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Old 10-13-2005, 11:33 PM   #1  
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Default Trying to curb my appetite

I was wondering if some of you could give me some suggestions on natural ways to curb the appetite. I'm not talking drugs or herbs or anything like that. But aren't there certain foods that make you feel fuller longer? I eat oatmeal for breakfast and that seems to work, but I can't eat oatmeal for every single meal. I'm most often "snacky" at night. I know part of that is psychological, so I'll fix myself a cup of tea and often that works. But lately it's not working and I snack all evening and never feel satisfied.

As an example of a typical dinner for me, I eat steamed veggies (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower), brown or jasmine rice (cooked in chicken broth for extra flavor, sometimes with toasted slivered almonds added), and sometimes a small bit of grilled boneless skinless chicken breast. Lately, I've been eating out a bit more for dinner due to a temporary change in living circumstances, but if I cook at home it's almost always the above menu.

Sometimes I'll have whole wheat bread toasted with peanut butter on it, and that seems to help, but I'm not sure that's the healthiest snack in the world.

Thanks in advance for some advice.

Cindy B
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Old 10-13-2005, 11:58 PM   #2  
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Cindy -- I'm sure you'll get some more specific responses from others who have been doing this longer, but it seems that foods with a lot of fiber often do a good job making us feel full. This includes a lot of fruits, as well as the brown rice. I, for one, did not believe this would work for me -- "It's fruit! It's mostly water! What can it do?" But I've been so pleased to find that it really does seem to help. And I rediscovered that I really like fruit!
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Old 10-14-2005, 12:23 AM   #3  
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A lot of people find that exercise is a natural appetite suppressant. It works for me.
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Old 10-14-2005, 01:03 AM   #4  
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How low is your fat intake? It seems that most of your staples are naturally low in fat. I'm doing the WW Core program, which is focused on high satiety foods. Even then, if my fat intake drops too low, I am famished all day, and nothing will fill me up. The three types of food that help with fullness are protein, fiber and fat. It looks like you're getting the first two, so I would try adding in some nuts, healthy oils, avocado, etc. and see if it helps, maybe on top of a salad so you get some fiber in as well. You only need a bit, and even though they're high calorie they fill you up much faster, so you actually end up eating less calories most of the time.

Other than that, any whole grain is going to be filling, unless it's in a bread form. Polenta always fills me up, as does soy cheese and lean protein. Potatos are filling if you pair them with the right things. Egg white omelettes are good, soups are excellent, and casseroles with tons of veggies in them can keep you full for a long time. Smoothies with protein are a great breakfast food, or fruit with yogurt, cream of wheat with apples, etc.

If all else fails, exercise also suppresses my appetite.

Good luck


Edited to add: If you want an easy way to track your fat intake, you can try Fitday for a few days and they break your food into percentages of fat, protein and carbs. I try to keep mine at 30%, and usually if it drops below 15% I start getting food cravings.

Last edited by JoyfulVegGirl; 10-14-2005 at 01:07 AM. Reason: Added something...
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Old 10-14-2005, 02:34 AM   #5  
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I like things that have a lot of fiber and/or water. Fruit, such as apples or melons. I'm also fond of protein...I think fat is supposed to be the least filling.
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Old 10-14-2005, 07:57 AM   #6  
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Lots of good advise. You have to have fat in your diet, but make sure it's the right kind. It prevents the stomach from emptying too quickly so you stay full longer. Alo, peanut butter is excellent! It's the healthy fat and soooo good for you and it tasts great too. It is high in calories, so not too much. I use peter pan. They have a whipped version that is half the calories of regular, even the low fat kind (which isn't that great). It's hard to find but worth the effort.
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Old 10-14-2005, 09:38 AM   #7  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by the slim me
They have a whipped version that is half the calories of regular, even the low fat kind (which isn't that great). It's hard to find but worth the effort.
Are you kidding--I LOVE the reduced-fat peanut butter (as far as I know, there is no low fat kind because that would have to be less than 3g of fat per serving, so only reduced-fat). I find it's not as sticky as the regular kind. I would DIE without my reduced-fat Skippy Whipped definitely sounds super-creamy, though--I'll have to try and find it around here!

Anyway, as for the topic at hand, I have most often heard (and realized for myself) that protein keeps you feeling fuller longer. I will feel full after eating an apple or after eating half a chicken breast, but for some reason I'm always hungry again within 30 minutes of the apple, whereas the chicken lasts much longer for me. So I think now you've gotten all possible answers--more fat, more protein, more whole grains, more fiber...I guess it all depends on the individual and what works best for your particular tummy!
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Old 10-14-2005, 09:42 AM   #8  
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Protein takes longer to metabolize than any other nutrient, and therefore it keeps you satisfied longer. Maybe you could try snacks throughout the day that have lots of protein -- such as hardboiled eggs, walnuts, low-fat cheese, cottage cheese, or a protein shake.
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Old 10-14-2005, 10:15 AM   #9  
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Default Thanks so much!

Wow, thanks for all the suggestions! Lots of good advice. I don't think I get enough protein, so I'll add more eggs and nuts. I do like soy things (soy nuts, tofu, edamame, etc.) so maybe that will help. The snacks throughout the day may help, as I never snack during the day currently.

Also, 2 of you made the point about exercise supressing the appetite. That totally makes sense and may be my problem currently. As I said in my initial post, my living situation has temporarily changed (we're relocating to a new city and until our new house closes, we are living in a hotel, probably for another 4 weeks), and getting my normal amount of exercise here is proving very difficult to say the least.

I will also try to add more fruit. I like fruit, but when I'm hungry it never sounds very appetizing. So I will force myself to eat it when hungry and see if that works too.

Thanks again, ladies! I will be saving this thread and referring back to it often.

Cindy B.
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Old 10-14-2005, 10:25 AM   #10  
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Eating lots of snacks throughout the day has really helped me out quite a bit -- and it also keeps your metabolism revved up. Here's a normal day for me:

7am - breakfast
9am - snack
10am - snack
11:30am - lunch
1pm - snack
3pm - snack
5pm - dinner
7pm - snack

LOL...I sometimes feel like I'm eating ALL DAY! But I'm rarely actually hungry because I always have something in my tummy. And when I say "snack," it's usually something that's low-ish in calories but high in protein. For example, a low-fat mozzerella cheese stick is 80 calories with 9 grams of protein. It really works well for me .

Does your hotel have a gym? Or is there one nearby that you could join for just a month or so?
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Old 10-14-2005, 02:01 PM   #11  
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Yes, eating often works for me too, eating more protein and a protein at each snack and meal, eating a popcorn size bowl full of salad keeps me full and satisfied longer, adding a bit of extra olive oil to the salad is good too. EXERCISE is the best supressant IMHO, after I've had a good workout I hate to undo what I've done so I am careful of what I eat.
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Old 10-14-2005, 04:02 PM   #12  
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I try to eat protien for breakfast (even though I really would rather skip the whole meal) If I eat cereals, I find Im hungry shortly after and frustrated. I'm less hungry if I eat nothing at all ! But with an egg or two, I can go until after lunchtime (1:00 or later) and feel ok. Hot beverages (tea or coffee) and (for some reason) apples seem to satisfy. Hope this helps.
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Old 10-14-2005, 07:12 PM   #13  
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Yes, eating frequently has worked well for me too. I snack on fruit, or a piece of cheese. My new find are the Kashi granola bars. I didn't like them the first time, but they have grown on me.
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Old 10-16-2005, 09:21 PM   #14  
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Default Snacks

More great ideas, thanks ladies!

Kate: Wow that's a lot of snacking, but what you say makes sense. I really am going to try that. I was out of town and pretty much on the road all weekend, but starting tomorrow I will go grocery shopping and try some of these snack ideas. Yes, there is an exercise room here at the hotel, but I have a 1-year-old and I don't want to leave him in the hotel room while he's taking a nap. I'll run some laundry downstairs, but nothing as long as a workout. So I have to wait until hubby gets home from work at night, and we've been so busy in the evenings lately. But guess what? I had an epiphany this weekend: I bought an exercise DVD so I can exercise in the room while the little guy is napping. (I know, most of you probably would have thought of that much earlier, I don't know what I was thinking).

Ginger, I do like tea and it does seem to help when I think I'm hungry and I ought not to be. In fact, I'm drinking some right now. I've got like 10 boxes of different flavor teas! And one of those cool electric tea kettles that boils water in just a couple minutes.

Okay, again thanks for the advice! Talk to you all later.

Cindy B.

PS: Beyond all reason, I actually lost 4 pounds this week! Woo-hoo! It's really helped inspired me and get me out of my rut.
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