Filling Foods

    Hello all.  I've been reading about nutrition and different diets lately, not b/c Im seriously thinking about doing any of them but more just to read different perspectives and see how things work.  Anyway, with regard to low carb diets, I was really curious as to why people have as much success as they often do with seemingly counter-intuitive foods.  Now, I know there are many schools of thought on this and I don't want to get everybody all riled up or anything.  And even if Atkins made some specious claims and its silly to not any fruit etc, it seems like he certainly was onto something wrt appetite control.  So I find it stated in various articles that protein tends to act as a natural appetite suppressant.  And sure enough, for me personally bacon and eggs fills me up and keeps me satisfied for longer than various other meals with the same calorie count (Im a big guy so 4 eggs and 3 pieces of bacon at around 600 cals is still a fairly small meal for me).  Another option is of course to eat a high volume of food with low caloric density, i.e fruits and vegetables, to fill yourself up that way.   And I do to a degree, but fruits and vegetables never seem to give me that "full feeling" that I got used to.  At any rate, this is not an endorsement of low carb eating, I eat a perfectly balanced diet (usually), but Im just wondering what foods other people are eating that they find fill them up really well for a relatively modest # of calories.  To me, this is one of the most, if not THE most, important issue when it comes to long-term weight loss and maintenance.  It's too tough for most people to will power through being hungry all the time, so you've got to find a variety of foods and meals that you really enjoy AND that satisfy your hunger.   Any thoughts?

personally Fiber is what gets me through. Fiber one cerial is basically the best thing i have ever come across. I had a 200 cal breakfast with a cup of fiber on and half of a banana and it fills me up and i get my daily source of fiber. But i would like to think i know something about dieting because i have lost about 100 lbs so far and i only weigh 135 now. i was around 235. ... if you have any other questions about anything you can message me : ]

oatmeal, oatmeal, oatmeal! :P Generally any of the hot cereals. I think something about the volume of it with the fiber and protien along with the warmness (warm things tend to fill me up faster...I think its due to faster digestion.) fill me up pretty quick.

I agree with the fruits and vegetables. They CAN fill me up, but it all depends on which fruit or vegetable I'm eating. Usually too, I have to eat a lot of them in high amounts to actually feel full. (which isnt too bad, since all are pretty much low calorie.)

A lot of eggs whites in the morning, or 1 whole hard boiled egg. Maybe some veggie or turkey sausage, and some toast seem to fill me up.

I noticed that when I get at least 3 oz of tuna on my sandwich I tend to feel REALLY full afterwards.

High fiber cereals such as All Bran.

This one sounds crazy, but SF jello if I eat that with a meal (say as a little dessert.) I do get very full.

About a cup of cottage cheese and fruit with some crackers do the trick.

I noticed too along with the warm thing, if I drink anything warm with my meal I fill up very fast.

Those are just some of the things I can think of.

Agree with sk8terdude - fiber does it. Made a barley based salad yesterday evening, with celery, scallions, some fresh figs, some olive oil and balsamico, then chopped up portabello stems and filled everything into the portabella caps, put it on the BBQ. Put some Parmesan on before serving. It was impossible to eat my full serving which was only 250 calories. And before you make a face about it being health food - even my father in law liked it.

i agree think fiber gets me through...and protein too. i eat oatmeal sometimes for breakfast and it keeps my stomach calm. i add banana and its not regular oatmeal its the & cream kind from quaker oats. it does have carbs but its filling

Personally, protein fills me up, but in a way that is not enjoyable.  In a way that is like a rock sitting in your stomach.  I definitely prefer high-fiber meals, generally based around some kind of bean or lentil.  I find it much easier to be able to eat a larger volume of food but still keep the calories low if I focus on eating high fiber.  

Have some beans. Protein AND fiber =]

Ya, I just started buying canned beans at the store last week.  I've always really like beans but for some odd reason never really made them at home until recently.  Only problem is, they don't really make single serving size.  Can't stand oatmeal, though, so maybe I'll try that Fiber one.  

question: do you guys actually feel full when you eat these things? or is it all in your mind after so much calorie counting? like once you get to a certain limit of calories, you think that you should be full...

I noticed that one person said eating a lot of egg whites or one hard boiled egg...

4 egg whites = 70cal      &nbs p; 1 egg = 70cal

same number of calories, but different volume... obviously you are eating more when you egg the 4 egg whites as opposed to only one egg.

does anyone see where I am going with this?

You really should google satiety index. There was a study done on this very subject. Quite interesting. Here is one write up on it:

http://www.mendosa.com/satiety.htm