The longer I maintain my blog, the more apparent it is that I am ‘putting myself out there’. Each month my readership increases and I’m aware that once I hit ‘publish’, my post is open to the whole world to read it. While that does leave me open to all kinds of judgement, knowing that it may help at least one person is enough reason for me to say it as it is, taboo or not.
Up until recently, I had a very distorted relationship with food. Sure the pounds came off but looking back I am not sure whether I was actually healthy. Physically I was in the best health (and still am) of my life but mentally not so much. Hunger is one of the body’s most basic instincts. It’s our body’s way of informing us that it is food’o’clock…i.e. it needs food. We all regularly experience hunger but our way of dealing with it can vary tremendously. Name me any tactic to prevent hunger pangs and chances are I’ve tried it. Chew gum? Pop open a Diet Coke? Distract myself? Drink a whole bottle of water in one shot? Check, check check AND check. If it wasn’t meal/snack time, I would do anything to resist giving into hunger. After all, the less you eat the more weight you will lose, right? And I mean, hunger growls naturally mean your body is metabolising fat cells so don’t give in.
(red buzzer goes off) WRONG!
Given the media-driven society which we are living in, hunger has become misconstrued as a monster which we should fear and giving in to it means admitting defeat. Well from one friend to another, here’s a little secret I’ve learned over the years:
It’s not a victory to stave off hunger: you’re not doing yourself any favours by tricking your body.
Chances are that all of you who are reading my blog lead somewhat of a healthy lifestyle. You know in the back of your mind what kinds of foods will benefit your body. And as you up the fitness ante, you may find a slight increase in your hunger. Rather than drink your daily intake of water intake in one sitting, EAT SOMETHING!…and don’t feel guilty about it. Unless you’re a starving kid in Africa, hunger is not a bad thing. In fact, here’s everything that hunger does signify:
- our metabolism is firing up
- our muscles are begging for extra food to heal, repair, recover, and strengthen themselves
- our energy levels are flagging and needs the extra fuel
- our hormones are screaming that it’s ready for a mood booster
Easier said than done, I’ll give you that. Eating larger quantities and more often during the day may seem daunting initially but give your body the credit it deserves: it’s not stupid and nor is it like the boy who cried wolf. The next time it comes knockin’, honor your hunger and eat the food it requires!
Have you ever employed some tactic or another to ‘postpone’ your hunger?
I have done the same things with trying to avoid hunger in the past and you’re right – it doesn’t get you anywhere. Better to listen to the body and give it what it needs. Great post!
Thanks, Tina!
Thanks Khushboo for this lovely post.Really luv this blog.I’ve been looking for something like this for a long time & found it by chance thru a link in Shape Magazine & with every post I’m glad that I subscribed.I like it that you make healthy life style not only practical but also FUN .I love it that you don’t just talk about cabbage soup diets and tasteless boring food but you come across as a real foodie who knows how to eat right.Your recipes taste yum,look yum and we feel yum that we are eating healthy too! That coupled with your witty and honest conversational style of writing makes it a very interesting read! You know what I like best? That as people like me struggle to fight off those extra pounds,we know that we are not alone & that there is someone who has been there & succeeded & is now there to inspire us too! Keep up the gud work!;)
Wow Laurie! What a fantastic post to receive- thanks so much…it really means a lot! I’m so glad you found my blog and are enjoying my posts. I think it’s a very old school train of though that healthy cannot go hand in hand with fun and tasty! Both can definitely exist together and I’m glad that my blog is proof of that :)! All the best and thanks again!
Oh boy have I taken measures against my hunger…especially back when I had anorexia…it was all about the gum chewing…several packs a day in fact! Now I definitely give in to my hunger, and have learned to do so even when I’m unexpectedly hungry, like between meals or soon after a meal, I just have to trust my body that perhaps that particular day my expenditure was higher and thus I have more hunger needs.
Society really does need to tone down the “fear of hunger,” so ridiculous
Agreed! It’s funny because I actually now enjoy that feeling of hunger because it’s an opportunity to eat…and hey, when is that ever a bad thing ;)!
Previously whenever I thought of weight lost my mind automatically went to the equation less food=more efficient weight-loss. However, over time I have realized everything is fine in moderation and exercise is the key. My biggest tactic to suppress my hunger is to drink lots of water and eat mints! This is definitely one of my favorite posts KT 🙂
Food is fuel to feel well physically and mentally 🙂
I purposely try to honor my hunger, but I definitely will stave off boredom eating with glasses of water, etc.
I do everything in my power to keep myself from being hungry, hungry sana is not a fun sana 😉