I only eat when I'm hungry. Is that okay?
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I've lost successfully on intuitive eating. (only eating when hungry, stopping before I get stuffed). The problem I sometimes run into while doing this, is unintentionally undereating. When I first started out on this leg of my weight loss journey, this is how I started. After a couple weeks though, my appetite shot through the roof, and I couldn't figure out why I was so dang hungry. Bingey, even. I started counting, and figured out on some days, I was probably netting between 600-900 calories after exercise some days. If it wasn't due to undereating, I was having increased hunger due to lack of protien and fiber.
SO the moral to my story- is to just be careful and listen to your body. If your weight loss stalls out, or you find yourself in a binge/restrict cycle, or just uncontrollable hunger, start counting for a while. I began counting, and figured out I needed to eat a bit more to have easy & sustainable weight loss, and I learned I have a bad habit of not getting enough protien. I counted religiously for about 8 months, and it really helped me learn my portion sizes, and what a proper days worth of protien looks like. I'm going for a trial run on intuitive eating again. If I start getting portion creep, or my loss stalls out I'll get back to counting again. Right now, I'm tracking by taking a pic of everything I eat into another app. That might be something to add to your arsenal. This way, if your progress slows, you still have a visual of what you are eating, and what you can adjust. YMMV- Good luck!
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HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
It isn't just about losing weight as fast as possible. That number there is aimed to steer members away from eating below their Basal Metabolic Rate, which is the number of calories you need for your vital organs (lungs, kidneys, liver, and heart) to function if you literally lie still in bed all day. If you underfuel your body sufficiently as part of losing weight, you may dip beneath that number. If your heart in paticular doesn't have enough energy to beat regularly, that is very, very, very bad news.tonyrocks922 wrote: »debrakgoogins wrote: »tonyrocks922 wrote: »Telling someone 100 lbs overweight to eat peanut butter is such a *kitten* joke.
Why? Peanut butter has beneficial fats, protein and carbs. It is perfectly healthy as part of an overall balanced food plan.
This isn't about peanut butter specifically. Telling someone who is 100 lbs overweight and successfully losing weight to add a calorie dense food to their diet for no reason other than to hit a number on this app is bad advice.
How many people who are 100 lbs overweight have had organ failure from eating too little on a diet?12 -
This woman died from suspected heart failure while on a medically unsupervised very low calorie diet. Heart arrhythmias are a known side-effect of low calorie intake. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1211954/Bride-crash-diet-death--eating-just-530-calories-day-11-weeks.htmltonyrocks922 wrote: »HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
It isn't just about losing weight as fast as possible. That number there is aimed to steer members away from eating below their Basal Metabolic Rate, which is the number of calories you need for your vital organs (lungs, kidneys, liver, and heart) to function if you literally lie still in bed all day. If you underfuel your body sufficiently as part of losing weight, you may dip beneath that number. If your heart in paticular doesn't have enough energy to beat regularly, that is very, very, very bad news.tonyrocks922 wrote: »debrakgoogins wrote: »tonyrocks922 wrote: »Telling someone 100 lbs overweight to eat peanut butter is such a *kitten* joke.
Why? Peanut butter has beneficial fats, protein and carbs. It is perfectly healthy as part of an overall balanced food plan.
This isn't about peanut butter specifically. Telling someone who is 100 lbs overweight and successfully losing weight to add a calorie dense food to their diet for no reason other than to hit a number on this app is bad advice.
How many people who are 100 lbs overweight have had organ failure from eating too little on a diet?
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@hulket I would encourage you to listen to the “Losing 100 Pounds with Phit and Phat” podcast (if you don’t mind the F bomb). The host is a firm believer in eating when hungry and stopping when satisfied. She offers a ton of practical advice about making small changes. Start with the FB Live episode called “The Best Small Things”. Enjoy.6
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HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
This woman died from suspected heart failure while on a medically unsupervised very low calorie diet. Heart arrhythmias are a known side-effect of low calorie intake. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1211954/Bride-crash-diet-death--eating-just-530-calories-day-11-weeks.htmltonyrocks922 wrote: »HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
It isn't just about losing weight as fast as possible. That number there is aimed to steer members away from eating below their Basal Metabolic Rate, which is the number of calories you need for your vital organs (lungs, kidneys, liver, and heart) to function if you literally lie still in bed all day. If you underfuel your body sufficiently as part of losing weight, you may dip beneath that number. If your heart in paticular doesn't have enough energy to beat regularly, that is very, very, very bad news.tonyrocks922 wrote: »debrakgoogins wrote: »tonyrocks922 wrote: »Telling someone 100 lbs overweight to eat peanut butter is such a *kitten* joke.
Why? Peanut butter has beneficial fats, protein and carbs. It is perfectly healthy as part of an overall balanced food plan.
This isn't about peanut butter specifically. Telling someone who is 100 lbs overweight and successfully losing weight to add a calorie dense food to their diet for no reason other than to hit a number on this app is bad advice.
How many people who are 100 lbs overweight have had organ failure from eating too little on a diet?
Yeah it's so rare it makes the news when it happens. OP admittedly doesn't measure/weigh her food so she's definitely understand counting. Peanut butter is bad advice in this thread. That is a fact.19 -
musicfan68 wrote: »I eat only when I'm hungry, and always have. I managed to gain a lot of weight doing that. You have to be in a calorie deficit to lose.
I would suggest you're eating when you FEEL hungry as opposed to when you body actually NEEDS food from a physiological standpoint.
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If this approach works for you and you are neither undereating or overeating (the overall trend on scales will tell you this) then continue doing what you are doing. However, be aware that in the early stages of weight loss it is not uncommon for people to 'feel full' while eating less. However, our bodies will begin to release hormones to increase appetite as our weight loss journey continues, which can make initiative eating more difficult.2
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I've been yo-yoing up and down for the last ten years. Low calorie, low carb, low sugar. It takes over my life. And I do always lose weight, but then I always gain it back. As of a month ago, I'm the biggest I've ever been (100 lbs overweight). So this time around, I decided I'm going to just quietly change how I do things. I want to take care of my body. Listen to it. Try to instill in myself that food is FUEL. I'm going to eat when I'm hungry, and only until I'm satisfied, and only healthy foods that I enjoy and that make me feel good. And I'm not going to obsess. I'm going to eat when I'm hungry, and then forget about it. I want to completely change my mindset in hopes it'll create a long-lasting healthy me. Easier said than done, I know, but, so far, so good.
A month in I'm down 8lbs. I'm not bloated. I have more energy. I overall just feel better. It was hard at first, really hard, but it's getting easier. I really only do eat when I'm hungry. But for forever, I've been conditioned that I HAVE to eat 1200+ calories a day to be healthy. But honestly, some days I don't. Some days I have a light lunch, and I'm good. I'm not hungry for the rest of the day. Other days, I'll have two full meals and a snack (I've never done breakfast, it always made me feel gross). It all depends on activity level really. But I worry, is that okay?
Any pros out there have an advice? Or anyone else in the same boat?
This is a very idealistic way of thinking about food and in theory, it would be wonderful and solve a lot of problems. But there are some things you need to consider:
- what will you do when there is temptation? You might not buy super fatty, calorie dense food for yourself, but what if there’s cake at work? What if you get a craving for a donut or some fast food? What if someone invites you out to eat at a restaurant? Personally I think you should be allowed to eat those foods in moderation, but it can be harder to listen to hunger cues when you’re eating a really delicious piece of cheesecake or something like that. You have to think about and plan for those things. Be realistic: you’re going to want to eat stuff that’s not “healthy” from time to time if you’re going to do this long term so you have to address how you will approach those situations.
- What will you do after you lose a little weight and your priorities change? It’s important to you now, but at a certain point it may seem less important. Why did you gain weight after your previous attempts? Are there patterns you can learn from?
Eta: congrats on the 8 pounds!2 -
Theoldguy1 wrote: »musicfan68 wrote: »I eat only when I'm hungry, and always have. I managed to gain a lot of weight doing that. You have to be in a calorie deficit to lose.
I would suggest you're eating when you FEEL hungry as opposed to when you body actually NEEDS food from a physiological standpoint.
Well, duh! Don't most people eat when they FEEL hungry? You FEEL hunger pains. That's how you know you need to eat.
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musicfan68 wrote: »Theoldguy1 wrote: »musicfan68 wrote: »I eat only when I'm hungry, and always have. I managed to gain a lot of weight doing that. You have to be in a calorie deficit to lose.
I would suggest you're eating when you FEEL hungry as opposed to when you body actually NEEDS food from a physiological standpoint.
Well, duh! Don't most people eat when they FEEL hungry? You FEEL hunger pains. That's how you know you need to eat.
Lots of people will drag out chips, candy, cookies, etc. 1-2 hours after eating a full meal and snack away while watching a tube. In that case there is not hunger pains. They could very well go until the next day without being physiologically hungry. They are eating out of habit, boredom or whatever. They are not feeling hunger pains as a signal to eat.2 -
tonyrocks922 wrote: »Yeah it's so rare it makes the news when it happens. Peanut butter is bad advice in this thread. That is a fact.
Don't claim facts you no nothing about. Not every tragic story makes the headlines. My ex-husband nearly died. He was hospitalized for almost six months due to complications including heart failure and gall bladder failure directly resulting from a too low calorie diet. For the record, he had over 400 pounds to lose. This happened when he still had 200 to lose. His wife and my children had to say good byes after every visit not knowing if that would be their last time with him. One death is too many. Too few calories can also cause dizziness, exhaustion, nausea, menstrual and fertility issues, gall stones (this is particularly common in people who are over 100 pounds overweight on a very low calorie diet), migraines, insufficient nutritients, and constipation.
Making people believe that specific foods are "bad" is bad advice. Those are the things that lead to eating disorders. Telling individuals to eat nutrient rich foods to maintain minimum calorie requirements is not bad advice.
Edited to correct puncuation errors.19 -
debrakgoogins wrote: »
Making people believe that specific foods are "bad" is bad advice. Those are the things that lead to eating disorders. Telling individuals to eat nutrient rich foods to maintain minimum calorie requirements is not bad advice.
Edited to correct puncuation errors.
I am not saying peanut butter is a "bad" food. You are missing the point entirely. The FACT is telling a morbidly obese person who is not measuring and weighing their food to add calorie dense foods they are not already eating is BAD ADVICE.7 -
tonyrocks922 wrote: »I am not saying peanut butter is a "bad" food. You are missing the point entirely. The FACT is telling a morbidly obese person who is not measuring and weighing their food to add calorie dense foods they are not already eating is BAD ADVICE.
Oh, we're using SHOUTY CAPITALS now. Cool. How convenient for you to completely ignore the fact that every day people who eat too little calories have had disastrous medical results. I guess it didn't fit your "Yeah it's so rare it makes the news when it happens." scenario so ignoring it is easier than admitting you may be wrong.
It's not bad advice to tell anyone that peanut butter is a high calorie food because it IS A HIGH CALORIE FOOD. Noone said to eat more peanut butter. They said that if they are eating less than 1200, to eat more calorie dense foods - which includes peanut butter. AND...she loves peanut butter so she is likely ALREADY EATING IT.
Ultimately, a person who is losing weight can eat any foods INCLUDING PEANUT BUTTER and still make it fit into their calories. I understand your point that she may be eating more than she thinks she is but we don't know that until she starts actually weighing and accurately tracking her food. If she realizes that she is falling below 1200 calories, peanut butter or any other high calorie food IS a way to ensure she (or anyone) meets the minimum calorie count. If she finds that she is eating close to or slightly above the 1200, then great. If not, SOME of us helped her with the original concerns.
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I think you have to find the pattern that works for you. If I wait until I'm really hungry before I eat, it backfires. I need to time my eating so I keep the hunger at bay.1
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I only eat when I'm hungry. Is that okay?
Well ... if I only ate when I was hungry, I'd be 300 lbs right now.
I'm hungry a lot!!4 -
Sooooo...... Please remember that we have community guidelines, they're located HERE. <-- Please click and review.
Here's a super-cliffnotes version if you're in a hurry:
1. Discussing/picking apart ideas is totally awesome. Attacking the messenger or the way a message is delivered is not.
2. Derailing a thread to discuss the merits of a particular food is a form of trolling.
3. If you're in this thread, lets focus on assisting the OP - give her information and she'll decide for herself what she wants to or should do.
4. If you want to discuss the merits of a particular food or way of eating, start your own thread.
Happy hump day folks!
JustSomeEm
:flowerforyou:
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You really can't assume that your intake is 1200 calories because you have stated that you don't weigh or measure your food.
I too don't weigh, but I do measure. I also read portion sizes on labels. In order to really know how much you are consuming, you simply can't "eyeball it".
Get in the habit of using MFP correctly and you will train yourself to know how much you are eating later on down the road. Yes, I agree tracking is a pain in the *kitten* but it is critical in the beginning if you want to make those lifestyle changes.
You are on the right track. Cut out fast food, processed and packaged food, stay away from soda and artificial sweeteners (diet soda) and get regular exercise.
If you eat only when you are hungry, that's fine, just ensure you are getting a proper mix of protein, carbs and fats with each meal and to ensure your getting enough water and fiber too. Adding a good quality multivitamin is also a great idea to ensure you are covered if there are gaps in your diet.
Remember, weight loss, that is sustained weight loss, requires more than just calorie reduction. Healthy eating and moving more are key. This is a journey, not a destination so it will be a slow process. Weight loss doesn't just stop when you reach your target weight. That is why you yo-yo. You have to change habits, not diet.
Now....get going!2 -
For weight loss calories are king. There is no need to eliminate fast or processed food. Either can be incorporated into a weight-loss plan. As can the occasional soda. Unless you have a medical reason (eg allergy) to avoid artificial sweeteners, there's no need.
Exercise has many health benefits and gives you more calories to play with, but it's not essential to weight loss.
Sustainable eating often includes room for treats and indulgences. And there are people who are unable to move but still manage to keep their weight off. It's not one size fits all.6 -
I'm just curious about this cuz I watch "My big fat fabulous life" and she weighs 330 ish pounds yet says she can go 24 hours without eating and it doesn't bug her,she has a personal trainer that has to encourage her to eat,now I'm just wondering if you're overweight wouldn't skipping some eating be a benefit? I'm being serious and NOT making light of the situation, I've just been curious since I saw that episode2
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I'm just curious about this cuz I watch "My big fat fabulous life" and she weighs 330 ish pounds yet says she can go 24 hours without eating and it doesn't bug her,she has a personal trainer that has to encourage her to eat,now I'm just wondering if you're overweight wouldn't skipping some eating be a benefit? I'm being serious and NOT making light of the situation, I've just been curious since I saw that episode
Just my laymen's opinion here. But, I think it just depends on the person. This is probably why OMAD (One meal a day) has an appeal for some people. No harm as long as you get adequate calories in that one meal. But I feel like a lot of people get stuck on several small meals a day as gospel. Possibly that trainer on the show too? I personally couldn't do OMAD I'd be a very scatter brained and grumpy individual by my 24 hour mark!3
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