What do you do if you aren't hungry at mealtime?

Eatin' Free · Post by **Eatin' Free** » Mon Aug 21, 2006 4:33 pm

I'm only on Day 4 (only my second N Day, since there were 2 S days since I started), and this has probably been asked before, but what do you do if you aren't hungry at meal time? I had a good breakfast this morning, and I'm to go to lunch in about half an hour, but I am simply not at all hungry. At this point, I'm just going to go ahead and at least eat some lunch just to prevent later hunger, but I really have no appetite.

I'm not normally a breakfast eater, so it may be that this breakfast thing is just going to take some getting used to. Any thoughts?

Thanks...

gettnbusy · Post by **gettnbusy** » Mon Aug 21, 2006 6:36 pm

I am not a breakfast eater either Anna. I find myself not hungry at lunch last week too hen I at breakfast. I keep trying to eat breakfast but it is hard. This morning, once again I skipped breakfast and am now on my way to eat an early lunch. Everyone has scolded me for this stating is causese the late day sncaking, etc. And they are probably right. But I am trying hard to break this no breakfast habit. I am pretty starving right now so I can see the benefit of having breakfast to stave off that hunger.

As far as not being hungry, is it possible to delay your lunch an hour or are you on a set schedule? This is my problem as well, breakfast time is WAY too close to lunch and it makes me not hungry. So... my thoughts are if you can delay your lunch an hour that may help. If not, maybe you can eat a lighter breakfast meal so you are still hungry at lunchtime. Or supplement the breakfast with a juice? That may take up less space, but give you enough calories to keep you going. You'll have to ask Reinhard about the juice thing. What do I know? I only work here.

Good luck & let me/us know what you came up with. I'd like to know also!

ThomsonsPier · Post by **ThomsonsPier** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 9:24 am

I never used to be hungry at lunchtime when I was a non-breakfast eater. Since I forced myself to start eating in the mornings again, I've always been starving about half an hour before lunch.

If you give your body fuel in the morning, it will set the calorie consumption rate higher for the day, meaning you will burn more fuel and be hungry earlier.

Post by **reinhard** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 12:49 pm

If you're like most of use starting out here, after years of permasnacking, hunger is a totally unreliable guide. It's like a stray dog that does whatever it wants.

You've got to train your hunger. Have meals at set times and hunger, like Pavlov's dog, will start to drool when appropriate.

It'll take some time, but the stricter you are, the less time it'll take. It's worth the investment.

Best of luck and keep us posted,

Reinhard

gratefuldeb67 · Post by **gratefuldeb67** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 2:57 pm

LOL!!!

A stray dog!!!!

Nice one Rein!

(figures! coming from a cat owner!)

But really I like that....
Train your hunger and give it boundaries..
Very nice

Good luck Valerie! I find that doing any activity usually gets my stomach primed for food fairly soon afterwards (soon like within an hour..)
How about trying that first thing in the morning?

Let us know how it goes!

Peace and Love,
Deb

Eatin' Free · Post by **Eatin' Free** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 3:44 pm

Thanks for the input everyone! Just thought I'd share that today hunger is NO problem!!! It's only 11:30, and I am definitely hungry! I had a huge smoothie for breakfast, that involved LOTS of fruit. But I can't eat till 1:00. Sooooo....try a bigger breakfast tomorrow, adding some protein in some form. Maybe this change won't take as long as I thought it would. That would be great!

Living in hope...!

J Ellis · Post by **J Ellis** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:12 pm

A protein breakfast smoothie works great for me. I make mine with 8oz. OJ, 1 scoop of protein powder (20g Protein, very little sugar), 4 Tbs. Plain Nonfat Yogurt, and 2 Bananas. This holds me nicely all morning.

By contrast, when I eat a (BIG) bowl of Oatmeal with lots of fruit in it, I am starving by 10:30am. I think the protein makes a big difference.

Joel

david · Post by **david** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:46 pm

The protein does make a difference for me too. Walnuts and yogurt in my smoothie keep me pretty full.

Just good nutrition in general goes a long way toward "holding you over" until the next meal.

--david

gettnbusy · Post by **gettnbusy** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 8:16 pm

Glad to hear about the smoothies! I was afraid it was a "sweet" and was avoiding them. YAY, cus I hate cereal bars and making eggs, etc. I think I could also get down a smoothie for breakfast as with other stuff it's really hard. Thanks for that!

david · Post by **david** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 9:04 pm

A smoothie using the recipe Joel describes above is not a sweet.

A smoothie from Jamba Juice made with sherbet IS a sweet (IMO).

I don't even like to put vanilla yogurt in my smoothies because there is too much sugar. Plain yogurt gets the job done.

--david

silverfish · Post by **silverfish** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 10:46 pm

But we in Australia will have to find an adequate banana substitute - that smoothie is probably worth its weight in gold here

david · Post by **david** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 3:45 pm

I rarely put banana in my smoothies. I use frozen fruit--usually blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, or mango.

Are there commonly available fruits in Australia that are cheap and tasty?

--david

JWL · Post by **JWL** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 5:12 am

I use frozen bananas in smoothies ALL the time. Adds a wonderful creaminess to it... most of mine are soymilk based.

Eatin' Free · Post by **Eatin' Free** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 12:58 pm

I use frozen bananas in most of mine as well; adding some plain yogurt seems to be working well in keeping me balanced through the morning. Thanks for the suggestions.

mstevens · Post by **mstevens** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 7:05 am

I use a mix of "just eat anyway", and delaying meals a bit until I'm hungry. Seems to work out ok.

Murphysraven · Post by **Murphysraven** » Thu Sep 07, 2006 6:01 pm

I'm not a big breakfast eater either. At least at work. I know a lot of people don't think a drink is breakfast. But I've found I really like Carnation Instant Breakfast.

It's not a Weight loss drink like slim fast, just a breakfast alternative. It gives me the protein and nutrients I really should have first thing in the morning. I like the taste and it gets me to actually drink milk! (which i normally hate) It does have some sugar in it but I figure it has a lot less than muffins or scones or that sort of thing. My eggs, bacon and potatos are saves for my weekend treats when I have the leasure to make them.

Plus it really easy to keep at work.