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happy2btxn 10-12-2012 11:50 PM

how can I lose weight without starving?
 
Hi all,

Everytime I try to lose weight, I feel like I'm starving to death! Then I go and binge. And IF I managed to lose 1 lb, of course I gain it back plus a few more. Please HELP!

cjohnson728 10-13-2012 01:07 AM

Hi there; welcome! Here are my thoughts on your question.

Eat enough so you don't feel like you're starving. Use FitDay to calculate how many calories you burn per day, then figure out what is about 500-1000 calories per day below that (for a loss of one to two pounds per week), and eat that many calories. A general rule of thumb is not to go below 1200.

Also, be sure not to skip meals; don't go more than 4 hours without eating. Many people do well having 6 smaller meals as opposed to 3 main ones; others have regular meals but small snacks in between. Protein and healthy fats keep you fuller than carbs, so make sure you're eating them and not just jumping on the fat-free bandwagon. Finally, be sure to get your fiber...that also keeps you feeling full.

Feel free to join in the forums...lots of tips and laughs there!

RunbikeSki 10-13-2012 08:00 AM

I agree with everything Cassie wrote. I will add that it takes some time to figure out what works for you, but really, the idea is to improve your eating habits for life, not just long enough to lose a couple of pounds. So start with eliminating 1 bad habit at a time. Do you drink a lot of soda? Starting replacing the soda with water, iced tea, or other non calorie beverages.

FitDay really helped me figure out "trigger" foods. Those are the things that once you start eating it is hard to stop. Nuts, ice cream and potato chips are trigger foods for me, so those are things I really need to avoid.

As Cassie said, keep in touch - we are all in this together! ;)

Rubystars 10-13-2012 09:36 PM

Hi. I know lots of tricks on how to eat a lot of food without too many calories. Sometimes you just need to have that full and satisified feeling in order to feel normal and healthy.

Be open to trying new things.

One thing that helps me is eating winter squash. It's in season right now. You can literally eat bowl fulls of the stuff (including canned pumpkin) for very few calories. For lunch you can eat half a head of lettuce and then a tuna sandwich.

Or you can eat a bag full of steamed carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower.

Oatmeal is a great choice. 2 servings of oatmeal (about a cup dry) make a big bowl of oatmeal prepared and you can eat all of that and feel pretty full (Switch out regular milk for 30 calorie almond milk and you can use artifical sweetener to sweeten it). 2 servings of Quaker old fashioned oats have 300 calories. And it does make a big, hearty bowl.

Try to eat protein with every meal. Eggs can help as a low calorie source. If you can learn to like meat substitues then Quorn or Boca burgers can give you some meaty foods with lower calories than actual meat. 98% fat free hot dogs are a good substitute for full fat ones once you get used to them.

The trick is often to find foods you like and then find lower calorie substitutes for them.

If you're tempted to binge, then plan a cheat meal every week, but still try to keep the calories somewhat reasonable on it.

La Choy Chow Mein in the can is low in calories and you can eat the whole thing and feel pretty stuffed. That might not be good for an every day meal because of the high sodium in it but it is tasty and filling and low in calories.

Have a pumpkin pie treat by putting canned pumpkin in a bowl, heating it up, adding a dash of pumpkin pie spice and some sweetener. It tastes great that way.

A cool "mind trick" you can use is to take wax beans (They are yellow versions of green beans) and sprinkle a little parmesan cheese on them for flavor with salt and pepper. It looks like macaroni and cheese, and it kind of tastes like it, so you can feel like you're eating it without all the calories.

Also you can take a can of mixed vegetables and add them to a can of low calorie soup like progresso to bulk it up and make it filling. This creates a big bowl of soup for very few added calories and can really fill you up!

fatlossfactoring 10-20-2012 04:32 AM

I purchased Hip Hop Abs when it first was advertised on tv and I have to say I LOVE it. Once I got to where I wanted to be I slacked off and now I'm back in the groove again. Now I have my 17 year old doing it with me to keep him in shape when he's not playing sports. I go here for reviews. Check it out!

Kathy13118 10-20-2012 07:39 AM

If you keep in mind that a fat gram has 9 calories and a protein OR a carb gram (both!) has 4 calories, you'll see that you can eat a lot more food that will make you feel full and less hungry when that food doesn't have much fat in it. One good simple way to 'eyeball' this advantage on a nutrition label on a food is the 'percentage calories as fat' or just look at the total calories and then the fat calories. I'm looking now at a can of wild alaskan salmon (bought on amazon, cheaper) that has 60 calories in a serving and 10 calories are from fat. Very tasty with just a smidgen of canola mayonnaise (Hellman's Canola mayo).

What would, say, fish sticks come in as? Mrs. Paul's crunchy fish sticks come in 3.35 oz servings. I love those things - crunchy, salty, hot, yummy! But 230 calories for that serving and 90 calories come from fat (total fat is 10 grams so multiply 9 x 10). That's a little more than a third of the calories coming from fat. I would never eat just one serving, too!

It is true that the calories in the canola mayo are nearly ALL fat. But, then, when I say a 'smidgen,' I mean just enough mayo to barely moisten the already-moist-enough salmon. I just like the taste. It's zero saturated fat and a lot of monounsaturated fat, adding up to a healthier fish filling for a sandwich (pita).

Think about what you could be eating instead of what you do eat now - and what tastes good, what might taste good enough or better AND be lower in calories and better for your health. Do that for a couple of weeks, draw up a game plan of stuff you do like and fits well in your diet. Then stick to it and tweak it as you go along.

Will you binge? Maybe. But you'll do that, recognizing exactly what your choices are, what's wrong or missing in the binge-fest. Protein (lean) and fiber will make you feel fuller quickly. If you eat out of boredom or to 'tickle your palate,' the effort is going to be much greater to stay on track, so deal with those issues, too.

nicholelakey 11-19-2012 03:17 AM

I have the same issue. Every time I've tried to lose weight in the past, I cut calories too low, end up very hungry, then binge by the time I get home. This typically happens on day 1 for me! I'm currently trying to eat a bit more (1,800 calories a day) spread out equally over the course of the day to see if I can lose weight at an adequate rate this way (adequate rate being 1 pound per week minimum). I've successfully managed this for a week now. I've also been drinking a lot more water than I have in the past, which seems to be helping with managing the hunger.

ann8512 11-26-2012 12:28 AM

try drinking a glass of water before a meal

canary52 12-17-2012 03:19 AM


Originally Posted by happy2btxn (Post 90410)
Hi all,

Everytime I try to lose weight, I feel like I'm starving to death! Then I go and binge. And IF I managed to lose 1 lb, of course I gain it back plus a few more. Please HELP!

I have the same problem.

For me, I find:

I have to eat throughout the day so:

PORTION SIZE.

I love nuts as a snack but cannot be left to my own devices with them so I buy 100 calorie packs (they have cocoa and cinnamon ones too) or I portion them out. I portioned my breakfast ham (lean, low fat) into packages and use one with egg whites and veg.

FRUITS AND VEG help. I know, I know, so original. But they do help.

Find snacks you like and have some,the key being SOME. Feeling deprived, as you know, is what makes us binge.

PLANNING helps. I have been stuck at the same weight forever it feels like. So I make plans and try to stick close to them. I do leave room for spontaneity but at least I have a strategy. Plus I track it on FD and see what works. If I gain weight back, I look back over my "good days" and try to stay with that.

MOVEMENT. I am very physically limited but even a little walking is better than nothing.

So no great insight...But yeah this is tough. I wish you the best with it.

bedrik 12-26-2012 10:45 PM

Already lots of tips you got here

iamgoingtobe200pounds 12-07-2013 08:10 AM

Volume and Fiber are your friend. The same amount of calories in cheese or mushrooms are a huge difference in amounts of food. Large amounts of mushrooms, vegetables, squash, tofu ect can be pretty low in calories. Also, making sure there is a lot of fat, but low sugar will keep your hunger in check.

AndrewFetler 03-25-2014 06:07 PM

In my opinion try some fun activities like take aerobics classes like, zumba zumba dance, where you can go with your friends. Or if you are married, then there are various programs where you can go with your kids and workout like martial arts school . They have programs for whole family, in which you all can workout together and also spend some quality time.

mom2aboy 05-16-2014 07:57 AM

Try eating an apple before you eat your meal. I often am too busy to eat much during the day and then go snack crazy as soon as I get home. If I eat an apple, I find it makes me not want to eat so much.

AvivaBha 07-15-2014 11:49 PM

Get your head in the game.
 
All of the suggestions are excellent dieting advice, but I get a feeling that the finer points of dieting are not going to help you because something about 'all that dieting details' just seems too tough and difficult and combined with less fuel on day1 blocks you from breaking through from your old eating habits..

in other words: It sounds as if you struggle with the early day(s) of dieting, and pretty much fail before you ever start.... by trying too hard too soon!

Clearly you're not cut out for the cold turkey approach
(cold turkey is actually yummy.. and sooo healthy if without any skin)

So, maybe you are better off refusing to think about calories near the start of your healthy balance.

Think instead.. what is in the food... does it have enough nutritional value.. i.e is it a good protein? is it a good carb? is it a good vitamin source..is it cooked healthily (or raw)... then eat loads of it.. forget about calories.. first of all give your body lots and lots of healthy food.. (and one unhealthy item each day)

When you began to be comfortable reducing the junk and eating plennnnnnnty of good stuff, then that would be time to measure the calories your 'eat as much as you like' pattern is generating.. and to begin to GRADUALLY decide to eat less.

After you get past the quantity hurdle, that will be a great time to look at all the excellent hints and tips for fine tuning your efforts for optimum result.

katie89999 07-21-2014 02:02 PM

Eat vegetables and lots of protein. I personally plan my menu a day in advance and stay within strict calorie parameters for the day. This works well. It also helps to incorporate a snack. I generally have 4 dill pickles, 1 or 2 apples and 10 pistachios incorporated in my menu and don't deviate from the foods on it. Hope this helps.

aboyce 07-22-2014 12:55 AM

Fasting revelations
 
One thing I learned through occasional fasting is this: Most of us don't know what real hunger is. After 24 hours on just water the first time, I was ready to eat TOFU I felt so "hungry." Yet I knew, being at least 20 pounds above my ideal weight, I had plenty of fat reserves and could not truly be starving.

Imaging my surprise when, after making it 48 hours without food, my cravings disappeared! Those cravings were not true hunger, just the IDEA of eating things that taste good.

The feelings are still real, but sometimes it helps to know you aren't doing any damage to your body, that you won't lose energy. In fact, I've gone as long as 10 days on water only before REAL hunger kicked in. And fasting experts say the SECOND time you feel it, go ahead and start eating.

Anyway, I know fasting isn't for everyone, but just some perspective. Since June I've been fasting 24 hours out of every week, and that has helped me lose 22 pounds without any real exercise. But I'm also limiting calories during the week to 1000-1200 per day -- still feels like feasting compared with fasting

mcallahan757 08-12-2014 06:21 AM

Along with fasting, I have done body cleanses myself. There is a lot left in your body even after you empty your digested food.

sheenahines 08-19-2014 06:28 PM

Almost all the points are covered by Canary52.
Please keep control on your eating habits this will contribute little to lose your weight.


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