Drink water.

I think weather could be a factor. This time of year, I start craving heavier food ... comfort food.

Have you had blood work done in a while? Thyroid check?

Yes, this happens to me around the holidays when I overindulge. I find a few days of low-carb eating helps to sort of "reset" my body's expectations of calories and especially sugars.

I also occasionally use a MyFitnessPal app on my phone to spend a few days tracking my calories. It's usually insightful how little food I really need in a day. It also allows you to enter in exercise which means you can eat a bit more. But just a bit. An hour-long rigorous walk or exercise class doesn't justify in food intake what I might think it does.

Protein, protein, protein with a big glass of ice water. My favorites are plain yogurt with cut up fruit and honey, a big spoon of peanut butter, hard boiled eggs and Nature Valley peanut butter chocolate protein bars.

Protein and fiber. Water is a stopgap ... It only provides a feeling of satiety for 20 min.

I find that it's hard to stop eating after a period of time when I've had a larger than normal amount of food, especially if there's been a lot of sugary goodness. The change of season hits me hard too. I want mac and cheese, and pot pie, and soup, and I want it now.

Having large meals of lower calorie food seems to help. Lots of veggies with fair bit lean protein like a big salad, or stir fry, or veggie soup work pretty well. Frequent snacking on things like seeds, fruit, or lean protein helps too. I usually try that and gradually reduce the amount.

Yep-- i think a few things can be factors. The weather, hormones, change in activity patterns. For me, the single worst enemy(ies) are the simple, low-glycemic carbs. They spike your blood sugar and make you think you are hungry. I also find that some sugar-free stuff has the same effect on me-- especially sf jello (yes, I admit, I loooove jello!)

I am with Dee.. protein-- even better, protein + fiber! Between meals, grab a handful of almonds, yogurt, or peanut butter on celery (or apple). For meals, keep the simple carbs down and be sure to include a heavy dose of protein and fiber. Veggies are a great way to add volume to a meal. Load your salads with chickpeas, tuna, chicken, nuts, sunflower seeds, cheese. Bean soups are great any time of day! Reach for the low glycemic grains like barley and sprouted wheat. Instead of a sandwich, roll up your meat with cheese and spinach.. or put on a high fiber wasa cracker.

If it is weather/comfort foods you are craving, make a pot of lentil or bean soup-- or chili. You can always grab a small bowl for a snack.

MzzGG, I am overdue for my annual physical. Probably should make that appointment.

Lisa, I have used the Calorie Count web site to track calorie intake and exercise. It also breaks down your food into nutrients and points out what is missing as well as where you are overindulging. I am impressed with how quickly I reach my calorie max for the day. I fould it helpful.

Dee and Mtn -- protein and water. I have some plain old yogurt. I'll shovel some of that in my piehol -- er, mouth.

prettyblue, if only I craved those things! I need to restock the kitchen so I'll try to be strong and forego the cookies for proteins.

Funky, I do love some of the things you list. I just have to get them in the house!

I can't remember being so constantly hungry as I have been for the past few days.

If you can stand kombucha go to the health food store and drink one of those. The fermentation helps me a lot. It's been a surprise how much less hungry I am with one of those a day. A protein shake made in the blender with 1 cup unsweetened almond milk, half a banana, a scoop of protein powder and a few frozen strawberries also helps a lot.

Try to cut back/out on sugar. For me, even a teaspoon starts a cycle. If I cut it out the inflammation really cuts back and so does the hunger.

Great ideas already. One more ---- if you must have some grain with breakfast, do have protein with it. Even with oatmeal, I didn't 'kill' my hungry horrors until I added protein with it --- I usually used non-fat cottage cheese with my hot oatmeal. Other options - whey protein powder (or a non-dairy high protein powder) or even an egg.

No doubt your body is thinking you've just started the bulking up for the upcoming winter season and is fighting for it to continue. Protein is the answer. (And on the smoothie - one of my favs though it often looks garish - is a strawberry one with a handful of raw baby kale with it --- my Vita Mix makes it easy though I'm sure other machines do fine with it.)

Yep, the first thing I thought of when I read your post was thyroid too...for such a tiny little thing it sure can cause some whopping problems!

I have no thyroid problems but I have found that if I am not watching the calories and doing more sitting around I definitely feel hungrier all the time. For example, if i have breakfast and then just putter around the house or sit with the iPad, I am hungrier a lot sooner than if I eat and then go run errands. It always takes a few days to get used to eating less food. Even moderate movement staves off hunger I think. It's always a constant battle for sure!

DedTired, I do the same thing after family gatherings or just having my hubby home and eating more than I'm used. It's takes awhile to get out the habit of eating so much because once I do so, I do feel hungry all the time. I'm experiencing it right now. Hopefully tomorrow after I get Owen off to school and stop by Goodwill to find a pair of jeans and belt to make into a tote and shoulder strap for my cousin Jeannie and get busy making it when I get home I'll be too busy to think of food. Her hubby Jeff winds up carrying the pretty tote I made awhile ago. When I was there a few weeks ago I told him I'd make a more manly one to carry Jeannie's things in to doctor visits in Iowa City. I'll share in another post when I get it finished.
Do you have a project you could start to keep you busy?
My Fitness Pal really helps me when I need to watch my food intake. I need to get back on that too.

I, too, have to "wean" myself into my normal eating habits after a bout of socializing. I find that once the leftovers are out of the house, I can resume my healthier diet. But until they're gone, it's all I can think about!

Boneless skinless chicken breast and preferably organic. Cook fast in 1 teaspoon of butter and sprinkled seasoning. I like Penzeys Greek. The butter browns it.

Keep in the refrigerator at all times and eat when hungry with (choose one): sliced apples, shredded lettuce in corn tortillas, brown rice, fruit, and red peppers spread with a thin layer of hummus.

What helps me, somewhat anyway.

While many people pack on pounds over the holidays, my trouble time is right AFTER holidays or other times when I've done significant socializing and/or entertaining.

I'm by nature quite private and it takes a lot out of me to be in the company of others for hours or days on end. Even if I'm not hosting I feel "on duty" to help out with prep & pick up. At work-related holiday events even when the venues provide food, etc., there's still a sense that I'm "on" taking pains to socialize and engage in appropriate small talk.

So I rarely over indulge, and often lose a couple pounds, over holidays. But after everyone is gone & I'm trying to get back into everyday routines, that is when any leftover treats beckon. And if I've given them away, then I feel justified in going out to buy something - like a big bag of peanut M&M's - to reward myself. And once I start with that, well, it's hard to stop.

For me, sugar is a trigger. You've received a lot of good advice above regarding that. I have to simply stop cold turkey to stem the cravings.

I think we don't often associate GOOD times with family and friends with stress. For me, these times are almost always positive and memorable, but they are stressful nonetheless.

Ded, you are preaching to the choir. You are not alone. When the flood gates open, it's hard to get them closed and get back on track. I can ALWAYS eat.

It will take a day or so to get back to your usual routine. You'll be fine.

My favorite breakfast is a serving of plain oatmeal with a shake of cinnamon, fruit (small apple, peach, 10 cherries, 1/2 cup blueberries, etc), a slice of toast with nuts and seeds bread with 1 tablespoon of peanut butter spread on it, and tea with lime juice. I can eat that and not need anything until lunch, which is usually a large salad with some kind of protein, dressed with vinegar and oil. I have something around 4 or 4:30, usually tea and a boiled egg, piece of flatbread and a small apple, because we don't eat dinner until almost nine o'clock. Eating equal amounts of protein and complex carbs at each meal or snack fills me up and keeps me from unauthorized snacking.

Are you eating fat? Fat helps you feel full for longer. I use a splash of heavy cream in my coffee or tea and it really takes the edge off.

Interesting! I feel like this a lot and it drives me crazy. Taking notes here. I definitely eat too much sugar and refined products. I'm going to change that. I would love not feel uncomfortable (hungry) so often.

Start the day with eggs ONLY. Or eggs with bacon. It will not raise your blood glucose, so you will not have a crash, which causes you to eat.

Avoid the the wheat and sugar at all cost, as the gliaden is stimulating your appetite.

I was eating an egg for bkfst every day, but had to stop as it caused acid reflux. There are long chain proteins in eggs that are hard to digest and can lead to inflammation. It happened to both DH and I, but I have a GF who has no problem with it. So just beware that it may become an issue for you.

I know my comment about drinking water may have sounded flip, but there are many times that I'm looking for something to eat because I think I'm hungry, but when I think about what I'm looking for...something cold and wet like ice cream...I realize that I'm really thirsty.

I agree with making sure you are getting enough protein. Also the suggestion of fiber, which does help you feel full longer. KSWL, I just have to ask, you don't eat till almost 9:00 really?? Do you all then go to bed late? We eat later in the warm weather, mainly because we are doing more outside things and coming in later, but we never eat that late. I'm just curious!

Annie, I've read, somewhere, that often when we think we are hungry it's because we are dehydrated. From my experience I think we are conditioned to think we are hungry though TV ads and even ads we see online. Heck I can just finish eating and if I see an ad about any food, I find I really think I'm still hungry. Which is a good reason to either stay off Pinterest when trying to lose weight or unfollow any boards about food.

And now 19 minutes after writing that I WANT CHOCOLATE!

Preparing for hibernation is my guess. More leafy vegetables and water. Much sadness. ;-)

Protein, protein, protein with a big glass of ice water. My favorites are plain yogurt with cut up fruit and honey...

I agree that protein will fill you up, but the plain yogurt is 53% carbohydrates, let alone the added carbs from the fruit and honey. A lot of people mentally classify "dairy" as protein, and while they offer a complete protein, depending on the form, they may or may not be a high sugar load as well. Heavy cream is all fat, skim milk is 53% carbs, part skim mozzarella cheese is 4% carbs, creamed cottage cheese is 13% carbs.

Better to have a hunk of cheese and a piece of fruit, or a handful of walnuts.

You're having a good time socializing with friends and eating a bunch of yummy food. The party is over but your brain is saying, "No it's not!" Your brain has associated good times = eating more.

So it's time to go into "machine" mode and ignore the hunger pangs. Make sure you are getting your proper nutrition and be mindful about everything you put into your mouth and resist overindulging. After awhile, the constant hunger will subside.

Never mind :)

Annie, I don't know what kind of yogurt you eat, but plain non-fat Greek yogurt has 18 grams of protein and 7 grams of carbs in only 100 calories. It's a good source of protein and is very satisfying.

Nutritional data for plain non fat yogurt

olychick, I generally don't eat yogurt unless I'm on antibiotics....

From here and from here ...19 g carbs to 14 g protein for plain nonfat yogurt

From here ...21 g carbs to 12 g protein for plain nonfat greek yogurt

Is it that some add sweeteners instead of sugar? Maybe this helps explain it. Or it may be that the source is old...looks like some of the greek yogurt makers are working to boost the percentage of protein in their product. So I guess it is brand specific, some better than others. It just expands the point that not all dairy products are alike in terms of carb load to include specific brands as well.

Some yogurt brands have tried to sneak on the healthy band wagon, other brands are truly healthy. Just like everything else, you have to check the labels. Plus good yogurt has live cultures which are hard to find in food. I still stand by my statement that good yogurt, some fruit and a drizzle of honey is a tasty, healthy, filling snack.

Dedtired, there are so many good recommendations. Are you active? Seems I recall that you are (walking maybe)? Keep that up if you can. I don't have much to add, except my own experience lately in training for a half marathon has made me more mindful of what I eat out of necessity. And after some of our long Saturday runs in cooler weather - oh my! Last Saturday morning after 7.5 miles, I wanted to eat ANYTHING!! Came home and ate a bowl of Rice Chex with fresh peaches and almond milk. Then later for lunch I had a salad with grilled chicken. I have to fuel up before those long runs, no dairy though because it can be upsestting to my gut & tummy, so yogurt has been off my diet for a while. Before I run a long distance I eat a small bowl of plain oatmeal with cinnamon & a small spoon of brown sugar plus a half bagel with peanut butter. So far this has been enough fuel, but I carry a supplement just in case (one of the energy gels which has amino acids, electrolytes & carbs).

Hydration is very key, and you have to stay hydrated every day. The urge to pee eventually goes away once your body becomes accustomed to your intake of more water. I think this has been posted before but you should be taking in half your body weight in ounces per day. More if you are very active. I put away a lot of water and only drink a couple of cups of coffee in the mornings (half-caff).

Tina, yes we really do eat that late :-) and we go to bed around midnight. But it isn't a large meal, either. When our kids were young they ate earlier because of bedtime and homework schedules.

I don't eat many (if any) dairy products that haven't been used in the preparation of other foods except butter, occasionally. No milk, cheese, yoghurt, etc.

Hey, thanks for all the additional comments and commiserations. Admittedly, my eating habits are pretty horrific at times. I went for a long walk today and then to the grocery for some much needed items. I bought a bag of air popped chips that had four servings, according to the nutrition panel. I ate the entire thing. Sigh. Maybe I will just call it dinner.

Seriously, I will try some of these suggestions. I really appreciate all the responses.