I know the whole 1200 calories line is an old debate that has no real "right" side. I'm not here about that.

I've been experimenting to see what works better for me, and one of the things I'm discovering is that if I eat more than about 1200-1300 calories a day, my cravings get much worse and I get hungrier. I've tried upping my calories to 1800 and just about every number between that and 1200. The lower end makes me feel fuller and less snacky (if I eat healthier foods, which I do).

Does anyone know why this might be? I'd love to be able to eat more (and often try it), and I could and still lose weight, only I don't stick to a higher amount because it leads to cravings which leads to eating too much.

This is perplexing for me, though not distressing. I'm just very curious if anyone else had had something similar happen to them.

If you know what this is about, or have theories, I'd love to hear them.

It's probably what you are eating. The biggest bang for your buck, in terms of satisfying hunger, is lean protein like eggs, tofu, chicken, fish and seafood. If you are eating these foods on your low calorie days then that might be why you are feeling less snacky as protein really kills hunger. I eat about 1.5-2lbs of fish or seafood a day because of this, sometimes with a couple of eggs on top of that. With a very rich and diverse salad.

You might also be having more processed carbs on your higher calorie days which can also make you feel more hungry. I know if I have some chips at the end of the day, for example, that they seem to make me crave more. Try replacing processed carbs (candy, cake, bread, pasta, rice etc.) with more unprocessed ones like dried fruit (dates, figs, apricots) or steel cut oats.

I have become a big believer in a calorie is not a calorie. What you eat really matters for hunger, weightloss, physical and mental health. I try to ensure that everything I eat now is nutritious. Not just empty calories. With the strange exception of alcohol that does not seem to have an impact on my weight.