I'm getting back on the wagon, but I'm very hungry!

[Julie in CA]

Over the weekend we had company and I ate some things I hadn't planned to. I'm back on plan today, but I'm veerrry hungry! Do you go with it on the days when you're hungrier than you ought to be, or do you force yourself to hold back? I could eat a cheeseburger, for instance, and it would help to ease the craving for more carbs, but I'm probably going to end up with over 2000 calories today if I do.

[Shrew2u]

If I'm hungry between meals, I eat, but keep it fairly small - a thin slice of lean ham with a dill pickle and half a slice of cheese. A scoop of tuna salad in a cabbage leaf (makes a nice, crunchy cup). Chase it with water and wait 10 minutes, see if I'm still hungry. Usually, that bit of protein and fat will take the edge off and I can get back to whatever I was doing.

[TaylorMac]

While you're getting yourself back on track after your eating off-plan weekend, I would listen to your body and feed it good, healthy legal food until you're satisfied but not stuffed. Good quality protein foods with liberal amounts of fat should put you right back in ketosis. Go back to the calorie counting after that.

[Aways2Go]

High carb foods make me starving crazy hungry. Two or three days of low carb, lots of proteins and fats knocks that hunger in the head.

I ate well over 2k calories a day the first several weeks I was on Atkins and I still lost. Not that I am advising that, but it wasn't a problem for me. After that first few weeks, it gradually came down to where now I usually take in something like 1600 to 1800 a day and still stay plenty full.

I think it's better to stay full (not stuffed, but full) on proteins and fats for a few days until your hunger gets back in control and not crucify yourself over every calorie.

[chinadoll]

I find the first day or so I have to forget the calories and just eat if I am hungry so that at least stay within my 20 gr of carbs. Thats OK. After that I start paying a lot closer attention to my body signals. First climbing back on the wagon is tough enough sometimes without worrying about calories too.

[iamran]

Hi Julie, I too fell off the wagon this past weekend and I am paying dearly for it now. The past 2 days I have been famished. Yesterday I ate 3000 calories. Yikes! Today I am doing better at 1300 but I could eat a horse! I can't wait till dinner!

[jimmyolsenblues]

yep i been bad lately and i am hungry...that is the problem with a little cheating...or a lot of cheating...hunger comes back fierce.

[atkinsgal08]

>>I'm probably going to end up with over 2000 calories today if I do.>>

Using the "rule of thumb" that you should eat at 10-12 times your current body weight, being over 2000 calories shouldn't be a problem for you.

[mission to lose]

Hi,
I am reading posts here of people around the 250# and up, keeping their calories at 1300-1800. I have read posts from moderators suggesting eating around 10X your current weight. Can't eating too few calories be hurting you as well as eating too many? Some of these calories totals seem quite low for weights of 250#. What do you think?

[atkinsgal08]

>>an't eating too few calories be hurting you as well as eating too many?>>

Yes, it can. It's called putting your body in famine mode.

>> am reading posts here of people around the 250# and up, keeping their calories at 1300-1800.>>

In my experiences, that's undereating ...

Do those posters do well at that level of calories?