I have just started back dieting and counting calories this week. I understand your stomach growling...I have noticed mine doing the same but its not really hunger pains. I think alot of mine is my body trying to digest real food. I have been eating lots of fruits and veggies. I also looked into the bob greene program last week but decided this was free and Im the one in control this way. I do still get his emails. Good luck...I would try adding some nuts or something for a snack. they will give you energy also.
Paula, nuts are yummy and full of good nutrients, but WATCH them and the amount that you eat. They are very caloric.
And I'm in total agreement with Heather. Frequent PLANNED snacking is what's allowed me to shed the pounds and now keep them off. I would NEVER stick to this new lifestyle of mine if I were hungry and munchie. Frequent snacking takes care of that, hence freeing me up to lose the weight.
OK, I believe you! Thanks so much. My brother was in a rollover accident Wednesday night, and dieting went completely out of my mind. After a night in the hospital thank God he is doing fine, some crazy guy crashed into his jeep and it rolled three times. He was so lucky that he wasn't hurt any worse. I wasn't thinking about food at all.
Anyway, I notice today I can tell the difference, I am filling up a lot quicker. I had half a sandwich for lunch and was satisfied. Thanks for hanging in there with me to get over the "worst" of it.
Paula, I'm SO GLAD I'm not the only one! I just started and it's not that I feel hungry all day, exactly, so much as I keep thinking about food I want. I see my students munching through a bag of Doritos, bless their skinny hearts, and I start to absolutely crave the crunchy saltiness.
I was raised without a lot of snacking; we always had three big meals, so I got in the habit of eating too much at a meal so it would tide me over. Then I'd need to eat more and more as my metabolism crept up to adjust.
One thing I'm trying is having a little bit of "junk food" that isn't quite so bad, like corn chips and salsa, in very moderate quantities. I save up the calories, and then I treat myself to 10 chips with lots of salsa loaded up on them, especially when I get hungry at night. It makes me feel like I'm treating myself and giving in a little bit, so I can resist other things more easily. Also it's easier to sacrifice during the day when I know that I have to earn my chips at night, because if they're going to boost me over my calorie count, I won't eat them!
I'm just going to hang in here for a couple of weeks and see if it gets any better. I'm not even really trying to lose weight at first, just be healthier, and then gradually decrease my calories as I learn to control the cravings. Maybe you should aim for a higher starting goal and then work your way down to the point you're trying for now?
PaulaM, sometimes that strategy works better than looking at a big block--break it down! 'cause it means the long haul.
emmyroo, one of the great things about counting calories is that one doesn't have to have "off-limits" foods. For myself, I had to declare some foods off limits when I began, though. I knew that if I started on them, it would be hard to stop. So, I just didn't let them in the house.
Some foods are still like that! But others I've been able to allow in the house as long as I package them into individual servings.
I'm so glad to hear that your brother is OK! Of course food went right out of your thinking for awhile--that would be normal!
