Extreme hunger since starting with the gym

[Eternal Sunshine]

So on the days I work out, I feel STARVING afterwards. Even if I have something to take the edge off, I am starving again in an hour. As hard as I work, I know I haven't burned off that many calories in an hour and fifteen minutes.

 

I feel it was actually much easier to control my eating when I didn't do much exercise. I am terrified of gaining weight. Any tips?

 

So far I haven't lost or gained any and it's been about 3 weeks...

[prettylittlethings]

Set calorie targets and plan meals ahead, it's the only way to be accurate.

 

When I'm regularly doing bikram and running I can eat 3 times as much... it's not just a matter of how many calories you're burning during the exercise itself. Regular exercise (or just exercise in general) boosts your metabolism and the rate at which you're burning calories throughout the whole day will be a bit higher than usual. But seeing as you haven't lost and I'm assuming you want to lose obviously you need to change something so plan!

[Eternal Sunshine]

Yea because I give in to the hunger and have ton of food

 

I need to do something about that.

[prettylittlethings]

So when I've gained weight... and need to loose weight these are my "indulgences":

 

miracle noodles (you can get them in pasta form and I eat that and make a yummy pasta sauce with mushroom and veg. The "pasta" is around 14 calories for a serving). I also eat it in it's noodle form and make asian inspired dishes. I'm in love with these noodles.

diet jelly - with grapes and other assorted fruit throughout

milkshakes - strawberries, blueberries, bananas and lots of ice and splenda, half water half skim milk

SOUP! You can find heaps of yummy soups that are really low cal and filling

thai salads - mmmm... fish sauce, splenda(replacing sugar), water to dilute, lime and chopped chilli for the dressing, coriander, mint, shredded carrot, protein (I usually eat tofu or prawns) and shredded cucumber. Herby healthy goodness!

[Emilia]

Yea because I give in to the hunger and have ton of food

 

I need to do something about that.

 

Eat about 2-3 hours before exercise. Nothing heavy but fill your stomach enough to keep hunger away. I eat enough so that I'm hungry afterwards but not starving, don't have sugar levels dropping, etc.

[Titanwolf]

Have yourself a cheat meal once a week, where you can eat whatever you want. It'll help you lose weight and you can keep your sanity. I consume about 10k calories every weekend and I'm still losing 1-1.2lb per week.

[Anela]

Chia seeds are supposed to curb your appetite. That isn't what I'm eating them for, but you could try them.

 

I remember my appetite increasing, when I was exercising regularly. I was surprised, too - I normally don't eat that much.

[Imported]

10 to 25mg ephedrine + 200mg caffine 2 to 3 times a day spaced out evenly ..but ending wel before bedtime... if you can get ephedrine there. If not, you can probably get 1,3-dimethylamylamine and use that in place of the ephedrine.

[Anela]

Yea because I give in to the hunger and have ton of food

 

I need to do something about that.

 

You could also try a fruit smoothie - or a green smoothie. I would be drinking them if my stomach could handle it.

 

Kimberly Snyder recommends a pudding made from 1 cup Almond Milk, blended with some stevia and cacao powder, then poured over 1 tablespoon chia seeds and left to thicken. The smoothie is one of her main "things", though.

 

I remember drinking a fruit smoothie before exercise (after I'd had breakfast and tea), to keep me going, and I had more energy for my workout.

[Woggle]

Try eating greek yogurt and things with a lot of protein. It is a natural appetite suppressant.

[Anela]

Also: smaller portions, or eating slowly. I used to be a slow eater, and a skinny minnie. I was savouring the food and enjoying the company at the table (when we had company).

 

Water or juice used to fill me up easily.

 

I wish that I could sort my stomach out. I miss orange juice.

Edited September 5, 2012 by Anela

[Titanwolf]

Your welcome"]

Water

[Eternal Sunshine]

Post gym. Familiar hunger is kicking in.

 

I also think I need to do heavier weights. My muscles don't get sore the next day at all on my current regime (prescribed by a PT).

[Eternal Sunshine]

10 to 25mg ephedrine + 200mg caffine 2 to 3 times a day spaced out evenly ..but ending wel before bedtime... if you can get ephedrine there. If not, you can probably get 1,3-dimethylamylamine and use that in place of the ephedrine.

 

I will have 2 cups of coffee a day but apart from that, I am not gonna take any drugs.

[Emilia]

Post gym. Familiar hunger is kicking in.

 

I also think I need to do heavier weights. My muscles don't get sore the next day at all on my current regime (prescribed by a PT).

 

If you stretch well enough they shouldn't be sore. When I do my 5x5 sets in the last set I usually lift to failure, that's how I know I'm lifting heavy enough. I also know for each type of exercise what my 1RM is

[Eternal Sunshine]

If you stretch well enough they shouldn't be sore. When I do my 5x5 sets in the last set I usually lift to failure, that's how I know I'm lifting heavy enough. I also know for each type of exercise what my 1RM is

 

So you do 5X5 rather than 2X12 that my PT prescribed? I knew I should be lifting heavier!

 

And is "lifting to failure" lifting until you can't anymore?

[Emilia]

So you do 5X5 rather than 2X12 that my PT prescribed? I knew I should be lifting heavier!

 

And is "lifting to failure" lifting until you can't anymore?

 

It depends on what you are training for, I do different things for different parts of my body but for strength training I do 5x5

 

I calculate what the weight is that I can lift once only for that particular type of lift/press/row and I work from the number backwards because with each set I increase the weight and I want to end up as close to my maximum rep as I can be by the end of the 5th set. That's what I mean by failure, usually my last set is so heavy that I can only do 4 reps instead of all 5.

 

That's for upper body, lower back, etc though.

 

I train with my legs a little differently because I wanted to increase size so I did a lot of front squats of 4x10 and leg extensions/leg presses of 4x12 where I worked to failure. As I have increased the size of the muscles in my legs and bum (hypertrophy), I'm going to start strength training there too from next week ie move to the 5x5 system that works for my maximum strength training.

 

One thing I've never done though was 2x12 and I don't really know what that would do. A trainer once told me to work along those lines when I asked him about strength training but luckily I realised quickly it wasn't doing that much to my strength.

 

Yes working to failure means you fail to lift at the end of the set. Even with hypertrophy training it's important that when you get to the 10th or 12th rep it's on a weight level where you can't do anymore.

[Leigh 87]

Eternal Sunshine - I tell a lot of people this, but vanity pounds are the hardest to shift.

I am guessing your body is happy where it is, and does not feel any need to lose weight. You may be able to lose a few pounds and remain healthy, but they are not essential pounds your body will help you get rid of; you will have to fight hard for it.

I am 130 lbs and trying to lose to 123 ish; however, my body is allready happy where it is. So, I will have to really work out daily.

Do you do well eating little? I don't, do I do a few things, which enables me to eat normally and not feel starved:

 

- eat low calorie food often (fruit, roasted vegetables in very little oil, steamed veggies with hot sauce which is sugar free and only chilli and spices, and a small pot of yoghhurt here and there, or a small wrap with lettuce, a protein, and sauce for flavour)

 

- work out 5 - 6 days a week for 1 - 2 months. Working out more means I do not have to be ultra strict about my calories. I can eat 1500 - 1900 and lose steadily with an hour of cardio, and weights 2 - 3 days a week.

 

 

 

 

....eating extremely low calorie and exercising like a maniac 5 days a week, means your body will not lose because there is just no way your body will be happy at that weight....

YOU DO have to fight for weight loss, but fighting your own body to the point where you eat very little and work out A LOT, is a sign your body is just not happy at a lower weight.

[fucpcg]

Let me know what gym you joined. Go. Buy the book The Zone Diet as quick as possible, read cover to cover as quick as possible. I'll share much more when I havd the time.

[mercy]

So on the days I work out, I feel STARVING afterwards. Even if I have something to take the edge off, I am starving again in an hour. As hard as I work, I know I haven't burned off that many calories in an hour and fifteen minutes.

 

I feel it was actually much easier to control my eating when I didn't do much exercise. I am terrified of gaining weight. Any tips?

 

So far I haven't lost or gained any and it's been about 3 weeks...

 

Protein, healthy carbs. Your body craves them after a workout. This article says it better than me.

 

The 5 Best Post-Workout Foods - iVillage

 

I eat peanut butter balls after each workout.

[Ninjainpajamas]

You're supposed to be starving after a workout ES, that's normal because your body is burning and working so hard.

 

However instead of throwing a celery stick in your mouth or small piece of food that is "healthy" you need to eat proteins. Whenever you are hungry you need to eat some chicken breast or other protein. This will stop you from starving.

 

Other than that watch your portions, try to eat less than you normally do, most of us can eat much less than we have to we just push it and keep track of your calorie intake. If you're eating less calories a day then you lose weight, If you eat over it you gain or stay the same if you eat the amount that won't cause you to lose or gain...there's really no secret and even if it's unhealthy food it works.

 

Stick to a certain regiment of food that you know how much calories it's worth, whatever you prefer to eat or like to eat, look it up and see how much calories it is costing you on google.

 

Never starve yourself and realize you will build muscle as well, not every week of not losing is a bad thing, there are muscles developing underneath there.

 

Right now just focus on sticking to your regiment of exercise, cut out any calorie rich things you love to consume and control your portion sizes by watching your calories.

 

General rules for starting out...

 

- Stay away from stuff that is fried...especially fries!

- Eat less than you normally, control the portion sizes..let yourself get content not full or stuffed where you don't want to move or can't

- Eat proteins after exercising

- Don't drink soda, sugary juices (even natural fruits have lots of sugars)

- Check the calories of the foods you do eat and get a general idea of what you consume per day

- Don't give up, figure out what's causing you not to lose weight...guaranteed to be your diet though unless you have some mysterious health issue

[Eternal Sunshine]

Today is a rest day. I decided not to weigh myself every single day. Yesterday, I worked super hard and increased the weights. I had couple of cans of tuna after the workout (at only 125 calories each) and that stopped the hunger.

 

Today, my muscles feel quite sore. Especially upper arms and abdominals. My legs feel fine so I will do step aerobics class + some leg work tomorrow.

 

Today I also had a nap after work, I just felt pleasantly drowsy - but then got up and had to lift/move some heavy boxes for an hour (I guess it was a mini workout).

 

I am looking forward to the gym tomorrow

 

BTW Leigh, I guess my weight loss goal are some vanity pounds as I am in the normal weight range. My main goal is to tone up, decrease body fat %, increase overall strength and improve general fitness/endurance.

Edited September 7, 2012 by Eternal Sunshine

[kiss_andmakeup]

I've noticed this when I work out very diligently as well. I want to just eat and eat and eat. Great advice in this thread!

[Star Gazer]

If you're working out hard, and not losing any weight, you might actually be eating too few calories.

 

As my marathon training increases in weekly mileage, I am getting hungrier and increasing my calories pre- and day-of long runs, and actually finding that I'm losing weight by eating more than when I was being more restrictive.

[Lauriebell82]

I work out in the evening and usually get home around 8:30ish. About an hour later I start getting hungry, I drink a bottle of water and that fills me up. I know that if I eat a ton of food I'm probably not going to go to the bathroom or burn it off, so that keeps me from overindulging. I usually go to bed a little hungry and that ends up helping me lose weight, because in the morning I eat a bigger breakfast, hence jump starting my metabolism.