Can ground beef make you hungry?

[tasteslikechicken]

This is the dee dee dee question of the day...

Since I live alone, when I cook I have food for 1-2 weeks. This week I’m eating ground beef (generous portions) and I’m hungry all the time. I thought drinking more water would help ~ I’m now up to 4 liters a day and it makes no difference. Can it be the beef?

[liv]

No it cannot. The protein and fat should fill you up. The beef does contain fat right?
So if you are hungry all the time a couple of other areas to think about. You are not eating enough (many people fall in this trap) or there is something (other than beef - I assume you are eating other stuff ) that is causing this. Some people may be sensitive to sweeteners of all kind or to hidden sugars or to items on the legal list (tomatoes maybe - some people mention beans once in awhile, onions can be another)
Are you writing things down so you know what you are eating. Maybe there is a pattern of some kind.

[tasteslikechicken]

mmmm I'm eating a lot. I'm forcing myself to finish my plate because when I'm half way thru it I don't want to eat more. Yesterday I had a ground beef lettuce wrap with a scrambled egg for breakfast. More ground beef with basil pesto and 2 cups of lettuce for lunch. And I can’t remember what I had for dinner but it was probably cheese, more ground beef and more lettuce. I also had a mozzarella stick and some olive as a snack during the day. That’s pretty much what I’ve been eating all week ~ not much variety but I needed to finish the lettuce so I wouldn't end throwing it out untouched.

[liv]

You are not eating a lot of veggies. Your body may be telling you you need nutrition. Try and eat a variety of greans and other veggies from the allowed list.

And you are going to need some fat in there to be in ketosis.

So how many calores was that?

[tasteslikechicken]

between 1,000 and 1,100 calories
aren't we supposed to have 3 cups of veggies a day? I don't know how I'm going to eat more than that!

[liv]

Yes veggies - but lettuce is just basically green water. You need some variation.
You are eating too little - your needs must be a lot higher than 1000-1100 calories. So just a little bit bigger portions (more fat would do it - cannot go wrong with fat) A snack here and there if your meals do not hold you up till the next one. Snacks should be protein/fat based - eggs make good snacks.

Drinking water is good but drinking water to fill you up is a trick for low calorie diets. It is not what we try to do.

[tasteslikechicken]

Thanks Liv. I had more ground beef for lunch, added 1/2 cup of red pepper and some celery with blue cheese dressing. I'm going to have a salad for dinner and... more ground beef!

[chauber]

Maybe you need to eat more frequently. If you are full after eating half of your food spread it out a little. You are supposed to eat until you feel full, not stuffed.

Write it all down, see what you are eating, make sure you are eating veggies in the right amounts. Watch out for additives, sweetners, and foods that trigger the hunger. If you are eating ground beef and draining the fat off (which I hope we all do cause hamburger grease can be yucky )it may be too little fat...try to find ways to add some extra(mayo, sour cream, bacon, cheese...if it doesn't stall you).

How much water are you actually drinking? More than 64 ounces? There are days when I drink around 150 ounces (most days actually) and it helps with the 'hunger' pains which really are thirst pains for me.

[liv]

OK repeat after me - fat is not yucky - fat is good, fat is good, fat is good. Fat is what you eat to get thin.
It is today's mantra everyone.

[chauber]

I wasn't meaning FAT is yucky...just hamburger grease. When I cook my hambuger I drain the grease off....then I add other kind of fat...like bacon yummy.

Please pass the fat...please!