*Note: this post is not intended to address issues related to food insecurity or eating disorders.
There is so much pseudo-scientific information out there about how to “curb hunger.” Besides the multi-billion dollar industry of weight loss pills, supplements, and meal replacements (there is actually a “cookie diet” out there that makes money by selling customers super processed, expensive, and nutritionally deficient cookies as meal replacements), it seems everyone, including many self-proclaimed experts, has recommendations for how to curb hunger and eat less.
Hunger is not an emergency. Hunger is a healthy and normal feeling. It’s actually good to feel hunger and then to eat something nutritionally dense to satisfy your hunger. Many of us, however, don’t feel actual hunger very often because we eat throughout the day and don’t allow our bodies to get to a state of hunger. We eat because we feel the urge to do so in order to satisfy some other craving. Maybe we are actually thirsty, or stressed, or tired, or bored or hormonally rebounding from what we ate earlier in the day.
If we let ourselves actually get legitimately hungry, and then sit with that feeling for a short while, we can begin to re-learn what actual hunger feels like. Then, each time we feel that way, we can remind ourselves that we have succeeded in giving our digestive system a rest. Now our bodies are ready to welcome nutritious food, and the digestive system can do what it’s designed to do! [in the My Weekly Wins app choose, 'Give your Gut a Rest']
For most people, eating sugary foods or refined carbohydrates will actually lead to more cravings. When we eat these foods, our bodies keep pumping out insulin which can lead to more hunger. That kind of “hunger” sometimes feels like an urgent or frantic urge. To break this cycle, choose to eat foods that are high in fiber and nutrition and commit to letting your digestive system rest. Within a couple of days, you will likely stop feeling this frantic urge to reach for sugary snacks. [in the My Weekly Wins app choose 'Take a Sugar Break']
Let yourself get to hunger and then enjoy the pleasure of satisfying that hunger with something that fuels and nourishes you. You deserve it!
Food for thought: The food corporations really want us to “curb” hunger by eating constantly- especially the stuff that is easy and cheap for them to manufacture.
Important note: Letting yourself get hungry is not the same as forcing yourself to stay hungry. If you are truly hungry, we encourage you to eat!
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