How to ignore hunger

Let's make one thing clear here: Talking about hunger here means talking about the feeling people have in western, prosperous societies, people who often are more than well fed and think they know what hunger is.

I'm not talking about people fighting for life in third world countries. I've been in areas of Africa and Asia where people really know what hunger is, and have to try and ignore the feeling because there is simply no food.... Their situation is very different, but this hub talks about our western well fed world where people sometimes need to lose weight and therefore are battling themselves to eat less.

Maybe you have noted, that I'm using the word 'hunger' in captions.

That's because we often talk about hunger and don't even know what real hunger is. Let me explain:

You have, from the age of a small kid, always had more than enough food. Often very good, tasty yummy food. So you did not simply eat to survive, but you learned to eat over your personal needs, but simply kept eating because the food was sooooo gooood!

Now what happens if one does that regularly? The body starts to adapt. One of the things that happen, is that your body starts to make the stomach bigger,

A bigger stomach means there si more space for good food. More space that needs to be filled, because the basic function of the stomach, telling you that there is space and it should be filled, works the same way as when the stomach has normal size.

So you are feeling 'hunger' i.e. the stomach signals it's empty or not filled yet, even if your basic need for calories has been fullfilled already.

So you see: You may think that what you feel is hunger, but it's really a badly trained, let me repharase this, a stomach that has been trained to give you the wrong signals.

So, if your stomach gives you the wrong signals, maybe you should start there?

Why not give that very useful and important organ a chance to work again as it's supposed to? I think this is great way of starting. You'll have much less of battle with 'hunger', once your body knows again what's good and normal.

OK, this is not easy. If you want your stomach to become smaller, you need to allow it to 'shrink'.

Your stomach can only shrink if it contains less food at any given time.

Means, you need to eat less.

Sounds tough? Yes, it can be. But just picture what will happen:

You eat less (note I say less, not nothing anymore!), and becaus of that you feel 'hunger', especially the first couple of days. But the good news is, that the stomach is a very flexible organ. It can expand a lot, but it also learns quickly, when it has become too large and it will shrink.

I know what I'm talking about. I'm right now in the process of losing quite a few pounds too many. I had started in mid October 2007, with a weight of 118 kgs. That's too much for me, at my height I should be around 100 kgs.

I'm not following a specific diet, I just eat less. Was I hungry when I started? Yes! Am I constantly hungry now? No.

My strategy is simple:

a) I eat less and I ignore 'hunger' - it actually is not a problem anymore now, my body had learned, that I'm only eating less, but good food and it only occasionally protests.

b) I drink a small glass of water every 2 hours or so, that keeps me hydrated and it fills the stomach with a small quantity of zero calories.

c) I have never really drunk many soft drinks, but now they are off limits, I dink unfiltered apple juice mixed with tap water 1 : 4. No more alcohol on a regular basis, but you can be sure, that I'll have a glass of wine and maybe a good singel malt for the Christmas dinner. There are no absolutes in my plan!

d) I move! I've started to work weights again, and because I have a dog I'm doing two brisk walks a day. Working weights (start with light weights and don't try to be a hero, it takes about three months for your tendons to get used to working harder, so go slow at the beginning!) helps to build muscle. You burn some fat too.

e) I hardly ever weigh myself, maybe every two weeks. Because I'm writing this I tested my weight today: 111 kgs. :-) - I know that I'm losing weight because of my belt (two holes more tight already!) and my body feeling. I dont' need to watch the scales all the time.

f) Update mid January 2008: 108 kgs! :-) Event though I had a great time over Xmas and New Year, with all the goodies I had maintained my weight, and now we're down an other 3 kgs! At the same time my muscles start to grow slightly and I'm starting to feel difference in weight: Running is easier, and generally I feel better. - ... strange how you don't notice how heavy you get when you put on weight. I always thought that I was feeling fine, but now I'm definitely feeling better than with 118 kgs!

g) Update mid Feburary 2008: 106 kgs! :-) (BIG GRIN!!) - An other two kgs off, and I've put on some muscle, so the net fat loss is most likely more than 2 kgs. If it's an indication: I'm using 4 (four!!) holes less on my belt, that's easily 10 cms less around my belly. - Now I'm sorry I didn't do photos to document this. - Conclusion: Just eat less and move more, the weight will come off and stay off! I'm not particularly watching what I eat, occasional French fries, a cake, a portion of slated nuts and all the things I like are OK, just the quantity has diminished, and I do stop eating when I feel full.

Opppsss.... I think I digress, but maybe these hints help somebody anyhow.

Back to the stomach: It took about a week, and during this first week I needed to be strong and had a few battles with myself. After that first week, it became a lot easier, eating less. I felt that even with a smaller portion on my plate, I felt satisfied and now have a nice feeling of being satiated. That's how I have battled the feeling of 'hunger'.

On the same site as the two above audio books, you'll also find these great titles (simply click any of the links above and then enter the book title into the SEARCH box of the new page):

• A Guide To Healthier Eating
  Most people are anxious to improve their diets, but in today’s hectic, fast food oriented world, eating healthy can be quite a challenge. Sometimes you feel as if it’s a choice between making smart food choices or enjoying your life and family. Mak
• Achieve Your Chosen Weight - MP3 Audio Book
  This program is part of the deep suggestion series invented by Dr. Arnd Stein. It has sold over 2 million copies and proven its effectiveness in scientific studies and systematic observations.