By Estela Schnelle MS, RD

 Identifying Natural Hunger –

Are You Really Hungry or Just Bored?

 My approach to weight control is very similar to “Intuitive Eating”.  For those who are not familiar with intuitive eating, the main basis is to “eat when you are truly physically hungry and stop when you are satisfied, eat exactly what appeals to you at that time.” While I do firmly believe this, I also feel people need to have some structure and rules that work best for their body.  In working with my clients, I have found that identifying when they are hungry is not the problem; it’s knowing when to stop eating.  Some may find it challenging knowing “how much food is enough”.  This is where the rules and portion control start to come in. 

One of the main keys to reaching a healthy weight is identifying our natural hunger.  We should be feeling hungry each time we eat.  This is why it is so important to make your own rules.  Setting a rule such as eating every 2-3 hours regardless of our hunger is not the best idea.  If your body is truly hungry that often, then that’s was works for you.  A general rule I give is to space your meal between 4-5 hours apart.  We should not go longer than 5 hours without a meal.  

What is True Hunger? 

True hunger comes when your body has burned off the calories from the last meal.  Your stomach is basically empty.  Without getting too scientific on you, this is what happens:  Your brain sends a signal to your stomach that it needs food for fuel/energy to continue functioning.  This is what cues the growling in our stomach.  Our muscles in our abdominal wall start to contract, the gastric acids start to erupt, our stomach growls, and we experience hunger pangs.  This is what true hunger is. 

 I’ve worked with clients who have never experienced true hunger, or tell me they haven’t felt hungry in years.  Here is an exercise I give them to feel what true hunger is:  For on day only, go at least 5 hours without any food or calorie containing beverages, only water.  This should be long enough to trigger hunger.  This should not be done every day, just once, so they can experience hunger. 

Are You Hungry or Bored? 

Have you ever noticed that when we’re really busy we tend to push our hunger aside to get our work done, but when we’re bored, we often imagine ourselves feeling hungry and can easily find a reason to eat?  This can be the case for many of us.  When we’re bored, we try to find something to do, and eating is at the top of our list.  As I’ve mentioned in previous articles, weight gain occurs when we consistently eat for reasons other than hunger.  Mindless eating and snacking is a quick way to pack on the extra pounds.  This is where the rules come in.  Here some basic rules to get started:

• Make it a point to eat something healthy for breakfast:  It doesn’t have to be a big huge breakfast.  Play around with different breakfast ideas.  Make sure the portion size is moderate.  If your starving 2 hours later, recognize that you need more food or fiber in your meal.
• Keep an eye on the clock:  Keep track of what time you ate your meal and know you should be eating again in 4-5 hours.
• Plan a snack:  If you know it will be longer than 5 hours until your next meal, plan to have a small snack to avoid feeling overly hungry.  Take a look at the “snack bite” page for ideas.
• Eliminate mindless noshing:  Before you dive into a back of chips, check yourself!  Ask yourself if you are truly hungry.  Think back to the last time you ate.  Always check yourself before you dive head in to a bag of empty calories.

 These are just some very basic rules.  You are the only one who truly knows what will work best for your body.  Hopefully these will guide you in the right direction.  What rules do you make for yourself?  How do you keep track of your food intake?  Stay tuned for Part 3!