Keep Getting Hungry

[Rebemac]

I just started this program four days ago with my partner. Both of us have pretty high metabolisms and aren't doing this to lose weight. We only feel like eating so much in one sitting, but we've both been feeling hungry in between meals a lot. We're eating A LOT more protein and high fat foods than normal, and usually feel satisfied after a meal, but get hungry two or three hours later. And, yes it's usually hunger, not cravings. I would like to go running, but I would usually feel famished shortly after finishing a run before going on the Whole30, so I can only imagine how much hungrier I'll feel now if I try. Is it really that bad to eat four or five smaller meals a day instead of three? We've been pretty strict about the food guidelines too.

[Physibeth]

It's not bad to eat four or five smaller meals but it isn't ideal for hormone balance. This is explained pretty well in the book. That said many people need to do it for a while until they adjust to the volume of food they need to eat to feel full for 4-5 hours between meals. My suggestion would be to prepare at least a template sized meal (or maybe on the high side) and eat as much of it as you can and save what's left to have as a mini meal when you feel hungry again. I believe you will find you can eventually finish it in one sitting as your body adjusts. Also if you go running you get a bonus 2 meals...a pre-workout meal of protein and fat and a post-workout meal of lean protein and starchy vegetables. 

 

If you want even more feedback you can post a few days of your food including portion sizes, activity, sleep, water, stress and we might be able to give you additional feedback. 

 

And remember when you are doing this with someone else portion sizes are based on the size of the eaters hand/thumb/etc so if your hands are different sized than your partner's then they will need a different portion of food.

[Rebemac]

Thanks for responding. Sorry it took so long for me to get back! 

I feel like I'm adjusting fairly well now, but my partner is still having trouble with breakfast. He used to get up, have a bowl of cereal, get to work, have yogurt and granola, then about an hour after that have a giant muffin. This was all before lunch, so he's having more trouble eating enough when he gets up to keep him satiated until lunch. He's usually been eating about two or three slices of prosciutto, two eggs with hollandaise sauce and half an avocado in the morning (around 6:30am), but still gets hungry two or three hours later. Are there foods that might be better for him to try eating in the morning or would you still recommend making a bigger meal and eating the rest of it later on? He says he starts to feel sick if he eats too much first thing. He's 39, used to be a bike racer, and even though he's not very active now, doesn't have an ounce of fat on him and still has the metabolism of a 13 year old boy, but usually doesn't eat a ton in one sitting. He's been a big snacker (mostly healthy snacks, but lots of sugar too) so trying to just stick to eating at meals has been difficult for him.

[AmyS]

A template meal would be a palm size or two of protein, a thumb size or more of fat, and 2-4 cups of veggies. A serving of eggs is how many you can hold in your hand.

 

Given your metabolisms, you'll want to aim at the high side of portioning. So for example, for his breakfast, he'll want to aim in the direction of, say, 4 eggs plus the prosciutto, the half avocado (or even a whole avocado), and 2-4 cups of veggies (include starchy carbs like sweet potatoes to at least two meals, maybe all three).  If he can prepare that amount for himself and eat as much as he can at breakfast time, then he can pack up the rest to eat in a few hours when he gets hungry. Same with lunch and dinner. Make the full meal, eat what you can at the time, and finish the meal when you get hungry again.  In time you'll likely find you can go to eating full meals in one sitting. You may need four or five or six meals some days, especially at first, and that's fine too.

 

His breakfast is really small. I am tiny and I'd get really hungry in about 2 hours if that's all I ate. He's having a normal response to a really small breakfast. Have him make up a full meal, eat what he can, and eat the rest later. When you're hungry, eat up.

 

We really don't want you to go hungry on Whole30. The idea behind having meals several hours apart is about resetting hormonal responses, not about white-knuckling your way through hunger. Eat up, eat well, eat as often as you need to all day.

[Rebemac]

Thanks. I'll have him start preparing a larger meal like the one you've suggested for morning, and he can take what he can't eat with him. Is the idea to eventually try to get it all in in one meal though? I realize we shouldn't be eating more than is comfortable or starving in between meals, but to get hormone levels regulated, should we be aiming towards one large breakfast or is sticking with two for the duration okay?

[Physibeth]

Thanks. I'll have him start preparing a larger meal like the one you've suggested for morning, and he can take what he can't eat with him. Is the idea to eventually try to get it all in in one meal though? I realize we shouldn't be eating more than is comfortable or starving in between meals, but to get hormone levels regulated, should we be aiming towards one large breakfast or is sticking with two for the duration okay?

 

The idea is to eventually be able to eat a full meal 3 times a day, but it could take a while to get there and if you don't get there in your 30 days that is fine. Most important is that you get enough nutrient dense food.