Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Guinea Pig

I've been experimenting on myself and have found an interesting trend.

One morning last week, I overslept and had to run out the door. (I had to be in to work early that day.) I grabbed a string cheese and called it breakfast. Needless to say, by 11:00, I was starving and ready to chew my arm off and I wasn't going to have a chance for a lunch break until 2:00.
I had an Atkins shake in the office fridge leftover from my last fill (I normally don't drink protein shakes except after fills) so I drank it. 2:00 came and went, and I didn't get hungry. I finally went to lunch at 3:00.

I usually work 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM, so I eat my breakfast around 10:00. Every day I am hungry by 1:00 but I don't get a lunch break until 4:00. It doesn't matter what I have for breakfast - eggs and bacon, leftovers, it doesn't matter what it is - I'm hungry by 1:00. I usually have a snack -
cheese and berries, a spoonful of chicken salad, or nuts, or before I started Atkins, a fiber bar. By 4:00, I'm hungry again.

I liked the way the Atkins shake satisfied me so much that I've been experimenting. I've been having a shake for my 1:00 snack, and it keeps me satisfied well past 4:00. They're 160 calories and the chocolate ones taste great. I know we're not supposed to do liquid calories, but the
calories are around the same as any other snack I would have and it keeps me satisfied just as long or longer.

Yesterday I had a protein-rich, very low carb breakfast (eggs and veggie sausage). I was hungry by 1:00, had my shake, and wasn't hungry for lunch until nearly 5:00 PM. Today I ate a more "carby" lower protein breakfast (a low-carb tortilla with 2 reduced fat cheese sticks). Same - hungry at 1:00, had a shake, lunch at 4:00).

This may or may not be something I stick with. I suppose I'll see what the scale says at the end of the week. I just thought it was interesting because I thought that the rule was always that solid food is more satisfying than liquids.

Any thoughts?

6 comments:

Ms. M said...

I think its an interesting discovery too. When I had the last dental work done and had to blend my foods they didn't satisfy me nearly the same way they did in their whole form. Can't wait to hear how the scale responds at the end of the week. :)

Heather said...

I still do shakes for snacks or sometimes for breakfast. I feel that if they keep me full what does it matter if it is liquid?

Cat said...

I think each person is different and while the majority of us may want the solid calories to cause the "full" feeling, others may be just fine with the liquid calories and the protein you're getting from them. I say talk to your nutritionist if you're very concerned, but I think doing what works for your body is what's going to be livable for a lifetime. : )

tagyourit said...

They keep me full longer too. I use them for my breakfast and it really does stick with you.

Beth Ann said...

Shakes don't keep me full, but I SO wish they did. I say keep it up! Whatever you can do to make things work for you should continue as far as I'm concerned. :)

Shrinking Mommy said...

If it is working..... Shakes definitely keep me more full than a cheese stick.

How was your haircut???????