Hunger

[Tkdgirl]

I'm really interested in the paleo/clean eating thing but never understand how people aren't really hungry.

I have always suffered with either a fast metabolism (or maybe just convincing myself I'm hungry?) and therefore have tended to load up on carbs.

How can you ensure you're eating healthily but also keep hunger away?

[TMedina]

Snacks - clean, healthy, paleo snacks, but snacks.  Usually the meals are fairly regulated in terms of timing, so you know when to schedule a snack to keep the mighty Hunger at bay.

 

I don't eat clean, nor Paleo, but every now and again I dabble with a homebrew variant of Atkins and I have to keep diet-friendly snacks nearby or I lose my mind.

[Disil]

In terms of satiety, the order highest to lowest usually is Fats then Protein then Carbs. Paleo can easily be modified to be full of (best case) healthy fats, tons of protein and an equally or even greater ton of veggies. The sheer amount of veggies tends to help fill people up as does the satiety of the other two and without many carb sources otherwise, especially simple carbs, you won't experience the rather common insuline spikes and crashes that cause a lot of people with not so great eating habits to never feel really full / very quickly feel like eating something again. When I started paleo, one small 3-egg omelette filled me up for 6-8 hours which is just crazy considering I could've eaten half a loaf of bread in the same timeframe under the old dietary habits.

[JPrev]

On top of everything, it's good to keep in mind that sometimes it's just normal to be hungry.  That's especially the case if you're actively losing weight, but it can be the case when you're bulking, too.  We're built to store calories!  So by all means, try some different macros in your snacks and different meal times, but don't necessarily feel like you're doing something "wrong" if hunger comes around every now and then.

[Rookiebeotch]

Fats, fiber, protein. Once you overcome carb withdrawals and get used to intermittent fasting, hunger will rarely be a problem for you. I eats tons of carbs now, but not before letting my body and mind learn how to operate without them.

[K-Prime]

Also, water intake. Whenever I think I'm getting hungry, I have two glasses of water and wait 15 minutes. If I'm still hungry, snack time. 

[Tkdgirl]

Wow, thanks for all the replies. Some real food for thought there :-)

I must admit that remembering hunger is normal can be an issue for me. I'm similar with tiredness - I worry I'm not getting enough sleep because I'm tired in the evening!

I drink tons of water so fairly sure it's not thirst but like the idea of trying a drink first when hunger strikes. Maybe I just need to play around with different snacks and see what works for me.

Today I had a healthy lunch for me and within an hour started to feel hungry. I had a banana and still felt hungry so was very excited when dinner rolled around. Again, I ate healthily and lasted a good 3 hours before getting hungry. I ate a ton of grapes but was still hungry. Half an hour later I ate some rice cakes and drank a smoothie and still feel hungry. Maybe more vegetables? I'm very new to it all so any tips on better snacks hugely appreciated!

[TMedina]

When I was eating deliberately healthy, I could expect a high protein/veggie meal to last me three to four hours, give or take.  It sounds like you're in the same boat. 

 

So if I ate at 5 in the morning, I knew I'd need something to eat at 09.  Then lunch at 12 or 1 in the afternoon.  Then another snack at four or five, followed by dinner.  

 

Snacks - mind you, for my Atkins/fat-laden diet - could be pepperoni slices, almonds, pork rinds, deli meat, and so on.  You could keep apples, grapes, celery sticks, carrots - depending on qualifies for your Paleo/clean-eating diet guidelines.

 

One trick that might be helpful is practicing mindful eating.  When you grab a snack, take a breath and eat, slowly.  Chew slowly, think about what you're eating, how it feels in your fingers, how each bite tastes, and so forth.  And then think about your hunger as you eat.  This forces you to be aware of what you're eating, giving your body a chance to catch up to the idea that food is coming in, rather than "hunger signs as panic mode" that our bodies will often do.

 

Our appetites begin to shrink to fit the general level of caloric intake - it might take a couple of weeks, but soon it won't take much to fill you up.  Once you've been eating clean for a month, what used to be a quick meal for you (in my case, cheeseburgers) will fill you up before you're halfway finished.

[Disil]

Today I had a healthy lunch for me and within an hour started to feel hungry. I had a banana and still felt hungry so was very excited when dinner rolled around. Again, I ate healthily and lasted a good 3 hours before getting hungry. I ate a ton of grapes but was still hungry. Half an hour later I ate some rice cakes and drank a smoothie and still feel hungry. Maybe more vegetables? I'm very new to it all so any tips on better snacks hugely appreciated!

Bananas, Grapes, Rice Cakes, Smoothies are all calorie-dense foods and simple carbs, don't have much fiber or fat so it's obvious that they don't satiate you all that much. As far as snacks go, I'd rather try stuff like carrots, radishes, cucumber, celery, red bell peppers - all raw of course. Other options, but really calorie dense, are nuts. Brazil, Cashew, Macadamia nuts or Almonds are great to snack on and typically satiate better than stuff like grapes, but one has to be careful not to overeat as a small cup already packs a couple hundred calories.

 

To be honest though, with the proper meals around your day, snacking shouldn't even be much of an issue anymore. If you have a large chicken stir fry with tons of lean meat and tons of veggies + good amounts of olive oil then I really don't see you wanting a snack anytime soon after. You only say you eat "healthy" lunch and that dinner was "healthily" but don't go into specifics. What exactly did you eat there?

 

Also, what are your goals with this dietary change? That can have a huge influence on what advice we give will make sense and be a good fit and what will not.

[Tkdgirl]

Thanks for the tips guys. I do think I need to steer away from just fruit as snacks so appreciate the ideas on alternatives.

Lunch yesterday was an egg wrap with mushrooms, cucumber and tomatoes. Dinner was fish in breadcrumbs (homemade) with peas and peppers. I think perhaps I need to increase the amount of veggies and change my mindset that carbs means satisfying.

Interestingly I didn't eat anything else last night and don't remember feeling particularly hungry. I was desperate for breakfast this morning but not unmanageably so.

As for my intentions - just to be healthier really. I used to be a severe carb junky and I want to make healthier choices to look after my body etc. I'm 6 foot tall and weigh 11 stone so not too worried about weight loss.

[Eleanorsbee]

vegetables have  lot less sugar in them than fruit and a lot less calories than nuts .... so I try to snack on vegetables.

 

in the beginning it was hard work and I didn't enjoy it .... but now I go to work with cauliflower and broccoli florets and cooked cold leeks and shredded cabbage, onion celery and carrot.

 

I know it doesn't sound pleasant .... but after a few months you seriously start to crave broccoli if you haven't eaten any in a couple of days.

 

likewise there is 100kcal in 400g of cauliflower .... its an easy way to keep the hunger away .... although you die of bordom and you can get DOMS !!! in your jaw the next day

[Balthazar]

veg would be better than fruit but if you are wanting to feel full then take in more protein

 

like the other guys said, protein will keep you fuller for longer.

 

I shovel protein in at meal times so don't normally feel like I need snacks and I'm a 300lb guy so getting hungry can come easily to me. If I do snack then I go for protein rich foods - chicken either cold, cooked or rotisserie, any other type of meat I can lay my hands on, boiled eggs, protein shakes

[Nubbins McGee]

it's good to keep in mind that sometimes it's just normal to be hungry.  

 

Yup, some of it is just good old fashioned self discipline. 

[jfreaksho]

I'm not a fan of snacking at all (though I've lost some discipline lately).

 

The trick that works for me (when I do it) is that I only eat meals.  Full meals.  If I'm not hungry enough to cook up a meal, then I don't eat.  If I am that hungry, I make sure I get protein and fat (and usually some carbs too).  If I eat a meal and I'm still hungry after 15 minutes or so, I'll usually get out some cheese or an apple/banana with peanut butter or some yogurt or make a smoothie out of most of the above.

 

Speaking of which, I'm hungry and haven't eaten yet today.

[Tkdgirl]

Yesterday I tried some celery as a snack and was surprised that it really filled the gap between breakfast and lunch. Yesterday evening was also a success as I didn't feel too hungry so I didn't snack and I actually felt less hungry than normal on waking. I think a lot for me is bad habits and breaking those will make a huge difference.

[Disil]

Absolutely. Also, since you cleared up now that you aren't necessarily looking for weight loss, I think nuts or the trail mix route might be a good choice as you get a lot of good stuff this way, but also something rewarding, something pretty satiating and you can handle the calories (as long as you don't devour two bags every day ).

 

Also, clear yes on the veggie part. It can certainly make the difference between feeling hungry 2 hours after lunch or 5 hours later, especially if some of the carbs are replaced by it.

[Vintage]

If you aren't looking to lose weight, then you don't need to be decreasing calories. Actually, a small increase and some strength training might make you look and feel healthier overall. Replace some of your carbs with protein and fat (boiled eggs, tuna salad with homemade olive oil mayo on cucumber slices, cottage cheese or full fat yogurt if you tolerate dairy, nuts) and add in more veggies in a wider variety, particularly fibrous ones. 

 

As for hunger... I've learned which hunger signs to ignore and which ones to pay attention to. Stomach a little rumbly and/or I just want something to eat? I can ignore that. But there are subtler signs that I'm not eating enough or my bloodsugar has dropped (a common issue for me) like irritability, plummeting mood, headache, difficulty focusing, anxiety or a general feeling of unease, that I know I need to address. 

[Tkdgirl]

Thanks vintage. I've played around this week with increasing my vegetable portions and next week I'm going to try decreasing/swapping carbs for more veg and protein. Not going to do it all strictly but even a little change has to be good.

I have found a few times this week that when I've been too busy for snacks I haven't died of starvation. As ridiculous as that sounds, I think it was a good lesson for my brain. Like you say, I need to look out for the subtler signs of hunger rather than giving in instantly every time I think I'm hungry or its time for a snack.

[Tkdgirl]

I just don't think I'm meant for this. Either that or I'm doing something very wrong.

 

For lunch today I made an omlette filled with a bunch of vegetables and some lean ham with broccoli on the side. It was delicious and I really enjoyed it but I'm SO hungry right now :-( I felt hungry within half an hour but thought I'd ignore it as it's probably just boredom or habit. It's been just under an hour and a half now since I finished eating and I feel ravenous - stomach is grumbling, feel a bit weak and pathetic etc. I usually would have a snack in around 40 minutes but I can't imagine a snack that will keep me going until dinner time.

[Eleanorsbee]

you are not alone ...... I suffer in the same way ... its probably why I put on all the weight in the first place.

 

The only way I have managed to stave it off is to split lunch up ... I normally have half my lunch at 10:30ish .. the other half at 13:00ish ..... and I bulk them both up with stupid amounts of vegetables .... This mornings half lunch was had with an entire broccoli ..... this afternoons lunch was had with an entire tub of kale 

 

I think the secret is to bulk out your food with as much low cal stuff as you can ... and I find it helps to eat often but small ..... so 4 carrots spread over 4 hours is only 100kcal 

 

Also invest in chewing gum !

 

But it does get better .... I used to be cranky and weak ..... now I can great periods (for me) without needing food 

[Disil]

I just don't think I'm meant for this. Either that or I'm doing something very wrong.

 

For lunch today I made an omlette filled with a bunch of vegetables and some lean ham with broccoli on the side. It was delicious and I really enjoyed it but I'm SO hungry right now :-( I felt hungry within half an hour but thought I'd ignore it as it's probably just boredom or habit. It's been just under an hour and a half now since I finished eating and I feel ravenous - stomach is grumbling, feel a bit weak and pathetic etc. I usually would have a snack in around 40 minutes but I can't imagine a snack that will keep me going until dinner time.

How many eggs did you use for the omelette? Did you use both yolk and whites? How do you deal with dairy?

[Tkdgirl]

2 eggs with yolk and white. I think I deal with dairy ok - I have ibs so would have no idea if something wasn't agreeing with me unless it made it VERY clear

[Disil]

Okay, that's certainly not enough. I'm a little smaller than you (5'7, ~140lbs) and my standard omelette that's rather filling usually consists of 3 large eggs (about 60g per egg), 60g of lower-fat feta cheese and one medium-large red bell pepper. Including the olive oil I use, that comes down to roughly 500-550 calories. It's no surprise you didn't feel all that full given that your omelette probably was only 400ish calories.

 

I also think that there's a "getting used to" period for the body when it comes to eating less carbs and more veggies, fat and protein so that might also play into things, but for now, you need to think "bigger". Next time, use 4 whole eggs, a generous amount of olive oil and either some cheese if you can deal with it digestion wise and if not maybe some more calorie-dense meat, think something more towards bacon or pancetta and less something like lean/cured ham, + the obvious veggies whichever you like. Then, once you're done, eat an apple or a banana as dessert and see how you feel an hour later, or five.

 

 

 

Oh, yes, this might end up being more of a frittata than an omelette, but that's okay really.

[Tkdgirl]

Wow - I had considered a 3 egg omelette but not a 4 egg one! I will give it a go and report back. It was very tasty so happy to give it another go!

In other news I had half an apple, a teaspoon of peanut butter and a handful of crisps (naughty) and survived and it's nearly dinner time so bodes well that a couple more eggs is all that's needed!

[Nubbins McGee]

I just read this article and it made me think of this thread. Are you eating distracted perhaps? http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20150121-a-memory-trick-to-lose-weight?ocid=global_future_rss