One of my favorite topics when working with clients is not the latest vitamin or mineral and definitely not calorie counting. It is much closer to your basic need for survival—hunger. Learning to identify, manage, and honor hunger is a very important part of feeling energized and focused, as well as managing weight.
When you let yourself get too hungry it’s much easier for your inner Cookie Monster to take over and you’re more likely to overeat at meal or snack time. However, when you learn to identify true hunger, eat to manage hunger levels, and honor your body when it is hungry, you’ll learn one of the secrets to long term weight management.
If you are interested in learning more about using hunger and fullness cues to manage your energy and weight, contact me for a private consultation.
When you sit down to a meal you want to be hungry, but not ravenous. Going to a table ravenous will only increase the likelihood of overeating or binge eating. One of the best ways to prevent overeating or binge eating is to understand your body’s hunger and fullness cues. Then learn how to respect and honor them.
The top three principles of hunger management include:
1. Identify foods that satisfy (or satiate you)
2. Recognize the difference between desire to eat and actual physical hunger
3. Learn when to stop eating once no longer hungry
Steps to implement these three principles:
Step 1: Keep a food log.
Journal what you eat and note how hungry you were before and after your meal. How long did the snack or meal sustain you? Take a test:
- Test 1: Eat a 150 calorie “nutrition bar” such as Nutrigrain, Fiber One, or Kashi. Note if you are satisfied after you eat it and/or how long it sustains you.
- Test 2: Eat a 1/2 turkey sandwich - make with 1 slice whole wheat bread, 2 - 3 oz turkey and a sliver of avocado (or another source of fat). Now note if you are satisfied and how long this holds you over.
Identify how your environment influences what you eat, how fast you eat, how much you eat, etc.
Step 2: Ensure a balance of carbohydrates, protein, and fat at each meal and snack.
Generally speaking, you’ll be satisfied if you have a balance of adequate carbohydrate, protein, and fat in a meal.
Having adequate protein with healthy fat at meals and snacks will help ward off hunger. Eating quality carbohydrates with protein and fat will help with the fullness sensation.
Step 3: Pay extra attention to hunger and fullness sensation.
- Keep a food journal and use the hunger and fullness scale in the next article to rate your hunger and fullness.
- Ask yourself these questions when keeping your hunger and fullness journal:
- When was the last time I ate? Was it less than 2-3 hours ago? If yes, then was my meal balanced with carbohydrates, protein, and fat?
- Am I really hungry, or do I want to eat out of habit?
Learning to decipher between hunger and habit is a huge step in breaking free from diets and learning to listen and honor what your body needs. Using a food journal and recording hunger and fullness cues is a great way to start identifying if you’re eating out of hunger or habit. Rate your hunger level before and after every meal. What did you discover? Hit reply and let me know.
0 - Extremely Hungry - You are empty, extremely hungry, maybe even dizzy and could eat anything.
1 - Very Hungry - You are very hungry and even irritable.
2 - Hungry - You have strong physical signals to eat.
3 - Physically Hungry - You have the first physical signs to eat; this is a great time to start planning to eat a meal or a snack.
4-6 Neutral - You do not feel hunger or fullness.
7 - No Longer Hungry - You do not feel hunger or fullness and probably still want to eat some more.
8 - Full - You feel a small sensation of fullness, are satisfied and unable to be enticed for more food.
9 - Very Full- You cleared your plate and are now physically uncomfortable.
10 - Extremely Full - You just ate a feast and are miserably full.
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