Advice Please, I'm starved!

Hi suz-ers!
Here is a link for a group here on MFP:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/457-unofficial-mfp-faq

You can also find it by going to Community, then Groups, and type in Unoffial MFP frequently asked questions.
It's a very helpful site, especially if you are new to MFP.

Good luck on your goals!

What are you eating? If you're not getting enough fiber and healthy fats and/or protein with each meal, you will digest your meal quickly, have a blood sugar spike, and then be tired and hungry just hours after eating.

Part of it too for me is timing things so that your body can adjust. I typically adjust my calories down and maintain whatever my current exercise levels were. Then, after I'm used to eating that much and feeling full, I'll adjust my exercise up if I feel I need to. So if you're starting from no diet, no regular excercise program, try just eating within your calories first and then start adding in the exercise. Getting in the mentality that I'm going to exercise so I can eat those calories has never benefitted me (gained weight).

As far as tricks to feeling full (1) watch the composition of your food, too much sugar or simple starches means you'll be hungry more quickly, (2) drink water, tea (unsweetened or sweetened with stevia), or coffee (unsweetened or sweetened with stevia + unsweetened almond milk if you normally take creamer) if you feel a little hungry. I've read a couple health articles that many people who are overweight have confused thirst and hunger signals and often overeat when they're really thirsty. These drinks are low or calorie free. If after you've had them you are still hungry, then you can have a healthy snack. (3) Be wary of artificial sweeteners. They can alter your internal chemistry and metabolism and natural feelings of feeling sated after eating. (4) Get a kitchen scale and a set of measuring cups and spoons. While a lot of people underestimate what they eat, I find that when I'm hopping back on the bandwagon that I often overestimate more portions since my focus is on eating less. If you are measuring what you eat, you will be getting the exact calories right AND get better at "eyeballing" what amount of a food goes with the calories so you are better at guessing in situations where you can't measure (restaurants).

I'm not sure if you did a food tracking log before you started your diet, but part of the issue may be that in your "cold turkey" approach that your calorie intake is VERY drastically different. I understand wanting to jump in and do things 100% right to get the best results, but keeping the proper motivation is key to long term success. You might return to your normal eating for 3-4 days and log everything. See what that calorie total averages to be and then gradually reduce your calories by ~300 on the daily total each week till you're at what MFP says you should be at. That way you can feel successful on your diet because you're keeping to your calorie goal as your body adjusts to your reduced calorie consumption. Once you've done this intro phase, the normal MFP suggested calories should work out fine without you feeling hungry all the time. One thing to also consider is starting to take vitamins. If you've reduced your calories a lot, you may no longer be getting all the vitamins you need from your new calorie intake. I'd take a women's multi-vitamin and talk to your doctor at your next visit about anything else in particular you might want to add.

One final suggestion unrelated to your question, I noticed you do cardio every day. While important to weight loss, I would suggest doing light weight lifting as an equsl exercise priority. While cardio burns a lot of calories, it only increases the metabolism for ~30 minutes post work out. Strength training gives you a longer metabolic rate boost post workout, increases muscle content (the same volume of muscle weighs 3x as much as fat, so you'll look slimmer even if your not losing weight, muscle definition also look metabolic boost for up to 24 hours post workout. If you only have 30 minutes each day to work out, I'd split it 3 and 4 whichever way you want. Or if you can eek out 40 minutes a day, I'd do 20/20 each day (cardio isn't really time effective if you're not going to do at least 20 minutes) or 30 + 10 and alternate through the major muscle groups. You don't have to do anything super strenuous. I've been doing Body Electric with Margaret Richard for years. Many public broadcasting stations carry her and there are also DVDs at her site and a book if you can't get it on your local station. http://www.bodyelectrictv.com/


Here's some article links to topics I mentioned.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/244704-does-exercise-increase-the-appetite/ - exercise and effect on appetite
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/9-ways-to-deal-with-hunger-on-a-diet.html - diet composition and hunger (sections 1-4 of this article, the rest don't specifically address food content but are interesting to read though I don't agree with them all)
http://www.pureandhealthy.com/blog/2010/08/hungry-you-could-be-confusing-it-for-thirst/ - confusing thirst for hunger
http://sciencenetlinks.com/science-news/science-updates/artificial-sweeteners/ - hunger and artificial sweeteners


Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.