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Constant hunger/cravings


tillymb

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I m having one of those days when I just cannot satisfy my hunger. Im constantly craving sugar. Im tired. I cannot get from one meal to the next without snacking. All I can think about is food. Im on day 9 by the way. 

 

I didnt eat enough last night, went to bed hungry. Exercised this morning, fairly intense kettlebells workout and I just cannot seem to satisfy my hunger. Ive eaten way more than I usually do but stuck to Whole30 approved. I know im not really hungry, its more a craving but its driving me crazy!!

 

What should I do? Should I just feed it but the right things or try to ignore it? What should I have done to avoid this?

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Not eating enough at one meal can definitely affect your hunger for your next several meals. To prevent this in the future, be sure you eat at least three template based meals each day, plus pre- and post-workout meals as needed. 

 

If you are truly hungry -- as in something bland like steamed fish and broccoli sound good -- eat. Eat a combination of protein, fat, and veggies, but eat.

 

If you're not hungry, you could try having a cup of tea. Or try distracting yourself -- go for a walk, clean/organize something, read a book, write, draw, paint, knit, crochet, call a friend, meditate. Do something that keeps your mind distracted, and maybe keeps your hands busy too.

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You may have eaten more than you are used to eating, but that may not be enough food. Many people fail to eat an adequate volume of protein, fat, and veggies when they begin a Whole30. And you do know that when you workout intensely you are due a pre- and a post-workout meal as a bonus in addition to three basic meals per day. Your body actually needs more food when you train heavy. So today, you are due 5 meals. The critical point here is that they be real meals, not a snack to dilute hunger for an hour or two. Review the meal template and eat some protein, some fat, and some veggies! :)

 

http://whole30.com/downloads/whole30-meal-planning.pdf

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The body is bent on survival and hunger for food is built into our genes. Without it we would be long gone.

Getting too hungry is a set up for snacking,  a binge or thrill eating.

 

Eat until you are not hungry anymore without over-stuffing to the point of misery.

 

Cravings will pass if you resist them.    Hunger will not.   Hunger comes roaring back if your body needs fuel.

You might hear gurgling or get hunger pains.   That is your stomach letting you know it's empty....that's true hunger.

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I like to sit back and embrace the feelings of hunger for a few moments, try to figure out what 'type' it is. It's mentally distracting, forces me to review previous meals and emotions, and then measure the hunger and best options for dealing with it. Here's the categories I've come up with for my personal hungers, starting with the real hungers: 

 

Healthy: 4-6 hours post meal, tummy rumbling, maybe on verge of cold and shaky, mind is fuzzy. True need to eat, but not yet cranky or about to collapse. 

HANGRY!: Waited too long to eat!! EAT!

 

Habit: See the clock or time of day and get prompted to eat. Wait 15-20 mins then re-evaluate.

Hankering: A craving, something just sounds good. Get otherwise distracted, or think about what you really want. 

Happy: Ooooh I've been so good with [insert activity], I should get a reward! Step away from the pantry!

Hedonic: Wanting food only for the pleasure of eating. Get otherwise distracted. 

Herd: Everyone else is eating, so I should too. Leave the break room and find something else to do. 

Hydration: Being dehydrated or eating salty foods can cause this, drink a glass of water and wait. 

 
Others I haven't thought of yet? And yes, for me they have to begin with an H, takes longer to think about that way  :D

 

Lucie

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One more thing to be attuned to, if you are doing too many hard workouts, craving sugar is a sign of the early stages of overtraining syndrome.

Like most things, your sleep amount and quality, stress levels and physical ability all play a part. You can dig a hole for yourself even if you are doing the same training as a year ago if you have more stress or other pieces of the equation have changed.

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  • 3 months later...

One more thing to be attuned to, if you are doing too many hard workouts, craving sugar is a sign of the early stages of overtraining syndrome.

Like most things, your sleep amount and quality, stress levels and physical ability all play a part. You can dig a hole for yourself even if you are doing the same training as a year ago if you have more stress or other pieces of the equation have changed.

 

I hadn't heard this before ultrarunnergirl - do you have some sources I can check out? Overtraining is something I'm very leery of, so would be good to have a road marker to look out for!

 

Edit: I found this article http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3648788/as well as a fair amount of unsupported blog posts about it.

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If you are truly hungry -- as in something bland like steamed fish and broccoli sound good -- eat. Eat a combination of protein, fat, and veggies, but eat. I hadn't heard this before ultrarunnergirl - do you have some sources I can check out? Overtraining is something I'm very leery of, so would be good to have a road marker to look out for! The critical point here is that they be real meals, not a snack to dilute hunger for an hour or two. Review the meal template and eat some protein, some fat, and some veggies! :)

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