How do we know if we are hungry?

No Snacks, no sweets, no seconds. Except on Days that start with S. Too simple for you? Simple is why it works. Look here for questions, introductions, support, success stories.

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ladybird30
Posts: 1118
Joined: Sun May 07, 2017 10:41 pm

How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by ladybird30 » Sat May 14, 2022 10:52 pm

I believe that waiting to feel hungry before eating helps keep my weight down and makes my meals more enjoyable.

But how do I know if I am hungry?

It can vary, but mostly I get a feeling in my stomach. If I start getting spaced out or can think about nothing except the next meal, then I have waited too long. If I can easily concentrate on another task, or get distracted, then I can wait a bit longer.

Mid afternoon can be tricky. Am I really hungry or is something else going on. Thats where the 3 meal rule is so helpful.

What do other No Sers think. What are your signs of hunger?
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

Amy3010
Posts: 1282
Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2012 9:48 am
Location: Belgium

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by Amy3010 » Mon May 16, 2022 5:47 am

I have also found it very tricky to distinguish between legitimate hunger or "head" hunger over the years, so it's no wonder I struggled with my weight. I also hardly ever got really hungry, because I was eating all the time.

I think finding No-S and learning to wait between meals, regardless of hunger, taught me to be able to recognize my hunger more, but also, to fear it less. Now I would say I get an empty feeling in my stomach if I am truly hungry. If I wait too long, I get an almost desperate feeling, like I have to eat something, or else... Sometimes drinking a big glass of water helps alleviate this.

Soprano
Posts: 1184
Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2018 8:56 pm
Location: UK

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by Soprano » Mon May 16, 2022 6:28 pm

When I tried intuitive eating I struggled to identify my hunger but don't generally have a problem now having followed No s and IF.

I am generally hungry at mealtimes but can miss breakfast and cope.

Jx
Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.

ladybird30
Posts: 1118
Joined: Sun May 07, 2017 10:41 pm

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by ladybird30 » Tue May 17, 2022 8:23 am

Yes, I have found that for myself working out whether I am hungry or not has come second to establishing a 3 meal a day routine. It is also a lot easier when snacks are off the table.
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

kyl77
Posts: 28
Joined: Tue Mar 14, 2017 8:32 pm
Location: Michigan

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by kyl77 » Tue May 17, 2022 10:53 am

I find I wasn't waiting long enough to find out if I was hungry. Real hunger is unmistakable. I have a grumbling in my stomach. Now that I'm only having three meals a day, I find that I'm good and hungry for them. I actually wake up hungry for breakfast, which didn't happen before, because I was always munching late at night.

I find I can eat normal foods on this diet instead of diet food and lose, because I'm not filling up on all those snack foods that most diets tell you to eat. I didn't realize how many calories are in a protein bar. You might as well have a Snickers! Now I eat what I want in moderation, and I'm actually losing. I had tried this diet in the past, but was put off by the slow weight loss. I went on a more radical diet and lost all the weight quick just to put it back on quicker. I swear it was like a time lapsed video! Now I know slow and steady wins the race.

Good luck to all my fellow No Sers. It's a fight worth winning.

God Bless

ladybird30
Posts: 1118
Joined: Sun May 07, 2017 10:41 pm

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by ladybird30 » Tue May 17, 2022 11:12 pm

[quote= Now I eat what I want in moderation, and I'm actually losing.
[/quote]

A good place to be.
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by oolala53 » Wed May 25, 2022 6:44 pm

Cherish obvious signals, if you have them. IMHO, there is a big difference between the feeling of hunger that comes from a combination of the mostly hormones associated with it and that antsy feeling which I equate with drug withdrawal. But it can change as you age. It has for me. My first six years of No S, I was able to manage meal timing and content so that I felt that wonderful empty feeling after which those first bites of food tasted and felt so glorious. Since 2016, it’s been rocky. Starting last summer, I did a modified version of eating when “hungry” not to lose -was already in mid “normal” range of BMI- but for other reasons. I lost some weight but 40% of it was muscle! Wish I had that tissue back. I now force myself to eat three meals with a 40 gram of protein each. I am almost never hungry but I can’t risk losing more. Also doing resistance work.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

ladybird30
Posts: 1118
Joined: Sun May 07, 2017 10:41 pm

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by ladybird30 » Thu May 26, 2022 9:15 am

oolala53 wrote:
Wed May 25, 2022 6:44 pm
IMHO, there is a big difference between the feeling of hunger that comes from a combination of the mostly hormones associated with it and that antsy feeling which I equate with drug withdrawal.
Yes, there is a difference. Fortunately the no snacks rule helps in practice. And I have come to dislike that feeling of withdrawal so much that I have gone off eating some foods because they are followed by physical withdrawal.
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Re: How do we know if we are hungry?

Post by oolala53 » Tue Jun 07, 2022 3:58 pm

Exactly! That is the major motivation many people discover. It's so much more effective than someone telling you from the outside that such and such is bad for you. When you start experiencing that the pleasurable item is later causing more pain than it's worth- that yen for more-, and especially when you realize that you will not be missing out on any important nutrients because of it, it is relatively easy to drop it. I never thought I'd go "sweets-less" but since Jan. of 2020, I gave up desserts (still have up to 10 grams of sugar a day in dark chocolate). I still use stevia but not in anything dessert-ish.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

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