Is a marked decrease in apetite normal?

[ovenfried]

I'm in my 7th week of SBD (starting from day one of P1) and I have to say that I just really don't want to eat much....my apetite is just way down. I do get hungry, and I do eat, but honestly I could just snack on veggies here and there all day and be fine. I'm concerned that my body will start storing up fat again. My meat consumption is way down, and so is my grain consumption. But the foods I'm eating are packed with nutrients.

Should I make myself eat three square meals per day? Or just kind of go with what my body is telling me it wants? I do also take a multivitamin and flax seed oil daily. I read that taking multivitamins can make one not as hungry.

Thanks!!

Amy

[RedRox]

It's most often a sign of ketosis in P1, but kind of unusual for someone that far along in P2 as you start to reintroduce the healthy carb sources and include more fruit and starches. Snacks do become "optional" in P2, so you can focus on 3 healthy balanced meals if that's what seems to be working for you at the moment.

What does a typical daily menu look like and are your exercising at all?

[ovenfried]

Typical menu....

Breakfast...2 eggs with sauteed mushrooms, onions, red peppers. Maybe 2 pieces of whole grain bread with Olivio spread.

Or just sauteed asparagus with olive oil and fresh garlic. I eat a lot of asparagus.

Snacks.... sliced cucumber or red pepper with hummus

Lunch ... salad (different veggies) or tuna salad sandwich

Aft snack ... fresh blueberries and raspberries

Dinner ... chicken breast with veggies, OR baked tofu

Sometimes I have fat-free Greek yogurt with fruit for snack after dinner if I'm in the mood.

I use only liquid Stevia sweetener in my tea/coffee in the morning. I take a plain multivitamin and flax oil in the am.

Exercise: I've slacked off during the past week, but typically 20-40 minutes per day cardio (cycling or interval running). Usually incorporate hand weights for arm work while I'm walking.

This weekend I've been relaxed on the diet, but still managed to eat damn healthy. Haven't done cardio/weights, but did walk a LOT, long distances. Even after having a full stomach, I'm at my lightest I've been for a looong time. I think it was around 2003 since I was 205.
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Thanks RedRox.

[RedRox]

I'd probably cut back to 1 slice of bread. 30 gms is a serving of starches/grains and most single slices of bread are already more than that and typically in the 40-45 gm range, so you could be getting up to 3 servings of grains there with 2 slices of breads and it's preferable not to bunch them together like that as it raises the overall glycemic load of the meal and bread is already one of the higher GI foods you can eat on P2.

You really kind of just have 1 starch (bread) and 1 fruit serving though and you should be working towards 2-3 of each. You might try adding a starchy veggie like sweet potato or a whole grain in a whole format like quinoa or brown rice with dinner. Maybe some dairy on a more regular basis?

But I don't know why you are losing appetite so much. You could try cutting portions back I suppose, but you might want to count your calories and make sure you are getting enough to support your health and allow you to continue to lose weight without slowing your metabolism down.
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Finally, I'd probably check with your family doctor. Loss of appetite can be a signal for other medical issues and your doctor might have some ideas about that and might be able to provide some additional insights.

[ovenfried]

Thanks, RedRox, for your always thoughtful and knowledgable answers.

Normally when I'm lying in bed I can come up with a couple good ideas about stuff, and last night it occurred to me that it's entirely possible that what I'm experiencing isn't necessarily a lack of apetite, but instead it's a lack of cravings. My eating habits before this were based pretty much on what I was craving. I'd eat if something just sounded good at the time, whether I had eaten recently or not. I felt hungry most of the day and it wasn't abnormal for me to pop a couple handfuls of chocolate into my mouth throughout the workday. (My boss liked to keep big bowls of chocolate all over the place. She doesn't anymore.)
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Now I'm timing out my meals, and it always involves really really good nutritious food. My "emotional hunger" is pretty much gone.

I do need to incorporate more dairy, I admit that. And more fruit.

Thanks again!