Is hunger just a part of remaining thin?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Now that I’m mid 40s yes. Before that I could eat whatever I want which was mostly deli sandwiches and pizza and cake and stay 125 5’6”.

I’m mid-40s and I still eat all of that, just smaller portions than before. And I run a lot. Works for me.

Do you have children who are teens and does your job stress you out?

I wonder about this too. My job stresses me out, my teens stress me out. My default mode is stressed out. So I overeat. On the rare occasions I have a low stress week, eating well is a lot easier. If I were a lady of luxury with no job, tons of money, someone handling college stuff...I'm sure I'd be thin.

Do you think as a middle age person with wisdom and experience you could find ways to manage your stress that doesn’t involve overeating?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Now that I’m mid 40s yes. Before that I could eat whatever I want which was mostly deli sandwiches and pizza and cake and stay 125 5’6”.

I’m mid-40s and I still eat all of that, just smaller portions than before. And I run a lot. Works for me.

Do you have children who are teens and does your job stress you out?

I wonder about this too. My job stresses me out, my teens stress me out. My default mode is stressed out. So I overeat. On the rare occasions I have a low stress week, eating well is a lot easier. If I were a lady of luxury with no job, tons of money, someone handling college stuff...I'm sure I'd be thin.

Some people are the opposite though. My appetite disappears when I’m stressed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m 36 and thin; 5’4 110. I’m lucky in that I don’t diet or watch what I eat but don’t have issues with weight. I think I have really good hunger cues or something, it’s easy to eat just when I’m hungry and stop before I feel full. Tbh I hate the overly full feeling, it’s uncomfortable for ne.

You are 36. It's still easy.

Maybe, but I think there are plenty of people my age younger that struggle with weight.

My mom is also slim and we have similar eating patterns. Now that I’m thinking about it, in both our cases, we eat for pleasure but not with the goal of feeling “full” as often as possible for as long as possible. For me, I can easily wait 5-6+ hrs to eat dinner and look forward to a delicious meal. I’d prefer to have an appetite when I sit down to enjoy something I love eating.

So maybe there is something to thin people being hungry, but people experience that differently. I enjoy the anticipation leading up to savoring good food, there’s no way I’m chomping at celery and cottage cheese or whatever else at my desk all afternoon for fear of not feeling full all day every day.

[Anonymous]

Estrogen is made in fat. As you age, your body might want to increase fat to replace lost estrogen.

I’m thin and not hungry. I think it’s hereditary and I also can’t eat sugar so that makes it easier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can be thin while never being hungry by eating nutrient dense, satiating foods.

I do find - in moderation - it’s helpful to develop the discipline to be able to deal with small amounts of hunger without freaking out. Just like skipping a carby snack and roughing it out an hour or two until dinner. That’s weak sauce compared to people who practice strict fasting but it helps exercise the “resist temptation” mental muscle which is useful in life generally, and for more than just food.

There's only so much resisting of temptation I can do. I use my willpower on things like doing my best at work instead of slacking off, and staying faithful to my husband. I go to bed the same time 7 days a week. I don't really have willpower left over to spend on my eating habits. Are disciplined eaters less disciplined in terms of marital fidelity, work or sleep hygiene?

What? Going from food to fidelity is quite a jump. I don’t spend any time thinking about staying faithful to my husband and haven’t in the two decades we have been together. It’s a given, I married him. You might try that.

Oh I am staying faithful but it takes willpower. I do not believe people are naturally monogamous, so it's an effort. Wouldn't you like to sleep with other people? Just like working 50 hours a week instead of being unemployed takes much more effort.

Weird trolling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Now that I’m mid 40s yes. Before that I could eat whatever I want which was mostly deli sandwiches and pizza and cake and stay 125 5’6”.

I’m mid-40s and I still eat all of that, just smaller portions than before. And I run a lot. Works for me.

Do you have children who are teens and does your job stress you out?

I wonder about this too. My job stresses me out, my teens stress me out. My default mode is stressed out. So I overeat. On the rare occasions I have a low stress week, eating well is a lot easier. If I were a lady of luxury with no job, tons of money, someone handling college stuff...I'm sure I'd be thin.

Do you think as a middle age person with wisdom and experience you could find ways to manage your stress that doesn’t involve overeating?

No because there is no time. You are crushed by work, housework, kid events and parental care.

My friends who shipped their kids off to college lost weight because there was finally time for healthful meals and exercise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Now that I’m mid 40s yes. Before that I could eat whatever I want which was mostly deli sandwiches and pizza and cake and stay 125 5’6”.

I’m mid-40s and I still eat all of that, just smaller portions than before. And I run a lot. Works for me.

Do you have children who are teens and does your job stress you out?

I wonder about this too. My job stresses me out, my teens stress me out. My default mode is stressed out. So I overeat. On the rare occasions I have a low stress week, eating well is a lot easier. If I were a lady of luxury with no job, tons of money, someone handling college stuff...I'm sure I'd be thin.

Do you think as a middle age person with wisdom and experience you could find ways to manage your stress that doesn’t involve overeating?

I don’t over eat but I stress, this is hard to manage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m 36 and thin; 5’4 110. I’m lucky in that I don’t diet or watch what I eat but don’t have issues with weight. I think I have really good hunger cues or something, it’s easy to eat just when I’m hungry and stop before I feel full. Tbh I hate the overly full feeling, it’s uncomfortable for ne.

You are 36. It's still easy.

Maybe, but I think there are plenty of people my age younger that struggle with weight.

My mom is also slim and we have similar eating patterns. Now that I’m thinking about it, in both our cases, we eat for pleasure but not with the goal of feeling “full” as often as possible for as long as possible. For me, I can easily wait 5-6+ hrs to eat dinner and look forward to a delicious meal. I’d prefer to have an appetite when I sit down to enjoy something I love eating.

So maybe there is something to thin people being hungry, but people experience that differently. I enjoy the anticipation leading up to savoring good food, there’s no way I’m chomping at celery and cottage cheese or whatever else at my desk all afternoon for fear of not feeling full all day every day.

i don't think anyone eats in order to feel as full as possible for as long as possible?

[Anonymous]

Everything changed for me when I hit 44. Not 40, but 44. Perimenopause hit hard, and my weight has never been the same. I also have enough stressors in my life that I’m not willing to be uncomfortably hungry all the time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m 36 and thin; 5’4 110. I’m lucky in that I don’t diet or watch what I eat but don’t have issues with weight. I think I have really good hunger cues or something, it’s easy to eat just when I’m hungry and stop before I feel full. Tbh I hate the overly full feeling, it’s uncomfortable for ne.

You are 36. It's still easy.

Maybe, but I think there are plenty of people my age younger that struggle with weight.

My mom is also slim and we have similar eating patterns. Now that I’m thinking about it, in both our cases, we eat for pleasure but not with the goal of feeling “full” as often as possible for as long as possible. For me, I can easily wait 5-6+ hrs to eat dinner and look forward to a delicious meal. I’d prefer to have an appetite when I sit down to enjoy something I love eating.

So maybe there is something to thin people being hungry, but people experience that differently. I enjoy the anticipation leading up to savoring good food, there’s no way I’m chomping at celery and cottage cheese or whatever else at my desk all afternoon for fear of not feeling full all day every day.

Get back to us in 10 years. I was 5’5” and 105 pounds at 36. Never hungry. At 46 I’m 155 pounds and always hungry. I realize that’s more dramatic than most but life comes at all everyone in their 40s. Not their 30s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just wondering, for all you thin people. Does it take work to maintain your weight? Do you experience hunger daily? I'm 5'7 and 139; just lost 10 pounds and hoping to lose 7 more to get back into my clothes. Sort of went on a binge since Covid and became heavier than I'd ever been. I'm finding that to lose the weight, I have to be willing to endure hunger every day. Not all day, but certainly, for periods of every day - I go to bed a bit hungry and I spend much of my morning (like right now) hungry. I've been able to power through it because I'm seeing progress on the scale and it's motivating. But generally, I love the feeling of being full, even stuffed, and it's rather depressing to think that if I want to be at my goal weight, I'm going to have to eat less for the long term and thus, maybe, be hungry for a good portion of my life.

I'm a thin person (43 and size 2 for my entire life, minus pregnancies) and I guess I am often hungry? I don't really prioritize food and will forget to eat bc I'm doing other things. So I naturally lean towards eating protein since it will fill me up for longer.I would say I never, ever have three full meals per day -- I usually have two good meals and one very very light (like right now I'm eating maybe 4 slices of bacon, and that will be lun

I don't associate the feeling of hunger with and kind of negativity. It's kind of nice, and food actually tastes better when you are hungry.

I can't concentrate and be high energy at my job and while raising my kids if I'm hungry. It's all about energy level and not getting headaches. If your kids are older and you don't have an intellectually or physically demanding lifestyle I could see it. I can never ever imagine not prioritizing energy giving calories.

This is my struggle too. If I get over hungry I get a migraine. Every single time. I struggle with allowing a little hunger before my next meal but not letting it get to that point. It’s a constant battle for me. I do try to eat a lot of protein and produce and minimize carbs especially sugar but since that’s like 90 percent of what my kids eat it is a battle. I don’t give up though because I am determined to be able to do all the things I want to do and be a fun active grandma when the time comes.

[Anonymous]

I wonder about this too. My job stresses me out, my teens stress me out. My default mode is stressed out. So I overeat. On the rare occasions I have a low stress week, eating well is a lot easier. If I were a lady of luxury with no job, tons of money, someone handling college stuff...I'm sure I'd be thin.

This was me when I was in my early/mid-40s. My DD put us through a LOT during her teen years. Not only could I not get through the stress while being hungry, I needed some sort of vice. It was sugar, but I supposed it could have been drinking or something else. I made my peace with it and didn't feel bad about myself at the time. I was unbothered by the extra weight.

Fast-forward to age 48, both kids in college. I was ready to make a change and it only took 7 or 8 months to lose the weight I had put on over a decade (and then some). I have exercised 6 times per week since then, eat way better and have kept all the weight off for several years now. I just needed enough time and energy to make it a routine and I just didn't have it when my kids were teens. Kudos to the perpetually size 00 4 am exercisers who haven't had carbs for 25 years, but that just wasn't me. I had to let something go.

One upside of letting things go - because I never did any yo-yo dieting over the years, I didn't mess up my metabolism. I can eat 2000+ calories a day for maintenance which is enough to keep me from going hungry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m 36 and thin; 5’4 110. I’m lucky in that I don’t diet or watch what I eat but don’t have issues with weight. I think I have really good hunger cues or something, it’s easy to eat just when I’m hungry and stop before I feel full. Tbh I hate the overly full feeling, it’s uncomfortable for ne.

You are 36. It's still easy.

Maybe, but I think there are plenty of people my age younger that struggle with weight.

My mom is also slim and we have similar eating patterns. Now that I’m thinking about it, in both our cases, we eat for pleasure but not with the goal of feeling “full” as often as possible for as long as possible. For me, I can easily wait 5-6+ hrs to eat dinner and look forward to a delicious meal. I’d prefer to have an appetite when I sit down to enjoy something I love eating.

So maybe there is something to thin people being hungry, but people experience that differently. I enjoy the anticipation leading up to savoring good food, there’s no way I’m chomping at celery and cottage cheese or whatever else at my desk all afternoon for fear of not feeling full all day every day.

sure - and come back when you're 50 and tell us how easy it is!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For a lot of people (especially perimenopausal/menopausal women) it is. It’s because rather than being where their body is most comfortable and they can eat normally - which is probably a size 8-14 - they will do WHATEVER IT TAKES to stay as skinny as they were in college or whatever.

OP. That's a really good point. At 47, I guess this is where I might be. Size 8 feels shameful to me, weirdly. I want my 6s to be comfortable. Accepting that I'm past the size 4 stage where I was in my 20s...at my age, I think too skinny doesn't look good.

I’m 53 and a size 12. Size 8 is my goal! I’ll feel so much better about myself if I make it to a size 8 and can maintain it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m 36 and thin; 5’4 110. I’m lucky in that I don’t diet or watch what I eat but don’t have issues with weight. I think I have really good hunger cues or something, it’s easy to eat just when I’m hungry and stop before I feel full. Tbh I hate the overly full feeling, it’s uncomfortable for ne.

You are 36. It's still easy.

Right? I'm 5' 3" and was 110 at 36. Now I'm 56 and somehow am now 125. I have no idea how it happened. Funny thing is--I am still a size 4, super athletic, and other then a tiny bit flabby around my mid-section--which I am working on, I am happy with how I look and can't stand feeling hungry. I think those people who like feeling hungry have eating disorders.