Do you eat by the clock or by your (physical) hunger?

Since being banded, I've tried to eat only when I'm physically hungry rather than for other reasons (like it's noon so it's lunchtime, or I happen to be passing Baskin & Robbins, or I can smell cinnamon buns at the coffee shop). I'm coming up on my 4th bandiversary and I'm still working on this.

At the start, my physical hunger was fairly predictable. It started nagging at me 2-3 hours after a meal or snack, so I ended up with fairly "traditional" eating schedule: breakfast at 6 am, snack at 9-10 am, lunch at noon, snack at 2-3 pm, dinner at 6 pm, snack at 8-9 pm.

Now my physical hunger is not at all predictable. Sometimes it disappears for 6-8 hours. It doesn't nag at me now - it just springs up suddenly and takes over, so that suddenly I'm so hungry I could eat my own arm. So one day I might be hungry for "lunch" at 11 am, sometimes at 1 pm, sometimes not at all, and I actually forget to eat lunch.

The problem I'm having now is obeying my body's request for fuel no matter what the clock says. If I get hungry at 11 am, I'm afraid that if I eat lunch then, the next day my body will demand lunch at 10:30 am. Then at 10:00 am, then 9:30 am, and so on until I'm eating 12 times a day instead of 6. Sometimes I think I'm a lot like my dogs, who start begging for food the instant they wake up and continue begging all day and night in complete disregard for whether the clock says it's officially their dinner time. Years ago, their dinner time was 6 pm. Then they nagged it back to 5:30 pm, then 5 pm, then 4:30 pm. Now it's 4:00 pm if anyone is home to open the kibble canister.

It's a weird problem to have. Right now I'm kinda proud of myself for allowing myself to eat lunch at 11 am because I was so hungry. God did not strike me with lightning bolts and the world did not come to an end. We'll see what happens in the next 24 hours!
 
Jean

Hi Jean,

This is something I struggle with a lot too.  Sometimes I eat "proactively" because I am going to be busy and when the hunger hits, there is no putting it off.  Also, when eating with other people, they expect you to either set or agree to a certain time to eat.  I mean they don't like it when I say " I'll meet you at the restaurant when I get hungry".  

But really, I notice there is some anxiety around being hungry.  Maybe it is evolutionary.  I'm working on dealing with the anxiety and still waiting to eat until I really am hungry.

Katie

I eat proactively sometimes too, especially when I know I'll be at work (not allowed to eat except during my scheduled break) or somewhere else where healthy eating could be a challenge.

I suspect you're right about hunger anxiety having an evolutionary function. It's taking me a long time to come to terms with it and trust that it means my body (instead of my head or heart) needs fuel.

I was told by my NUT it is better to stay on a schedule.  Not only are you less likely to have large gaps, where you don't eat (which isn't good for your metabolism)...but it also helps with over-eating if you get too hungry.  Regardless of what a NUT or doctor says, I think everyone is different and you should do what works for you. 

That said Monday - Friday I am really good about sticking to a schedule (because of work). 

Breakfast-  7am

Lunch- 12pm

Snack- 4pm

Dinner- 7pm

If I stay on this schedule I do pretty good.  I sometimes get hungry before a scheduled meal/snack but I am able to wait till it's time to eat again.

Now at home on the weekends I don't have any structure at all.  I eat meals when I am hungry and tend to eat more.  I need to work on that. 

You're right abourt the tendency to overeat when you get too hungry.

This life is a balancing act, that's for sure!

Hi Jean,
I thought something was wrong with me because I only eat when Im hungry. I see alot of ppl on here that have set times that they eat. I always eat breakfast, bc I was told thats the best meal of the day (eat round 8:30 or 9:00). I might eat lunch 3 or 4 times a week. I will eat a protein bar or a shake at lunch. I do eat dinner around 6pm. I only have 1cc in my band and I can eat 3oz of food at a time. Thats usually lean protein first. I don't get hungry for about 4 or 5 hours. I don't eat anything unless its fruit after dinner, that only if I get hungry. I guess Im eating right. Im losing around 1 to 1.5 lbs a wk. Sometimes it doesn't come off for a wk to a wk in a half, then its 2 to 2.5 lbs. I did have a stall for about 2wks.

Lynn

Lynn,

There's nothing wrong with you! It sounds like you've found an eating plan that works well for you - your weight loss has been great!

Jean

I am only eating when I am hungry. The problem with that is I am not hungry in the morning I drink a protein shake. My Nut isn't happy with this she wants me to eat at least a bite or two of something. So if I have the protein shake in the morning then eat lunch around 1 I don't want dinner until 8 or 9 pm too late to eat. My Nut wants me to eat on a schedule. I the summer my schedule is so crazy during the school year I do eat more on a schedule. I am sure I will get hungrier as time goes on. I am afraid to eat by the clock because why should I eat if I am not hungry. I do all of a sudden get extremly hungry.

I have a protein shake for breakfast too (because I'm too tight to eat solid food in the a.m.) My nutritionist told me that a protein shake is better than no breakfast at all, and I definitely need the fuel for my morning workout whether I'm physically hungry or not. Without it, I'd probably collapse halfway through the workout!

I'm only 5 mos out so I'm still a newbie.  But I would say that my eating style is a mixture of hunger cues plus schedule.  I eat B at different times each day...with the earliest being about 7am and the latest being about 8:30.  I am usually aware of hunger at about 3hours after I eat B and I try to stretch lunch until 4 hours after first awareness by drinking water.  Then I have lunch about 4 hours after B.  Then I HAVE to have a snack between lunch and dinner because I almost always eat dinner at about 7pmish...I just can't go 6 or 7 hours between lunch and dinner.

Sometimes, when I get really hungry I tell myself..."look at that, I'm starving and I'm not dying from it."  It's a weird feeling.