So i've been calorie counting. I usually eat between 1,400 and 1,200. I originally switched to 1,400 to stop a plateau and it worked..i lost about 3 pounds in a month and then it started to slow down again so I've switched back to my 1,200 to try and keep it going.

Anyway, after switching back I keep feeling hungry at the end of the day when I have no calories left. I've tried distracting myself with TV, reading, homework, video games but a few times I've broken and had another snack. Any suggestions on what I could do? Maybe foods that I could eat in the evening to keep me feeling full longer? I usually don't eat dinner until 7 or 8 but I still end up hungry again by 10. I don't feel like I should be getting hungry that early. I know I could switch back to the higher calories, but I just really don't want to. I tend to lose so much faster with just those 200 fewer.

Any suggestions are welcome I just want to stick with my diet and hunger is sabotaging me!

Things I use as a low calorie snack:
1 whole cucumber with pepper
Pickles
Kale "chips"
Tea no sweetener
Popcorn (small serving)
Carrots slices (sometimes with hummus or light dressing)
An apple
Diet Jello
Sugar free pudding
lots of other options...

I've tried most of those things but it tends to not satisfy my hunger. popcorn does but the popcorn i have is a little bag and is 100 calories so that would put me over bit too much.

Are you really, truly hungry or are you just wanting to eat? It can be difficult to tell the difference between the two. Remember that real hunger goes away, while cravings or wanting to eat will stick with you.

Make sure your dinner has a good amount of protein. That will keep you from getting hungry longer. Special K has a great line of protein options that you can do with your dinner. Hope this helps.

Volschicka.... This is in response to the other thread talking about low calories and BMR's. I didn't want to hi-jack it from the other girl so I am posting here since I can't PM you since you are new...

Have you tried calorie cycling? That seems to help a lot of people when eating low, but consistent calorie amounts isn't working for them.

Demosthenes - I do get cravings a lot too. Just like the need to eat something just because I want to, but I'm usually pretty good at spotting it and distracting myself.

healthierME1246 - thanks I'll try eating a higher protein dinner tomorrow and see if it sticks with me better

Candeka - thanks for finding me here I definitely switch my calories a lot..mostly out of frustration and feeling like what I'm doing isn't working. What's cycling though?

honestly? If it's 10pm or later and I'm hungry I go to bed.
If it's too early still, I try a huge glass of water. Most of the time it helps.

Have you seen a doctor? What you are describing (in the other thread) is really not normal. If you really gain fat at 1700 calories and 200 pounds, something is going wrong. See your doctor.

Vex - I probably should go to bed but I'm just such a night owl. My time is night time lol. I do tend to try and go ahead and lay down in bed and brush my teeth. If my teeth are clean it helps me resist a little lol

DietVet - I was doing so well when I started and I've just recently started having issues. I may have screwed up my body eating too little for too long. I'm really not sure. But if things don't perk up in a couple weeks I will see a doc. I really can't go any sooner than that b/c I'm stranded at college until then lol

Are you eating enough protein and fiber? Those help keep you full. Also, I save calories for night time because i ALWAYS get hungry and am up late usually.

It was pure luck. I clicked on this thread and recognized your photo (I rarely look at usernames). Anyways, cycling is when you look at weekly totals as opposed to daily totals. In the end, you still eat the same amount of calories at the end of the week but you just plan to eat different amounts on different days. This helps because it prevents your metabolism from adjusting to the same amount of calories every day. So on Monday you'd eat 1200, Tuesday you'd eat 1400, Wednesday you might eat 900.

If you know you tend to eat more on the weekends, you just budget more for them and eat less on Monday. It's also great if you know you will be dining out one day as you can just make that day one of your higher calorie ones. I ended up naturally calorie cycling as I'd always eat more on the weekends (my husband is home then and we always seem to go out to eat and he is always eating which ends up making me want to eat.... damn men!). But yeah, thats pretty much the jist of what calorie cycling is. Same amount as you'd eat within a week anyways, just not as repetitive for your metabolism. If you are having trouble losing but don't want to increase, you might want to give it a try.

What has worked for me is to cut out all processed food completely. No refined stuff. No sugar. Just Veggies, fruit, lean proteins, nuts, a little dairy. I haven't added any grains back in yet, and when I do it will be things like quinoa and brown rice, I'm going to avoid wheat and corn. I can eat whenever I want because veggies are unlimited. I don't have to count calories anymore because I know how many servings of the non veggies I am "allowed" per day. Since I can eat whenever I want it has taken the obsession with food out. Plus I feel amazing!

I'm having the same problem. Even going up to 1400 I'm still STARVING. It's even keeping me from sleeping.

If you are active at all, 1200 is probably too low. I think I agree with the above, see a doc?