Three Ways to Manage Hunger

by Christian Thibaudeau

1) Eat only when you're physically hungry. Learn to distinguish between emotional pangs and the actual need to eat. To get a handle on your hunger, use the stopwatch trick. When you feel hungry, start a 15-minute countdown, and use that time to reflect on whether you need to eat or simply want to because of stress, boredom, or gluttony. Giving yourself a set time frame will prevent impulsive eating and will allow you to make better choices.

2) If you're training hard in an effort to add muscle and you aren't suffering from physical hunger more than three times per day, you're doing something wrong training wise. The need to adapt to training requires nutrients and energy. The training itself also requires a lot of energy. The more positive damage that's done during your workout, the more nutrients and calories your body will need to recover.

If you need more nutrients, your body will naturally send you the signal to eat more (you know, that grumbling below that pulls you to the fridge like a magnet). So, if your appetite is missing, it's because you're either lifting like a pansy or you have digestive problems.

3) If you're trying to lose fat, you'll obviously be hungrier, but you shouldn't be constantly ravenous, feeling deprived, or having deviant fantasies about Little Debbie. If you get a lot of cravings when dieting, it can be because:

• You aren't providing your body with all of the nutrients it needs (and you're likely deficient in some vitamins and minerals).

• Your fats and/or carbs are too low to fill your minimum daily needs. A common example is people who follow a low-carb diet while also greatly limiting their fat intake. Yes, we want to create an energy deficit, but we still must give our bodies enough fuel to function normally.

• You have a digestion problem, and thus, can't absorb all of the nutrients you ingest. If you don't absorb it, your body can't use it.

• You're dehydrated. A lot of people confuse thirst with hunger, so when you feel hungry, try downing eight to ten ounces of water, wait 15 minutes, and then see if you're still truly hungry or were just thirsty.