 24 protein. Now, some people do fine on this but others are more full with more protein and fat, and less carbs.1 -
are you losing half a pound or 1 to 2 lbs a week? They way it was written it could be either and could change some answers. If you are losing 1-2 lbs per week you are doing just fine and should boost your calories up to try to satiate your hunger. I would attempt to have those calories be all fat and/or protein. Enter your stats into MFP with the lightly active setting and 1 lb per week and see what is says your calories should be before exercise.
If you are eating a lot of low-fat foods try switching to the full fat version - usually has less sugar and it leaves me feeling more satisfied long term.
As for the sugar part of your post no need to worry about it if you don't have any issues with sugar such as diabetes especially if you are getting most of it from natural sources like fruit.1 -
CassondraKennedy wrote: »It could be that the foods you're using from the database are incorrect and you're eating more calories than what you have logged. Have you double checked your entries with official websites like https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/? This helped me a lot when first getting started. A lot of the entries here are wrong and I found I was often choosing the lowest ones I could find. That was just cheating myself.
I use the brands exactly, and if I cant find them, I underestimate to make up for it. Is there a way to enter foods yourself on here?
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Chazzlette wrote: »I do meet my protein goal most days, as I eat plenty of fish and yoghurt. Fiber too, I reach that and sometimes exceed it. I'm losing maybe 1/2lbs a week, sometimes I gain for no reason thought ): I've slowly taken my calorie intake down over time from 1500 to 1230, should I increase it? I don't feel particularly lethargic, no more than usual anyway.
I find when I have a day off I can easily not eat much, where I wake up later, but with my job I'm up at 6, get breakfast then I'm hungry again at 9/10. I snack often also
Re: satiety - unfortunately what works best is so individual it's really something you have to experiment with to see what suits you. Couple suggestions that seem to be common changes that people make that help them:
You might want to try changing your meal structure. Some people find they're more hungry when they eat breakfast than when they skip it and just eat lunch. Some people find they are more hungry when they have a bunch of small meals/snacks instead of fewer, larger meals.
Another thing to try is changing the macro breakdown of the meals. I don't know what you typically eat for breakfast, but for example, if you usually eat a protein-rich breakfast maybe a carb & fiber-rich breakfast would work better. Conversely, if you typically eat more carb & fiber for breakfast maybe a protein-rich breakfast would be better.
Of course, there's always upping protein or carbs or fats overall.0 -
Chazzlette wrote: »CassondraKennedy wrote: »It could be that the foods you're using from the database are incorrect and you're eating more calories than what you have logged. Have you double checked your entries with official websites like https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/? This helped me a lot when first getting started. A lot of the entries here are wrong and I found I was often choosing the lowest ones I could find. That was just cheating myself.
I use the brands exactly, and if I cant find them, I underestimate to make up for it. Is there a way to enter foods yourself on here?
There is! If the correct entry does not come up in the search, there is a link below the list of results that says "Add food to database" or something like that. I think you're doing a pretty good job of choosing foods, though. I had a look at your diary.
One more comment: I noticed you sometimes enter "1 tortilla" or "4 biscuits", etc. While I don't think one item logged like this would hurt your deficit, if you're not weighing items like these consistently, it leads me to wonder if you are truly weighing everything all the time. Something to reflect on.
Good luck!0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »Chazzlette wrote: »
I think I have now (:deannalfisher wrote: »please open up your diary
You did, thanks!
I agree with the comments to eat more. How tall are you? Unless you are a Little Person, 1230 isn't nearly enough calories for a 21 yo with an active job. What's your activity level set at? How much more weight do you want to lose total and what's your weekly weight loss goal set to?
If after you bump up your calories you are still hungry, try tweaking your macros. Yesterday, they were set at 60 carb, 16 fat, and 24 protein. Now, some people do fine on this but others are more full with more protein and fat, and less carbs.
I'm 5'5, and I believe its set at lightly active, I have another 30lbs to go to my goal weight, and its set at 2lbs a week. I tried to decrease my carbs but I could barely function with less, but I give tweaking my protein a go, which should help with my weight training anyway, thanks (:0 -
I find that intermittent fasting has really helped me control my hunger. I divide all my calories between 2 meals, so both meals are hearty and satisfying.
I figure that I'm going to by hungry by lunch time regardless if I eat breakfast or not. So I just save my calories and don't eat breakfast anymore. It was surprisingly easy to make the switch.1 -
TheCupcakeCounter wrote: »are you losing half a pound or 1 to 2 lbs a week? They way it was written it could be either and could change some answers. If you are losing 1-2 lbs per week you are doing just fine and should boost your calories up to try to satiate your hunger. I would attempt to have those calories be all fat and/or protein. Enter your stats into MFP with the lightly active setting and 1 lb per week and see what is says your calories should be before exercise.
If you are eating a lot of low-fat foods try switching to the full fat version - usually has less sugar and it leaves me feeling more satisfied long term.
As for the sugar part of your post no need to worry about it if you don't have any issues with sugar such as diabetes especially if you are getting most of it from natural sources like fruit.
Ah yes, I see that now, it would be 1-2lbs a week. I try to avoid low fat stuff, especially with all those nasty sweeteners in, I mostly try to have naturally low fat foods, but I do have the odd "healthy" cereal bar or crisps0 -
Chazzlette wrote: »TheCupcakeCounter wrote: »are you losing half a pound or 1 to 2 lbs a week? They way it was written it could be either and could change some answers. If you are losing 1-2 lbs per week you are doing just fine and should boost your calories up to try to satiate your hunger. I would attempt to have those calories be all fat and/or protein. Enter your stats into MFP with the lightly active setting and 1 lb per week and see what is says your calories should be before exercise.
If you are eating a lot of low-fat foods try switching to the full fat version - usually has less sugar and it leaves me feeling more satisfied long term.
As for the sugar part of your post no need to worry about it if you don't have any issues with sugar such as diabetes especially if you are getting most of it from natural sources like fruit.
Ah yes, I see that now, it would be 1-2lbs a week. I try to avoid low fat stuff, especially with all those nasty sweeteners in, I mostly try to have naturally low fat foods, but I do have the odd "healthy" cereal bar or crisps
1-2lbs per week is a great rate! You could probably stand to change your MFP settings to 1lb per week. That would definitely help with the hunger!0 -
Chazzlette wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Chazzlette wrote: »
I think I have now (:deannalfisher wrote: »please open up your diary
You did, thanks!
I agree with the comments to eat more. How tall are you? Unless you are a Little Person, 1230 isn't nearly enough calories for a 21 yo with an active job. What's your activity level set at? How much more weight do you want to lose total and what's your weekly weight loss goal set to?
If after you bump up your calories you are still hungry, try tweaking your macros. Yesterday, they were set at 60 carb, 16 fat, and 24 protein. Now, some people do fine on this but others are more full with more protein and fat, and less carbs.
I'm 5'5, and I believe its set at lightly active, I have another 30lbs to go to my goal weight, and its set at 2lbs a week. I tried to decrease my carbs but I could barely function with less, but I give tweaking my protein a go, which should help with my weight training anyway, thanks (:
I've worked in restaurants and think you should set your activity level to Active. Also, with only 30 pounds to go, 2 pounds per week is too aggressive a rate of loss. Bump that down to 1 #/wk and enjoy those extra calories!
Also try eating more healthy fats. Easy to do with nuts. With the increase in calories, you can afford them now. 1 -
Chazzlette wrote: »TheCupcakeCounter wrote: »are you losing half a pound or 1 to 2 lbs a week? They way it was written it could be either and could change some answers. If you are losing 1-2 lbs per week you are doing just fine and should boost your calories up to try to satiate your hunger. I would attempt to have those calories be all fat and/or protein. Enter your stats into MFP with the lightly active setting and 1 lb per week and see what is says your calories should be before exercise.
If you are eating a lot of low-fat foods try switching to the full fat version - usually has less sugar and it leaves me feeling more satisfied long term.
As for the sugar part of your post no need to worry about it if you don't have any issues with sugar such as diabetes especially if you are getting most of it from natural sources like fruit.
Ah yes, I see that now, it would be 1-2lbs a week. I try to avoid low fat stuff, especially with all those nasty sweeteners in, I mostly try to have naturally low fat foods, but I do have the odd "healthy" cereal bar or crisps
Oh! I thought it was half a lb. With 30 lbs left to go, set your goal to 1 lb per week and try to get a little more fat and protein to help with satiety. Good luck!0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »Chazzlette wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Chazzlette wrote: »
I think I have now (:deannalfisher wrote: »please open up your diary
You did, thanks!
I agree with the comments to eat more. How tall are you? Unless you are a Little Person, 1230 isn't nearly enough calories for a 21 yo with an active job. What's your activity level set at? How much more weight do you want to lose total and what's your weekly weight loss goal set to?
If after you bump up your calories you are still hungry, try tweaking your macros. Yesterday, they were set at 60 carb, 16 fat, and 24 protein. Now, some people do fine on this but others are more full with more protein and fat, and less carbs.
I'm 5'5, and I believe its set at lightly active, I have another 30lbs to go to my goal weight, and its set at 2lbs a week. I tried to decrease my carbs but I could barely function with less, but I give tweaking my protein a go, which should help with my weight training anyway, thanks (:
I've worked in restaurants and think you should set your activity level to Active. Also, with only 30 pounds to go, 2 pounds per week is too aggressive a rate of loss. Bump that down to 1 #/wk and enjoy those extra calories!
Also try eating more healthy fats. Easy to do with nuts. With the increase in calories, you can afford them now.
That sounds like an amazing plan haha0 -
I think 2lb per week is a bit ambitious, especially if you are still hungry. Perhaps bump it down to .5 or 1 lb and you will be at goal before you know it. And the advice about adding protein and healthy fats sounds pretty solid too, even if you don't raise your calories.0
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