Is it normal to get HUNGRIER as you lose weight?

Please help me out on this one-
I'm about 3 weeks into making small changes in my diet. I have to check on Saturday, but I think I've lost a total of 4lbs. in the past 3 weeks.
I've noticed that at the 3-week mark of any diet I begin, I start getting really hungry after the small meals that had been enough before. I have to wrestle with myself to stay within my calories now.
Is this normal, or is it all in my head?
Thanks!
Sophie

Thu. Dec 8, 12:37pm

Sophie,

One philosophy is that you should never go into a meal hungry. Munch on cut veggies, or drink water to satisfy your hunger. If neither of these work, then eat something that satisfies your hunger.

If cut veggies (celery, carrots, etc.) don't do the trick, I have found that something like a salad will quite often satisfy my hunger. A large salad of Romaine lettuce, with a tablespoon of imitation bacon bits, some chopped onions, and a couple or so tablespoons of a reduced calorie dressing will generally do the job for me.

Somewhat on my own, I have discovered that really hot foods, such as cayenne pepper, chili paste or similar, can kill my hunger. I keep a jar of kimchee (or kim chee) in the fridge for this, and also keep a lot cayenne around. Usually, a half-cup of kim chee will take the edge off my hunger.

Finally, are you tracking your nutrition in FitDay or something similar? The reason for the hunger might be that you are depriving yourself of an essential nutrient. If you aren't using a database already, you might check out FitDay/webfit. It is free and relatively easy to use.

The link below will take you to the sign-up page for FitDay.

Hope some of this will be of use to you.

Digby

Link

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 1:57 PM

Thanks!

Thanks for the tips, Digby, I appreciate it. :)
I'm also wondering, though, if anyone else has experienced feeling MORE hunger a few weeks into an eating plan change than they did at the beginning...
Sophie

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 2:01 PM

I think fitday is horrible. Too much time and I don't think it's easy at all.

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 2:57 PM

I don't think it's "horrible". Provides some good analysis, however, regarding easy, I believe that you have a point. Wading through a cumbersome software product gets somewhat arduous and then can be the "excuse" of not losing weight. Simple sometimes can be better.

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 3:03 PM

Sorry you don't like FitDay

I agree that the online version of FitDay can be a bit awkward to get used to. I like some of the features, however, and particularly some of the charts.

I continue to use the online version partly for this reason, and partly because I have made it public and have the URL to it posted in my PeerTrainer log. Several people to whom I have recommended this online version like it quite a bit, and a couple have also made their FitDay logs public and posted the URLs in their PeerTrainer logs.

I also work with a PC-based program, DietBalancer, that I have been using for 4 years, and have customized with daily meal plans, custom foods, etc. It is much faster for me to use than FitDay. At some point, particularly if I get in a time crunch, I will probably quit posting to FitDay and use only my PC-based software.

As a suggestion, you might want to check out the PC-based version of FitDay. It is described as being much easier to use and with many more features than the online version. I am giving some thought to purchasing it myself to replace my present PC-based program.

I will post the URL for the PC-based version of FitDay below. The website has a considerable amount of information on how to set up custom menus, custom foods, your own meals, etc. to avoid having to re-enter the foods and quantities every day. These are the things I don't like about the online version, and perhaps some of these are the same things you don't like about it.

Good luck to you with your diet and fitness program.

Digby

Link

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 3:15 PM

WOW

Hey, I haven't had a chance to check out FitDay. Thanks for the link, Digby.
Anyone have any experience with my original question? lol
Sophie

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 3:22 PM

Add a cup of raw veggies at every meal - you will no longer be hungry =) Anyway, what are you eating? If you are eating small portions of high calorie foods, you will be hungry. You don't need to go hungry to lose weight.

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 3:36 PM

right on

I totally am eating high calorie foods in smaller portions. Thanks for the tip about the raw veggies. I generally hate them cooked.
Sophie

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 3:53 PM

Also, after 3 weeks, you're probably getting sick of dieting and it hasn't really become habit yet. It's a time where it's easy to give up. If you're not as motivated as you were during week 1, you'll start looking at bigger portions of yummier food in a more longingly way, and therefore get more hungry!! So it's probably just that part of your diet... Make sure you eat enough fats and fiber, they're the most filling, but don't overdo it b/c they're both high-cal. Simple carbs have a lot of calories too, and are not at all filling, so if you're eating any, try substituting them for something more fiberous and filling.

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 4:32 PM

Fiber is not high calorie. Even if it counts as "4 calories/gram" like any other carb - it isn't true. Your body doesn't burn it, and it passes out pretty much in the same form that it came in. Calories are created by burning (in a calorimter, not a human body) the food and seeing how much energy it supplied. This isn't the same as a human body. Any calories ingested from fiber can be subtracted from your daily calorie totals (think about how the WW points system works). Fats on the other hand do provide a lot of calories. You shouldn't avoid fats, but focus on healthy ones - such as the monounstaturated fats found in avocados, or fats from raw nuts. Fats from french fries, pastries, and cakes are generally no good for you. Aninal fats are primarily saturated, so they should be avoided as much as possible.

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 4:48 PM

* above it should have said "calorie counts are created" or "calories are counted"

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 4:49 PM

Digby, thank you for your explanation. I'm going to visit the link.

Thursday, December 8, 2005, 9:23 PM

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