Are you Actually Hungry?
As humans, we absolutely love forming habits!
We do it so well that half of the time we do not even realize it. For example, when you wake up do you grab your phone? Do you walk directly to the bathroom? Is that morning cup of joe second nature?
We get so good at forming habits that it becomes subconscious. A great way to really delve into habits and their impact on us humans is by picking up a copy of Atomic Habits by James Clear.
But why all this habit talk when discussing hunger?
Let me shed some light by exposing a bit about my past habits. When I use to wake up in the morning, besides reaching for my phone, the first thing I did was contemplate what’s for breakfast. Eggs and toast, oat meal with apple and peanut butter. The mind was drooling and so was I. So I automatically cooked breakfast first thing in the morning. Within 30 minutes I was knee deep into breakfast. Unfortunately without fail, about a 20 minutes later I felt off. My stomach was aching and I began to feel sluggish. But for years this was my pattern.
Let’s fast forward. I was working at a GI clinic as a dietetic intern and one of the practices for people with IBS like symptoms was to fast a bit in the morning. Give the GI system a bit more time to rest.
Why not give it a try
Wow! No stomach ache an hour into my morning. More energy, this was awesome. Now I have a new routine. Wake up, drink some water. What some time, then drink some kombucha. Wait some time, then drink some coffee. Finally get to my first meal, which by this time, may or may not resemble breakfast.
But for years this never occurred to me. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. My dad always ate breakfast when he woke up. Teachers and parents drilled you about your morning nutrition. Maybe this is why my habit formed.
But I can tell you one thing, I wasn’t eating because I was hungry!
Intuitive eating is listening to your body. This may or may not work for everybody. It’s important to know, nutrition is typically not white or black, right or wrong. We each work differently so the personal trainer pushing his body to put on muscle may never skip a meal, even if it hurts his stomach. And that is okay because the individual has a goal and is doing what needs to be done. But, if you find yourself without strict eating guidelines or routine I challenge you to figure out if you are eating because you are hungry or because its habitual.
Wait extra time between meals. Skip that snack. have more water or some tea. See how long you can last and look for that actual feeling of hunger. This can be a game changer for how much and how often you eat.