I'm sorry if I'm doing this wrong. I've actually come to this site for a while for advice, tips, and motivation but have never actually posted my own thread.. So, I'm sorry if i'm putting this in the wrong place or something...
Anyway, I noticed that even when I eat about 1400 calories, like today compared to the <1000 calories that I used to "diet", I still have that "hungry" feeling.
Now that's fine, I don't mind it. But to me it's a constant reminder that I may be eating too few calories which will then cause my body to go into starvation mode, which will then not allow me to lose weight. According to an online calculator I burn about 750 calories from biking my daily commute. I like the things I eat a lot more now. Before when i'd "diet" I'd never think twice about eating an egg, but I know in limited amounts they're actually very healthy. I also eat things I would normally eat, just a much smaller portion with other healthful items. So, I want this to last and not just be a diet!
I just want to ask others, do you get this "hungry" feeling all the time too?
I mean i'm eating significantly less than I used to so of course I'll feel hungry for the time being, right? Does it eventually go away once my stomach shrinks and I get used to normal sized portions? Any help would be greatly appreciated.. Thanks and nice to meet you all
Hey! I'm new here too, and haven't been too successful with dieting, so I don't think it's advice I can give per se, but I know exactly what you're talking about!
A few semesters ago I took a psychology class. When we came to the way our major systems worked with our brain, a lot of things started to click for me! My professor exclaimed how our bodies have yet to evolve past the "hunter/gather" mind-set. We are opportunistic feeders; when we see food, our minds tell us we need to eat.This is because when we used to hunt/gather our food, our brains worked so that when we saw food, we got hungry and ate. This way, if we didn't find food for days, we'd still have that energy to burn. So while, yes, the "hunger" feeling is regulated by the stomach, there is debate that our primitive drive to eat when we can could be the one thing that is psychologically blocking us from those few shed pounds.
That doesn't mean we can't lose weight, though. We just have to try harder :P
I'm not sure if the following applies to you, but it worked for me ... and I just posted this on another thread, so forgive me if you've already read it, but I think it's so important so here it is:
I think for many of us, quitting sugar is the single most important thing we can do. Getting rid of sugar does lots of things for health -- but ALSO reduces hunger, which people don't talk about too much. I used to be hungry all the time. Was it real hunger, who knows? But it felt like hunger and limiting calories was like a *white-knuckle* experience for me and I only succeeded (when I did) through sheer will-power (which didn't last forever, sigh).
I don't think (most) people can sustain doing something with sheer willpower. It is a muscle meant to be used occasionally, it gets exhausted otherwise. By cutting sugar and other carbs I now do not have that horrible beastly hunger, and it is wonderful to be free of it.
I feel hungry, but I embrace that feeling. To me it's not a sign of eating too little, but of not over-stuffing myself anymore. So as long as my stomach grumbles at me, I know I'm on the right track.
But then, since reading through lots of things on here, I don't believe in "starvation mode" any more, at least not on a healthy diet.
Looking at your data, though, 1400 might be a tad too low - how did you arrive at that number? Because if you burn off 750 kcal on your bike every day, your body only has 650 kcal to sustain all the organ and muscle work - and that is very little. I'm not saying you should eat more, I'm just nosy how you settled on that number, as I'm still learning about calorie counting myself.
Last edited by 3FCuser001; 05-28-2010 at 07:41 AM.
As much as people try to convince me of the "starvation mode" theory, I'm still having a hard time buying in. For example, people in concentrations camps in WWII must have been in "starvation mode" and they lost weigh to the point of near-death. While I do think that eating too few calories (under 1200) is unhealthy, I also think that if you are not losing weight you should entertain the idea that you're missing calories here and there in your calculations
I tend to agree with TeslaGirl. I suspect a sense of being vaguely hungry will always be with me. Even when I ate whatever I wanted, I could always eat more unless I was absolutely stuffed.
For me the trick was learning that the level of "hunger" I feel now is ok but not to let it get to a level that I'll go overboard.
After losing about 35 lb I still wonder about this. Last night my dh and I ate a very late supper because he was cutting hay until ten pm. We had steak, potatoes, salad, and bread. It tasted good. This morning I thought I wouldn't be hungry but I was so hungry I felt nauseous. So I came right down stairs and had a little soy milk. I don't like eating in the morning........strange thing all my life. The only way I have ever lost weight and kept it off is intuitive eating which is eating between hunger and satisfaction. I'm still wondering about this hunger thing.
I have noticed that my feeling of hunger isn't really a feeling that my stomach needs food, but just an intense craving I feel to eat. I'm not saying this is true for you, but I definitely feel hungry very little - and I can always tell when I'm hungry because my stomach rumbles.
Anyway, maybe you should look into how your intake is balanced between protein, carbs and fat. Protein will make you feel fuller for longer - you shouldn't be avoiding things like eggs. I don't understand why people on diets don't eat eggs, they're perfect and they fill you up so much!
Vaguely hungry is fine. Good. Excellent. Raving hunger--the sort where you can't concentrate, have headaches, get snappy and cranky with your loved ones, fantasize about food when there isn't any around, are tired all the time, and have no attention span--that will kill your diet, because however strong your willpower, one day you will wake up and say "I can't do this anymore". If you are hungry like that, you need to eat more.
I am a big fan of eating the most you can get away with, not the least you can stand. I'd up to 1600-1700 calories a day for 2 weeks. If your weight loss stalls, you can cut back. But if it stays at the same rate (mine did!), think how awesome your life will be.
Feeling empty, like you "could eat" is ok. Raving hunger is not sustainable.
I don't do hunger at all. I eat 1200-1400 a day. I have the worlds crappiest metabolism (OK I'm exaggerating) and on a HIGH burn day I'm lucky to burn 2500. On average I burn 1800-2000 a day. I just had to change what I was eating to figure out what worked for me to keep me from being hungry. I don't care if I'm over my calories for the day.. if I'm truly hungry (took me a while to learn what real hunger feels like.) I eat something. Veggie sticks, pickles, fruit, boiled egg whites, something. I also learned to drink a glass of water if I thought I was hungry. Most adults can not tell the difference between hunger and thirst. In fact most Americans are perpetually dehydrated.
Vaguely hungry is fine. Good. Excellent. Raving hunger--the sort where you can't concentrate, have headaches, get snappy and cranky with your loved ones, fantasize about food when there isn't any around, are tired all the time, and have no attention span--that will kill your diet, because however strong your willpower, one day you will wake up and say "I can't do this anymore". If you are hungry like that, you need to eat more.
I am a big fan of eating the most you can get away with, not the least you can stand. I'd up to 1600-1700 calories a day for 2 weeks. If your weight loss stalls, you can cut back. But if it stays at the same rate (mine did!), think how awesome your life will be.
Feeling empty, like you "could eat" is ok. Raving hunger is not sustainable.
That.. "hungry" feeling?
