Does this happen to anyone else: When I start eating more, I notice my hunger increasing gradually day after day. For example, Some days I am very good about portion sizes. Then one day I will feel a little hungrier and have an extra snack. The next day, my body is expecting a snack at the same time and I have to eat!
Another thing i've noticed is when I start eating more, such as eating a bigger breakfast (especially if I add some peanut butter) I'm often hungrier than normal sooner!
This is driving me crazy... what is happening? Is it all in my mind or is my metabolism changing daily?

Sheri

I know for me, if I eat breakfast, I feel hungry all day no matter what I eat. The more I eat the more I want to eat (even when I have a full feeling in my belly). The hardest part of BFL (for me) is learning to say no to snacking or over eating (I am not doing so good in this area). Peanut butter really setsme over the top too. It is a big trigger for me to over eat.

I've had the same problem... what I've done, and it seems to work for me, is to drink a couple glasses of water. I've found that sometimes my body is craving water not food. But if that cravin doesn't go away I have a protein drink or some food. I figure it's my body's way of telling me I need to eat.

Having some extra water will fill up my stomach enought to get me to my next meal.... sometimes!

Kiks

Maybe it depends on what you are eating. If I do LC I am not hungry, but on my carb loading day I cannot stop eating since the carbs, especially simple carbs, cause a strong insulin spike which makes me much more hungry....

When you eat breakfast or a snack, you are telling your body you are going to be able to feed it regularly, therefore your metabolism increases due to the expectation of food. I am hungrier when I eat more carbs, especially if I ever eat carbs by themselves. Never could eat just a piece of fruit as a snack, always had to eat cheese or pb with it. What helps me to not overeat at each meal is to include a big serving of non-starchy veggies with it. For instance at lunch yesterday I went to a place that had ice cream with all sorts of mix-ins, and I really wanted ice cream for dessert (they even had s-f), but after I ate my big salad I didn't feel at all hungry anymore. Of course, I was hungry 2 hours later, but that's just me...

Jen

One other tip that helps me out......brush your teeth after every meal. It puts that clean toothpaste feel in your mouth and at least for me, makes me not want to eat anything else.

One thing that helps me is to get OUT of the house (or away from a situation where food is present). I like to go thrift store shopping when I get a hunger attack. (and I know I just ate and certainly do not need more food)

(Thanks for all the replies! This subscription didn't show up on my profile page so I didn't know anyone replied!)

It's usually at work and I have attributed it to hunger created by taxing my brain so early in the morning! (Am I making excuses now? )

The weirdest part is if I just wait an hour or so I usually don't feel hungry when it is really time to eat! I know this is not good, it is probably mild "starvation mode." If I eat a small snack midway between these meals when it is not time to eat, my body generates enough hunger again so that I am ready to eat when it is time. My body seems to differ all the time. I'm never sure how much is psychological and how much is real!

I'm getting mixed signals from everything I read. If it causes my metabolism to speed up to eat more, then should I just eat extra if I'm hungry? It's usually towards the end of the week, probably when my body is feeling the calorie deficit. But if I do that then I'm ruining the deficit.


Sheri