so any tips? I'm going through food withdrawal! Lol. Anyone got stories on how they beat this.

Just curious...can you tell if it is actual hunger or wanting to eat because that's what you're used to doing? That was my biggest problem in the beginning, I ate all the time. So, when that coping strategy was taken away, I had to figure out what to do with my new found free time. That was the main reason I started exercising right away, to kill some of that free time.

I know it sounds simplified right now, but if you can stick with it, eventually a lot of that food withdrawal will go away. In the beginning you may just have to white knuckle it and realize that these uncomfortable feelings are helping you toward your goals.

Best wishes!

Drink loads of liquids. Water would be ideal, or tea but crystal light (made with carbonated water) or diet soda are fine too if you don't feel you can handle that much water at this stage. Plus the taste helps your taste buds a bit. If you're craving salt stock up on lite or low cal powdered soups. I have a few knorr and Batchelors brand that are ready in 2 minutes and are only 30 (spicy tomato lite) or 60 (chicken and mushroom) calories per packet and because of the liquid make me feel novelly full.

Chew gum or brush your teeth, it keeps your mouth busy and the taste discourages eating.

Make veggie snacks. Baby carrots, celery sticks are good low cal options and you get the sensation of eating without doing much damage.

Plan your meals ahead so you have something to look forward to. If you have a plan, you tend not to feel like I have to eat immediately because you know your next meal time is coming soon and you know what it's going to be.

Try to keep busy/work out. A lot of the time the feeling of hunger stems from boredom (even when you have things to do). Go for a walk, clean, volunteer, exercise. If you're actively doing something, you don't have the time to stop to eat.

Track your workouts and food. Even if you choose not to be a calorie counter, it doesn't hurt to know about how many calories are in the foods you like to eat and to know how much effort in a work out it would take to burn even a fraction of your favourite snack.

Keep busy. The more you sit around without things to do the more your mind will drift to food.

Experiment with foods and meal size.

I've found that processed salty snack type foods make me very hungry while more natural fiberous foods fill me up and keep me fuller longer.

I eat two big meals a day + a snack. This helps with hunger much more than eating many small meals. You might be the opposite.


Finally - suck it up. Dieting is very simple - but sadly not easy if you love to eat. (Like me)

Eat REALLY nutritionally-dense food. Eggs, Greek yogurt, swiss chard, kale, beans, flax, pomegranates, sweet potatoes... etc. These power foods keep me full and really really satisfied. And they taste delicious

I find that after a week or so my body adjusts to the new routine and I'm not as hungry. But hunger isn't a bad thing! It's a great cue our bodies give us to let us know when to eat. If you wait to eat when you're hungry then your body will be in fat burner mode!

Your body will adjust to your new portion sizes. I know that when I first started and measured out a salad for the first time, I thought No way is this going to fill me up! (This happened two weeks ago.) Last night I ate the same "small" portion salad and felt too full. It takes a few weeks, but eventually, your body adjusts to the smaller amounts of food, and you stop being as hungry.

Something else that has helped me is exercise. I look forward to it every day now, and it helps me make healthier choices because I think Do you want to screw all this work up by eating way too big a meal? I also find that I'm not hungry after working out, but other people report the opposite.

Another poster mentioned diet soda, but I would advise against drinking that to help with the hunger. I read a study a couple weeks ago that suggested drinking sodas (diet and regular) causes other sweet-food cravings. So it might be best to just stay away.

Good luck!

In the beginning, I remember literally saying, "well, I'd better get used to being hungry". And I did. Finally, I heard my tummy growl. I wasn't just eating to eat, I was eating because I was hungry. In the meantime, have an apple. Or a hand full of nuts (just a handful....which was always hard for me to do...haha). When my mid day snacking brain would turn on, I'd make myself a cup of coffee. Or clean something. Chew gun.
Good luck to ya girlie!!!

when i'm hungry i go for a drink, it keeps my mouth busy. and that's what i want to do when i'm hungry, i just want anything in my mouth lol, not that i really want to eat that certain sandwich or snack..just anything! so a cup of tea or nescafe (skimmed milk and zero calory sugar) make me feel good. also you can try to get any snack thats very low in calories but you like its taste, for example vanilla flavored skimmed capaccino, chopped tomatoes with salt and lemon on them... you don't have to ignore your hunger completely, bt choose smth you wont regret eating it afterwards )) Good luck!

If I'm having a super -hungry spell, I switch around my food for the day to get through the rough patch, and just have a bit less later. It is rarely an all-day thing.

As quoted on here by someone else, "Hunger is not an emergency!" Gosh I love that. It's so true. It's okay to feel hungry. It's okay to have the rumblies in your tumbly. Distracting yourself with something else, while drinking lots of fluids, helps get to the next meal/snack time.

Try to eat clean, whole foods. They make you feel fuller and better for a reason. For me 100-cal snack packs are like little shots of death. LOL They don't make a dent in my hunger and I find myself wanting them more and more. I like 100-cal greek yogurts, instead.

I eat primarily whole foods and I eat six times a day. I'm never hungry because I'm always eating!

Almonds or walnuts will stay hunger. One portion size (about a palm). Eat one nut at a time enjoy the flavor then drink a glass of water. Let those sit inside you and the hunger will go away. It sounds simple and impossible but it's a natural fact, not an old wives tale. Believe it or not I eat my pack of unsalted nuts for lunch and don't get hungry till dinner. I have to make myself eat more in order to get my cals in for the day.

Good luck