| | Water Fasting

Reduced appetite - do I eat more or continue listening to my body?

Male, 6’1, mid 30s, CW 265 GW 200 Second time on IF. Did great precovid and got to my current weight from a high of 300lbs. Was all the way down to 250lbs and then lockdowns and work from home threw me off track and I slowly worked my way back up to 275lbs. Got back on the train about 2 weeks ago. This past week my body has adjusted again and my appetite has been suppressed big time, and I’ve only eaten 1,200-1,600 calories per day. Averaging closer to 1,300. Problem is, I’m just not hungry and feel like I’ve eaten pretty damn good. Should I be eating more anyway to get my calories up? Or just listen to my body? I don’t want to crash and end up binging in a month, but I also don’t want to force myself to eat when not hungry. I’m wondering if it’s partly to do with my significant reduction of carbs and sugar. Here is what I ate today - 11am - 1/2cup quick oats with 2/3cup whole milk, half a scoop of whey protein powder (mixed in) and a mango. - 485 calories 2:30pm - 6oz of chicken breast and 2/3rd cup of peas. - 312 calories 6:00pm - 1/2 cup fresh green beans, 6oz beef (top round roast) with an English muffin and tablespoon of butter. - 481 calories. Total - 1,278 calories. 122g protein, 119g carbs, and 35g fat.

Answer

I’d say keep a journal and mark down your energy level and emotional state.
If they starts to slide (which usually leads to rebound) - try to up the calories.

Might be useful to check your ketones especially morning after the lower calorie days and/or invest into CGM.

Answer

You can add extra virgin olive oil, nuts, and seeds. It’ll hike up your kcal healthy way and you will not feel much difference in volume of your meal. It’s high density foods.

Count your TDEE, and as a male, don’t eat less than 1500kcal a day.

Answer

I’ve never been a calorie counter, and would encourage you to listen to your body.

Appetite is hormonally managed, it’s very complex, but it’s strongly affected by what (and when) you eat. An oversimplification is eat high glycemic index foods, your BG goes up, your insulin goes up, BG gets stored as fat in adipose tissue, and appetite increases to replenish. This is bad, so eat low glycemic index foods (typically whole foods), and your hormones will work better and not cause unnecessary hunger.

If you’re in this for the long haul, I’d encourage you to build good habits. Eat good foods. This will keep your hormones working well. Learn to listen to your hunger. I’m skeptical that most people can measure their food and count calories for decades, in opposition to their senses.