To think you need to go hungry on a diet?

[username30473]

I didn't want to use the word diet it was just for the title. The last couple of years my diet has been appalling to say the least. I have always been a size 10 but now a size 12 touching 14. From the way I have eaten I actually think I could be a lot larger.
Anyway I am now trying to change my diet back to what it used to be and lose weight.

I actually started on Boxing Day so I am a week in and I am hungry all the time. I am not massively restricting myself either. Yesterday I have had yogurt/fruit for breakfast, beans and scrambled eggs on toast for lunch, fruit for afternoon snack and steak and chips for dinner with a couple of Jaffa cakes for dessert. I just think I am so use to eating so much now I just have to get use to be hungry until my body gets use to less food again.

Do others find this to be the case?

Well done on your resolve. You sound very determined to get your health back.
Fizzy water helps me. Making a tea or coffee is distracting and you know there is now something in your stomach.
I eat pumpkin seeds and raw nuts too. Chewed well and slow paced.

I stop eating a meal as soon as I feel full and if I am hungry later I can finish the meal off.
Portion control and 2nd helpings were my problem. It took a little time(a month?) to adjust to eating little and often.

Its normal to feel a bit hungrier than usual, but its important to not feel like youre starving and depriving yourself. If you are careful to eat extra protein then you can often eat lower calories and avoid a lot of the hunger

@RoyalFamilyFan

Yes you have to accept being hungry. You have to eat less food than you need to lose weight.

I've been trying to "diet" since Boxing Day.

I'm struggling because I can't seem to tolerate hunger. I have definitely eaten less and eaten better food over the last week, but I haven't lost any weight.

I did one day with just dinner but it was a sofa day so burnt no calories.

I have four stone to lose so I have to learn to tolerate hunger but
I don't know how. I drink a lot of water already.

I lost a significant amount of weight after getting a trainer. He drew me up a diet plan, high protein, lots of white meat, eggs, green veg, six strict days, one cheat day every week. I can honestly say I was never hungry. In particular, cutting out refined sugar was a huge positive change.

I used to think this. But I now run a few times a week, don't eat dairy and don't eat after 6pm latest. I eat breakfast at 9 and I find that I'm full just with three meals. Sometimes I don't even want much for my last meal of the day, depending on what I've had for lunch. I'm rarely hungry between meals, but if I am, say during a busy day or before period, I eat!

@EmmaH2022 it is about being psychologically ready. I know it is tough.
You can eat more healthily, but that alone will not help you lose weight.

Ok so my thoughts are that often when you change your eating habits to lose weight I honestly think you feel hungry because you are just thinking about food a lot more. What you’ve eaten, what you can eat, what you’d like to eat. And it gives you a hungry mindset.

Also yes you do need to be hungry in my view to lose weight and as a society I think we’ve lost sight of the fact that it’s actually perfectly normal and healthy to be hungry a few hours before a main meal.

@AnyoneForFondue

I lost a significant amount of weight after getting a trainer. He drew me up a diet plan, high protein, lots of white meat, eggs, green veg, six strict days, one cheat day every week. I can honestly say I was never hungry. In particular, cutting out refined sugar was a huge positive change.

The reason that works is because it is difficult, although not impossible to overeat on a very limited diet. But it can also be very boring to stick to. Chicken, green veg and eggs does not make for a very interesting long term diet.

I find when I eat a lot of sugar, I feel very hungry. Fruit seems to be a particular culprit. Its not at all filling either compared to veg and grains. The best foods I've found to manage hunger are porridge, nut butter, Greek yoghurt and loads of veg made into soup, curry etc. Postponing the first meal of the day is also helpful for me as eating early just seems to start me off.

Whilst nobody would disagree that it's a deficit in calories which is the key to weight loss, I do think it's important that the majority of calories should be as nutritious as possible.
I saw a thread the other day about somebody trying to lose weight and thinking that as long as everything they ate came to less than 'x' calories it was all good, but much of the stuff she was eating was absolute shite.
There is a degree of re-educating one's eating habits needed I think. I'm not saying don't eat a jaffa cake, but be a bit more mindful of proper nutrients, so that your body functions properly. I'm speaking generally here not singling out the OP.

There are plenty of slim people with terrible diets.

Hunger is important. I find it so odd that we are so intolerant of our natural cue to eat. If you never allow yourself to be hungry, your hormone levels adjust and your appetite will never decrease, and you will always crave snacks and more food, whereas if you cut snacks and eat less food you will eventually stop craving it.

Appetite does adjust over time - up and down. Strongly support other posters who recommend drinking more fluids as thirst often disguises itself as hunger. Also add more veg to your meals, whether it’s salad or whatever. Tons of nutrients and it does add to the feeling of fullness.

And at the end of a meal just stop and wait a bit...are you really hungry? Sometimes I think I am, but I’m not, and if I have a hot drink or distract myself with something I forget all about it.

Overall I think it’s worth being cautious with the high calorie, low nutrient food, but personally I would not cut it out totally if you really enjoy it. If you feel deprived then it can become counterproductive.

@Pedalpushers our culture is never to let kids get hungry for very long and to give constant snacks. We now have adults who have grown being fed like this as the norm.

@Ihopeyourcakeisshit is it not just that it’s easier to stick to if your calories are made up from more nutritious foods as it generally means you can eat more in quantity? You feel fuller etc.

@MrsG010814

If you haven't already I would run your info through a TDEE calculator to work out roughly how many calories you need each day and how much to reduce to put you in a deficit. Increasing protein in your meals and snacks also helps keep you feeling fuller for longer. You don't have to be hungry all of the time, I find that I can maximise my calories by eating the right combo of foods. Make sure your drinking plenty water too.

This.

Undereating with too big a deficit is unsustainable.

I've always been hungry on a diet. I was used to eating all day so it stands to reason. I'm now eating only three meals a day so I'm going to be hungry. A large bowl of fridge porridge with fruit and banana keeps me full for around only 2 hours. It takes a whe to get used to new eating habits.

We really overreact about hunger. It’s ok to feel hungry sometimes. It’s not going to kill you.

I think you need to find the diet (in the holistic sense of the word) that works for you. I lost 25kg doing intermittent fasting / 5.2. So I ate only 500 calories two days each week, and normally the rest of the time (including McDonald’s breakfast each week!). I learnt “I can have it tomorrow” about treats, and to eat bulky veggies and soup for meals for the most calorie bang for my buck.

I do think you need to be prepared for some hunger in losing weight, and going through the process of understanding whether you’re hungry, thirsty, bored, stressed, whatever rather than “I must eat right now”.

I don't think there is a easy way where if you can only plan your meals well enough, you will be fully satisfied and not have to cut food groups you enjoy. If there was not an element of sacrifice needed, people wouldnt be overweight in the first place.

I've always been hungry on diets but that's because if I was feeling full all the time, I'd take off a few more calories.

It's probably possible to shave a few hundred calories off what you'd normally eat without been too hungry but if the calories go low enough, you will feel it.

Eating low calorie foods can help with the habit/boredom but don't help me with feeling hungry. I've had a belly full of veg and still felt hungry because of a lack of calories.

You will probably find hard boiled eggs fill you up more? I do!

Porridge and banana for breakfast.

Homemade soup (chicken, sweet pot, carrot and pepper), quark/skyr yoghurt and grapes for lunch

Chicken, sausages, gammon, salad, beetroot, cheese, veg, (not all at once I have a combination) for dinner.

I find this keeps me feeling full and I was always told under eating amounts can slow metabolism so you need to eat enough but if the right foods.

Steak is absolutely fine. It is pure meat and protein.

Nope. It’s actually the opposite for optimal weight loss. You should be eating more, not less.

trust me, eating more does not help you lose weight!

Yes, I would say you need to retrain your body to expect less food and that will involve some going hungry to get used to a different diet.