Is hunger just a part of remaining thin?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also going out to dinner "for fun" just doesn't exsist for me. It never has. Food is food. Is some food better? Yes. But do I ever "gorge" on it? Never over the course of my life. I eat what I want until I feel full. My stomach is much smaller than most Americans, it seems.

Going out to dinner is fun because you try cuisines you are not able to make at home, and you can visit with your friends without cooking or cleaning. What do you do for fun instead of going out to eat?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also going out to dinner "for fun" just doesn't exsist for me. It never has. Food is food. Is some food better? Yes. But do I ever "gorge" on it? Never over the course of my life. I eat what I want until I feel full. My stomach is much smaller than most Americans, it seems.

Going to a restaurant /= gorging on food. You just order whatever sounds appetizing and eat it, and then stop when you're full. It's like home, but someone else cooks and cleans.

It's like we're talking to someone from another planet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Do you have a full time professional job as well? Hard to imagine going from not working out to working out 6 times a week while working 45 or 50 hours a week.

DP
I work out 7 days a week, work full time professional job, have 4 kids. I'm healthy....and 'healthy' weight (5'4"; 125lbs). As pp suggested, I too, stress eat. There is not much more I can do about the stressful life I have that I'm not already doing. If I want to maintain or lose weight I have to starve. It's the only lever I have left to pull.

Why would losing or maintaining weight even be on your radar screen when you have 4 kids and a job to worry about? Seriously, aren't your worries full up just between work and the kids?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also going out to dinner "for fun" just doesn't exsist for me. It never has. Food is food. Is some food better? Yes. But do I ever "gorge" on it? Never over the course of my life. I eat what I want until I feel full. My stomach is much smaller than most Americans, it seems.

Going to a restaurant /= gorging on food. You just order whatever sounds appetizing and eat it, and then stop when you're full. It's like home, but someone else cooks and cleans.

It's like we're talking to someone from another planet.

Real question: do yo have tastebuds? Some people like the taste and sensation of food.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been successful lately in losing weight, I've lost about 25 lbs in a couple months. I've found that being hungry feels much better than feeling full, in fact it is very satisfying psychologically knowing that when I'm hungry I'm losing weight. I eat healthy, small portions, well spaced out meals. Once your stomach adjusts to that you can find some satisfaction in the feelings of hunger and just being a lot less full than you may have in the past.

This is the reason I will never understand : it is very satisfying to feel hungry because it means you're losing weight.

What's hard to understand about that? If you are used to always eating when you're hungry and then eating until full or overeating because it tastes so good, and then you are somehow able to adjust your thinking and attitude to embrace hunger as part of a healthy weight loss and fitness journey it can ultimately be a very satisfying feeling to do that. Ignore the hunger for awhile until you only need smallish amounts of healthy food to satisfy it. If you keep seeing changing numbers on the scale every few days that alone is extremely satisfying and motivating to continue what you're doing.

[Anonymous]

i’m 46yrs old and yes. It gets worse each year that goes by. To remain thin I must spend most of my waking hours hungry. I have to basically obsess over food and do jedi mind tricks to hold off eating. I take a lot of advil for the hunger headaches. I think i would remain thin without hunger if i worked a very manual job such as being a landscaper installing decks and patios. If i exercised a good 8hrs a day i think i could eat full meals and be satisfied. it’s disturbing how little food i have to eat to maintain a BMI of 22.5. Im not even skinny. I do lift weights at an intense boot camp 3xs a week and hop on the Peloton 3 days. However to eat a “normal” amount i’d need to at least triple my exercise load and my joints would probably crash out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've been successful lately in losing weight, I've lost about 25 lbs in a couple months. I've found that being hungry feels much better than feeling full, in fact it is very satisfying psychologically knowing that when I'm hungry I'm losing weight. I eat healthy, small portions, well spaced out meals. Once your stomach adjusts to that you can find some satisfaction in the feelings of hunger and just being a lot less full than you may have in the past.

you just gave me flashbacks of my anorexia in college. I got a high from hunger. it was so satisfying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone who's easily thin truly like food?

Yep. I love food. I have coffee for breakfast most days, but enjoy filling and satisfying lunches and dinners, full of animal products, veggies, and a smaller amount of carbs/starches. Occasionally I’ll enjoy something like ramen for lunch, but I’ll make sure to eat it with substantial foods like eggs and pork belly, and balance it with a good dinner full of meats/seafoods and veggies. If I have a sandwich, I make sure it’s got a good amount of meat vs the bread. If I eat pizza, I take my time to enjoy a few pieces. Occasional fast food is also enjoyed, but not the super-sized meals of my youth. I’m happy with small fries and a cheeseburger. I feel like I’m enjoying the foods so many others are too scared to eat, so it doesn’t feel restrictive at all. I don’t snack and I’m not hungry between meals.

-42 years old-5’4”, 118 lbs.

42 is young! I Didn't start gaining weight until 50.

thanks for sharing?

[Anonymous]

Yes, but you get used to it. It's not torturous. What feels awful after getting used to eating small meals and less fat and carbs is going back to a greasy burger and fries, or something equivalent. Then I feel completely sick and regret it. You need to remember that you can only tolerate smaller amounts, particularly of grease, going forward. So share the burger with someone, then you'll enjoy it.

[Anonymous]

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.

You are already thin. Why this need to lose more weight? What is going on here?

[Anonymous]

No, but I’m blessed genetically and I have always loved exercise and have been really active.

I’m 5’4, and weigh between 117-125, usually around 120.

I eat enough, a lot even, but I eat REAL FOOD. I only eat food that comes from the ground or has recently eaten something that comes from the ground. I don’t eat ultra processed frankenfood.

[Anonymous]

Where are all of you who are 5"6 and 120 lbs or 5"4 and 110 lbs and think you're fat living and who do you associate with? Certainly not in my neighborhood lol. I don't see anyone that tiny practically ever but certainly they seem overrepresented in this forum compared to the general population.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where are all of you who are 5"6 and 120 lbs or 5"4 and 110 lbs and think you're fat living and who do you associate with? Certainly not in my neighborhood lol. I don't see anyone that tiny practically ever but certainly they seem overrepresented in this forum compared to the general population.

I am 5'6" and 181 and the women who are 5'2" and 100 pounds are all, 100%, unemployed. They have hours to exercise and it doesn't matter if they are hungry because they don't have to accomplish anything. I'm sure they feel pity for me, but different strokes. I'm done with this forum, y'all can talk about disciplining yourselves to ignore hunger in peace.

[Anonymous]

I am starting to think we are all mentally ill.

This is what diet culture looks like due to messaging of what people should ideally look like in surreal world.

This is really depressing.

[Anonymous]

Just buy elastic waist band skirts and pants. Buy shirts that are Mediums or whatever size which are forgiving with weight fluctuations. It’s easier.