Weight Loss

I recently realized that I needed to do something to get healthier and lose some weight, and so I started using this site to count my daily calorie intake and exercise, etc.  I am following the diet advice (between 1200 and 1500 calories daily, as I don't really have a set date that I need to lose by, or a specific amount; just until I'm satisfied that I am healthy, etc) and increasing my exercise, and it seems to be working, as I've lost a few pounds already. 

However, these early stages of calorie-cutting are leaving my stomach growling much of the day.  Are there any tricks/tips that people have for getting rid of this feeling without dramatically increasing calorie intake?  Does drinking a lot of water help?  Chewing gum?  Do I just need to wait it out until my stomach shrinks a little and my body gets used to the new set of rules?

Any advice is much appreciated.

Well, I hope this isn't too much of a non-answer, but here's my thoughts. 1500 calories of the right food is a lot-lean protein, whole grains with lots of fruits and veggies. I eat all day long so when I'm hungry, I eat!

You may be experiencing more cravings for foods you're used to-the not so right foods. It's not a really easy transition going from fast food and pizza to grilled chicken and broccoli, but luckily it's a very short one. Give yourself a few days to get used to eating the right foods and you won't feel so hungry and at a loss for what to do

I recently started losing weight as well and I have had a very similar issue with how to distract myself from hunger.  Of all the things I have tried, one works the best by far.  Eat lots of small meals over the course of the day instead of eating larger amounts of food all at once.  My breakfast always consists of a bowl of cereal, a piece of fruit, and a yogurt.  I eat the cereal very early.  About an hour or so later, I eat the piece of fruit.  When I get hungry again an hour later, I eat the yogurt.  By this point, it is nearly lunchtime and I'm really not that hungry because I have been constantly eating (yet my overall food intake is no higher than it would have been had I eaten everything for breakfast all at once).  This makes it so I don't need a huge lunch, only another small portion to hold me over.  I will then have a small snack in the afternoon, like a bag of baked chips of a packet of almonds.  Dinner is typically a little bigger, but again, I'm not super hungry by that point either.  Also, drink lots of water.  It will fill your stomach up and give your body the illusion that you aren't as hungry.  Finally, eat lots of fiber.  It is another natural appetite suppresant and will fill you up fast, and is very good for you.  Hope this helps.  Trust me, I'm looking for new ways to distract myself from hunger every day so I will be sure to let you know if I think of anything else.

Yeah, it's not so much the fast food and pizza as it is the pasta.  Up till recently I have been a carb-o-holic far more than a junk food-o-holic, though I do have a soft spot for chocolate.  I am trying to be more careful about that.  Unfortunately for me my old diet (carb-heavy) was very filling, and my new diet, for which I'm trying to eat more veggies and lean proteins, is not very filling.  At least not yet.

Part of this is that I'm trying to cut out between-meal snacking, which is where a number of my "extra" calories came from beforehand.  Snack foods - the easy ones - tend to also be pretty unhealthy.  I need to start bringing celery sticks in to the office or something.

I pretty much am the same way as well.  I read about how when u grow up, your body sets a limit on how much food it needs to feel full.  A chemical is sent to the brain where even if u are full it's telling ur body that you are still hungry.  That's why A LOT of people are overweight.  It's because they cant control what their body is telling them to do.  Now, to answer ur question.  Trick is eating small calorie foods that will make u full.  Drinking A LOT of water also helps.  I cant stress enough the power of water.  Not only does it make you feel fuller, but it kicks ur metabolism into gear.  Generally u wanna drink about a gallon of water a day.  If you still feel like u hungry, there is a product that I am really fond of that helps u feel really full.  I'm sure you have seen it or heard of it.  This product is called Fuze Slenderize.  It makes you feel full and all of their drinks have no more than 20+ calories.

I'm with spirochete, when I cut out the junk I found that eating 1500+ calories is actually a lot of food when it's beans, lean meats, whole grains, yoghurts and salads. When I first started cutting back I would eat these huge salads with meat and they really filled me up. 

This site has tools to check if you're getting all your nutrients, make sure you're getting enough of the right stuff and enough calories.  Without knowing your size, former calorie intake or activity level, it's hard to judge if you're hungry for real or just craving stuff.  You may need more calories. 

No worries on that, Mrs.  I've done the checks to make sure that 1200 to 1500 is what I should be eating to lose some; the difference in that range will be at what speed I lose it.  I figure if I keep the range of "should" wide enough like that, I don't feel like I've "ruined" my diet if I go over 1300 calories.  I'm 5'5" and not quite 200lbs, with a computer-based job (thus, low activity level).  Eating 1500 and increasing my exercise should still allow me to lose weight; it will just take me longer than if I eat near 1200.  Typical days (recently) I've been eating 1200-1350. 

Prior to making up my mind that I was going to do this I'm not sure how many calories I ate exactly, but I will tell you that my favorite foods were alfredo-based pastas with plenty of extras, and I didn't get near enough veggies on a daily basis.  I also had lattes nearly daily.  Now I'm paying attention to what (and how much of it) I'm putting in my stomach, so that itself should be a positive change.

You'll probably have an easier time with hunger if you decrease your calories gradually.  At 5'5 and 200lbs I would guess you have a sedentary burn of about 2,000 cals / day (maybe higher depending on your activity level).  Why not start out with 1500 cals for the first week, then go down another notch to 1400, 1300 & finally 1200 each week.  Give your body some time to adjust and make sure you're getting a lot of protein (at least 20% of your calories).  Also, whole grain foods like oatmeal, 100% whole wheat bread, wheat pitas, etc. will keep you full longer than cereal or white breads.  Don't let your body get too hungry, if you're stomach is growling give it something little, light string cheese is good, or an individual pack of cottage cheese, veggies are ideal since they will fill you up with minimal calories.  You don't have to starve yourself to lose weight.  I eat 90 grams of protein a day, carbs & veggies all day long, I'm never hungry and still lose weight!

Oh, one more thing...  Try to drink 1/2 an ounce of water for each pound of your body weight each day.  Not only does it help flush excess sodium and toxins out of your body, it also helps you feel full faster!  :)

Hmm... But vegetables ARE carbs... :) And fruits even more. Ok, they are low calorie but still carbs.

How much of them do you eat? I've found out that I can eat a LOT of vegetables, especially the "watery" types like zucchini or red peppers (capsicum) or cucumbers or celery or endive or salad etc. It's great to have raw vegetables (salad) at the beginning of a meal, very filling so you can enjoy the rest of the meal with more calm and not eat it in hurry. You can also snack on friuts and vegetables during the day, like clean them and chop them to bits and take them with you to work and chew on them. Or eat some fruit with a low fat yogurt as a snack. Eating often helps keep the metabolism high, I hear. I find that 1500 can be TONS of filling vegetables if you chose well. I used to eat a lot of pasta too, but found out that a lot of vegetables prepared in a creative fashion can be a good substitute. Explore spices! They sure can liven up a low calorie meal and also give you something to think about. To stay entertained and not think about pasta you can also study some oriental or mediterranean cuisines and cook the low fat versions of those. Like there are some lovely beans and vegetable dishes in indian cooking and such, chickpeas, lentil, cauliflower, eggplant etc. with curry... That's carbs also but alongside with carbs contains proteins as well.

You can substitute your old comfort food (pasta) with new discoveries which are just as soothing and conforting, say a lovely Chickpea with apples with leeks curry cream, or something like that (I found it on a blog). I discovered chickpea/bean/lentil based creams can be very satisfying in terms of carbs/cravings/taste, especially with spices.

For water you can prepare herb teas that are more fun maybe (without adding sugar, of course).

Make it a quest to discover new healthy confort food that can take the place of pasta :D

Hope this helps.

PS: I'm not an expert but 1200 calories cca sounds a bit risky because, ironically, if you eat too little your body goes into this so called starvation/conservation mode to protect itself from the "scarcity" and so it accumulates fats instead of burning them and you don't lose weight, your body manages to live on less. At least so I read. I also read that a woman's body uses 1200 calories a day just for existing, that is without doing anything. Correct me anyone if I got any of this wrong.

What do I do when Im hungry?   I eat.  If Im not hungry I don't eat.

Yesterday, I was coming down with a bad case of a summer flu and I was hungry all day.  So I ate.   I had two bowls of Apple Chicken stew.  I had a peanut butter and honey sandwich, on my homemade Wheat bread.   Two slices of bread and light butter on my  homemade sourdough bread.   I had a few grapes, a milk shake.   I had gained 2 lbs over my anniversary weekend. And this morning I had lost it again, even though I felt like I had been eating all day. 

Today I haven't been hungry.  My throat hurts so Ive been drinking a lot of tea instead of eating.  Total Ive had less than 400 calories so far today and by the end of the day, Ill have had maybe 700 more.  Tomorrow, I may gain back a pound, I may lose a lb.  I may stay the same.  But, that isn't whats important.  Whats important is that Im listening to my body and giving it what it needs not what I think I want.

When I had children, the doctors gave me some good advice.  Kids will naturally eat what they need, when they need it.  If your truely hungry, eat.  If you have drank a glass of water and you are still hungry, eat.   If your bored, play a game, go for a walk.  But, if your hungry then your body is trying to tell you something.  So eat. 

 

 

All of the replies so far are right on the money, but I have a little more to add.

I've been through this before. I went from 220 pounds to 160 over two years. (Over the past year I've gained back 25 pounds, so that's why I'm back to the calorie counting thing.)

The first time around, I went through a period where I wanted to eat everything in sight. This lasted for about two months. After that, I went through another stage where high-fat, high sugar foods were actually distasteful to me. I also became adicted to water, carrying a refillable bottle around with me nearly all the time.

So I'd tell you from experience that the ravenously hungry stage just may pass, and it's a matter of using all the tactics that the other posters have suggested to get though it.

On the question of "to carb or not to carb", my research has convinced me that a split of at least 50% carbohydrates, at least 20% proteins, and no more than 30% fats is optimum. (You don't want to go much below 15% fats, though, or your brain will shut down.) Whole grain and natural fruit carbohydrates are not converted to fat as quickly as processed flour and sugar, and shouldn't really sabotage your efforts.

I've dieted in some way, shape or form all my life.  I've maintained within 5-10 pounds for the past 8 years.  The only way I have ever found to get past the "hunger" (real or not) is to eat.  I don't necessarily mean grab what you are craving because when your in that state of mind, you'll over do it.  But allow yourself to open the fridge to fruits and veggies without feeling guilty that they may put you over your calorie limit for the day. 

Every Sunday I go grocery shopping for the week.  I buy more fruit (cherries, grapes, strawberries, berries of all kinds) than I've ever bought in all the years I've tried to lose here and there.  What I found was that I needed "snacky" type food.  Bottom line, I love to eat.  So I've replaced the bad and started grabbing a bowl of grapes or baby carrots.  If I'm having a ravenous day, this could mean 5 or 6 trips to the fridge.  But I don't sweat it, I don't worry about going overboard, because it's nearly impossible to over do the fruits and veggies.  I read somewhere a line about never fret the good stuff, watch and beware of the bad.  It's worked for me.  I monitor closely everything else, but have found that even when I keep track of all the snacks I've had for the day (my 5, 6 or 7 fruit/veggie binges), I've never exceeded my caloric limit by much and the best part was that I felt good at the end of the day and the next morning when I got up.

Don't ever think you can skip in between meal eating.  It doesn't work.  You need to eat frequently to keep the hunger at bay.  And some good points have been made.  Find foods with the right mix - higher fiber (more bang for your buck), lean proteins, eliminate the fats by skipping the mayo, butter or whatever on your sandwich - it's amazing what a moist piece of lettuce or juicy slice of tomato can do to make you not miss all that fat.  Don't be afraid of carbs, just choose the right ones.

Good luck to you - it's a battle, but the biggest hurdle is getting past the old habits we've created over the years and replacing them with good habits.

This may sound silly, but what works for me is chewing Stride gum because it lasts about 1 hr. a piece, curbs my cravings, and is only 5 kcal. Drinking water is good also, however then you can become filled with extra water weight, so shedding it may quickly may be a problem for some.

please dont drink a gallon of water a day!! [jplopez21] 8 glasses is way more than anyone needs, even though that's what mommy said all our lives. too much water can actually work against you, by flushing out sodium that your body needs. yes, too much sodium will make you look and feel bloated and water can help flush out the extra stuff. but a gallon of water a day will make you tired, crave more salty (and usually unhealthy) foods and will totally throw your hard work off.