Suggestions

Panda · Post by **Panda** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 12:19 am

Hi,

I have been thinking of starting No S for a while. Tomorrow will be the day. I have this fear of being hungry. Do you think it is better to start off with extra food on my plate to alleviate my fear of hunger or eat what I think is a good portion and deal with the hunger right away? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Kevin · Post by **Kevin** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:32 am

Just start and find out. Don't short yourself food, but don't panic if you end up hungry two hours after breakfast. You'll survive until lunch.

Protein is important to keeping you sated, so don't skimp. Probably the hardest stretch will be lunch to dinner, which tends to be the longest span. But you'll survive that, too.

The thing about stuffing yourself at meals... I don't think it makes you much less hungry six hours later. Seriously.

It gets better. You're gonna be a little hungry, but you'll be okay.

Last thought: meals with multiple components - more things - maybe smaller amounts, but more things - are more satisfying.

Good luck, and stay in touch,.

Panda wrote:Hi,

I have been thinking of starting No S for a while. Tomorrow will be the day. I have this fear of being hungry. Do you think it is better to start off with extra food on my plate to alleviate my fear of hunger or eat what I think is a good portion and deal with the hunger right away? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Strawberry Roan · Post by **Strawberry Roan** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 11:40 am

Good Luck.

I would just put what would be considered a "normal" amount of food on your plate for each meal. I look at it like, If you were in a restaurant and the person at the next table had their meal served and they had a fourth of a pork chop and four peas, you would say Wow they don't have much food.

If they had three pork chops, a mound of mashed potatoes and gravy, buttered peas, buttered carrots, buttered corn, two dinner rolls and a piece of pie, you might think, Wow they have a lot of food.

I would strive for somewhere in between so that the person sitting across the room from me would think (if they deigned to think anything) That looks like a normal plate of food.

And, as Kevin said, one should actually feel hungry when it is time for their next meal. it is a sign that their body has burned their earlier "fuel".

wosnes · Post by **wosnes** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 12:34 pm

Just start by eating a reasonable amount at meals and see what happens. Remember this: there's nothing wrong with being hungry. We've been taught to eat every time we feel hunger. That's very unusual and we can see where it got us -- overweight.

This is from Mark Bittman's book Food Matters:

There's a basic truth here: there are stages of hunger, and we -- Americans -- have become accustomed to feeding ourselves at the first sign. This is the equivalent of taking a nap every time you get tired, which hardly anyone does.

There are levels of hunger, and there is a very real difference between hunger and starvation. Starvation is a physical state; your body is deprived of essential nutrients or calories for a long period of time. Probably no one reading this book has ever been truly starving -- though we all think we know what starving feels like.

Hunger is a hardwired early-warning system. At first, your brain says, "Think about eating something soon." In the later stages it says, "Eat as soon as you can; make eating a priority." At no point does your brain say, "Eat now or you will do permanent damage," though at times it may feel as if that is true. But "Eat when hungry" has become a habit. We get hungry. We eat. We get hungry again. We eat again. And so on.

I'm not saying, "Don't eat when you're hungry." I'm saying that if losing of maintaining weight is important to you, think twice before you eat from simple hunger, or from other reasons, like emotion. And when you do eat, choose a piece of fruit; a carrot; a handful of nuts. If you're still hungry, have more. And more. Eat a pint of blueberries, or cherry tomatoes; have a mango, a banana, and an apple. Have a lightly dressed salad. You would be hard-pressed to gain weight eating this way.

You can also embrace hunger, strange as that may sound, just as you might embrace the delicious anticipation of a nap, or sexual craving. Your hunger will, after all, be satisfied; why not wait an hour? (You're not dying, after all!) You might also stop eating before you're full (three-quarters full is probably about right). And if you eat slowly, taking your time, you'll give the food time to reach your stomach and give you a sense of satisfaction before you have seconds or thirds.

jellybeans01 · Post by **jellybeans01** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:41 pm

I find personally that it depeneds on the type of food. It I have a vegan type meal, I'm usually hungry sooner, but If I eat a normal or small portion meal that has a little more fat then I do okay. I think you need to find what works for you and remember it is okay to be hungry. When you have true hunger your body is ready for food and it taste so much better.

wosnes · Post by **wosnes** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 2:20 pm

jellybeans01 wrote:I find personally that it depeneds on the type of food. It I have a vegan type meal, I'm usually hungry sooner, but If I eat a normal or small portion meal that has a little more fat then I do okay. I think you need to find what works for you and remember it is okay to be hungry. When you have true hunger your body is ready for food and it taste so much better.

I think it has something to do with fat in the diet. I've noticed that since I've given up all fat-reduced foods and use butter and olive oil, it's much easier to go five or more hours between meals without feeling hungry.

NoelFigart · Post by **NoelFigart** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 2:57 pm

My opinion:

Early on, go ahead and eat the full plates if you're scared of being hungry. You want to establish the meal habit first and foremost. You might also gain a little bit of weight if you do this. If that is going to freak you out, this might be a bit of sabotage, so go with the smaller plates and realize that you're going to be dealing with hunger and habit simultaneously. If your goal is more about eating habits and less about faster weight loss, you'll be all good.

After you've got the meal habits down pat, yes yes yes, you'll want to start gently reducing how much you put on those plates. By this time, you will find the idea of being hungry less intimidating -- maybe even a little welcome before a meal. "Hunger is the best sauce" is more of a truism than a cliche.

Becoming · Post by **Becoming** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 7:08 pm

NoelFigart wrote: After you've got the meal habits down pat, yes yes yes, you'll want to start gently reducing how much you put on those plates. By this time, you will find the idea of being hungry less intimidating -- maybe even a little welcome before a meal. "Hunger is the best sauce" is more of a truism than a cliche.

I only started a few weeks ago, and this is how it's been for me. I haven't started reducing my meals yet, but I have begun to notice that now I don't really want to eat unless I am hungry.

My advice would be to keep checking back with this bulletin board - it's been really helpful to me.

Also, wosnes, thanks for the Mark Bittman quote. I haven't read any of his stuff, but that was really interesting.

Panda · Post by **Panda** » Tue Mar 01, 2011 6:44 pm

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. It is only Day 2 but Day 1 and Breakfast and Lunch on Day 2 went well. I've been trying to use Strawberry Roan's suggestion of if I were sitting in a restaurant and someone looked at my plate what would go through their mind. I think I put a moderate amount of food on my plate. I've kept busy and I think that's helped me not to think about hunger. I'm hoping that as I go along my confidence will grow and I will be able to believe that I can do this. I'll keep you posted.

Panda

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