Ever since the weather turned cooler my appetite has increased. I can't seem to get out of this phase and I am consuming an average of about 500-600 extra calories a day. Kind of like one extra meal a day.

Can't seem to get back on track. Anyone else having similar problems? How do you deal with the cold and an increase in your appetite?? Need help!!!

Yep, I get this too. Cold weather makes me want heartier foods. So I start eating heartier, but lower calorie foods. Stews and soups are some of my favorites. Almost all my foods are hot when the weather is cold (oatmeal, beef vegetable stew, roasted veggies, baked apples with a little cinnamon, etc.).

I suggest you stick to your calories, but spend them on hot, filling things. That solves it for me, anyway. No salads for me until it gets warmer again. Just mixed cooked veggies instead.

I'm with Penny. I have noticed a bigger desire for roasted vegetables and soups/stews lately. Eating seasonally is natural for the body, imo!

Thanks for the responses.

Penny-- I can really relate to your response. I started doubling my morning porridge-- I eat 2 servings of whatever hot cereal I am having in the morning. I noticed that it is helping me a lot and its only adding a small amount of calories and killing my desire for 'senseless snacking.'

Now I have to remember to eat more protein or slow carbs at dinner too and that should help curb my hunger without adding too many extra calories to my daily quota.

Raison5cookie-- An extra serving of cooked veggies at night sounds like a really good idea. Thanks for the suggestion!

So I am going with increasing my morning slow carbs, and adding a bit more protein and cooked veggie. I think I could add more protein & veggies at both lunch and dinner.

You know when I started this weight loss regime last January it was in the freezing temps but I didn't have this same trouble with my appetite as I am having now. Maybe the difference is I started when I was already acclimated to the cold and this time its different because after several months of warm weather I am now dealing with sudden cool weather and not acclimated to it yet. Hope that makes sense.

Anyway, I would love to hear from more people how they handle their appetite during seasonal changes like this cold weather.

This happens to me every year too. As weather gets colder and evenings darker all I can think of is chocolate and stews. This year I've tried to change it by starting Whole30 diet program. I'm on day 26 today so almost done

ANY weather makes me hungry. Hang in there and stay with your program.

Maybe we are all suppose to begin hibernating?! I too find I want to add more and/or have the desire for all things warm. Of late I have been denying the want of fresh baked bread when I make my soups because I know I won't be able to stop w/one piece. I find it interesting though to see others deal with this as well.

I love that soups and stews are naturally low calorie and filling, so I usually lose weight in the winter. No barbeques and fire pits and beach days

These have been my favorite winter go to snacks for years They've kept me from gaining weight. Eating them often during the day.

Hot tomato juice in a big mug w chili powder & either diced onion or mushrooms or bacon bits stirred in.

Any low sodium broth hot with whatever frozen veggies I have. Or toss a few croutons in a mug of hot broth.

Green spinach smoothie w fruit.

Hot drinks take away my hunger & cravings. A mug w half hot water & half apple juice or fruit nectar.

1-2 serving size of spaghetti salad. A baked potato w tomato salsa or salsa Verde.

For the chocolate monster, I feed it 1 York Peppermint candy bar or I stir a peppermint stick in a mug of a healthy hot cocoa. I learned that the taste & smell of peppermint satisfies & curbs sugar cravings.

Coffee w a peppermint stick or a mug of hot water w a peppermint stick.

Oh thank you miniDoodles!! Your suggestions really rock!! I especially love the idea of hot broth with veggies. Gonna put some of these items on my next shopping list!!!

I do soup for my lunch drink a LOT.

Microwave a cup or so of frozen veggies (I like cauliflower and spinach, but squash or broccoli work too). Add chicken bone broth and spices and heat. Then use immersion blender to puree. I often add a spoonful of miso paste for some saltiness, probiotics, and depth of flavor. Sometimes I finish it with a bit of butter or cream cheese, depending on my calorie allowance for lunch and what else I'm eating.

Combos I particularly like:

• Carrot or squash with red curry
• Cauliflower with coconut curry
• Cauliflower and spinach with creole seasoning and a bit of cream cheese
• mushrooms and rosemary/tomato/garlic (I have a grinder) with a bit of butter
• broccoli with Italian seasoning and some cream cheese (or Velveeta, but we seldom buy it anymore)
• Celery and onion with garlic and a finish of sour cream
• Cauliflower with ginger and miso, finished with a dribble of sesame oil

Synger,
TY I'll try a few of the combos because I seldom used curry.

synger-- those combos sound yummy!! gonna save these to try out!!

Started to add more brothy soups and made some granola up. My appetite is starting to settle down just a bit.

I'm not sure making the granola was such a good idea. Its got good stuff in it like oats, nuts, raisons, cranberries, dark chocolate pieces that are on my program. But it tastes so durn good the first couple days I ate 2-3 portions a day and ended up eating more calories than I wanted. But yesterday and today I have only had one portion on my yogurt. It really makes the yogurt extra yummy and super filling!!

But I need to think more or adding more veggies-- LOL!!

try it with yogurt or some kind of soup or mushy food. it helps. i cant explain why but it helps, our stomach likes mushy food. try it.