The psychology of needing to eat until stuffed - a discussion
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annaskiski wrote: »I think its a happy/comfort feeling.
"I'm stuffed. All is right with the world"
That's part of the reason I like IF. Two big meals make me happy.
I am doing IF too, it has really clicked with me...I have lost 26 lbs since end of March. For the last 4 or 5 years I struggled with the all or nothing aspect of my eating and had no success in losing weight. Don't get me wrong I have had a few days since I started IF where I ate outside of my eating window however I always go back to IF. I think the good part is IF is becoming more ingrained in my life and even when I have a day or two where my eating is out of control and I am eating from sun up to sundown I know I will always go back to IF.4 -
The majority of these habits are developed in early childhood, so this feels "normal" later in life. At early adulthood your genetics begin to have greater influence as opposed to environment.
The habits you develop follow a pattern. Hormones also follow this pattern. Any shifts from this pattern end up in temporary chaos while your body attempts to restore order. As hormones are free cycling if you are overweight this further compounds the issue and tends toward chaos.
It is very much rooted in psychology, but we are biological, so everything is connected. Your chances of restoring order increase if you initiate positive changes on multiple root causes.11 -
The majority of these habits are developed in early childhood, so this feels "normal" later in life. At early adulthood your genetics begin to have greater influence as opposed to environment.
The habits you develop follow a pattern. Hormones also follow this pattern. Any shifts from this pattern end up in temporary chaos while your body attempts to restore order. As hormones are free cycling if you are overweight this further compounds the issue and tends toward chaos.
It is very much rooted in psychology, but we are biological, so everything is connected. Your chances of restoring order increase if you initiate positive changes on multiple root causes.
I agree...I have always eaten fast and I think it is because growing up you ate fast so you could have seconds, etc. before the food ran out so I continue this today. Plus eating fast I would typically eat way more than I should because time I start feeling full I have eaten way more than I should have....2 -
This is ringing loudly for me... let me mull this over a bit, but I think you might be on to something...
I've struggled to understand this largely because it happens both when I'm feeling a bit down AND when I'm riding a high. Your comment would potentially address both situations - looking for a high and riding an existing high.
I can relate to this too. I was used to overeating when sad or anxious, the first time it happened when I was having a really good day was a very unwelcome surprise. But food is used culturally both for comfort and for celebration so it's not too outlandish an idea.2 -
Cassandraw3 wrote: »Could it be perhaps a nutrient deficiency? I noticed on a few occasions that days where I ate low protein, I had that feeling. I had a protein bar and the feeling faded away. Your body/mind may be telling you to eat more to make up for something you are missing. Just a thought.
I don't think so, but I don't really know enough about how the body responds to deficiency, aside from hydration needs.
From my experience, I'd be more inclined to say the opposite - that increased intake of fats/salts/sugars yield increased "cravings" for fats/salts/sugars. But that could totally be correlation and not causation.1 -
The majority of these habits are developed in early childhood, so this feels "normal" later in life. At early adulthood your genetics begin to have greater influence as opposed to environment.
The habits you develop follow a pattern. Hormones also follow this pattern. Any shifts from this pattern end up in temporary chaos while your body attempts to restore order. As hormones are free cycling if you are overweight this further compounds the issue and tends toward chaos.
It is very much rooted in psychology, but we are biological, so everything is connected. Your chances of restoring order increase if you initiate positive changes on multiple root causes.
I don't disagree. I was hoping that this thread might give me some insight on what angles from which ot attack the problems.1 -
The majority of these habits are developed in early childhood, so this feels "normal" later in life. At early adulthood your genetics begin to have greater influence as opposed to environment.
The habits you develop follow a pattern. Hormones also follow this pattern. Any shifts from this pattern end up in temporary chaos while your body attempts to restore order. As hormones are free cycling if you are overweight this further compounds the issue and tends toward chaos.
It is very much rooted in psychology, but we are biological, so everything is connected. Your chances of restoring order increase if you initiate positive changes on multiple root causes.
I am just personally a volume eater by nature. Feels good to be full. The difference for me now I choose lower calories dense foods to eat. When I do have indulgences, I always savor them slowly and mindfully. In the past I would just fly through them.6 -
For me I'm hoping that if I stay mindful of my eating and telling myself to not eat until I'm stuffed that eventually it will become my new habit. For now it's a conscious behavior that I have to be really aware of. I think maybe it's a combination of natural instinct (since "in the wild" a lot of animals will do the same thing, stuff themselves because they don't know when their next meal will be... my dog does this) and learned habits from childhood (being told to clean your plate, etc.) for me I didn't have my mom telling me to clean my plate so I can't blame it on my parents. lol.1
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Cassandraw3 wrote: »Could it be perhaps a nutrient deficiency? I noticed on a few occasions that days where I ate low protein, I had that feeling. I had a protein bar and the feeling faded away. Your body/mind may be telling you to eat more to make up for something you are missing. Just a thought.
I don't think so, but I don't really know enough about how the body responds to deficiency, aside from hydration needs.
From my experience, I'd be more inclined to say the opposite - that increased intake of fats/salts/sugars yield increased "cravings" for fats/salts/sugars. But that could totally be correlation and not causation.
That I could see. I know there have been studies done of the effects of sugar on the brain. I recall hearing at one point that the brain responds somewhat similar to sugar as it does to cocaine and that a study with rats showed they actually preferred sugar over cocaine. However, such comparisons have been considered controversial.5 -
Maybe you are eating hyperpalatable foods?
They literally figured out that really sweet foods will taste too sweet after a few bites, and really salty items taste too salty after a short while.
So they found a point where the fat, salt and sugar ratio was just so that you keep eating them past your satiation point (think potato chips and cookies), what food scientists call the "bliss point." That's why you have sugar and salt in things you wouldn't think would be needed in either (salt in candy, sugar in tomato sauce).
If you notice you only gorge on certain TYPES of foods, that might be the issue.
For me, an example is potatoes. I can eat one baked potato and not want any more. I don't need to use portion control on baked potatoes. But I've had to intentionally portion control chips and fries, until I naturally eat less of these than before.
Worse is if I homecook scallopped potatoes (no cream, just thin sliced stewed potatoes and seasonings), it's like a bottomless appetite for it. I can go three potatoes and still want more. My scallopped potatoes recipe has a bliss point that allows me to eat far larger quanties than I would otherwise. Portion control doesn't "work." I just end up eating as much as is available.
Best wishes on figuring out the source of your eating past fullness and overcoming it!
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Cassandraw3 wrote: »Cassandraw3 wrote: »Could it be perhaps a nutrient deficiency? I noticed on a few occasions that days where I ate low protein, I had that feeling. I had a protein bar and the feeling faded away. Your body/mind may be telling you to eat more to make up for something you are missing. Just a thought.
I don't think so, but I don't really know enough about how the body responds to deficiency, aside from hydration needs.
From my experience, I'd be more inclined to say the opposite - that increased intake of fats/salts/sugars yield increased "cravings" for fats/salts/sugars. But that could totally be correlation and not causation.
That I could see. I know there have been studies done of the effects of sugar on the brain. I recall hearing at one point that the brain responds somewhat similar to sugar as it does to cocaine and that a study with rats showed they actually preferred sugar over cocaine. However, such comparisons have been considered controversial.
Is that because people don't like the idea of comparing food/sugar addiction to drug addiction? Or is there more to the controversy than that? If you remember... not terribly important to me.0 -
I assume it's a biological urge that is stronger in some people.
I have two dogs. One dog likes to slowly nibble away at her kibbles. She takes a few bites, wanders away, then comes back and has a few more. It takes her about 10 minutes to eat. And when she's done, there's still about 1/6 of the kibbles left in her bowl.
My other dog on the other hand, finishes his meal in 10 seconds flat. He devours it voraciously and licks his bowl clean, then whines for more.
I wouldn't be surprised if humans are the same. Some people are happy to slowly pick away at their food and stop when they're no longer hungry. For others, the biological urge hits hard and the person feels compelled to eat quickly and eat A LOT.10 -
IHaveMyActTogether wrote: »Maybe you are eating hyperpalatable foods?
They literally figured out that really sweet foods will taste too sweet after a few bites, and really salty items taste too salty after a short while.
So they found a point where the fat, salt and sugar ratio was just so that you keep eating them past your satiation point (think potato chips and cookies), what food scientists call the "bliss point." That's why you have sugar and salt in things you wouldn't think would be needed in either (salt in candy, sugar in tomato sauce).
If you notice you only gorge on certain TYPES of foods, that might be the issue.
For me, an example is potatoes. I can eat one baked potato and not want any more. I don't need to use portion control on baked potatoes. But I've had to intentionally portion control chips and fries, until I naturally eat less of these than before.
Worse is if I homecook scallopped potatoes (no cream, just thin sliced stewed potatoes and seasonings), it's like a bottomless appetite for it. I can go three potatoes and still want more. My scallopped potatoes recipe has a bliss point that allows me to eat far larger quanties than I would otherwise. Portion control doesn't "work." I just end up eating as much as is available.
Best wishes on figuring out the source of your eating past fullness and overcoming it!
Yes, IMHO, hyperpalitable foods pose a major problem in our society of abundance. I think has humans we evolved/ created/ dropped off by Zendu from the Third World of the Crab Nebulae... whatever people believe... anyways, we have a tendency to over eat. We didn't always have the access to food like we do now, so we never knew when our next meal would come from. So, if food was abundantly available that time. We just over ate. There are stories I have read about traditional hunter gatherers quite literally drinking a quart of honey when they come by a bees nest. Add in hyperpalitable foods, IMHO, the human brain was never intended to deal with such things, and well..... BAM! Today's obesity epidemic. Add in the fact that many humans have become highly sedentary, and it's a witches brew. People at my work marvel on how much I eat some days. Well, they tend to eat much more calorie dense foods. They are always hungry. They snack constantly on candy bars and "healthy" energy bars. Try telling them that one of those 30gram bars has as many calories as my baked sweet potato and unusually get a blank look. Lol8 -
IHaveMyActTogether wrote: »Maybe you are eating hyperpalatable foods?
They literally figured out that really sweet foods will taste too sweet after a few bites, and really salty items taste too salty after a short while.
So they found a point where the fat, salt and sugar ratio was just so that you keep eating them past your satiation point (think potato chips and cookies), what food scientists call the "bliss point." That's why you have sugar and salt in things you wouldn't think would be needed in either (salt in candy, sugar in tomato sauce).
If you notice you only gorge on certain TYPES of foods, that might be the issue.
Yes, that's definitely a factor, but there is more too it than that as some of the foods I eat I don't especially want - I want the feeling of being full rather than the enjoyment of eating said food.
So a common scenario would be something like this -- I'm going to have something to eat, something "on plan" based on my calorie/macro/exercise needs for the day.
- That was good, I'm glad I had that. But if that was good, 97 more would probably be uh-maze-ing. Oh, I only have 1 more? OK, I'll eat that 1 more, plus whatever else I can get my hands on quickly.
It almost becomes a race to consume as much as I can in as short a period of time as possible.5 -
I think it may be a way to both mentally and physically feel numb or escape. When I eat to uncomfortable fullness, everything stops. My brain is on cruise control. I am eating but have gone way past tasting the food. Brain numb. Next my body is so full I can not comfortably move. Body immobile. There are no past regrets, no future consequences, and presently I am incapacitated.
Yes, I believe this is right on target. When you are PHYSICALLY uncomfortable, it takes away from the MENTAL/EMOTIONAL pain. The brain cannot process both at the same time. It gives your brain a respite from your emotional issues. I have read that, for many, getting a tattoo is a similar mechanism. The temporary physical pain temporarily minimizes the emotional pain.3 -
IHaveMyActTogether wrote: »Maybe you are eating hyperpalatable foods?
They literally figured out that really sweet foods will taste too sweet after a few bites, and really salty items taste too salty after a short while.
So they found a point where the fat, salt and sugar ratio was just so that you keep eating them past your satiation point (think potato chips and cookies), what food scientists call the "bliss point." That's why you have sugar and salt in things you wouldn't think would be needed in either (salt in candy, sugar in tomato sauce).
If you notice you only gorge on certain TYPES of foods, that might be the issue.
Yes, that's definitely a factor, but there is more too it than that as some of the foods I eat I don't especially want - I want the feeling of being full rather than the enjoyment of eating said food.
So a common scenario would be something like this -- I'm going to have something to eat, something "on plan" based on my calorie/macro/exercise needs for the day.
- That was good, I'm glad I had that. But if that was good, 97 more would probably be uh-maze-ing. Oh, I only have 1 more? OK, I'll eat that 1 more, plus whatever else I can get my hands on quickly.
It almost becomes a race to consume as much as I can in as short a period of time as possible.
Is this happening post exercise? Right before bed?0 -
I'm going to go with the "Reaction to Deprivation" concept and I will use myself to explain why I think that:
I, too, struggle with eating to the point of being uncomfortable. I think the reason why I do it is because during the work week, I eat very "strict" (you can look at my food diary to see what I'm talking about). I build up enough of a deficit to where, on weekends, I eat pretty much what I want but knowing that on Monday, I have to go back to eating "strict." I believe this (for me) is what's causing me to overeat because I know that my time to eat what I want is limited. So as you mentioned, it becomes a race to consume as much as I can in as short a period of time as possible.2 -
IHaveMyActTogether wrote: »IHaveMyActTogether wrote: »Maybe you are eating hyperpalatable foods?
They literally figured out that really sweet foods will taste too sweet after a few bites, and really salty items taste too salty after a short while.
So they found a point where the fat, salt and sugar ratio was just so that you keep eating them past your satiation point (think potato chips and cookies), what food scientists call the "bliss point." That's why you have sugar and salt in things you wouldn't think would be needed in either (salt in candy, sugar in tomato sauce).
If you notice you only gorge on certain TYPES of foods, that might be the issue.
Yes, that's definitely a factor, but there is more too it than that as some of the foods I eat I don't especially want - I want the feeling of being full rather than the enjoyment of eating said food.
So a common scenario would be something like this -- I'm going to have something to eat, something "on plan" based on my calorie/macro/exercise needs for the day.
- That was good, I'm glad I had that. But if that was good, 97 more would probably be uh-maze-ing. Oh, I only have 1 more? OK, I'll eat that 1 more, plus whatever else I can get my hands on quickly.
It almost becomes a race to consume as much as I can in as short a period of time as possible.
Is this happening post exercise? Right before bed?
It varies. Sometimes post-exercise, sometimes as soon as I get home from work (this is largely environmental/habitual), sometimes first thing in the morning.0 -
Barring any past history of abuse or food insecurity, I really think that for some people it is just the way our brains are wired. Up until maybe 100 years ago most humans had to worry about not having enough to eat. Eating until you're stuffed when you have the opportunity would have been advantageous in the past so I think in many cases this is a feature, not a bug. I struggle with this too and sometimes reminding myself that no, this is not the last time I will ever have the opportunity to eat chocolate chip cookies, can help.5
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Eating prompts the brain to release "feel good" hormones. The brain can't tell if you're eating or having sex. they both touch our deepest pleasure senses. The more dopamine (et al) you release the more you want. This is why I ate emotionally for decades. Trying to fill the void.4
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