I am so hungry... I am on the 4th day of Atkins and I ate like 3 sausages and 2 scrambled eggs for breakfast, a chipotle chicken burrito bowl for lunch, 1/3 pound roast beef and 1/4 pound mozzarella cheese for dinner and I just met a friend at a diner and ate 3 strips of bacon and 2 scrambled eggs. How can I eat all this fat and greasy stuff and never feel full? My stomach feels like it's empty! Oh well it's not that bad, not debilitating-- I can concentrate at school but whenever I am idle all I can think about is food. Any tips to feel full? Yes I have drank like 100 oz of water today.

adam

ummm.. two questions before I launch off into a long-winded guess...

What was IN the burrito bowl?

Are you eating vegetables?

Throwing a little (locarb) cheese in the eggs usually helps keep me full longer. And like PF asked, you really gotta watch the bowls. Can't be any beans or rice or sauces that you don't know the carb count on.

I hope you ordered that burrito bowl "fajita-style" without rice (man, that sounds good, I just love Chipotle's!)

I've just read about this. According to Laura Richard ("The Secret to Low Carb Success") this may be your body attempting to conserve fat by signaling you to eat more (remember fat is stored energy, and in the olden days could mean the difference between life and death. Don't be mad at your body for torturing you this way ).

She recommends you stay on plan, just add more low-carb/high protein foods until you are no longer hungry. It's ok to eat at the top of your calorie/protein range and maybe a little over if you must. Stubbornly refusing to eat more could set you up for a binge. Also, many people report feeling this way before a "whoosh" so who knows, maybe this is a positive thing for you!

my bowl was a fajita bowl with mild salsa specifically: onions and green peppers, chicken, sour cream, cheese, onions/cilantro/whatever else is in mild salsa, romaine lettuce.

I was absolutely ravenous the first few days on this diet, as my body was burning off the last of the sugar and getting used to the new foods. It quickly calmed down. In the meantime, eat more if you're hungry!

Just a suggestion. A high percentage of binge eating is out of boredom. If you get hungry and are between meals, try taking a walk or doing something that you are interested in. That way it will take your mind of from eating. It was pure hell the first few days for me then it just clicked. I still havemy speed bumps somedays.

All things considered then, if you're eating your vegetables and such as you seem to be. Eat when you're really, truly hungry..even if you think it's too much! I didn't lose on Atkins until I realized my body needed to learn I wasn't trying to starve it.

If you eat a higher percentage of fat, you'll also find you're satisfied longer.

Stick it out for a few days and I'll bet the "always hungries" go away.

Suggestions--
Check the content of the sausage. Alot of packaged sausages contain unecessary fillers and could be contributing to the "grumbellies".

Hunger is usually indicative of an insulin spike and low blood sugar, so I'm betting that the salsa was higher in natural sugar content (tomatoes) than you thought.

I'd also be very leery of restaurant food. Some restaurants mix milk into scrambled eggs, fry things in margarine, and use cheap bacon, which may be processed with all kinds of sugar and nitrates.

One last thing--
If you feel hungry, EAT!!!! Eat enough so that you don't feel hungry any more. Don't stuff yourself, but eat enough REAL food to keep you feeling satisfied. Load up on proteins and fats, and try to derive just about all your carbs from leafy greens. Once you get that "satisfied" feeling that deep ketosis brings, then add in other veggies and cheeses to find your CCLL.