Hunger changes

[Sash]

Ok, so I did do a search and read any other posts about being hungry (and not hungry) before asking this, and I still feel I need to ask. I am only on day 5, but I'm actually feeling really good. I have more energy and for the first 4 days I wasn't that hungry. I ate 3 meals but they were smallish and I was satisfied. Since I was just beginning I kind of let my body decide what it needed and just went with it. All of the sudden now, I'm eating twice as much. Example: I'm 12 hours into my day and I've eaten (all whole30 approved):

 

0200: 3 apple sausage patties (cooked w. coconut oil), med banana, cup of green tea 

 

0600: 2 hard boiled eggs w. salt, approx 8-10 oz of carrot-cardamom soup (cooked w. coconut oil), cup of herbal tea, dill pickle 

 

0900: 1 1/2 large pieces of broiled tilapia (approx 2 servings) (cooked in ghee), 1 1/2 cups green beans, 3 cups whole fresh strawberries, water

 

1200: Hungry AGAIN, apple w. almond butter.....

 

The last two days have been like this. I am waiting to see if I'm truly hungry before eating, not just grabbing food at the first twinge. I'm drinking enough water. I am a bigger girl at 5'5.5 and 300lbs. Is there something I am missing or is this normal?

 

I have a sedentary job and while I did go for a walk yesterday, it wasn't anything really exerting nor have I incorporated an exercise routine into my days yet.

 

Thanks in advance for your patient help and understanding!

 

 

 

 

 

[GFChris]

Hi there,

 

Here are my observations. I'm also attaching the recommended meal template for your reference.
- I see a lot of fruit. The recommended serving size is a whole piece of fruit the size of your fist, and 1-2 servings a day with your main meals only - not as part of a snack. I wonder if you might see some differences if you cut back on your fruit, and also don't let fruit push veggies off your plate: aim for 1-3 cups of veggies per meal.

 

- are the apple sausage patties compliant?

 

- at the 0900 meal, did you have any fat?

 

- When eggs are your protein, the recommended serving size is the number of eggs you can hold in one hand. For most folks, that's at least 3-4 eggs.  Perhaps try increasing your egg portion?

 

- If you are genuinely hungry in between meals, have a mini meal containing protein, veg and fat. Nuts are a fat source on a Whole30.

 

Side question: do you work the night shift, given the meal times you listed? Just curious.

[GlennR]

Counterintuitive as it may sound, it looks like you're not eating enough -- and are missing some pieces in your meal planning.

 

1) Veggies are recommended for all meals; it doesn't look like your breakfast had any

2) Try to eat your veggies rather than drinking them (as you did with soup during lunch). The brain gets signals of satiety quicker when you drink your food -- which means you're hungry all that sooner.

3) Two eggs are not enough protein for a meal. If you're eating eggs for protein, the recommended portion is the number of eggs you can comfortably hold in one hand.

4) Try to limit your fruit to two servings a day, a serving being roughly the size of your fist. Three bowls of strawberries is too much -- that's a lot of sugar (which you burn off quickly and leaves you hungry quickly).

5) If you need to snack, try to make it a mini-meal of protein, fat, and veggies, rather than fruit.

 

Here's the meal template to help guide you.

 

I know it's a leap of faith, but eating this way is also the best way to lose weight sustainably, because this meal program helps you convert from a carb-burning system to a carb- and fat-burning system. You're nourished, your satiated, and you'll (hopefully) lose your unwanted pounds.

 

Good luck! Hope this helps.

[MeadowLily]

I have a sedentary job and while I did go for a walk yesterday, it wasn't anything really exerting nor have I incorporated an exercise routine into my days yet.

Thanks in advance for your patient help and understanding!

 

I know everyone and their cousin is doing a marathon in every state and two on Sunday.  Bob in accounting does an Ironman while carrying another man on his back.   Any person who goes for a walk or takes a hike feels the need to put the word "just" in front of their accomplishment as in;   I "just" walked down the road for an hour and I wasn't even walking fast.  But you went for a walk at some speed above 'completely still'.    This is an accomplishment and I want to encourage you to stick with it.    I started out walking down the backroads.   I graduated to hills and steep  mountain ridges.

 

"Tiny steps for tiny feet".    Stick with it.   I'm proud of you.

[Sash]

Thank you all for your suggestions.

 

@GFChris

 

- I actually don't eat more fruits than veggies most of the time. That just happened to be what I grabbed out of the fridge. The berries were with my lunch, and the green beans just happened to be leftovers from the night before and all that was in the container. The banana is small-med size and with my breakfast.

 

- The apple sausages are compliant. They are homemade and contain pork, turkey, coconut oil, egg, and grated apple along with a few seasonings. That's it.

 

- The 0900 I thought the ghee the fish were cooked in contained fat? Perhaps that is where I am lacking....

 

- I will up the eggs or add something else. As someone who has always been overweight, I guess the habit of portion control is working it's magic here.

 

I don't usually the work the night shift (although I did for seven years before FINALLY making it to day shift 0600-1400 in august 2014), but my job often creates overtime and I was forced in early for a 12 hour shift at 0200 today. We can work 16 hours at a time so I come prepared, lol.

 

 

@Glenn -

 

Thanks for the info, I can see now where I can make some changes. I'm so used to calorie counting and eating for volume vs nutrition, but I'm learning. I guess I didn't see the soup as drinking my veggies until you said something.

 

@MeadowLily

 

Thank you! That was so sweet and totally made my day.

 

 

 

Thanks for the help ya'll. Now I just to find suggestions for more/diff kinds of protein and fats. I've read and re-read as much WHOLE30 material as I can find, especially on this site, along with googling recipes, but it's a bit overwhelming. One day at a time though. Thanks for being supportive.

[Sash]

Just wanted to say thanks again to everyone. I lowered the fruit, upped the veggies, and made sure to have fat with every meal. It's day 8 and I'm feeling great!