The Hunger Question

So if like me you often find yourself feeling hungry and worry the food I have prepared is enough you may relate to some of my thoughts.

There are so many reasons why I eat :

joy

sadness

bordom

stress

social

lonely

self harm

I can add a whole long list defining them into finer categories, but I am sure you can add your own.

When I first started to lose weight some 4 years ago I did have some help via my local hospital and their psychologist, he opened my mind to a few things which was a springboard into releasing negative thoughts and to be able to be honest about what state my hunger truly is. The hardest part of this is to be truthful to myself – sometimes I just do not want to listen and charge forwards in self destruct mode.

The Hunger Scale:

This was something I had never heard of, basically it is a practice than did become second nature to me, just tuning into myself and assessing where I am on my own hunger scale, zero – starving, 10 is full to being sick. It did take a while to get into the swing of answering myself honestly and acting on that self estimation, then making a decision. Whether I ate or not no matter where I assessed my hunger, at least I was doing it mindfully!

Some of my issues of eating and continue to eat is because it is so nice I just want more, so greed? Addiction, salt or sugar? Alcohol? Some things I just can not seem to control is small amounts. By finding substitutes for these triggers has been pivotal part of my weight loss journey. Such as baking puddings rather than eating shop bought chocolate and treats.  I am not saying I always get it right, far from it, hence this post, the thing is I had been complacent and stopped using my tricks that helped me.

After eating if I had a cup of tea I never went back for seconds! My fave drink after evening meal is camomile and honey tea, I know that once I have had this drink it leaves my mind and pallet satisfied. Also washing up straight after dinner helps, because I am busy and less likely to let my thoughts wonder back to going in for a second pudding!

All we can do is know ourselves, no one else knows you like you – so give it some real thought what makes you tick, what makes you feel satisfied? For me every time hot food makes me feel fuller longer, also spicy food especially chilli and garlic, these flavours linger and stop my cravings even after I have finished my food.

There are always time I have ‘a fancy’ I sit and deny it but the though nags at me – it is ok to distract yourself or make the choice to go with the craving, but do it honestly.

One of the most important things I have found is to acknowledge I like to feel full, I hate feel hungry, I realise I have emotional connection with eating, I go through every emotion of life with food. I would say at my age now of 54 I am the most happy than I have ever been, I am older, joints ache, I have lots of excess skin, yet I am happy in my own skin and content with who I am. I do believe I stopped chasing the unrealistic expectation of being the perfect me, or comparing myself and criticising my own standing in life and achievements. So much energy is wasted in this way, I believe we can channel it into positive thoughts, it is not easy to think fondly of yourself and self respect when you have spent years hating oneself, but like anything change takes time and practice.

My top foods that I find filling:

protein

oats/oat bran

vegetables

fat free yogurt

whole meal bread also crumpets

water

herbal tea

skinny coffee

spices

When you make a diary or keep track of your menu, do take note of which foods you found most filling and satisfying, this may help you adapt your menu to make the week easier.

Remember always be kind to yourself and give yourself space to grow and take the steps you desire to live the life you dream of – if you are in an impossibly low mood, try out a mood shifter. A song, call a friend, have a good cry at a soppy film, helps the tears get out. We all have that one song that lifts up, one of mine is David Grey, Babylon.