*snarls* Gimme food now!

[liz_marcs]

Oh, my great and wise FList.

Can someone explain something to me?

A few days ago I switched from eating 3 meals a day thing to eating 6 to 7 meals a day (which means eating every 2 to 3 hours). Obviously, it's a better way to eat since it keeps the metabolism fired up.

I've been doing this for 3 days, and so far I can spot one small problem with this system. I am now freaking constantly hungry. I am prepared to start chewing on my knuckles in hopes of sucking some protein out of them.

Now, keep in mind: It's the same amount of food (the exact same amount of food), only spread across 6 to 7 meals instead of just across the 3 meals.

But here I am counting down to my next meal with all the anticipation of whiny pet.

I can't deny the system works, though. This morning I noticed that my jeans were definitely fitting differently — and in a good way.

Although it could be the 50 minutes o' cardio a day I've been doing, but I do that after work. And (as always with me) cardio is the only thing that actually suppresses my appetite.

Gah!

*15 minutes and counting until my next meal*

Comments

[midnightfae.livejournal.com]

Well... my understanding is that eating doesn't raise your basal metabolism all that much. So you're not getting a real huge benefit from eating all the time. Further, it's not really the way we are meant to eat, according to current evolutionary theory. More likely that cardio is what is raising your basal metabolism, and resulting in the weight loss.

You need to eat enough to expand the stomach in order to release the proper hormones to quell your hunger. If you're eating that often, you may not be doing that. You need some stretch or you'll be hungry again. Also, what you're eating makes a difference. Make sure every time you eat, you're getting some kind of protein if possible. Fat will do in a pinch, but it's not as long-lasting as protein as far as satiety. As part of that protein digestion process, your body will release more, longer lasting hormones that will stave off the hunger.

[diachrony.livejournal.com]

::nods::

That's how it works for MANY people. The constant mini-meal thing? CONSTANT CRAVING. You never stop being hungry.

I know I read a scientific explanation for this. I never retain those things very well ... but you should know the multiple mini-meals a day thing is far from being a scientific consensus. Many researchers disagree strongly with this eating routine, but it's been so popularized by the media that it's taken for granted.

So my opinion is: you should do what works. I'm sure different eating patterns work for different people ... I also know that making a change in a diet/exercise routine often leads to some weight loss and/or shrinkage initially, whether or not it's sustained. If you continue to feel like you're starving all the time then I'd say chuck it and go back to something sustainable.

Just my 2 cents.

[evulkoneko.livejournal.com]

It's because you're eating less at a time, so you're never full, and then your body goes through the energy you just gave it, so you're hungry again.

Or something like that.

My eating habits vary far too much to try anything of the sort.

[first-spike.livejournal.com]

Hmm. If I remember right, there's hunger, ie, the body saying feed me now!, and that's largely triggered by a fall in blood sugar levels (not a low level, a fall in the level). And there's, for want of a better word, satedness, which comes from a variety of sources: full stomach, rising blood sugar levels, and a couple of other things I can't recall off hand.

I'm guessing you have a satedness problem - you just don't ever feel full. I'd also guess that, after a few more days, your body will settle into the new regime - in old-wives-tale-ese "your stomach will shrink" - and things will be fine.

Now, I recall seeing a programme, probably either Horizon or Equinox, investigating why the Atkins diet is effective. It turned out (and some of the experiments were pretty involved) to have nothing to do with metabolism changes, ketosis, or any of the mumbo-jumbo. It boiled down to this: eating protein makes you feel sated earlier, so you eat less. Atkins is all about protein, and when they did the counting, people were indeed eating less. A follow-up experiment confirmed that eating a small handful of nuts (or some other protein-rich food) a little before the main meal produced exactly the same effect, and the same level of weight loss.

I can't recall the details of the programme - perhaps digging into the PBS or BBC archives will turn it up - so I won't swear to the accuracy of that last paragraph. But perhaps you could tweak your meals to have a high-protein component early, just to see if it works for you?

Good luck, anyway. :-)

[rileysaplank.livejournal.com]

I remember seeing that on the BBC, or a very similar programme on the BBC, and them coming to the conclusion that people on the Atkins diet just ate less, which they thought (but couldn't prove at the time) was due to protein possibly being an appetite suppressant, and that's why they lost weight.

[first-spike.livejournal.com]

Oh good, it's not just my tortured imagination. ;-)

A bit of digging turns up a programme summary and transcript (see the links near the top of the page) on the BBC Horizon web site. The protein bit comes right at the very end. Pretty much as above, apart from the handful of nuts thing - I'm not at all sure where that came from now. :-/ (I was surprised to see it was three years ago; note that the web links to the University sites don't work now.)

[bruttimabuoni.livejournal.com]

A simple suggestion: you're thinking about food more? Meals need planning, it's not your usual routine. So you're always aware of what you're eating, and what you're not getting at one of these small-but-regular meals.

There's probably something metabolic going on too, but I'd back the brain theory to explain at least part of it.

[kwizbit.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I've heard that eating 6-7 meals a day does help in losing weight. I guess it's supposed to keep your metabolism going, instead of it working, and then sitting there, and then working when you eat again. Maybe that's why you're always hungy? Your metabolism has probably upped it's pace, so even though you're eating more frequently, your digesting things more quickly as well as processing them. Does that make sense?

I think eventually, your body will get used to the switch. Maybe it hasn't quite caught up to your change in eating habits. If there's still constant hunger by the end of the week, maybe you should come back and ask this question again, or even ask a professional (ie. a doctor, nutritionist, the interwebs, etc) I love that I consider the internet a professional... O_o

[4thdixiechick.livejournal.com]

Maybe your stomach hasn't gotten acustomed to the smaller meals yet? When I tried the six-small-meals-a-day thing, the articles I read said to eat leafy green vegetables and anything else with lots of fiber, so the body takes longer to digest the meal. You can add powdered fiber to meals for the same result.

Congrats on sticking to the cardio routine - I opted to come straight home today instead of going to the gym because I cannot stick to an exercise routine for any length of time.

[juntasan.livejournal.com]

personally ive been like this for a while now (about 2 or so years for me), as have several others i know, although all for different reasons - some of us because we exercise a lot for our hobbies, others started during travel abroad, some because it just seemed easier.

Yes your appetite/hungryness does seem to increase, although this does feel like it dips somewhat after a while. I have however personally found as a result of this even if i eat a monstrous portion of food in one go, i tend to actually both be hungry and have space for more food again after about 20 minutes. its interesting, but i suspect works slightly differently for different people, due to a mix of genetics, hormones, and different body builds.

[kaydee23.livejournal.com]

I don't think you're eating enough. Have you really added up the number of calories your consuming spread out through 6 or 7 meals? With 50 minutes of cardio on top of everything else, you might be eating 1200 calories or less. To my mind, that's just not enough food. Also, now that you're burning your fuel more efficiently, you might really need to eat a bit more. It could be just an extra card deck size of protein divided up among a few meals, a string cheese, a handful of nuts, a small apple, et cetera. If you're hungry, you're hungry. For me, if I let hunger gnaw at me for too long, I eventually breakdown and go nutso. and eat Everything. In. Sight.

[jebbypal]

I think you just need a week or so for you body to adjust to the smaller meals. Also, pay attention and make sure you're balancing carbs and protein through the meals well -- if you end up w/ too much protein in them, you're body may go into ketosis faster and cause the hungry feeling. Same if it's simple carbs. If you do still feel hungry and can't stand it, eat some fruit/veggies -- the extra fiber is supposed to help w/ satedness. Another solution would be a handful of nuts -- while yes, there is some fat there, it's better than a candy bar and the good fats in it will trigger the "full" feeling. If you can get raw nuts, do those because they have almost no bad fats when they aren't cooked in general. if you are worried about the fats, you can go for sunflower seeds which still have some fat but have the some of the highest protein content of nuts/seeds.

[(Anonymous)]

My dietician tells me lots of small meals, and those meals should contains lots of fibre -- fibre slows the absorption of nutrients into the blood, and so my blood sugar stays up longer more time, and not as high. But I find I get busy doing things, and forget to eat, then am quite hungry later.

[hendrikboom.livejournal.com]

(whoops -- posted this anonymously be mistake. Now repost nymously (is that a word?))

My dietician tells me lots of small meals, and those meals should contains lots of fibre -- fibre slows the absorption of nutrients into the blood, and so my blood sugar stays up longer more time, and not as high. But I find I get busy doing things, and forget to eat, then am quite hungry later.

[artistshipper.livejournal.com]

Eating carbs/sugars in small amounts makes you more hungry, not less. This has been scientifically demonstrated.

If you want to spread out your meals, you may need to do the South Beach thing...

I generally don't have energy problems even when I skip meals for a day (provided I do not engage in high intensity exercise...). Then again, i r teh fat, and thus have plenty of energy saved up.