Check your water intake as well. My wife and I both have issues confusing thirst with hunger signals sometimes. This is getting easier to identify lately though, as we're more consistent in what we eat, the resulting thought process is, "I shouldn't be hungry, so I should drink some water." I'm still trying to get more consistency in my fluid intake.

I posted this on the thread ...is your satiety meter broken?

I would point those that do not received the satiety signal to a pod cast interview of Dr. Robert Lustig about satiety and obesity in which he explains at about minute 20 onward the role fiber plays in signaling satiety. http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/2011/02/12/802-sugar-hazards/ It's the first interview on the page.

Basically fiber reduces the absorption of sugars into the bloodsteam and thus supresses the insulin response...thus more satiety. Second fiber assists in moving food through 22 feet of intestines quickly and when the food arrives at the end of the intestines, there is a hormone called PPY that is triggered and is absorbed into the blood and when PPY reaches the brain, it shuts off the desire for more food. The satiety signal. Thus Lustig says he advocates waiting 20 minutes before taking a second helping of food in order to let the food reach the end of the intestines so the PPY will be stimulated.

Also there is a lot of discussion of the role of fructose and what it does to the body. Not good.

I do recall some paleos saying that fiber is not necessary in the diet...but now I am not sure. I have some psyllium husks and just the last week have been taking 3-4 tablespoons in 8oz of water to see if my satiety level might change. Too soon to tell but I never really had the hunger pangs described here after two hours of meat and fat. But I eat 5 eggs fried in coconut oil plus a lot of bacon in the morning and then evening usually 12 ounces of fatty beef pan fried in coconut butter with a large green salad with EVOO and vinegar...so I think I am pretty well satiated all the time without the psyllium.

Honestly, I never felt satisfied on strict paleo until I added in more starch. Potatoes, squash, rice. Plus a lot of fat from coconut oil and butter. I was trying so hard to be full on protein, veg, fruit, and fat (coconut oil, milk, and nuts) and I was NEVER satisfied. Starch was the key for me. Reading the Panu website really helped me.

Try eating a pound of fatty meat and a half pound of veggies, both cooked in butter and report back.

I agree with those above that you're probably under consuming fat and need to add more butter and coconut oil/fat. If I cook up some eggs with butter in the morning, with a little avocado and some heavy cream with my coffee, I'm usually satiated for hours. Had some coconut soup for lunch today and was barely hungry for dinner 7 hours later (which was some salad greens with some nice fatty bits of leftover duck). But people are terrible at estimating how much they're eating--whether they are trying to cut down or eat more.

I mean your halibut meal, I just looked that up. 3 oz of halibut weighs in at 119 calories and about 9 g of fat. So 1/2 pound=8 oz, that's about 317 calories, with maybe 25-26 of that from fat. You didn't say how you prepared the veggies, but assuming you didn't cook them up in a generous amount of butter, a pound of veggies isn't going to come up to much calorie-wise. So, generously we're looking at a 400 calorie meal there (assuming again, that you didn't cook the fish, nor the veggies in some sort of fat). Of couse you're hungry a few hours later. That isn't a lot of food (especially for a guy). If you're eating 3 or even 4 meals like that a day it's 1200-1600 calories. Practically a starvation diet for a guy your size. So add more fats and keep track (at least until you're routinely satiated) of how much you're actually eating. Unless, of course, you're trying to lose more weight, in which case, keep up the calorie restriction. But good job on the weight loss, now work on not starving.

Perhaps you need some starchy veg with your meals (root vegetables, cruciferous vegetables). Questions for you : how often do you eat each day? what is your activity/exercise load like? What foods do you like to eat? Are you on a regular schedule (up in the morning, work during the day?)

Halibut's not that fatty a fish, despite it coming from the northern oceans. It has a reputation for being more difficult to cook than salmon, for that reason. What was your added fat and how much did you use? Don't be afraid to use things like butter and coconut oil. Olive oil's nice, but only goes so far.

It took me a month or more of eating paleo, to get over the fact that I was eating to fuel my body and not to "fill" it. Now, eating until hunger goes away, is more satisfying than feeling full.

However, fish and veggies would leave me wanting as well. Moar fat.

I'm pretty much like you when it comes to my diet and I have had the same problem (though not often). I have always attributed these feelings to phycological triggers. Stuff on TV(sports mainly), certain people, weather..... All these things can make me want to snack even though I'm not hungry. I think I'm just conditioned to want chicken wings, nachos and beer when Im watching football or eat tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches when it's raining. Maybe consider what's going on next time you're brain tells you that you want to eat.

How flexible are you making this? If dairy never bothered you before, you can add in some of the fatty dairy or find other ways to increase your saturated fat intake. If you want more starch, eat more starch, just make sure they're tuberous vegetables. Tweak until you feel better.

Another thing to consider is if this might be related to bad digestion. You could try drinking diluted apple cider vinegar after/before/during a meal and see if you feel any better. If you do, then you probably have low stomach acid and should supplement with Betaine Hcl until you don't need it anymore. Doing this has helped my hunger pangs and lethargy reduce.

Too funny, cause I was just thinking the same thing! We had a nice size paleo dinner and then 2 hours later I was sitting here starving...I just started so I chalked it up to carb craving, but I don't know.

~Rob

I agree with the others that you probably aren't eating enough fat. The modern fat phobia has really skewed people's perceptions about how much fat they are eating, and how much they really need. For me, nothing gives satiety like animal fats...the combination of fat and cholesterol really seem to hit the spot for me.

Also check for nutrient deficiencies. Fitday.com can do this for free. See what nutrients you are low on and then consider how important those RDAs may or may not be for you. For instance, magnesium is probably important, but the many are still not sure about vitamin E. But if you are low on anything, you may want to make an effort to eat foods with those nutrients and see if that satiates you better.