TOO HUNGRY!!!

[Brain5ick]

So I went from 183lbs to 167lbs and since I’ve hit my current weight I’m RAVENOUS all the damn time. I do IF just to help balance the calories, eat clean for the most part, include a cheat day here and there just to not deprive myself of good food but I don’t go overboard and binge.
It’s just the issue now is that I’m trying to eat at 1,500-1,700 calories a day but no matter what I do I’m constantly hungry, nothing fills me up! Also if I don’t do cardio I stop losing weight.
Bench-225
DL-315
Squat-185
I’m not sure what my 1RM is, these are just what I can do for 5-8 reps.

 

[Whisky]

Regards the feeling hungry the only tip I have is to eat masses of fibrous veg bro, you can stack plate loads of it for low calorie numbers......I notice a massive difference in my hunger when I’m away from and it’s harder to do this.....

On a separate note have you had a lower back/leg injury?

If not you definitely need to prioritise squat and deadlifts for a while - bench is solid but with that bench number your squat and dead should be way way higher......

 

[Brain5ick]

Regards the feeling hungry the only tip I have is to eat masses of fibrous veg bro, you can stack plate loads of it for low calorie numbers......I notice a massive difference in my hunger when I’m away from and it’s harder to do this.....

On a separate note have you had a lower back/leg injury?

If not you definitely need to prioritise squat and deadlifts for a while - bench is solid but with that bench number your squat and dead should be way way higher......

I actually have. I got hit in the right leg with a stray bullet about 2 years ago. My tibia (shin bone) was crushed and it went through all muscle but stopped right behind the skin. Actually just had another surgery because the muscle in my calf was herniated where they couldn’t stitch it from the damage before so I just had that done about a month and a half ago. I have to be rather careful putting too much weight on my legs unfortunately.

 

[Whisky]

I actually have. I got hit in the right leg with a stray bullet about 2 years ago. My tibia (shin bone) was crushed and it went through all muscle but stopped right behind the skin. Actually just had another surgery because the muscle in my calf was herniated where they couldn’t stitch it from the damage before so I just had that done about a month and a half ago. I have to be rather careful putting too much weight on my legs unfortunately.

Yeah fair enough bro, sucks as obviously it’s limiting you smashing them big muscle groups (which would in turn burn more cals).....

 

[Brain5ick]

Yeah fair enough bro, sucks as obviously it’s limiting you smashing them big muscle groups (which would in turn burn more cals).....

Yeah but that’s the thing that motivates me to start lifting in the first place! Couldn’t afford physical therapy but I could afford the gym membership! Used to walk with a cane. Anyways though as far as intensity goes though I try to get higher weight or at least as much as my leg will allow and rep it out as much as possible to compensate a little.

 

[Whisky]

Yeah but that’s the thing that motivates me to start lifting in the first place! Couldn’t afford physical therapy but I could afford the gym membership! Used to walk with a cane. Anyways though as far as intensity goes though I try to get higher weight or at least as much as my leg will allow and rep it out as much as possible to compensate a little.

Awesome brother, would have been easy not to bother at all but your pushing it as much as you can.

Are you able to do single leg variations (split squats, lunges etc) with lower weight/higher rep just to keep/create muscular balance?

 

[Brain5ick]

Awesome brother, would have been easy not to bother at all but your pushing it as much as you can.

Are you able to do single leg variations (split squats, lunges etc) with lower weight/higher rep just to keep/create muscular balance?

Yeah, just have to be rather careful is all but for sure I can still do them.

 

[Whisky]

Yeah, just have to be rather careful is all but for sure I can still do them.

That’s cool, will help you start to push more weight quicker as you fully recover.

Good luck bro

 

[Brain5ick]

That’s cool, will help you start to push more weight quicker as you fully recover.

Good luck bro

Thanks man!

 

[BloodManor]

Diet sodas help me out a lot when I’m cutting. Craving something sweet grab a Diet Pepsi

 

[Smont]

Steak keeps me fuller then any other protein source, also drinking a big glass of water before my meal helps me fill up faster. A big side of veggies with my steak helps too, mmmmm steak

 

[AntM1564]

A few things that might help:

1. Leafy green veggies - low in cals, high in fiber. You can eat a lot for little cals.
2. Veggies high in fiber - broccoli, green beans, etc.
3. Foods which you have to add water to, I will get into this reason next (oatmeal, cream of wheat/rice, rice, etc.)
4. Lots of water, even if that means upping your intake. When I get hungry, I will drink 20-30 ounces of water without stopping. You stomach might extended a little, but it will fill you up for a while.
5. Carbonated drinks.

 

[bigdavid]

Serotinergic agents always kill my appetite. Not saying to go on an ssri. But 5htp seems to work well for this purpose. Also low doses of citicoline can reduce appetite.

 

[Smont]

Don't forget cocaine, that will keep you from eating, sleeping and gaining weight lol

 

[Amelia]

It's amazing to hear that transformation from 183lbs to 167lbs.
Feeling hungry is quite common when we are struggling with our weight. All you can do is to insist on it and get used to it. That's how I get through. Drink a lot of water or eat some fruit and high fiber veggie could satiate the hunger.
Don't quit the cardio, if you feel the hunger much after the workout, replenish your body with the healthy food.

---
Affordable fitness/ yoga brands I use : Toplus, aloyoga

 

[AlexPowell]

Try getting all your protein intake for the day from sheeps liver

That's 650g of liver per day. It will give you 170g of protein and around 1000kcal, giving you plenty of spare calories to eat from other things

 

[Whey]

lucky bastard. Id love to eat clean and be "TOO HUNGRY".

 

[mark831]

Do you need to eat at 1500-1700 a day? Only reason I ask is I've been cutting since mid April, 1st 8 weeks a did a balanced diet cut, which included 200g of carbs a day and lost 14lbs. Past 5 weeks I went keto and lost another 12lbs. Throughout the last 15-16 weeks I've been eating at circa 2000-2100 kcal a day regardless of the diet.... Maybe you are under eating? I started at 196lbs and am down to 172lbs. Training is 2x weights session and 2 X intense boxing a week. We are similar size so you could possibly up the calories a bit!

 

[john.patterson]

Do you need to eat at 1500-1700 a day? Only reason I ask is I've been cutting since mid April, 1st 8 weeks a did a balanced diet cut, which included 200g of carbs a day and lost 14lbs. Past 5 weeks I went keto and lost another 12lbs. Throughout the last 15-16 weeks I've been eating at circa 2000-2100 kcal a day regardless of the diet.... Maybe you are under eating? I started at 196lbs and am down to 172lbs. Training is 2x weights session and 2 X intense boxing a week. We are similar size so you could possibly up the calories a bit!

Everyone is different in regards to calorie intake. If OP is struggling to keep fat loss going with his current calorie intake, increasing calories probably wouldn't be the best strategy.

Brain5ick congrats on your progress so far - your weight loss is impressive. How long were you dieting for to drop the weight?
All the info above is solid. I think salad and leafy green veggies is the best recommendation for hunger. I struggle with this as well, and eating lots of salad has always been helpful to keep me feeling full throughout the day.

I would also suggest a stimulant like caffeine or yohimbine to help with appetite. Coffee works well, and you could also consider a thermogenic supplement like Oxymax, Fitmax, or Bloodsh3d. All of these products have worked very well for me with controlling appetite

 

[Brain5ick]

Serotinergic agents always kill my appetite. Not saying to go on an ssri. But 5htp seems to work well for this purpose. Also low doses of citicoline can reduce appetite.

Already on one haha doesn’t do much for my appetite anymore though. Sadly.

 

[Brain5ick]

Everyone is different in regards to calorie intake. If OP is struggling to keep fat loss going with his current calorie intake, increasing calories probably wouldn't be the best strategy.

Brain5ick congrats on your progress so far - your weight loss is impressive. How long were you dieting for to drop the weight?
All the info above is solid. I think salad and leafy green veggies is the best recommendation for hunger. I struggle with this as well, and eating lots of salad has always been helpful to keep me feeling full throughout the day.

I would also suggest a stimulant like caffeine or yohimbine to help with appetite. Coffee works well, and you could also consider a thermogenic supplement like Oxymax, Fitmax, or Bloodsh3d. All of these products have worked very well for me with controlling appetite

Thanks man! I’ve been cutting for about 1 1/2 to 2 months now. I’ve actually been doing this all on ZERO stims because of a blood sugar issue I’ve been having lately. Stims increase the rate at which my blood sugar drops at very low doses and it hasn’t always been like this. I used to do about 200-240mg of caffeine in the morning and another 200-300mg pre workout and was fine but recently it’s been making my sugar drop unpredictably which sucks because I miss coffee haha. Doctor just wants me off for awhile. On the weekends I’ve been upping my calorie intake to about 1,800-2,000 calories to keep my metabolism on its toes and that seems to help with the lack of eating most days. Now sadly I’m not the biggest guy to right now at 166lbs my muscle definition still isn’t where I’d prefer it to be but I’m set on losing as much fat as possible before I start a lean bulk. Performance is better than usual in my opinion and I’m feeling pretty good in the gym other than feeling like death after cardio lol but that’s most of us. Some food I’ve been loving lately is zucchini and squash! Spinach with vinegar is huge for me as well as Cauliflower with buffalo sauce. I’m going through sooooo many bags of veggies just trying to keep my appetite in check but it could be worse. I’ll keep you guys updated!

 

[AlexPowell]

Thanks man! I’ve been cutting for about 1 1/2 to 2 months now. I’ve actually been doing this all on ZERO stims because of a blood sugar issue I’ve been having lately. Stims increase the rate at which my blood sugar drops at very low doses and it hasn’t always been like this. I used to do about 200-240mg of caffeine in the morning and another 200-300mg pre workout and was fine but recently it’s been making my sugar drop unpredictably which sucks because I miss coffee haha. Doctor just wants me off for awhile. On the weekends I’ve been upping my calorie intake to about 1,800-2,000 calories to keep my metabolism on its toes and that seems to help with the lack of eating most days. Now sadly I’m not the biggest guy to right now at 166lbs my muscle definition still isn’t where I’d prefer it to be but I’m set on losing as much fat as possible before I start a lean bulk. Performance is better than usual in my opinion and I’m feeling pretty good in the gym other than feeling like death after cardio lol but that’s most of us. Some food I’ve been loving lately is zucchini and squash! Spinach with vinegar is huge for me as well as Cauliflower with buffalo sauce. I’m going through sooooo many bags of veggies just trying to keep my appetite in check but it could be worse. I’ll keep you guys updated!

Do you get the same reactive hypoglycemia when you eat sugar?

 

[Brain5ick]

Do you get the same reactive hypoglycemia when you eat sugar?

It depends on how much I eat. Sometimes if it drops low I need to eat simple sugars and fast burning carbs to get it back up but it won’t stay up for long if I don’t introduce at the least a bit of protein and a complex carb to draw things out a bit. Sometimes it will randomly drop and that’s an issue I’m trying to figure out now. I usually carry glucose tablets and fat free gummies in my gym bag haha.

 

[AlexPowell]

It depends on how much I eat. Sometimes if it drops low I need to eat simple sugars and fast burning carbs to get it back up but it won’t stay up for long if I don’t introduce at the least a bit of protein and a complex carb to draw things out a bit. Sometimes it will randomly drop and that’s an issue I’m trying to figure out now. I usually carry glucose tablets and fat free gummies in my gym bag haha.

Honestly with the full context of everything you've told me, including the hunger and the cardio issue, you sound pre-diabetic. Obviously I recommend a zero carbohydrate diet to treat this. You really need to go and see a doctor and get some fasted blood tests done

 

[zincalloy]

I eat 1500 or less calories a day. Tricks to stay full are black coffee/green tea two-three times a day and drinks lots of water. I do 8-10oz. The other thing is eggs. If you're doing IF you can also slam raw eggs occasionally to fight off hunger. So if I have a 6-8 hour window for eating, just eat, slam a few eggs, couple hours later or whenever you're hungry, slam a few more, then have your final meal of the day.

 

[HIT4ME]

I am sorry I am late to this - but this was me too in a way. I was around 300 at one point. I got down to about 180 and then made a final, very hard push with lots of aerobic work and very low calories and got down to about 163-165. Then one morning I just woke up with a ravenous appetite. Actually, after having gone maybe even a couple years without a donut, every morning for about a week I was waking up craving donuts. Nothing would make it stop - it actually felt a little out of control. That's the power of leptin - enough exercise and enough caloric restriction and that leptin fall can hit hard.

Some things that will help this, IMO, are doing refeeds if you have not. Drop WAY back on your exercise level. When not doing a refeed swap the bulk of your calories to protein - I'm saying get 250-300 grams or more protein per day but keep your calories under 2000.

Large doses of Vitamin D.

This is some of the stuff I've learned from rebounding that I wish I had known right before I hit that point...

 

[cubsfan815]

I am sorry I am late to this - but this was me too in a way. I was around 300 at one point. I got down to about 180 and then made a final, very hard push with lots of aerobic work and very low calories and got down to about 163-165. Then one morning I just woke up with a ravenous appetite. Actually, after having gone maybe even a couple years without a donut, every morning for about a week I was waking up craving donuts. Nothing would make it stop - it actually felt a little out of control. That's the power of leptin - enough exercise and enough caloric restriction and that leptin fall can hit hard.

Some things that will help this, IMO, are doing refeeds if you have not. Drop WAY back on your exercise level. When not doing a refeed swap the bulk of your calories to protein - I'm saying get 250-300 grams or more protein per day but keep your calories under 2000.

Large doses of Vitamin D.

This is some of the stuff I've learned from rebounding that I wish I had known right before I hit that point...

Refeeds have helped me stay on track myself the last 6 months. I used to diet really hard, then binge it all back.

How much Vit D?

 

[Brain5ick]

Honestly with the full context of everything you've told me, including the hunger and the cardio issue, you sound pre-diabetic. Obviously I recommend a zero carbohydrate diet to treat this. You really need to go and see a doctor and get some fasted blood tests done

I’m actually at my endocrinologist right now, bloods look fine for the most part but I’ll update if anything changes.

 

[Brain5ick]

I am sorry I am late to this - but this was me too in a way. I was around 300 at one point. I got down to about 180 and then made a final, very hard push with lots of aerobic work and very low calories and got down to about 163-165. Then one morning I just woke up with a ravenous appetite. Actually, after having gone maybe even a couple years without a donut, every morning for about a week I was waking up craving donuts. Nothing would make it stop - it actually felt a little out of control. That's the power of leptin - enough exercise and enough caloric restriction and that leptin fall can hit hard.

Some things that will help this, IMO, are doing refeeds if you have not. Drop WAY back on your exercise level. When not doing a refeed swap the bulk of your calories to protein - I'm saying get 250-300 grams or more protein per day but keep your calories under 2000.

Large doses of Vitamin D.

This is some of the stuff I've learned from rebounding that I wish I had known right before I hit that point...

I do large doses of vitamin D and C every day just out of my multi vitamin but I do refeeds every so often just to keep the cravings down but I’ve lost about 5 more lbs according to my doctor which is always welcome! I also usually eat the same thing for my first meal and just change up the recipe a little every day so I don’t get tired of it. There’s enough variety in my meals that I don’t get sick of them lol.

 

[HIT4ME]

Refeeds have helped me stay on track myself the last 6 months. I used to diet really hard, then binge it all back.

How much Vit D?

Yup - easy to do. It's actually, IMO, harder to keep it off than to take it off. Taking it off is hard too, don't get me wrong - but staying there is a real trick. I've got a couple of theories on why this is, some of which I have kind of shared on here, but I don't like talking about too much in public because it goes against everything most people think they know about dieting - particularly about low carb diets.

For instance - have you ever noticed how people who are naturally lean eat? I mean, the people who seem like they can eat ANYTHING and not gain weight?

There are typically some things they do:

1. They have a higher propensity to undertake physical activity - even if it's just chores around the house.
2. They snack less and tend to eat "less" - but it's usually that they eat a small amount of something and become satisfied in most instances.
3. They tend to eat more carbs than most people.

1 & 2 in particular tend to seem pretty obvious, but HOW is it that they do that and obese people can't seem to get off the couch or stop eating after 5 chips and devour the entire bag? Everyone thinks it is willpower, but I think there is something else at hand.

I do large doses of vitamin D and C every day just out of my multi vitamin but I do refeeds every so often just to keep the cravings down but I’ve lost about 5 more lbs according to my doctor which is always welcome! I also usually eat the same thing for my first meal and just change up the recipe a little every day so I don’t get tired of it. There’s enough variety in my meals that I don’t get sick of them lol.

Your multi does NOT have large doses of either of those two vitamins. By large doses on those two vitamins - I take 5-6 grams of Vitamin C per day and about 20,000 IU of Vitamin D per day.

Here's are some theoretical questions I've been developing in my head:

1. Do you tan easily?
2. Do you use a lot of stimulants and/or have a high tolerance for stimulants (like caffeine)?


Also- keep in mind - I'm getting a little off track here; but it is related. I'm applying a lot of my own theories which are based on some research I've read but are yet untested.

 

[HIT4ME]

Just to support a little tiny bit of what I said above :

Junk food reduces Dopamine function (simplisticly)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5578487/

Reduced dopamine function in obesity (simplistically) makes you lazy:

https://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/pdf/S1550-4131(16)30596-4.pdf

 

[AlexPowell]

I’m actually at my endocrinologist right now, bloods look fine for the most part but I’ll update if anything changes.

What was your HA1C?

 

[AlexPowell]

Yup - easy to do. It's actually, IMO, harder to keep it off than to take it off. Taking it off is hard too, don't get me wrong - but staying there is a real trick. I've got a couple of theories on why this is, some of which I have kind of shared on here, but I don't like talking about too much in public because it goes against everything most people think they know about dieting - particularly about low carb diets.

For instance - have you ever noticed how people who are naturally lean eat? I mean, the people who seem like they can eat ANYTHING and not gain weight?

There are typically some things they do:

1. They have a higher propensity to undertake physical activity - even if it's just chores around the house.
2. They snack less and tend to eat "less" - but it's usually that they eat a small amount of something and become satisfied in most instances.
3. They tend to eat more carbs than most people.

1 & 2 in particular tend to seem pretty obvious, but HOW is it that they do that and obese people can't seem to get off the couch or stop eating after 5 chips and devour the entire bag? Everyone thinks it is willpower, but I think there is something else at hand.



Your multi does NOT have large doses of either of those two vitamins. By large doses on those two vitamins - I take 5-6 grams of Vitamin C per day and about 20,000 IU of Vitamin D per day.

Here's are some theoretical questions I've been developing in my head:

1. Do you tan easily?
2. Do you use a lot of stimulants and/or have a high tolerance for stimulants (like caffeine)?


Also- keep in mind - I'm getting a little off track here; but it is related. I'm applying a lot of my own theories which are based on some research I've read but are yet untested.

Did you notice any benefit from 20,000iu of Vitamin D that you didn't get from placing your levels at 40-60? 5000iu a day puts me at 45 which epidemiologically puts me at the lowest risk of all cause mortality so I never thought about changing it

 

[HIT4ME]

Did you notice any benefit from 20,000iu of Vitamin D that you didn't get from placing your levels at 40-60? 5000iu a day puts me at 45 which epidemiologically puts me at the lowest risk of all cause mortality so I never thought about changing it

So - I wish I had the resources to get blood tests done; I don't. So I was hesitant to go that high - but I've since read a bunch of research showing that even being over the suggested maximal range for Vit. D has no associated health consequences...which can be taken with a grain of salt and should be.

Also, keep in mind that I was 5'8'' and maybe over 300 pounds at one point in my life - for a loooong time. I grew up fat, lost it in junior high and kept it off for the most part through college. Then got into the real world, started working and all bets were off and I just gained like mad and didn't work out for over a decade.

I've noticed a few subtle things since increasing my Vit. D. One is that my appetite - very subtly - has been slightly reduced. Since forever I NEVER feel full. I can eat non-stop and not feel any consequences of it. This is changing and I do have this feeling pretty often (for me) now. It's not all the time, but it happens where I stop and don't WANT to keep eating. Which is a nice change.

The other thing I've noticed, unexpectedly, was that my stimulant tolerance fell pretty dramatically. One day I was drinking some coffee and I noticed I was buzzing. I have LITERALLY dropped a gram of caffeine powder and felt NOTHING from it. Could have slept after it. So getting a buzz from coffee was kind of new to me. Then I noticed that if I drank coffee too late in the day.....I didn't sleep so well. Since that time I've had a couple people on here who were willing to experiment with 20,000 iu of vitamin D and they've also reported some reduction in stim tolerance. Still....not a large sample size, but interesting.

Also, I am extremely white and have not had a tan in....well.....years and years. I don't get much sun with my office job and I'm constantly working - but this year my arms are tanning a little from being out a few times.

Now - 20,000 IU may bring me to that 40-60 range...who knows? But the large doses have definitely helped me in a few ways.

 

[pryncess]

Diet: Do you eat low carb? Perhaps it is time for a refeed?? Another suggestion (low carb or not) is to eat smaller portions thru out the day, essentially trying to keep your blood sugar (BS) at a comfortable level for sustained time frames.

BS: Regardless of the above, you should start checking your BS, multiple times a day - get a feel for what is normal upon waking, after fasted/unfasted workout, post meals, whenever you are hungry, etc. Get an idea of what is going on with your BS. You could be experiencing post meal hypoglycemia which often causes hunger. You might also find some other important things out by testing regularly and comparing to the norm.

Bad Tummy: No joke...ulcers, pre-ulcers and even just regular old excess acid can give horrific hunger pains (I have this problem). Try eating some TUMS when you feel like your starving, if that stops your hunger pain for a bit (30 mins to 2 hrs) move to step 2 and get a real acid controlling product (TUMS are short lived - actual helpfulness dependant on how much acid your tummy is overproducing, for me only 30 mins). There are many available OTC (prilosec, cimetidine, etc.) and many at home remedies online (people swear by vinegar but never helped me).

Hope this helps!!