Random extreme appetite changes

First, I stick to volume foods when I am feeling extra hungry. I load up on vegetables, plant protein powder shakes, fiber rich foods and even decaf coffee. Next, I look at what may be the cause. Because of evolution we are primed to eat more in the cold due to ancestorial preparing for winter. Other reasons could be a number of things- mental, like nostalgia, sadness even extra joyfulness. It could be some association mentally. Holiday- it can be habitual association.
Also, things like anxiety, stress, fatigue.
Perhaps write down how you are feeling and when cravings come on rather than try to ignore them, do a little self-check. I can relate

What they said, ^^ but also a few things that make a difference for me:

I eat a good sized first meal of the day. If I try to not eat or don't eat enough, the flood gates will open. I get plenty of protein and fiber in that meal. I eat quite a few fresh whole fruits and vegetables daily. I've generally eaten half my calories before noon.

Exercise. If I don't get out and at least take a walk or do a good amount of exercise in the house then I can't keep my hunger in line with my calories. It took me a very long time, kicking and screaming all the way, to learn this. Daily exercise of some sort. It doesn't have to be at a gym, but it does have to happen.

The food choices I make are responsible for my hunger. If I allow too many little treat foods outside my normal meals, I begin to go off plan a lot. For me the plan is two meals per day plus a small 200-300 calorie snack and some exercise between them. I don't start in on treat foods this time of year because there are too many of them and once I start eating sweets or baked things, I don't stop. I have to stay focused on good nutrition in order to stay in my calorie goal.

I get it, though. It took me a very long time to wrangle my tendency to over-eat. Years. I had to just keep working at it. It's one of the harder things I've ever done, and certainly the most long-lasting "project." The feeling of accomplishment cannot be overstated when I am able to stay at a weight I choose - comfortably. Keep reading and keep posting. You'll get there.

Let's start with this: I'm not necessarily a good influence. Remember that. Also, what I personally do won't be best for the entire universe - far from.

I do have increased appetite in Fall as the days shorten and weather gets colder. I'm now in maintenance, so I'm pretty sure it's not about over-restricting.

To some extent, I just roll with it: I stick with my calorie goal as much as I can, but I eat over goal some days. It's not unusual for me to gain a little weight in the Fall and through the holidays - not a lot, maybe 2-5 pounds. While I try to manage the impulses, I don't tie myself in knots to do it. Drama, guilt and angst about food/eating just do not work for me emotionally. I recognize that I know how to lose those few pounds again, and eventually do (so far . . . 7 years into maintaining weight in a healthy range).

If you're still losing (as your goal), I agree with others that avoiding over-restricting is a good plan in general. If you're trying to lose more than about half a percent of current body weight per week, i.e., half a pound for every hundred pounds of current weight, consider slowing that bus down, especially when in a phase of struggling with appetite. On days when appetite isn't hounding you, stick with goal calories, maybe even bank a few for high-craving days (don't over-restrict, though - restriction can trigger binges and lead to a bad cycle).

On a day when appetite rages, yeah, try the "take a walk, eat a low-cal filling snack, meditate, drink tea" kind of stuff. It can work. But if that doesn't help, keep in mind that any amount you eat below current maintenance calories is a loss for the week - looking at the weekly average, not individual days. If you're losing half a pound a week, 500 calories over goal on one day means you take two more days to reach goal weight. That's maybe not ideal, but it's also not worth catastrophizing over IMO.

Know your current maintenance calories (ideally calculated from your own logging and weight-change data). Use all the other techniques - varying foods, timing, exercise, stress management, even season-busting things like SAD lights, and keep looking for tactics that work for you. You'll find some that help, almost certainly.

But also use your weekly average calorie intake data, your knowledge of your weight-maintenance calorie level, and the math about the impact on when you reach goal weight to keep it all in perspective. In any week where you you're under current maintenance calories for the week, you're losing weight, just a bit more slowly.

You're not doomed. You're problem-solving, and that's a good thing. You can find a solution that works for you. Best wishes!

juggalojypsy wrote: »

So how does everyone deal with random and sudden extreme increases in appetite? I understand that changes in appetite are normal especially in the fall\winter time of year but for the month of October and 3 weeks into November I could not get enough to eat no matter what I did wether it was junk food (feeding cravings) or nutrient dense food(different way of feeding cravings). I have no idea why other than the natural change of the seasons. It's never been that severe even when I was pregnant. Any ideas why\what that was? Any advice on what I can do about that.

Here in Massachusetts it tends to be rainy that time of year, and I am prone to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD,) which can increase appetite.

If that might be a thing for you, consider light therapy with a SAD light.

I prefer to get my cardio outdoors, which I do year round - I bundle up in the winter - but when it's raining, or just drizzling and gloomy, I have no interest in being outside and it takes more effort to get in the amount of exercise I need to stave off depression, which can increase my appetite.