Eating only at physical signs of hunger...but not getting these physical signs, but still feeling the need to eat, regardless. Gah! - PaleoHacks.com

Eating only at physical signs of hunger...but not getting these physical signs, but still feeling the need to eat, regardless. Gah!

2012-08-12T02:27:05Z

Longest title ever. Sorry.

I'm about a month into the Paleo transition, from traditional mostly-"healthy" SAD. It's been rough, and I've had my fair share of slip-ups and sugar-filled mishaps. I'm determined, though, and I think I'm finally starting to get the hang of it. Not perfection, but a solid 80/20.

One thing gets me, though. I try to only eat at the physical signs of hunger--when my stomach growls, I know it's time to feed it. And I only eat until I'm satiated. Not until I'm completely stuffed.

Thing is, I find that I'm only eating once or twice a day following this method. And my meals aren't extremely large, as that would lead to eating past the point of being satisfied. Also, I find myself having the urge to eat even when I'm not hungry. Like, mentally hungry, but not physically.

I'm female, 18, and between 120-125 pounds at 5'6''. I don't necessarily think I need to drop a bunch of weight...but I can see that happening if this persists. So, what should I do? Eat more often even if I'm not physically hungry? Eat past the point of being satiated?

Thanks everyone:)

Answer by AlexTasch for Eating only at physical signs of hunger...but not getting these physical signs, but still feeling the need to eat, regardless. Gah!

2012-08-12T02:44:54Z

You are 18, don't starve yourself !!! I am also new to paleo but I have been away from SAD diet for almost 7 yrs now. My advice is to hydrate before you get thirsty , and fuel your body accordingly to the activities you participate in. I have a long background of endurance cycling and you have to eat and drink like clockwork if you want to survive. Believe me I know where you're coming from. I have not hit the weights in years, but know that i started the pushup and pullup workouts, my body is like so hungry. Try raw beet(chopped) tomato and spinach salads with coconut oil and black pepper for dressing, it will satisfy you between the protein meals!! Don't forget that water !!

Answer by Neil for Eating only at physical signs of hunger...but not getting these physical signs, but still feeling the need to eat, regardless. Gah!

2012-08-12T03:29:20Z

Going on 2+ years here. I find that my hunger is no longer the "grumbly-stomach, crippling urge" type hunger. I usually just find myself getting lethargic or perhaps getting a tiny bit of heartburn. Tune into your energy levels as well as the actual "stomach" hunger. I find it rather fantastic, to be honest. I'll be out with people for lunch, then we'll all go do something for a while afterwards and then somebody will be all "man I'm starving" and every body chimes in with agreement. BAH! FOOOOOOLs. :D

As far as caloric intake, try tracking what you eat for a couple weeks and see where it ACTUALLY is, not some fuzzy "it feels like I might not be eating enough". You might be surprised at how much you're actually getting down. And if you're in a slight deficit, don't worry TOO much about, just keep track of health markers and make sure you're heading in the direction you'd like to be heading.

Answer by yev for Eating only at physical signs of hunger...but not getting these physical signs, but still feeling the need to eat, regardless. Gah!

2012-08-12T03:40:49Z

I would say that if you are hungry, eat. Your body, especially after some on paleo goes by, wants what it wants. I don't think you can gain any unhealthy weight while keeping Paleo. I'm 28 and I've been on this diet for 5 months. I don't work out very often (crossfit 1-2 times per week) and I find that in the second part of the day I am hungry pretty frequently, sometimes even after midnight. Every time I get hungry, I eat, even if it's just some almonds. I am still losing weight little by little.

My point is that as long as you've had enough time to adjust to real food and you don't have some sort of serious hormonal problem, your body won't lie to you. If it (brain included) is telling you to eat, you should eat.

Answer by JB Primal for Eating only at physical signs of hunger...but not getting these physical signs, but still feeling the need to eat, regardless. Gah!

2012-08-13T02:26:31Z

When you are eating a good, healthy 100% Paleo diet, you very likely will not be hungry more than once per day. The saturated fat and protein is extremely satiating and along with a good portion of vegetables will provide more than enough nutrition for you.

Regarding the issue of losing too much weight, I strongly believe that the human body is not designed to carry more than 8-10% bodyfat at the most. As an example, if you are a 120 pound female and are 10% body fat, you are considered extremely fit, but are still carrying 12 pounds of bodyfat, or 42,000 calories of energy in your body. That is enough to fuel a lady your size for 21 days. Would you want to completely fast for 21 days? Of course not, but the point is that when you are fat adapted, i.e. your body burns fat as its preferred fuel source, you will efficiently use the dietary fat as fuel, use the protein you eat to repair and rebuild the cells in your body, and use the vitamins and minerals much more effectively.

Do what feels right to you. If you are truly concerned about losing too much weight, eat a little more to allay your fears and monitor how you feel. Or, keep doing what your doing, closely monitoring how you look and feel and see if your body reaches a natural set point as you approach a certain bodyfat level.

http://www.jbprimal.com