Cravings - help!

[MiniDriver]

Lately I just can't get full.  I've been overeating like crazy for weeks.  I always feel hungry and want more, even when my stomach's full.   It's more about craving bread, crackers, and other grain-based carbs. 

Yesterday and today I've gotten back to normal meals.  The cravings haven't gone away, but no matter what I ate they were never satisfied so I decided to I had to stop giving in to the craving.  The only thing that keeps me from utterly giving in to cravings is completely avoiding refined grains (breads, crackers, etc.). 

Four theories of why I've been craving bread: 1) I'm shifting towards a vegan diet.  While I was already a 1-2 day a week meat eater, I ate cheese and yogurt almost every day.  My body might be missing some nutrient in the cheese/yogurt and trying to make up for it in bread. 2) Breads are vegan, so I blithely granted myself permission to have as much as I want. (likely) 3) Perimenopause.  I blame it for everything. 4) Artificial sweeteners - I regularly have 4 spoonfuls of splenda or truvia a day.  There's some evidence the body craves the calories it thinks are in the sweets, so artificial sweeteners make you want more calories to feel balanced.

I tell myself I'm not hungry, that I get enough vitamins, energy, and calories to meet my daily requirements.  I enjoy my food, so it's not about suffering through being good while aching for the "bad" stuff.  And I still crave.

I decided not to enroll in the WLC because more than needing to lose weight (though I would like to lose a few before Summer), I need to find a way to feel satisfied. 

Any suggestions?  Coping strategies?  Mantras?  Dope slaps?

[merigayle]

I would try some soup, that usually fills me up and has minimal calories. The lack of cheese/dairy, i would try more protein and see how that goes. I find if i have a high protein bfast, either scrambled tofu or beans, i am fuller longer, vs oatmeal and i am starving an hour later.

[Run Amok]

All I can tell you that is that I have similar struggles with vegan meals. I just don't seem to get totally, lastingly, satisfied without an animal protein. It's not a quantity of protein thing... it's a type of protein thing.

If I'm craving starch it's usually because I haven't eaten enough protein. If I eat a harboiled egg or some greek yogurt (I eat it plain) that usually takes care of the craving.

For me to avoid cravings, here is what I've found:
*Stay ahead of the hunger. Once I am hungry, it's all over.
* Eat frequently. If I eat 2-300 calorie "meals" 5-6x a day (breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner, after dinner snack) I am always ahead of the hunger/ahead of the blood sugar crash and I'm not craving things. My body also knows there is more food coming soon, so no need to panic.  I have to absolutely force this on myself though because I end up being never hungry until I AM hungry, then I'm starving and make bad decisions. So I have to be proactive about it.
* A big plate of veggies will make me full for about an hour, if it doesn't include a satisfying protein source, I'm hungry again in short order. Even if it includes whole grains and legumes.
* Salad-as-a-meal is ok for dinner, but not for lunch. I need a hot meal I can sink my teeth into in the middle of the day and salad just doesn't do it! Lunch is typically 1 cup of soup + a cheese sandwich and a small piece of fruit. Followed by a snack mid-afternoon (like 2 string cheeses, 2 hb eggs, or greek yogurt +home made applesauce).
*Eat dinner earlier than I want to. I've had to come to terms with the fact that I eat breakfast and lunch early and I really need to eat dinner at 5. Waiting 'til 7 when dh wanted to eat just didn't work for me.

In terms of meal content- maximum hunger supression for me is protein, fiber, and fat. So, a 250 calorie snack of an apple and 1/4 cup of almonds is very satisfying to me. 2 eggs scrambled with a slice of cheddar cheese will keep me going for hours. Ditto 1/2 cup fiber 1+ 3tbs of granola and 1/2 cup of milk.

If I follow my eating schedule and avoid getting hungry,the actual content of the meals isn't as important unless I don't get any animal protein in there anywhere all day long- after a couple of days I start to feel hollow (i.e. can't get full). I also don't really feel like I need to completely avoid grains- I eat a sandwich for lunch every day, past a a couple of times a week, and barley or farro alongside many meals. I wouldn't eat those things alone- without the support of fiber & protein & fat (to satisfy me) but I do think they have a place in my diet.

Also, full disclosure, when I'm pms'ing I am just HUNGRY and can't get full and want to eat all of it in massive quantities.

As they say, YMMV... this is what works for me.

[LizardMixture]

I've had a similar problem lately. It seems like I need to balance meals in a way that leans toward more protein. I've been adding a soy protein powder to my cereal in the morning and I'm thinking of working it in in the afternoon as well. Lunch is difficult for me. If I have more carbs than protein I am just starving the rest of the day.

[crazypants]

Eat more protein.

[Ice Cream]

Eat more protein.

This has never done it for me.

[caito]

Protein, fiber, healthy fats.  Veggies/water.    Cut out the artificial sweeteners.

[crazypants]

This has never done it for me.

Eat more meat and fish

[MiniDriver]

This morning is a case in point.  I had a big breakfast: banana and sweet potato hashbrowns (sweet potato, onions, tomatoes, serving size about 1 cup).  I had two cups of tea.  Then I was hungry, so I had a handful of peanuts and two dates.  There is no reason that amount of food shouldn't be filling.

I was hungry the moment I walked into the office.  I ate another date while drinking my coffee.  And I'm about to run out into the rain to get a bagel and peanut butter. 

I have cut out the artificial sweeteners, but it may take a few days for them to work out of my system. 

[Schrödinger’s Bat]

Mini - the breakfast you mentioned is high in sugar. So you are going to crash from it.

Sweet potatoes and bananas, while healthy, are sugary. And both are relatively easily digested.  There is minimal protein in that breakfast.

I do not have an issue with artificial sweetners and appetite at all. It is worth experimenting, as all bodies are different, but I would definitely explore the protein angle more in depth.

1 Fage 0% yogurt satisfies me more than most things. Same goes for cottage cheese. Not that this helps you if you are trying to be vegan.

[caito]

A sweet potato & a banana is 400 cals at most.  Not nearly enough for a filling breakfast.  No fat, no protein either.  No wonder you were hungry so soon after.

[merigayle]

Mini- i find i need high protein at bfast to not be hungry soon after. Look at Happy Herbivore's tofu scramble, or fat free vegan's tofu fritata. This morning i had tofu and brown rice and yesterday i had aduki beans and rice. The beans and rice were around 200 calories and very satisfying and filling. I also had a piece of fruit, so it was about 300 calories total for bfast.

[wherestheportojohn]

Shit. My post disappeared. :/

I'm an omnivore, but my brekky ideas may help trigger some of your own concoctions.
I alternate between:
1. 1-2 slices Ezekiel toast with raw almond butter, a pile of sprouts (I do my own sprouting), and a pile of organic baby spinach....can't wait till spring, so can pick from my own gardens. Yes, I enjoy the mouth feel and taste of veggies on my morning toast. Meh.
2. 2 eggs on Ezekiel toasted sammich piled with above veggies.
3. Fage plain yogurt, mixed with half cup of prepared (chilled) quinoa, a touch of real maple syrup, and a Tblsp of chia seeds.

Good luck!

[MiniDriver]

I never thought of my breakfast as sugary!  I like tofu scramble, but a friend had warned me that daily soy was too much.  So I switched to sweet potato.  I'll switch back to tofu to see if that satisfies better.

I'm going to make some granola with lots of seeds and nuts this weekend to see if that keeps me full.  I hate commercial granola because it's too sweet. 

Thanks for the ideas guys!

I didn't go for the bagel/peanut butter, just chugged coffee.  It's almost time for my apple (elevensies snack), so I should survive.

[merigayle]

i do not see a reason to avoid soy, unless you had a medical condition and were told not to consume soy, or if you take synthroid, you do not want to consume soy close to taking your meds.

[Run Amok]

Dates are like eating candy... they have a glycemic index of more than 100. Prunes + nuts is a good snack though.

If you don't want to do soy- look for field roast sausages. They are vegan. They are made from seitan. They are high protein but also have enough fat in them to make them very satisfying.

I will second toast with peanut butter as a simple & satisfying breakfast. I add a small piece of fruit but veggies sounds good too!

Granola is probably going to be a similar story unless you eat it with something high protein or another kind of fiber that will stabilize your blood sugar.

[Natasha]

You need more protein! Try almonds, oatmeal, beans.

[Courtney]

A friend of mine, who's seeing her doctor about thyroid issues, told me that she'd been told (from the doc) that if you are craving sweets or hungry after a meal, it's that you had too many carbs. 

I'm not sure how true it is, but I've noticed that when I eat a carb heavy meal, I crave sweets afterwards, where when I eat a protein/veggie heavy meal, it's much better. 

[Courtney]

A sweet potato & a banana is 400 cals at most.  Not nearly enough for a filling breakfast.  No fat, no protein either.  No wonder you were hungry so soon after.

How many calories are you eating for breakfast?  I start to have a panic attack when I think of blowing thru 400 calories for breakfast!    I eat more of my calories at night, which probably isn't doing me any favors.

[Run Amok]

A friend of mine, who's seeing her doctor about thyroid issues, told me that she'd been told (from the doc) that if you are craving sweets or hungry after a meal, it's that you had too many carbs. 

I'm not sure how true it is, but I've noticed that when I eat a carb heavy meal, I crave sweets afterwards, where when I eat a protein/veggie heavy meal, it's much better. 

I do find this is true for me. When I cut back the refined carbs, and increased fat & protein- and stopped feeding my cravings with more carbs, it basically went away. Some of it is also habit. I wanted "something sweet" in the afternoon and would indulge in a small piece of candy or a cup of cocoa or sugary coffee. Once I have the taste of something sweet (no matter how small) then I want more. So reducing my tolerance for sweet to almost zilch also helped. A small piece of candy is sensory overload and doesn't sound good anymore (well right now I'm kind of off the wagon so that's not totally true, but normally).