Where did my hunger go?!?

ericalyn93
ericalyn93 Posts: 47
edited November 8 in Health and Weight Loss
I am currently in week 4. The first week was torture---I was constantly hungry and couldn't statisfy my cravings. Slowly the cravings went away, and now that I'm in week 4, I have little to no desire to eat-period. I'm lucky if the past couple days I've hit 1200 cals. Is this normal? Is it okay if I'm not eating as much. Or is this the "normal" amount a person is really supposed to eat, and I'm just not used to it yet? :) lol
Feedback would be great!!

Replies

  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    I am currently in week 4. The first week was torture---I was constantly hungry and couldn't statisfy my cravings. Slowly the cravings went away, and now that I'm in week 4, I have little to no desire to eat-period. I'm lucky if the past couple days I've hit 1200 cals. Is this normal? Is it okay if I'm not eating as much. Or is this the "normal" amount a person is really supposed to eat, and I'm just not used to it yet? :) lol
    Feedback would be great!!

    You've successfully lowered your metabolism by undereating what your body needs for basic body functions if you were to even sleep all day.

    So shortly you'll probably notice a stall, because you body needs so much energy to function, so it will just keep slowing down, and get to below what little you are eating.

    So you have a choice to make.

    Do you keep following and forcing that downward declining metabolism? Because it can keep going lower. Energy needed to grow hair and nails will be used for basic heart/brain functions, organs will be messed up especially if you keep exercising and eating so little.

    Or

    Do you do some reading about what BMR even means? What maintenance calories means. Also look up TDEE and AMR.
    And do you put as much thought into this body effecting, life changing process as your next cell phone?

    For instance - should you eat below your BMR?

    MFP seems to have suggested above 1500 calories for your goal. That means your maintenance is even higher.

    And yet you chose a magical 1200 number why? And yet having problems eating to that?

    And theory here, but think this out. What if you had multiple days like your diary shows of 800 calories eaten. What if you had a chance to exercise on those days with activity burning 800 calories.

    Do you know what net 0 calories means? Or do you somehow think that is a good thing?

    All questions, not trying to sound mean, but you seem to avoided the suggestions MFP has at least tried to safely make to you.
  • jisabelle
    jisabelle Posts: 156 Member
    good job on starting I just want to say don't go under 1200 calories. that is safely the minimum. If you do your body will go into starvation mode and you won't lose.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Just to emphasis, the tone of my last post was based on your profile that you don't want to diet, but make changing your life.

    I just want you to think out these changes a tad better. Think about it, your current knowledge got you to the point you feel the need to do this, which is great.
    But recognize where you need more help before making decisions you may not even realize how impactful they could be.
  • Thank you for your advice. It's not that I'm choosing not to eat. It's just the fact that I'm literally not hungry. So my question is-do I force myself to eat, because it's healthy? I understand that I need to consume calories to have energy, and that it is unhealthy to go under 1200 cals a day. So why am I all the sudden not hungry? Why do I suddenly lack the desire (or better yet-appetite) to eat? Yes, I work out. So when I come in from working out I eat an apple, or a banana, or a shake. And then I literally feel bloated and like I'm going to be sick because I "ate too much". That is what's puzzling to me. I know it's not a lot of food-so why is my body reacting this way??
  • Sublog
    Sublog Posts: 1,296 Member
    I am currently in week 4. The first week was torture---I was constantly hungry and couldn't statisfy my cravings. Slowly the cravings went away, and now that I'm in week 4, I have little to no desire to eat-period. I'm lucky if the past couple days I've hit 1200 cals. Is this normal? Is it okay if I'm not eating as much. Or is this the "normal" amount a person is really supposed to eat, and I'm just not used to it yet? :) lol
    Feedback would be great!!

    As you diet, you'll find your hunger subsides somewhat as your body gets used to the lower intake. It has to do with ghrelin (a horomone)

    "Ghrelin
    Released primarily from the stomach, ghrelin goes to the brain where, predictable, there is a specific receptor. Among other functions, ghrelin raises levels of growth hormone. But that’s far from all.

    Ghrelin also stimulates hunger (the only hormone so far found to do so) and appears to be a key hormone in initiating the hunger that goes along with meals; ghrelin drops prior to hunger and injection of ghrelin stimulates hunger specifically.

    Even more interestingly, there is research suggesting that ghrelin levels become entrained to normal meal times.

    So if you normally eat at 3pm (or whatever), you’ll likely find yourself becoming hungry at 3pm; this appears to occur from changes in ghrelin. I suspect this explains why people often have problems changing meal frequency, at least until ghrelin re-entrains itself to the new frequency.

    That is, moving from a higher to lower frequency of meals is often accompanied by hunger at the previously ‘normal’ meal times. Moving from lower to higher is often accompanied by a lack of hunger until the body adjusts to the new frequency. I haven’t seen any work examining how long this takes but empirically it seems like it’s a couple of weeks or so."

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/bodyweight-regulation-wrap-up-other-hormones.html
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Thank you for your advice. It's not that I'm choosing not to eat. It's just the fact that I'm literally not hungry. So my question is-do I force myself to eat, because it's healthy? I understand that I need to consume calories to have energy, and that it is unhealthy to go under 1200 cals a day. So why am I all the sudden not hungry? Why do I suddenly lack the desire (or better yet-appetite) to eat? Yes, I work out. So when I come in from working out I eat an apple, or a banana, or a shake. And then I literally feel bloated and like I'm going to be sick because I "ate too much". That is what's puzzling to me. I know it's not a lot of food-so why is my body reacting this way??

    Because you are already messing up your metabolism. That is a classic side effect of eating disorder.
  • Thank you for your advice. It's not that I'm choosing not to eat. It's just the fact that I'm literally not hungry. So my question is-do I force myself to eat, because it's healthy? I understand that I need to consume calories to have energy, and that it is unhealthy to go under 1200 cals a day. So why am I all the sudden not hungry? Why do I suddenly lack the desire (or better yet-appetite) to eat? Yes, I work out. So when I come in from working out I eat an apple, or a banana, or a shake. And then I literally feel bloated and like I'm going to be sick because I "ate too much". That is what's puzzling to me. I know it's not a lot of food-so why is my body reacting this way??

    Because you are already messing up your metabolism. That is a classic side effect of eating disorder.

    So do you suggest I make myself eat, despite the fact that I'm not hungry? In all seriousness, that is my concern. I'm not hungry-so I don't eat. So to maintain the healthy limit-I should make myself eat? And if so, how do you suggest doing that?
  • Oh, and I don't have an eating disorder. I just have no hunger! Trust me-I normally love to eat (hence why I weigh 190 pounds) but these past few days I have had no appetie whatsoever, and if I do eat something, I get full very quickly.....
  • zhuangshi
    zhuangshi Posts: 3 Member
    If you haven't already, go to see your doctor. Tell him or her exactly what you wrote here, and do it sooner rather than later.
  • If you haven't already, go to see your doctor. Tell him or her exactly what you wrote here, and do it sooner rather than later.

    I actually already have a doctors appointment scheduled for something else, but I will be sure to mention this to her. I actually didn't think about saying anything about this to her. Thanks for the tip :)
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Oh, and I don't have an eating disorder. I just have no hunger! Trust me-I normally love to eat (hence why I weigh 190 pounds) but these past few days I have had no appetie whatsoever, and if I do eat something, I get full very quickly.....

    seriously, that is an eating disorder.

    In case you think an eating disorder is all mental, you are wrong, it is very much a physical thing too, and you are describing several of the points of such a disorder.

    Did you look up what BMR means?
    Are you eating below your suggested healthy BMR on a daily basis, purposely, and initially ignoring the response your body was giving?

    Until you wake up to the facts, you probably won't be willing to follow any of the advice you would be given.

    Yes you must eat more. But guess what, you will initially gain weight, because your body has been operating under it's limit and lowered it's limit, anything extra you eat is getting stored for future starving.

    How? many small meals. Just goes up 200 cal a day for a week, and then add another 200 the following week. Since you just got into this problem, hopefully easier to get out.

    Get up to the MFP goal calories, and your hunger should come back. You did too much at once, and just fought through your body's reaction.

    Do you know what you were even at before cutting back? How much have you cut back?
  • Oh, and I don't have an eating disorder. I just have no hunger! Trust me-I normally love to eat (hence why I weigh 190 pounds) but these past few days I have had no appetie whatsoever, and if I do eat something, I get full very quickly.....

    seriously, that is an eating disorder.

    In case you think an eating disorder is all mental, you are wrong, it is very much a physical thing too, and you are describing several of the points of such a disorder.

    Did you look up what BMR means?
    Are you eating below your suggested healthy BMR on a daily basis, purposely, and initially ignoring the response your body was giving?

    Until you wake up to the facts, you probably won't be willing to follow any of the advice you would be given.

    Yes you must eat more. But guess what, you will initially gain weight, because your body has been operating under it's limit and lowered it's limit, anything extra you eat is getting stored for future starving.

    How? many small meals. Just goes up 200 cal a day for a week, and then add another 200 the following week. Since you just got into this problem, hopefully easier to get out.

    Get up to the MFP goal calories, and your hunger should come back. You did too much at once, and just fought through your body's reaction.

    Do you know what you were even at before cutting back? How much have you cut back?

    When I first signed up for MFP I was at a 1200 cal/day (2 pound loss a week). But my mom convinced me to raise it to more than that because when I plateau I won't have anywhere to go. So I did. And now I'm having a hard time making the minimum. And please, don't say I have an eating disorder. If I do, as you say, then what do I have? Aneroexia? Bulimia? Bing eating? I'm pretty sure I'm none of those things. Thanks! http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/nedaDir/files/documents/handouts/WhatIsEd.pdf
  • zhuangshi
    zhuangshi Posts: 3 Member
    Don't worry. You'll get this worked out and will be on your way to healthy weight loss soon. Just make sure you are healthy first :-)
  • And wake up to the facts? I understand completely that I should eat more calories. But if everytime I eat a large portion of something, I feel sick, then what am I to do? I am not about to make myself feel sick. No thanks. And the fact that during the day I get so busy that I can go 4 or 5 hours and realize I haven't eaten anything. How do I avoid this? I'm not blind to the fact that I should consume more, and I'm most certainly not trying to justify the fact that I don't consume enough...I just don't know how.
  • Don't worry. You'll get this worked out and will be on your way to healthy weight loss soon. Just make sure you are healthy first :-)

    Thankyou! :)
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