Smaller portion sizes - does it get easier?!

[Bunbum]

I’ve started to serve up smaller portions for myself and DP as it was just getting hideous.

Problem is…. I’m still bloody hungry!!! I went to bed last night with a rumbling tummy which wasn’t fun. I was semi - full after yesterday’s dinner but come the evening I was empty!

However I do need to stick to it, so does it get easier? Do you adjust?!

Have you looked at volume eating? You can add a lot of food to a meal for very few calories.

@FieldsOfFlours so this is basically what I did as a ‘trial run’ (lol) last week - had a chicken salad which truly left me full. However, same thing as yesterday where a few hours later I was so so hungry with a rumbling tummy!! If it isn’t carbs, it just doesn’t last very long?

It’s a classic MN question but try working out how many g of protein your getting a day.

I think protein is supposed to fill you up. How about snacking on things like boiled eggs, ham etc . Gets a bit boring probably but might help the tummy rumbles x

It takes about two weeks to get used to no carbs. And if you have carbs early in the day, you'll want to eat more. Best have any carbs (good ones!) late in the day and it should keep you full.

Are you aiming for a relatively low carb diet?
Eggs are really good at keeping you full, whether you go for boiled or cooked into a dish such as an omelette.
Salads are great if you bulk up with lots of lettuce, cucumber, tomato, onion, add a handful of nuts, more eggs, and a protein such as chicken.

It does get easier but your DP should be serving up his own portion.

Our BMR is on a downslope from age 40 onwards so the portion sizes have to adjust as we age.

In addition, if the body size difference between you and him is average and you are both equally active, your portion size should be around 2/3rds the size of his.

It is easy to forget that feeling hungry is completely normal and not bad for you. It’s not especially pleasant but if you are eating sensibly you will probably feel hungry quite often, and especially before meals. It’s not a feeling that has to be sated immediately. And you do get used to the feeling of being hungry and learn to interpret that as ‘I’ll enjoy my lunch when it comes’, not ‘must eat now.’ I never eat between meals (not a virtue- I was raised by a French woman, it’s just what we do), and always feel hungry before a meal and sometimes before bed.

I agree with the above.

It’s OK and normal to feel hungry.

Simply put, yes it does get easier but it took me about 2 weeks for small portions to seem normal. Just stick with it and I swapped in more vegetables and swapped out a spoon of mashed potato.

Took me two weeks to realise I wasn't so hungry in the evenings after tea.

I did a week on my fitness pal logging my normal at that time eating and was shocked at how much I was consuming.

I started week 1 on 1200 calories and mainly filled up on protein.
Steak,chicken,eggs etc but after two weeks I wasn't needing it so I think I've got used to eating normal portions now.

I've lost 11 lb in a month which I'm massively pleased about but mainly I no longer feel stuffed after eating or craving carbs and crap anymore so it's def settled down

Yeah it's really tough

Snack on hard boiled eggs and cottage cheese

Or just go to bed

@Bunbum I want to know the answer to this too. I've been having smaller portions for about 7 years now, and am always bloody hungry.

yes it does get easier it is hard at first because you body has to adjust to the new portion size but it does get easier after a little while

When do you eat dinner? Maybe you need to re-think your food intake during the day to avoid the danger of snacking because your dinner was too early?

And yes, it does get easier. There are also several tricks to convince your mind that you eat enough like using a smaller plate so the food looks more than it actually is, several different vegetables will make it more appealing and again, it looks like you eat more as you eat different things. And obviously, the protein ratio.

Another one I found helpful is not plating the whole meal immeadiately but serving from dishes. So eat a small portion and then a second helping, again, a mind trick.