I've been on IP for 6 days so far...the first 3 days were really tough, headaches, hunger pangs, etc. Day 4 I felt great, lots of energy, headaches gone...but still hungry. I'm hungry an hour after I eat each meal until dinner. I am drinking my water and using my salt and vitamins like I am supposed to. I am really discouraged because I've been reading posts that people got over the hunger part a few days in. Why am I still hungry??

Sometimes it takes more then 4 days to get over the hunger issue..Its different for everyone..especially when it comes to what youve been eating prior to being on the diet..If you are used to gorging yourself with food and eating carb laden food and stuffing your stomach so full that hurts and doing it on more then one occasion, then its natural to feel hungry now because you are feeding it so little compared to what you were feeding it before..You have to take time to allow your stomach to shrink down to size a bit more..Once it realizes it doesnt need to be as stretched out because its not getting as much..it will shrink down..and the ketosis may take a little longer then 4 days..its not a fact that it takes 4 days for the hunger to go away..it can take up to 7 days for some..

Also remember there is a difference between mental hunger and physical hunger..your body might think that its hungry..but it could be mental...

My point is: Dont be discouraged...just keep on going..And really chug that water down..I sometimes do it till my stomach hurts..I will drink a litre and a bit to make myself feel full if i feel really hungry.. and eat lettuce cause its free and pickles are good to much on too(the non sugary kind) Make some sugar free jello if you need to and eat an extra packet if you get desperate...some people have a 4th packet for the first week to help curb the hungry stomach.

I was told that you can add an extra packet per day for the first week or two if you need to. Would that be an option for you? Also, I don't know if it's all in my head or what but if I have a small amount of flavored sparkling water (0/0/0 of course) I normally don't feel hungry for a while afterwards.

I agree with Porthardy, there is a huge difference between WANTING to eat and actually BEING hungry. Although, I was hungry for probably the first whole week (I still get hungry once in awhile and I'm on week four!). My only advice to you is to eat huge salads and bear through it! It's worth it!

Hey! I am also in day 6! Its getting easier but that was me yesterday.. So hungry I could eat my hand!

My Coach told me that during the FIRST week only I could have 1 extra IP packet or 2 boiled eggs split between meals. She also to me that I could have as many vegetables I liked throughout the day to curb the hunger!

Good luck tomorrow, and I can't wait to read about your first WI!!

Hard boil some eggs and when hunger hits have a egg white with some salt (and whatever other seasonings you like). Hang in there. If you're truly in ketosis your hunger WILL go away...This diet really does work. Be strong and keep going...

Stick with this and you will be so very happy!! I was hungry for a long time too. Most probably because of the crap that I was eating before. Eat the eggs and the extra packet, you will be just fine! Also, I have to stay away from the flavored MIO stuff and anything with a lot of artificial sweetener. Those products make me STARVING...like I am having an insulin spike from them. A few others have reported the same. The hunger WILL go away, it is tough, but you will ROCK THIS!!!! I am so very thrilled that I stuck to this, I have not been this happy or healthy in twenty years. IP is wonderful, I am sure you will agree once your body calms down. Stay strong and stay with us!!!! It is an amazing journey.

I had the exact same issue with after meal hunger. My coach advised me to have another packet right before my hunger was striking....which was almost 90 minutes after lunch. It worked! I questioned having two packets so close together, but I did it, and it worked. The rest of the day was much better. I had eggs whenever needed, and I lost tons! Also, I did notice that soups and packets that were lower in sugar or sucralose worked better at lunch....maybe it is just me. Broccoli soup was a staple for me for a LONG time!

I am so happy to see this thread. This is day 12 for me and I am STILL hungry. I am so motivated to stay OP, but I was hoping that I would feel better by now. Yesterday I felt great, I thought--this is it, I am in Ketosis, energetic, etc. This morning--good feeling gone. I did have red bell peppers yesterday at lunch and dinner. I've seen some people say that they are not on the approved veggie list?

I also wouldn't underestimate the power of your mind, here (your emotions, your expectations about what eating less means). Many people start to feel an absence of hunger around the middle/end of the first week of any restrictive diet, while others might not. I wouldn't dismiss the possibility that these are psychological symptoms you're feeling: which is not to say they're not REAL or should be dismissed, just that there might be something else that needs to be addressed rather than your physical body.

Day 20 and starving. Period.

I do everything not only "right" but "perfect"...salt, water, stick to only reg veggies and pick the lowest carb, sugar, cal ones to boot, I consume NO restricted items at all, no protein bars or other delicacies...nothing as in zippo.

I have been in ketosis when on Atkins, for over a year and lost over 100 lbs before starting this diet so I know ketosis very well. It DOES cut your hunger, but it will not eliminate it. Not unless you are a tiny 125lb bird and used to 700-800 calories a day.

My hunger is not "in my mind". My stomach thinks my throat was cut! haha! It is "real" when you sit there working and your stomach is doing flip-flops and people around you HEAR your stomach rumbling! And of course, its embarrassing.

Add another shake packet...add more of this or that...no thank you. I want this weight gone as fast as possible. So for "me" it was buck-up, shut-up, and "git er done"!

If as more time passes my stomach gets used to the idea that this is all I get to have, and the hunger subsides some, great. If not, well, sucks to be me but I will not waiver and I will not stop until I hit my goal. It is simply not an option.

So the moral of the story is: You either want that Gold medal or you don't. You are either willing to change things or not. And finally, no one said it was going to be "easy"...

You MUST keep your head straight and your eye on the prize. In this way, YES, it is mental.
Have to run now, my stomach is growling loudly and I need another 16oz of water to shut it up for 10 minutes! haha!
Cheers;
Jake

Use you water to shut up your stomach too hey.... Thought i was the only one

Have you tried a cup of hot herbal tea? My coach said that hot liquids tend to satify hunger. I have tried this a time or two, drinking tea when making supper for my family and it seemed to help.

My coach allowed me to have a 4th packet my first week, and also try some of 2 egg white recipes with your IP packets. The 2 egg whites add ~35 calories from ~8g protein and can really expand the menu (waffles, flatbread, unrestricted pancakes, cakes, muffins, cookies).

My first week was true hunger, i actually stuck to 3 IPs/day, the second week was mental...i really had to work on breaking that snack habit and establishing my new routine. By my third week i found this forum, recipes, and support and its been smooth sailing ever since. The rare times i have felt hunger now has been either tom or the day before a huge whoosh.

Thanks for all of your advice and thoughts. Today was better, I wasn't really hungry for lunch but I ate it and then was really hungry before dinner. Tomorrow is my first WI, I am excited to see what has happened this past week!