I just finished lunch 30 minutes ago. Just before lunch I had a bunch of water, and during lunch I had more bunches of water. Lunch was nothing to scoff at either. Salmon, Rice (1/3 cup uncooked) and steamed broccoli (2 cups)

I am sitting at my desk now FULL and I feel HUNGRY. I don't get it! Why does my body lie to me like this! It's just rude! I have been making an effort to have a drink of water every time I feel hungry, and that helps sometimes.

What gives? Any advice?

Well, for me rice is sugar and for most people. So, your blood sugars go up and then come down. Your body would be less hungry if you ate a bigger piece of salmon with those veggies for the same calories.

But, for me, I eat a big lunch every day as that's when I'm hungriest, but I eat high protein and some fats so that it can hold me over for hours.

try cinnamon. Cinnamon really helps me with carb cravings - I use a LOT of it in my daily oat bran, and I also have capsules (mostly because it helps with fish burps from fish oil, but I can take one for a craving too).

For me it took a while to be able to really start to get a grip on the difference between feeling hungry and actually being hungry... and I still have trouble with it sometimes... and this especially seems to happen to me about an hour or two after one of my main meals... and yes, it still happens even while eating low carb for me... So I just need to stop for a moment and think about it rationally and remind myself that I just ate a very satisfying meal just a short time ago that my body hasn't even had time to fully digest it yet... So there's no real reason why I need to eat again so soon... and I'm finding more and more that the feeling passes rather quickly... Where as in the past I just always gave into it and never really thought much about what I was doing... So these days I try to really catch myself before I switch into "Auto-Pilot" mode and wind up eating again before I really need to...

Ideas to try:

• Do something distracting--something that needs to be written, designed, answered, blogged, to keep your mind off of eating
• Take a short walk around your building (I do laps)
• Tell yourself that your body isn't hungry--your mind is--you are naturally full--you don't need to eat again now
• Tell yourself that people learn to wait until mealtime to eat--you don't need to eat every time you get hungry
• Tell yourself that eating when hungry has not worked for you--that you need to learn a different way to handle hunger since the current method has led to your current weight
• Remind yourself (unless you're diabetic or other health issue) that hunger is not an emergency
• Tell yourself that it's been 30 minutes since lunch and at 3:00 (or whenever) you'll have your planned snack and you can wait until then
• Remind yourself of the reasons you want to lose weight so you're keeping your goals in mind
• Tell yourself that you really do want to lose weight and you can't do that if you eat beyond your plan

And, as suggested, work with your meal plan to make sure you're not eating foods that make you hungry too soon. For some people, carbs do that. As long as I don't overdo carbs, that doesn't happen to me--but it does for some people and you may be one of them.

Good luck!

Damn that sugar , getting in all my food, it's messing with my mojo I tells ya!

Thanks for all the replies everyone. I drank more water and waited an hour and had some MORE water and a handful of almonds and pumpkin seeds, and its helped mostly. I still have kind of odd, mild, hungry feeling in the bottom of my belly though...

I hope it doesn't last until I go get groceries, there is nothing worse than shopping when hungry!!!

Thanks again everyone

I wish I had the answer. I always feel mildly hungry when eating within my maintenance range (2,000 cals per day). This happens whether I eat fish & salad or cheesecake brownies. I was born with a large appetite and the feeling of wanting more is just something I have to get used to. I rarely feel starving, though.

Freelance