It is very common to hear in the plant-based community that you can eat as much food as you want without any consequence. Hannah and I agree to a certain point because we promote intuitive eating, which basically just means eat when you’re hungry till you’re full.
There are plenty of people who when they switch to a plant-based diet and eat intuitively, they get immediate results and lose weight effortlessly. We also understand that everyone is unique with a unique history and this can really make a difference.
I come from a history of binge eating and would literally force feed myself at times when I would binge. This caused my stomach to stretch and become quite large. Consequently I’ve has always been a big eater.
This lead me to binge eating on a continual basis (even when I went plant-based) and caused me to feel lethargic and tired after meals. I felt tired because I was eating till I was so stuffed and was not listening to my body. After slightly reducing my portion sizes, I noticed that I felt quite satiated when I ate smaller meals and wasn’t forcing myself like I was before.
I also noticed a persistent food baby that would never go away. When I ate more intuitively, I noticed a flatter stomach and better digestion.
Hara Hachi Bu to Conquer Binge Eating
In Japan, there is a practice called ‘hara hachi bu’, which means eat until you are 80% full. Many of us are so used to force feeding ourselves till we are stuffed and even if we are eating a plant-based diet, it can still be causing weight gain because our satiety and hunger mechanism is broken.
Here is how you practice hara hachi bu. Eat half of what you normally would eat and check in with yourself. Are you still hungry? Can you eat some more? If you are then eat some more.
Once you begin to feel some stomach pressure, you are at the 80% full stage.
It may take 15-20 meals in order to reset the muscle memory of your stomach to get used to eating less food.
A lot of times when people think they are eating till they are satiated, they are really eating until they are stuffed. You will have to trust this process as it may be scary at first but over time you will become more in tune with exactly how much your body needs.
Be mindful of how much you are eating. Check in with yourself to see whether or not you’re binge eating. This isn’t necessary for everyone but if you are used to stuffing yourself then this is a great practice for you.
If you have any questions, leave them below.
Hey guys!
First off, thank you so much for your videos and blogs. It’s so great to have resources that aren’t centered around some gimmick.
I’ve transitioned to a plant-based diet and it’s been about two months of feeling healthier and less anxious about every tiny calorie that goes in my mouth. So, big win! My problem is, even with a carb heavy diet and eating til I’m full, I’m hungry every two or three hours. Not such a big problem, but I have three small children and it’s hard to eat so often. I eat a good amount of fat every day, like an avocado, so I don’t think that’s it. Should I try to eat a little more at meals to keep me fuller longer even though that’s a little counter intuitive, or is there something I’m missing?
hey Courtney
maybe prepare yourself some small snacks that you can munch on between meals, I personally eat a small handful of nuts every now and then, Hannah makes raw vegan donut holes that I will grab every now and then
snacks are great
you can try eating a bit more at meal time, just have an extra 100-150 calories or so and see how you feel
are you looking to lose weight right now?
I am trying to lose about fifteen pounds, and that number keeps going down just from my diet, since I’m not exercising on a regular basis. I’m also breastfeeding my six month old, and I know that makes me hungrier, though I’ve never ate this much in my life, lol. Maybe that and eating calorie dilute foods is what has me munching all day?
I did raw till 4, but now started to eat also grain products, but I’m deadly afraid of gaining weight. I’m suffering from an eating disorder and I also decided to walk less, because I was’t gaining weight and i’m underweight. But I’m afraid that if I will gain weight, I will gain more only because of eating the grain products..
I also need to eat enough calories, because otherwise I will lose again (the same with raw till 4 is that I need to throw my food down my throat and can’t eat until i’m full. But I’m afraid that I will need less calories because of using different products like oats, muesli, beans, sometimes bread and crackers (all as oilfree and sugarfree als possible)
Hi Derek!
I started to go vegan almost 3 months ago and stumbled upon your and Hannah’s videos about a month ago. After this I have turned to an HCLF lifestyle, with little to none processed foods (I’m from Argentina, where vegan processed food is scarce and mostly very expensive when found).
My question has to do with under-eating. I have started to track what I eat with CRON-O-Meter, to check if I was getting all the nutrients and balance between calories burned and consumed. However, some days I feel I can’t eat all the calories required (even if I am aiming for a lower amount of calories to loose weight). Today I have barely hit the 1K calorie mark, when I should at least be consuming 1500! Any ideas? Should I be forcing myself to eat that minimum amount required? Is there maybe something wrong I should have checked out?
Thanks!
Jenny : )
I start starch whole plant based food diet about week ago, and my calorie intake dropped from average 2000 to 2200 to 1500 1600 to 1700 .I feel amazing! I dont have that watery body anymore witch tend to make me look fat (even If Im not) I feel really funny because Im walking more and feel that I have energy to walk more. The only concern I have is do I take enough calories?
Sometimes I feel hungry but my tummy still processing food and i can feel it especially when I eat potatoes. (years of not consuming and avoiding potatoes make me probably intolerant) From earlier experience I know that when Im eating while im still proccesing food that often make me feel sick. So Im avoiding eating after eating. Also whenever I eat and however I eat pretty much all my life I tend to eat and have food craving from 7 to 10 pm (dont know why but i feel alive and the best part of my day was always period between 6 to 11. ) So If Im hungry after 10 Im not eating, because my partner is stopping me from that journey. Since my fat intake dropped to less than 10 procent (no added fat) can I eat hour before sleep?
Best regards Marija
Hey Derek and Hannah,
Wanted to ask a quick qu about overeating-
I have recently stopped taking the contraceptive pill. I had been on the pill since age 15- I’m now 26. I remember being quite hungry while taking the combined pill in my teens, although this may have had a bit to do with growing. I was never overweight, but bigger than I wanted to be (or the media made me feel like I should be..) with a BMI 22-24 over the years. I switched to progesterone only, which didn’t seem to affect my appetite and I was never overly hungry, but over time I got sick of the acne it caused. I eventually switched back to the combined pill to improve my skin, but again found myself insatiably hungry and it affected my mood. I have stopped taking anything and am happy that my skin has cleared up. However, I struggle with compulsive eating at a certain point in my cycle. For two weeks at the beginning of my cycle, I am able to eat a whole food diet (I don’t restrict any food groups, but I eat a lot of fruit and veg and cook everything myself from scratch) with the odd treat, and feel like I enjoy my food and can stop when I am full. I am frustrated that as my period approaches I crave junk food. I try to be kind to myself as it is that time of the month and allow a little treat, but I am never sated and always overindulge, leading me to feel guilty and inclined to try and be too healthy as soon as my period is over, which I fear sets me up for more binges during my period. I have a balanced approach to eating most of the time, I just don’t know if there is a way to prevent the variation in appetite or to manage it more smoothly and stay healthy for the other two weeks each month! The cravings go as soon as my period comes..
Thanks and best wishes
Jem