I've majorly fallen off the wagon and haven't visited in a while, but no time like the present to start again eh?
Anyway, I was wondering if anyone else out there has what I call "bottomless pit" days and how on earth do you deal with those?
I'm sure that by name alone "bottomless pit" days are pretty self explanatory, but just in case here's how they usually go for me:
Wake up motivated ready to start "being good" all over again
Eat healthy breakfast (in today's case brown rice pudding made with unsweetened almond milk, walnuts, and golden raisins)
Proceed to be ravenous almost immediately after eating
That pretty much sets the tone for the whole day then. I was starving all the way until lunch until I sort of killed the hunger for about a minute with a small apple. After lunch (a whole grain bagel with fat free cream cheese topped with cucumber slices and a side of grape tomatoes plus a bag of pretzels and a bottle of tomato juice) I was starving again after that and tried to good and have a banana as a snack. Still hungry! I just had a Mrs. Mays Trio bar on the train and I'm still hungry!
What gives?!?!? Does anyone else have days like these - if so how the heck do you deal?!?!?!
Yes, I do. I had one today. I was just thinking about it this afternoon, and for me, it's SO weird because despite waking up with the best of intentions I can tell I'll be hungry all.day.long.
I don't keep tempting junk in the house and plan the following day's meals and snacks in advance so that I can stay on plan and if I am ravenous I'll know what kind of wiggle room I have and add in a couple of (healthy) snacks like string cheese or fruit. I also drink a lot of water.
I would try a protien breakfast eggs, meat, ( i uses low fat ham or canadian baccon) egg beaters and make an omlett with some veggies and maybe some lauging cow cheese (I can usually do it for around 150 calories) if I want more food I will add in a high fiber engish muffin in which case I would use the laughing cow on that for an extra 100 calories.
a protien shake is a good idea too if you need to be on the run, greek yogurt with fresh berries is sometihng we have too...
carbs for me can set me off on a non stop eating fling especially first thing in the morning.
I'll have to give the protein idea a try, but honestly I never noticed a carb vs. protein difference on the bottomless pit days.
An egg white and veggie frittata actually sounds good for next week (having the same thing all week keeps things easy A whole grain roll and some fresh veggies on the side for filler would round things out nicely.
it may be just me, but when I am done eating and I know I shouldnt be hungry i drink either coffee or tea, the caffeine gives me a little energy to get my butt moving and it seems to fill me up and keep my mouth busy.
Do you drink a lot of water, paniana? I find drink lots of water helps quench the hunger pains throughout the day. I'm also finding that if I buy high fibre food (cereal, bread, pasta) fills me up fast. Protein is also quite filling. I eat beans which is quite filling and full of fibre. Hummous on bread is a snack that fills me up for a long time.
Definitely vegetables....non-starchy vegetables, (not carby Fruit, but veggies). You can eat literally crap loads for very few calories. When you feel like you just need to eat and eat, eat an entire head of cabbage, or a head of broc or cauliflower. It will fill you up. Carbs and dairy just doesn't cut it for the long haul...and they are too calorie heavy so you can only eat a little if you are counting calories.
90% of the time I have at least 3 servings of VEGETABLES at breakfast...as well as 2 protein and 1 carb. (around 300 calories) I NEVER get hungry before lunch...even with the PMS monster or TOM knocking at my door.
I lost 190 pounds eating around 8 servings of vegetables and 2 fruit every day. (As well as lean protein, whole grains and low-fat dairy) For an average of around 1350 calories a day...AND I was never hungry because of all the fiber in the veggies.
I used to have bottomless pit days all the times, but since I started changing my diet 6 weeks ago I haven't. I usually have a protein shake with psyllium husk powder mixed in, it adds extra fiber (you can get it at Trader Joe's). I need something quick in the morning to get to my early class. It keeps me full and satisfied till lunch. And when I need a snack I eat a few raw almonds or some carrots or an apple.
Thanks for all the suggestions ladies. I'm going to have to give some of them a try.
As far as the drinking water thing goes, somehow it came to pass that my middle sister and I are just non-drinkers (I mean we can go a whole day on a cup of tea and sometimes nothing else) and our youngest sister is a literal camel. It doesn't help that I absolutely hate water. Since it's so highly touted by what seems like everyone I've tried to drink more of it, or more fluids (usually herbal teas) at least but it's still so hard. Water, maybe even fluids in general, tends to make me feel more hungry and it sometimes even makes me feel nauseous. I still have it as a daily to do on my list though...
Lori Bell, I think I'm going to have to try your vegetable idea. As far as fruit based snacks go, those tend to make me even hungrier, especially apples which have become so pointless to eat as snacks for me because I seriously think my stomach's like "WTF, is that all you got?!?! I'm going to throw a fit until you send down some real food 'cause I'm hungry NOW!" I don't think vegetables make my stomach react the same way and there's a grocery store right behind my building at work so I can dash out for a head of whatever to munch on when one of those dreaded days strikes.
Gosh, my stomach is so darn weird - bottomless pit days, apple rejection , and water intolerance rolled up into a tidy little acidic package.
I so know those days!! where no matter how much you eat you are still hungry!! I tend to eat a large meal of protein rich food with no vegetables (for some reason vegies make me even hungrier). It tends to fill me up. Like a chicken omelete with cheese. that always works. I also stop focusing on diet and counting calories (i try to stick to 1200-1400 a day), because it tends to make even hungrier! So bizzare! And whats weird, the next day i go back to normal and provided I didnt stray from my WOE (which is low carb) i tend not to be full of remorse (although depending on how much calories i have eaten, there might be some remorse ).
Bottomless Pit Days?
A whole grain roll and some fresh veggies on the side for filler would round things out nicely.
, and water intolerance rolled up into a tidy little acidic package.
