How do you kick those hunger pangs?

[DeutschePort]

I've always struggled with the diet side of exercise, I just love most food and in particular carbs such as rice and pasta which get me through some long days when meetings and work just stop me from following a proper dietary routine. When I do try and reduce my carb intake I find that I am continually hungry and then there is a temptation to graze on whatever treats are available around me. Any suggestions as to how you reduce carb intake but keep those hunger pains away?

[wrhalljr]

I've always struggled with the diet side of exercise, I just love most food and in particular carbs such as rice and pasta which get me through some long days when meetings and work just stop me from following a proper dietary routine. When I do try and reduce my carb intake I find that I am continually hungry and then there is a temptation to graze on whatever treats are available around me. Any suggestions as to how you reduce carb intake but keep those hunger pains away?

Almonds and peanuts work for me and I eat so often I am really never hungry...I stay below 50g carbs a day for the most part...and drink 1.5 to 2 gallons of water a day...

[j1akey]

It takes a while but I don't have too much of an issue at this point with that like I did when I gave up on things like pasta for the most part every day. The best thing I learned was to keep yourself hydrated, a lot of the time people feel hungry when they get dehydrated so you just end up thinking you're hungry instead of actually being hungry.

Either way it's just something you have to adapt too. Your body gets used to eating a certain way and it kind of like going through withdraw from a drug, basically just need to suck it up until it's over. I eat a mostly fat and protein diet these days and don't really feel hungry at all.

[TCO76]

I eat carbs everyday. And lost 30 lbs doing so. Sometimes I even eat them after midnight and turn into a gremlin.

[highiso]

I'm always hungry, echoed from above, almonds & nuts take the edge off but I'm never satisfied even with 165g of carbs when cutting.

[Long1020]

spicy food and coffee (plain)..ALWAYS WORKS

[evilscout6]

I eat kimchi as a snack...

[mark2927]

Coffee (black), tea and about a gallon of water per day. Snack on things like broccoli.

[EjnarKolinkar]

When I have eggs for breakfast I do better on hunger throughout the day. The fat in nuts was also helpful. Find vegetables you like and consume them aggressively with meals. Spinach fresh and cooked, broccoli, cauliflower, and green beans were the best at giving me a fullness. For me this was the key to dealing with hunger issues.

Hunger is individual, whatever gets you to that satiety point. Everybody still has bottomless pit days from what I can tell, this method kept them at a minimum for me.

[ArchAngel'73]

Many good replies here.
I might add;

When you use food as a source of fuel rather than entertainment, things will go alot better.

[Marius_Ursus]

What works for me is just to remind myself that I'm not starving. It's just hunger.

[Brackneyc]

What works for me is just to remind myself that I'm not starving. It's just hunger.

This. Any attempts to fix them, only make them worse for me.

[MrNismo]

This is the reason I prefer very low carb dieting (under 50g/day not including fiber). If I eat 2000 calories of fairly balanced macros, I'm hungry all the time. 2000 calories of high fat/high protein and I'm fine after the first week or so of 'kicking' the carbs. For some people, like me, fat is very satiating.

[Jtbny]

Sugar free gum and coke zero

[flowxsss]

prepare your meal and snacks before you hit 0 tolerance with hunger and eat every thing in sight. i eat one slice of bread a day, eggs with cheese, meat n chicken with vegetables and some times red beans, snack on fruits fresh vegs lupines and nuts.

[induced_drag]

Pickles, cucumbers with salt, strawberries frozen mashed up with some artificial sweetener (makes like a sorbet when you have a sweet tooth). Zucchini and broccoli.

Soluble fiber added to drinks with meals. (slows digestion)

Lots of water.
Lots of water.
Did I say Lots of water?

Stims:
Caffeine.
EC stack (really blunts appetite) My goto when cutting because it is muscle sparing as well.
1,3 (again..a stim that blunts appetite)

[timew]

Lots of water and hard boiled egg whites work for me

[MichaelCJ]

Lots of water and a very high protein diet. I actually don't get "hunger pangs", or at least not when I "shouldn't", I suppose. Sure, I get hungry... therefore I eat. But it certainly is not an issue. In fact, sometimes I need to make myself eat more.

I also consume *very* low levels of refined simple and complex carbs (more so the simple), but I'm not sure that would have anything to do with it. Mentioned just in case.

[MarkS51]

I've always struggled with the diet side of exercise, I just love most food and in particular carbs such as rice and pasta which get me through some long days when meetings and work just stop me from following a proper dietary routine. When I do try and reduce my carb intake I find that I am continually hungry and then there is a temptation to graze on whatever treats are available around me. Any suggestions as to how you reduce carb intake but keep those hunger pains away?

I'm "hungry" most of the day even though I eat every three hours, including 1 1/2 cups of Jasmine rice for my 2nd and 4th meals. My 3rd includes 10oz of white potato and my 5th 10oz of sweet potato. My breakfast, which I'm eating right now, includes 1 1/2 cups (dry measure) of oatmeal. Plenty of carbs along with lots of chicken, turkey breast and steak. And I'm still at about 8%BF. I don't mind the sensation of feeling hungry, which as Marius pointed out, is all we're talking about. I'm not actually starving or deprived in any meaningful sense of the words and so it's just a question of mind over matter and deciding I can live with the sensation until my next meal. I do not have to answer its every calling. I eat to live not live to eat. I also take in lots of water and drink at least 2 big cups of coffee in the morning hours.

And for the guy who tries to stay below 50g of Carbs, I did that for years and it got me small gains, tired and sore joints, flat looking muscles and low energy reserves.

[DeutschePort]

Thanks for all your replies, they've given me plenty to think about and to consider implementing - great supportive community here on BB.Com

[wrhalljr]

And for the guy who tries to stay below 50g of Carbs, I did that for years and it got me small gains, tired and sore joints, flat looking muscles and low energy reserves.

Just FYI because I know everyone's body is different...until I went on a very low carb diet I had small gains, low energy, and was tired all the time...since I have been cycling carbs at under 50g most days I have great gains, a lot of energy, and my joint are fine even at 44...just proves that one has to see what works for their own body to determine what is best for themselves!

[db_ggmm]

Protein, fat, black coffee. Avoid too much salt which causes thirst and is often misread as hunger by the mind.

[yettiatcpg]

I love cookies ...any kind will do. I have come to the realization its the cookie property that is bad not whats in the cookie. I filled my cookie jar with 5lbs of Nestle chocolate chips. $10 at Costco. the reasons why... no high fructose ,High in caffeine and the best is they suppress hunger. I have tried almonds and other peanuts and stuff, even mixed them in the chocolate chips. I wound up eating around the nuts.

[machined]

Tic Tacs and coffee. Tic Tacs and water. Tic Tacs and Tic Tacs. I am ripped and have great breath.

[JelaniTheGreat]

I'm pretty sure God made broccoli specifically for me..... I thank him for it everyday. Srs though, fiber. Take it from someone who claims an imagined endless appetite, with the right amount of fiber, there are times where I wish I wasn't so full.

[quietchef]

Pop an altoid when you need, buys ya another 30 min to an hour. Especially useful when there's no good choices nearby but there might be a little later. Menthol cough drops work too.

[racedoc]

EC stack (really blunts appetite) My goto when cutting because it is muscle sparing as well.
1,3 (again..a stim that blunts appetite)

Are EC stack and 1,3 supplements? Haven't heard of those before. Would be nice to have another option besides a 12th cup of coffee!

[frozensparky]

I find hunger to be present when im bulking or cutting. Bottom line for me is I get used to the amount I'm eating and I just want more. So my biggest help with dealing with it is will power. After that I drink a lot of water, once in a while I will have a diet pop, if I really can't fight through it I go to a little extra protien like egg whites. Like ID said pickles as well.

[BalhamBeast]

Protein, fat, black coffee. Avoid too much salt which causes thirst and is often misread as hunger by the mind.

This. You can also try Bulletproof Coffee which I'm experimenting with at the moment. I'm doing a keto diet so it fits in well with that. It also works with IF.

[crupiea]

If you are overly hungry while dieting then you are doing something wrong.

Making it a priority to eat every couple hours will help. Of course there will be times when you cant but all day everyday? Thats a planning issue.

You dont have to eat a lavish meal every couple hours but if you are at a meeting that provides snacks then what is stopping you from taking a protein bar out of your pocket and eating it?

1- eat right before going into meeting

2- eat protein bar during meeting

3- eat right after meeting.

that covers about a 6-7- hour span without any undue discomfort.