Tips to Minimize Hunger in a Calorie Deficit
If you’ve ever tried to lose weight, you’ve probably noticed that hunger, true, stomach-rumbling, fridge-rummaging hunger can derail even the best-laid plans. And while some hunger is expected in a calorie deficit, experiencing high levels or constant hunger can make it challenging to stick with choices that align with your goals and vision!
This resource outlines some evidence-based, practical strategies to help you feel full and satisfied!
Using Macros to Feel Full in a Calorie Deficit
The type, amount, and balance of macronutrients: protein, fat, and carbohydrates (with a focus on fibre), can impact how full and satisfied you feel after eating (also known as satiety). Paying attention to the amount and type of each macronutrient can help to support fullness and make it easier to eat in a calorie deficit.
Protein: Helps regulate appetite hormones and slows digestion, helping you feel fuller for sooner and longer.
Carbohydrates: There are several types of carbohydrates! To manage hunger, focus on high-fibre carbs, as they digest more slowly, helping you feel full longer and giving you steady energy. Refined or fast-acting carbs break down quickly, which can lead to a quick spike (and drop) in energy and increased hunger soon after.
Fats: slow digestion and enhance meal satisfaction.
Please refer to our “Nutrition 101” resource for a more in-depth refresher on macronutrients. For specific information on each of the macronutrients, please click the hyperlinks above.
Personalizing Satiety: What Works for You?
Everyone’s satiety needs are different! Tuning into your own hunger and fullness cues is a personal journey, and what works for one person may not work for another. Exploring what works best for your body and routine can take time and experimentation! That said, here is a helpful starting guide for macronutrient distribution when working toward fullness in a calorie deficit:
- Protein: About 20–35% of your daily calories
- Fat: About 20–30% of your daily calories
- Carbohydrates: Choose fibre-rich options (like vegetables, whole grains and legumes) to help you feel full and energized
If this is something you’d like to explore more and experiment with, your tracking within the Constant Health app gives us real data to work with!
- Tap into the Progress tab in the app to spot trends in your macronutrient intake.
- Or log into the web portal to review your Analytics page and see your macronutrient distribution over time.
These insights can help you experiment with making small shifts to support fullness.
Other Satiety Strategies
Nutrition is just one part of the hunger puzzle. How, when, and where you eat matters too! Below are some strategies to experiment with to explore your body’s hunger patterns:
1. Meal Timing and Frequency
Going too long without eating might lead to higher levels of hunger and eating past fullness. Getting ahead of your hunger through strategies like proactive snacking (to avoid long gaps in between eating) may allow you to make food choices in line with your goals and vision.
- Scenario: You feel ravenous by dinnertime because you haven't eaten since noon.
- Experiment: Add a proactive snack between noon and dinner.
- Hypothesis: Proactively snacking in the afternoon will reduce hunger at dinner.
- Data collection: On a 1–5 hunger scale, how hungry are you at dinner time with the proactive afternoon snack vs. without?
2. Sight
Eating while distracted (e.g., watching TV or scrolling on your phone) may make it harder to notice when you’re full.
- Scenario: You often eat a second serving at dinner when eating in front of the TV.
- Experiment: Eat at the table without watching TV and evaluate your fullness.
- Hypothesis: Eliminating the visual distraction will help me recognize my fullness and minimize the frequency of having second servings of dinner.
- Data collection: Compare the baseline of having a second helping of dinner while watching TV to helpings without watching TV.
3. Minimize liquid calories
Liquids, even nutritious ones like smoothies, may not be as filling as solid foods for some people. Chewing also plays an important role in helping your body recognize that you've eaten, which can lead to stronger feelings of fullness and reduced hunger. Research also shows that thicker, creamier drinks tend to be more satisfying than thin, watery ones.
- Scenario: You always have a smoothie at breakfast but often feel hungry before lunchtime.
- Experiment: Try a fruit and yogurt bowl with solid toppings to have in place of your smoothie for breakfast with similar macronutrient content.
- Hypothesis: Having a non-liquid meal will reduce hunger prior to lunch.
- Data collection: Compare hunger levels before lunch with your smoothie vs yogurt bowl .
4. Container Weight and Density
Some research suggests that the weight of a container/plate used to serve a meal may influence expected satiety. This has been tested by serving food in a heavy container versus a light container. Those with the heavy container perceived their meal to be more dense, and therefore more filling. Need more data? Here is an experiment to consider:
- Scenario: You often feel unsatisfied after lunch, even though you feel your meal is balanced.
- Experiment: Serve the same lunch on a heavy bowl or plate.
- Hypothesis: The weight of the dish may increase your feeling of fullness.
- Data collection: Satisfaction level (1–5 scale) after eating the same meal in different containers.
Source: Piqueras-Fiszman et al., 2011, “The weight of the container influences expected satiety and sensory experience
Try It Out!
Want to test any of these strategies? Let your dietitian know! Remember: There’s no one “right” way to eat. If something is already working for you (like a smoothie that keeps you full), no need to change it! This is all about building awareness and testing new ideas. The key is to experiment, gather data and develop sustainable habits for long-term success!