This is one of the most frequent questions I hear. When I was a little kid, my mom used to say my "eyes were bigger than my stomach."
That phrase means you can't really eat everything you think you can. I really COULD eat everything I saw!
First, let's define APPETITE. When are you hungry? When the clock strikes 12? When your stomach growls? When you get dizzy and light-headed? As for me, if I waited until my stomach growled to tell me when I was hungry, I'd be waiting a long time. My stomach growls sometimes, but usually I am "hungry" long before that happens. In other words, my body needs nourishment long before.
One time I stopped at the grocery store on the way home from aerobics class. It was close to lunchtime. I started pushing the grocery cart, and stopped for a moment and thought, "What did I come in here for?" My mind was fuzzy and I couldn't remember. Then I looked down at my hands and saw that they were shaking, holding on to the shopping cart! I immediately knew what was wrong. I was so "hungry," that my blood sugar was zero. In fact, had I waited for my stomach to growl to tell me when to eat, I might have fainted in the meantime! I went and bought something to eat and ate it right there in the store, BEFORE I went on to shop for my other items. My mind cleared up in just a few minutes.
So let's define "hungry" as the time that you need nourishment. This is about 5 times per day: breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner.
Now let's define when you "think you're hungry." This would be when you are walking by the donuts at the gas station, when you smell the bar-b-q restaurant as you drive by it, when you open the refrigerator and see a pie that grandma sent home "for the kids," when you walk through the kitchen and see leftover birthday cake sitting on the counter, when you are at the movies and everyone else is eating popcorn and candy....need I go on, or do you get the picture?
Of course you do. We all know that we eat when we are not the least bit hungry. While I am not a fan of Weight Watchers, I like an old saying they used, "If you aren't hungry enough to eat vegetables, then you're not hungry." Seriously, I have eaten a spinach salad for a "midnight snack" lots and lots of times, because I was up working late at night, was truly hungry, and needed to eat something, but didn't want to eat anything heavy that close to bedtime.
So here's the rule, if you stand in front of the refrigerator looking in for more than 2 minutes, you're probably not hungry!
So what do you do when you think you are hungry but you're not, but you CAN'T RESIST eating? Or when you do eat, you tend to eat too much...
There's an answer to this problem, and it's something you have probably never heard before. I read a book, written by a doctor, several years ago, and that's the only place I've actually ever heard of this method before that time or since. I have used it frequently since then.
I'll bet my grandma's slippers you've never heard of it either.
It is called protein pills. They used to be hard to find, but now you can find them in any vitamin store. They are made of milk and egg, usually, although you may find them made from various other types of protein, which is concentrated and pressed into a tablet.
Step 1:
In-between meals and snacks, take 2-3 protein tablets, all at one time. You can buy them in 1000 (1 gram), 2000 (2 grams) or 3,000 (3 grams) sizes. The 3-gram tablets are huge. You should take about 5 grams (the equivalent of a small glass of milk).
Here is the schedule:
- Breakfast
- Protein tablets
- Snack
- Protein tablets
- Lunch
- Protein tablets
- Dinner
- Protein tablets
Sound like a lot of protein tablets?? Well you probably aren't getting enough protein anyway!
Step 2:
Figure out when you really don't need the protein tablets. Depending on how busy you are at different times of the day, and when your hunger cycle really gets going or even turns off! You may say, My hunger never turns off! Well, it does, you just haven't noticed it. When you start paying attention, you will notice it, and that's the time of day that you don't really need the protein tablets.
Why, you may ask, can't I just drink a protein shake at those times? You can. But most people are at work and making protein shakes several times a day isn't feasible. If it is, go ahead and do it. I would much rather drink a small protein shake (you only need 5 grams of protein, that's just ¼ scoop) than swallow 2 pills. So the protein tablet method can be used by anyone, anytime, no matter where they are or what they are doing.
Step 3:
If this method doesn't seem to be working (you SHOULD notice a huge difference in appetite), then increase the tablets to 10 grams. In the book, there were several testimonials from people who needed 10 grams to turn off their appetite.
It might help if you did some reading on how appetite works. I have said many times that my willpower (won't power) is so much better now that I know the science behind what I am eating and how it affects my body.
Now that I KNOW what sugar does when I get too much in my bloodstream, now that I KNOW what white flour does to my colon, I really don't WANT donuts that much anymore!
I actually ate a cinnamon roll at the mall this week with my kids (we shared two of them), and you could have called that an annual event, because I buy one of those Cinnabuns about once a year (and I try to make it the small one, if you know what I mean!)
Here's a link to read up on appetite and hunger: http://www.fitness.supersitesdirect.com/2010/03/what-is-the-definition-of-hunger/
You can order Protein Tablets online (see GNC coupon below), or visit your favorite vitamin store!
Stay tuned for Lesson 4 of WEAPONS OF MASS RECONSTRUCTION!
