Skip links

Ryan Watson's Blog

Be Results Oriented

Main navigation

hunger

Understand Your Hunger — Part 3

by Leave a Comment

We made it — Part 3…!

In our Understand Your Hunger series, we know how to recognize physical hunger, and why that’s so important.  Also, we know how to recognize thirst, and why that’s so important.  Now, let’s discuss actual physical hunger, and how to eat to our advantage….

“I am so hungry…!  I gotta grab something to eat, NOW…!”  Remember this…?

Now, we can ask:  Are you sure…?  We know how emotional hunger behaves, versus how physical hunger behaves.

We know physical hunger comes on gradually, and can be postponed.  The best way to postpone “hunger” is by drinking water — because we typically misinterpret thirst, as hunger.  If we drink water, and forget that we were “hungry”, then we satisfied the signal our body was sending — thirst.  We know physical hunger can be satisfied with any food.  It doesn’t have to be an entire bag of Funky Munky chocolate chip cookies.  That’s a craving — a characteristic of emotional hunger.  A grilled chicken salad, or an apple with a handful of almonds, will work just fine.

Speaking of a salad….  Have you ever asked yourself, why a salad will satisfy hunger…?  Finishing that bag of cookies not only leaves us feeling guilty… but hungry, again.

Our answer lies in nutrient density and caloric density.

Nutrient density describes the bridge between nutrients (both micro- and macro-) and calories.  Nutrient dense foods will satisfy actual physical hunger.  They have high levels of nutrition, per calories.  Fruits, vegetables, and lean animal proteins are excellent choices.

Caloric density describes the amount of energy, in a given unit measure of food. Caloric density is typically related as calories per pound.  We have a large number of calories, in a small amount of food.  Oils, nuts/seeds, and cheese are excellent choices.  Unfortunately, foods high in sugar, and processed whole grains are also caloric dense foods, but not such good choices.  Darn you, Funky Munky!

Finding a balance between nutrient dense foods and caloric dense foods will help us reach any health/fitness goal, from a nutritional standpoint.  Of course, there are still the aspects of exercise and rest.  Fat loss, muscle-building, improved athletic performance, general health and well-being… balancing nutrient density and caloric density is key.

In fact, they are flip-sides of the same coin, so to speak.  According to Jeff Novick, MS, RD, “Foods low in calorie density also tend to be higher in satiety, so by consuming foods lower in calorie density, one can fill up on much fewer calories without having to go hungry and without having to weigh, measure or portion control our food. In addition, the foods that are lower in calorie density (fruits, veggies, starchy vegetables, intact whole grains and legumes) are also the foods highest in nutrient density. Therefore, by following a diet lower in calorie density, one also automatically consumes a diet higher in nutrient density.”

Understand that actual physical hunger is our body’s signal for nutrition.  Balance nutrient and caloric density to satisfy that signal; give the body what it needs.

At that point, we begin to address our established chronic dehydration, from misinterpreting thirst as hunger.  We use “hunger” as a cue to drink water.  We address our overeating, from mistakenly eating to satisfy our body’s thirst signal.  Typically, we choose junk food, with low nutrient density and high caloric density (remember that bag of cookies).  These also address possible emotional eating.

So, to bring this plane in, for a landing….

  • Use our 4 Cues, as reminders to drink water, throughout the day
  • Use nutrient and caloric density to satisfy actual physical hunger
  • Use this blog, for ideas to align nutrition for the body want

 

I hope you’ve enjoyed this series…!  I hope you found value, and some helpful tips to use everyday.

Drop a Comment below, leave a Like, and feel free to Share.  I would love to hear, from you…!

Join us, for the upcoming blog, on meal planning…!

 

 

 

 

Understand Your Hunger — Part 2

by Leave a Comment

In Part 1, of our Understand Your Hunger series, we learned the characteristics of physical hunger and emotional hunger, and how important it is to recognize the difference.

Now, we are going to discuss another obstacle to successful eating.  This obstacle is much more straightforward, than emotional hunger, but it is just as misunderstood.  This obstacle is thirst.

Most of us associate thirst, or our need to drink, with a dry mouth.  Unfortunately, dry mouth is our body’s last ditch effort, to get us to grab something to drink.  It is also the worst way for us to know it’s time to drink something.  That’s because by the time we have a dry mouth, we are already dehydrated.  In fact, research shows the majority of adults suffer from established chronic dehydration.  Add to that, the list of maladies that dehydration is responsible for, and the importance of recognizing our need for water becomes overwhelming.

There is scarcely a bodily function that takes place, in the absence of water.  There are none that take place, optimally, with insufficient water intake.  Digestion… breathing… muscle movement… thought… you name it — every bodily function requires enough water to do its job, at its highest level.

With so much at stake, it’s easy to see how our body sends an almost never-ending stream of messages, to make sure it has enough water.  The most widely-recognized is thirst.  However, despite it’s acceptance as THE true indicator of our need for water, there are two distinct issues, at hand:  one, thirst is our body’s last ditch effort to get us to drink water; and two, we often misinterpret thirst, as hunger.

Imagine that:  not only do we pay attention to the worst indicator, of our body’s need for water; we misinterpret it, and try to satisfy it, by eating…!

If that’s not bad enough, by failing to satisfy thirst, by eating, we create a vicious cycle:  our body needs water, and sends the final signal of thirst… we misinterpret thirst, thinking we’re hungry… we eat (usually junk foods with empty calories)… thirst remains, so our body keeps sending the signal for more water… we keep failing to satisfy that signal, because we keep misinterpreting thirst, as hunger… we keep eating quick-and-easy junk food.  Next thing you know, we are dehydrated AND we have eaten way too much.

While emotional eating can wreak havoc on our health & fitness goals, misinterpreted thirst certainly makes things equally difficult.  Think about the characteristics of physical hunger… or, just go read Part 1, again….  Physical hunger comes on slowly… and can be postponed.  So, when we eat to satisfy misinterpreted thirst, it doesn’t work — that is, we’re still “hungry”.  Without question, food cannot be the best default, to lead with.

Now, if the only indicator we pay attention to, for our need for water, is also, our body’s last ditch indicator… AND if we misinterpret that last ditch indicator, as hunger… perhaps, a better approach, to understand our hunger, is to offer water, to our body, regardless of thirst.

Research has shown a laundry list of benefits, of drinking enough water, not the least of which is improved weight management.  Research has also determined an estimated daily water intake — it is calculated, by taking your body weight (in pounds), divided by 2.  That number is how many ounces of water, each of us should drink, per day.   The caveat is:  that quantity represents a minimum number.

With that, we have addressed the second obstacle to understanding our hunger.  It may not be hunger, at all.  When in doubt — drink water.  If it is actual physical hunger, which can be postponed, it will still be there.  If it’s misinterpreted hunger, better known as thirst, then the “hunger” goes away AND we will have given our body exactly what it wanted, in the first place…!  In fact, check out my You Tube video, on my 4 Cues for Drinking Water.

In Part 3, of our series, we will look at what it takes to soothe the savage beast, known as Hunger… with nutritient and caloric density.

Please be sure to Like this post, if you got some value, from it.  Drop me a Comment — let me know what you think.  If you think this could help someone you know, feel free to share it, with them, and invite them to the blog…!

Understand Your Hunger — Part 1

by Leave a Comment

“UGH…!  I am so hungry…!  I gotta eat, NOW…!”  Now, that is hunger…  Right…?

Ever been there…? Ever notice you never reach for that nice salad…? Seems like only that bag of cookies will do. Yes, the entire bag… only to feel horrible about eating every cookie in the house — and still be hungry.

The likely reasons behind episodes, like that one, happening in homes, across the nation, can be as “simple” as confusing thirst, as hunger, or as complex, as emotional eating.  Emotional eating, in a nutshell, is eating for reasons other than fueling the body.  It is defined as, “…overeating in order to relieve negative emotions.  Thus, emotional eating is considered a maladaptive coping strategy.”

Since emotional eating is beyond the scope of our post, just understand that emotional eating is way different from eating to satisfy physical hunger.  Recognizing those differences is our goal.

Take a look at the characteristics of physical hunger, and emotional hunger, and the difference is clear.

Characterisitics of Physical hunger:

  • Comes on gradually; can be postponed
  • Can be satisfied with any type of food
  • Can stop eating, once you’re full
  • Brings satiety; doesn’t cause guilt.

In stark contrast…

Characterisitics of Emotional Hunger:

  • Comes on suddenly; feels urgent
  • Causes specific cravings
  • Eat more than normal; feel uncomfortably full
  • Brings on feelings of guilt and self-shaming

Can you see either set of these characteristics, in your life…?  Do you experience emotional hunger, or actual physical hunger…?  

As the most complex obstacle, to successful eating, emotional eating may require professional help, to overcome.  Interestingly,  “[o]ne way to combat emotional eating is to employ mindfulness techniques.[10]   For example, approaching cravings with a nonjudgmental inquisitiveness can help differentiate between hunger and emotionally-driven cravings.  An individual may ask his or herself if the craving developed rapidly, as emotional eating tends to be triggered spontaneously.  An individual may also take the time to note his or her bodily sensations, such as hunger pangs, and coinciding emotions, like guilt or shame, in order to make conscious decisions to avoid emotional eating.”  So, simply stop to ask yourself why you’re hungry, and what you’re feeling.  That is a step in the right direction.  Hopefully, seeing the differences between the characteristics of emotional hunger versus physical hunger can give us direction.

In the next part, of our series on Understanding Your Hunger, we  will discuss what may prove the simplest, most straightforward obstacle — thirst.

If you feel like this article was helpful, give it a Like… and drop me a Comment.  If you know someone, who needs to read this — Share it with them…!

Pin It on Pinterest