Always Hungry

One of my biggest stumbling blocks to eating healthier to lose weight is that I always seem to be hungry after the second dzy on the plan. Some plans say I shouldn't let myself get to the point of feeling hungry; others say I just ought to suck it up and get used to it. To lose weight, we have to suffer the hunger pangs. So when I got my daily Managing Diabetes newsletter I was interested to see an article about constant hunger. The link for the article is here.

The first question I have to ask myself is: am I feeling genuinely hungry or do I just want to eat? Hunger is a physiological response and all you want to do is fill that empty stomach. Appetite is different. You just seem to want a specific food--like potato chips, maybe?

How many calories would I need to not feel hungry all the time? The article says:

If you go on a very-low-calorie diet of less than 1,000 calories each day, you will feel very hungry much of the time. It is better for you to eat more calories each day — say 1,200 to 1,500 — for a slower but longer-term weight loss. In the long run, severely restricting calories can backfire, leaving you feeling constantly hungry and constantly wanting to eat. And no matter how much you cut back while you're on the diet, you can't eat so little forever. You'll eventually need to learn to eat at a higher calorie level to maintain your weight.

Well, I don't know about this...when I was on Weight Watchers, I'm assuming I was eating the upper limit of calories 1500-1600 and I still felt hungry! I can only stand feeling hungry for so long before I start raiding the pantry for everything I can find and then I gain it all back! I don't seem to have the will power I did when I was younger.

I should see a nutritionist...