How to decrease appetite?

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I feel like I can eat healthy without issue. But my issue is that since I’m so over weight my stomach is so large that I feel hungry after eating a normal sized healthy meal. I’m drinking plenty of water but what else do y’all do to help curve that appetite?
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  • Blythmag
    Blythmag Posts: 252 Member
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    I load up on healthy salads , pickles etc but try to stay within the calories im aloud.

    Its easy in theory then you lose weight.
  • YOLO145
    YOLO145 Posts: 98 Member
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    I’m less hungry on days I work out.
  • Werglum
    Werglum Posts: 378 Member
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    With time your appetite will adjust. But it takes time. Also remember, it is okay to be hungry, we tend to eat far too much and can go for months without being hungry, this is not really a good thing. I have started doing the 16:8 eating schedule, I have been doing this for 7 weeks now (basically you don't eat for 16 hours a day and do eat for 8, I personally eat between 11am and 7pm. This really works for me and my lifestyle. I like big portions but the trade off is that I don't eat breakfast so I am pretty hungry by lunch time, but can have a bigger portion than if I was to have had breakfast. It is all down to calories in and out. If you like feeling full, you can either have a bigger portion and cut out elsewhere (like what I do) or you can bulk up your meals by having low calorie foods to bulk your meal out (such as leafy greens and so on).
  • jjtweb
    jjtweb Posts: 37 Member
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    I used vegetables to increase the amount of food I could eat. In time your stomach shrinks. However there is a difference in truly being hungry and your mind telling you that you are. That is going to require you to find something else to do not to dwell on it. In time you will learn to be satisfied instead of full.
  • batorkin
    batorkin Posts: 281 Member
    edited December 2017
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    YOLO145 wrote: »
    I’m less hungry on days I work out.

    Significant for me, enough that I try to work out every day.

    I tend to eat ~500 more calories on days I don't work out, and I have to force myself to go to bed hungry.
  • Magnum_Opus
    Magnum_Opus Posts: 23 Member
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    Plate up the veggies.

    Also what do you consider a healthy meal?
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    Appetite is not the same as hunger. Are you eating enough - quantity: your calorie need is based on your height, weight, sex, age and activity level, and you should set your rate of loss to no more than 1% of your body weight per week; and quality: you've probably heard about "five a day" and "the food pyramid" - those recommendations aren't supposed to make you feel restricted, but to make sure you get in the nutrition you need. You can actually be starving yourself even if you're overweight - from malnutrition. MFP's default macro setup, combined with a drop of common sense, is a good baseline.

    Your stomach is fine. You're just used to eating too much. Satiety usually takes some time to set in after eating. Healthy eating is getting in enough of all the nutrition you need, in the form of foods you enjoy, but not too much over time. It's normal and healthy to be hungry before meals, quite satisfied after meals, and empty most of the time between meals.

    Appetite is good, and you must learn to tolerate excess appetite. Even if you are eating the best diet possible, you will occasionally, or often, want more, or something else. It's okay to give in to cravings sometimes, but you can't routinely eat too much, and still have good health.

    Keeping busy is a good idea if your problem is boredom eating.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,301 Member
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    You're on a good path.. just keep notes and change what is keeping you hungry. Try to figure out what combinations of foods keeps you satisfied, and which lead to hunger.
    I find high salt processed foods..even if low calorie ...make me more hungry all day long. When that happens...the constant hunger all day is so distratcting . .. I look back at what I ate and try to figure out what to eliminate from my diet.

    Also.. focus on breakfast.. make sure that what you're eating doesn't make you hungry an hour later..which leads to all day long.
  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
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    Check out this thread! http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10563959/volume-eaters-thread/p1
    For those of us who like to eat large amounts and feel full.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    Are you eating back at least some of your exercise calories? If not, I'd start there.
  • blambo61
    blambo61 Posts: 4,372 Member
    edited December 2017
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    I do IF. Fasting acts as an appetite suppressant for me. I don't get that hungry tell I eat then I awaken the "beast" and then I get real hungry! That works for me tell about 1 or 2 p.m. then I will get hungry anyways. If I'm trying to fast longer than that, I will drink lots of water and 1/2 tsp of coconut oil will shut my hunger down without setting me off eating like eating just about anything else will after that long of a fast. I make sure I get enough protein in and I take supplements which I think helps also. I think we might get hungry if we are deficient in something so I try to eat good foods and not have any nutritional deficiencies. Good luck!

    p.s. I know someone that is eating chia seeds in the day to help them "mostly" fast tell the evening meal. They say it solves the hunger for them. They eat them soaked so bloating will not occur.
  • rheddmobile
    rheddmobile Posts: 6,840 Member
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    My experience has been that it does get better with time. Your stomach will get used to smaller meals and eventually big ones will make you feel stuffed. Try eating low calorie foods to tide yourself over - I like salted radishes and cabbage slices, but there are lots of vegetables which are very low in calories.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Assuming you are eating a reasonable amount and not cutting way to low in an effort to speed lose, I'd say that probably feeling like you need bigger meals is just a result of eye-hunger -- your idea of what a meal should look like and how much you need. You will likely adjust in a few days or week (this was my experience when cutting out snacking, and with meals I would at first think it wouldn't be enough but found if I ate it and waited and really assessed how I felt it was plenty).

    That said, if you are not, adding in a good volume of vegetables helps, as the meals will look large, even without lots of calories.

    If you still have the issue, check calories and try experimenting with meal timing and split and macros. For me, eating 3 regular meals is FAR more satisfying for the same calories than trying to have a bunch of snacks (although the snacking thing works for some others better).
  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
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    I noticed that "feeling hungry" following a meal went away in less than an hour, and turned into "I could eat something but I don't have to." I made friends with that feeling-a-bit-hungry sensation, I guess.
  • DebLaBounty
    DebLaBounty Posts: 1,172 Member
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    A friend told me that having sex more often helps decrease appetite.
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
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    A friend told me that having sex more often helps decrease appetite.

    Nope. If only!

    Maybe the idea is that some people sub the endorphins from sex for what they would have gotten from eating. Something semi-woo like that. Not I. After sex I want to eat like an animal.
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
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    jocimccann wrote: »
    I feel like I can eat healthy without issue. But my issue is that since I’m so over weight my stomach is so large that I feel hungry after eating a normal sized healthy meal. I’m drinking plenty of water but what else do y’all do to help curve that appetite?

    @jocimccann

    It worries me when people say they're "eating healthy" around here.

    That usually implies they're aiming to lose lots of weight as quickly as possible, by starving themselves on salads and the occasional smoothie. This is a Bad Thing, and the easiest way to crash and burn and never make it to your goal.

    What's your idea of "eating healthy"?