Too much food

Hello! I am new to this forum and started OMAD because I spiralled down an unhealthy path (yet again). I'm an undiagnosed binge eater. I always try to eat healthy during the day but then just go crazy at night. I've lost weight countless of times but never manage to maintain, so I wanna see if OMAD is something for me.

I just finished my first week and I have some positive notes but also concerns. Let me start with the positives:
- I have so much more energy than before, it's kinda crazy
- I sleep better, shorter, but better
- I don't feel bloated all the time
- I spend less money

Then my concerns:
- My biggest worry is that I don't eat enough. It's really hard for me to finish big meals. I always feel full after 15 minutes and I'm not a fast eater either. Will my stomach grow over time? I don't want to feel sick every day because I'm forcing myself to clear my plate. Has anyone else ever had this problem?
- Also, because I am a slow eater, is it ok to have a 2h eating window instead of 1?
- Any tips to fight the insane hunger I get at night (it's probs a mix of hunger and cravings)
- How to deal with bad breath? I read that chewing gums or mints are not OK
- I sometimes feel my heartbeat pounding in my chest, harder than normally. It's not going faster or anything and it doesn't hurt, I can just feel it a lot better. Is this anything to worry about?

Side note, I eat keto and decided to only do OMAD on weekdays.
 
I feel like I'm reading my own experience hahahhaha. We have so much in common. On the first half of the day, I feel that I can do it but then my cravings increases at night and my stomach is rumbling.
What I do is I eat 1 fruit like banana just to ease my hunger and sweet tooth. Also, I drink lots of water.
 
Having that extra energy helps. Sleeping better is an added bonus.

In regards to your concerns, it's not easy to get used to when eating one meal a day. If you can't eat your whole meal within the first hour, I don't see it being a problem to extend it to a two hour window.

Omad doesn't, to my knowledge, mean everyone has to follow it the same way. So if it takes longer to eat, extend it to two hours and see how it works for you. Can't hurt to try it out.

As for fighting the hunger and cravings, idk to be honest. I get cravings all the time, you're going to get them and you'll have to do your best to fight them. The only thing that kind of works for me, is drinking a lot of water through the day. Any beverages that have no calories, carbs, etc. Anything that's allowed on omad of course. Water fills me up a bit, so it helps the cravings for me.

For bad breath, make sure to use non alcohol mouth wash. Anything with alcohol will dry your mouth out in turn fueling the symptoms of bad breath. I found non alcoholic kind works really well.

As for your heartbeat, how many beats per min? If it happens a lot, it may be anxiety. But I'm not a doctor, so if it's happening a lot, I'd see a doctor just to be on the safe side.
 
As for fighting the hunger and cravings, idk to be honest. I get cravings all the time, you're going to get them and you'll have to do your best to fight them. The only thing that kind of works for me, is drinking a lot of water through the day. Any beverages that have no calories, carbs, etc. Anything that's allowed on omad of course. Water fills me up a bit, so it helps the cravings for me.

For bad breath, make sure to use non alcohol mouth wash. Anything with alcohol will dry your mouth out in turn fueling the symptoms of bad breath. I found non alcoholic kind works really well.

As for your heartbeat, how many beats per min? If it happens a lot, it may be anxiety. But I'm not a doctor, so if it's happening a lot, I'd see a doctor just to be on the safe side.
- That´s what I thought *sigh* I guess I'll get used to it eventually. The fact that I don't do it on weekends helps I think.
- And I tried the mouth wash today and it worked!
- As for my heartbeat, I'm usually around 60BPM. The bounding pulse doesn't happen often and it only happens at night when I'm in bed. It's definitely not anxiety. If it happens more often, I'll go see a doctor.

Thanks for the tips!
 
I feel like I'm reading my own experience hahahhaha. We have so much in common. On the first half of the day, I feel that I can do it but then my cravings increases at night and my stomach is rumbling.
What I do is I eat 1 fruit like banana just to ease my hunger and sweet tooth. Also, I drink lots of water.
I would love to hear about your experience!

I've thought about doing that, just eating a tiny snack. But based on past experiences I feel like it's a bad idea. If I eat something, I'll want to eat everything, so I think it's best for me to withhold completely.
Somehow the hunger was a bit more bearable today so I'm gonna give it time!
 
Welcome to the site Linley. :)

I'll try to address your questions as well.

My biggest worry is that I don't eat enough. It's really hard for me to finish big meals. I always feel full after 15 minutes and I'm not a fast eater either. Will my stomach grow over time? I don't want to feel sick every day because I'm forcing myself to clear my plate. Has anyone else ever had this problem?

It may be the type of food your eating. What kind of food are you currently eating? I don't think the stomach grows too much, but I could be wrong. What do you currently weigh if you don't mind me asking?

- Also, because I am a slow eater, is it ok to have a 2h eating window instead of 1?

That's a good question. Personally I would stick with the 1 hour window, but if you can't handle that, I don't see there being an issue with increasing it an extra 30 min to an hour. If it works for you, and you're still losing weight, then I say it's worth a shot.

- Any tips to fight the insane hunger I get at night (it's probs a mix of hunger and cravings)

That's a tough one. It's going to be rough starting out. Your body kind of needs to get used to the changes, but you're going to get hungry a lot. But as you go along with the diet, and keep with it, your body will start to adapt to the changes.

- How to deal with bad breath? I read that chewing gums or mints are not OK

I believe there are no calorie mints. You can also look into tic tacs, as I don't think they have calories, but I could be wrong.

- I sometimes feel my heartbeat pounding in my chest, harder than normally. It's not going faster or anything and it doesn't hurt, I can just feel it a lot better. Is this anything to worry about?
- As for my heartbeat, I'm usually around 60BPM. The bounding pulse doesn't happen often and it only happens at night when I'm in bed. It's definitely not anxiety. If it happens more often, I'll go see a doctor.

60BPM should be fine, that's a standard resting heart beat. What is it at when it happens at night though? I would read over this article just to get more of an idea:

 
It may be the type of food your eating. What kind of food are you currently eating? I don't think the stomach grows too much, but I could be wrong. What do you currently weigh if you don't mind me asking?
I usually eat some kind of protein (150-200gr) and the rest is veggies. For example today I had a 3egg omelette with shrimp, a salami type sausage, a cup of bisque and a green smoothie. Yesterday I had chicken thigh with pumpkin and eggplant, some leftover chicken curry and a green smoothie
I basically have a green smoothie with every meal to ensure I get enough veggies in

That's a good question. Personally I would stick with the 1 hour window, but if you can't handle that, I don't see there being an issue with increasing it an extra 30 min to an hour. If it works for you, and you're still losing weight, then I say it's worth a shot.
It's usually the green smoothie I can't finish (or start). If I drink while I'm eating I eat a lot less. Even soup, today I was full after eating just the bisque soup, hadn't even touched my omelette.

60BPM should be fine, that's a standard resting heart beat. What is it at when it happens at night though? I would read over this article just to get more of an idea:

Same around 60bpm. It hasn't happened at all this week, so maybe it was nothing ^^
 
I would love to hear about your experience!

I've thought about doing that, just eating a tiny snack. But based on past experiences I feel like it's a bad idea. If I eat something, I'll want to eat everything, so I think it's best for me to withhold completely.
Somehow the hunger was a bit more bearable today so I'm gonna give it time!
At first, I also tend to eat an entire meal instead of just snacking but because of my busy schedule, it became a lot easier. I tried engaging myself on school works and household chores as distractions. I have noticed that it really works because my cravings only arise when I'm bored and have nothing to do.
 
Hi im new to the forumBeen doing omad for almost a year..eating too much has been such a lifelong habit (im 64), that going omad was, first, just a lark. I rarely ate bkfst or lunch, in a routine way..I figured omad was a cinch. In a way it has been..what it really is doing, is shining a light on my awful relationship with food. My lack of discipline, my actual fear of food, to mention just a couple things. I lost as much as 17 lbs and then have flailed all over...but not giving up. I am seeing that years of wrong thinking, doesnt just go away. Def discipline required, and less food has to be a part of losing weight..but Im working the most on the benefits of omad, even when not losing a lot! ..and I have a lot to lose..I sleep better, bloating is improved a LOT..restroom habits and tummy issue are almost resolved..
I drink la croix, water and coffee w creamer, whenever..and this last year has shown me that sugar wreaks havoc with my body..if you havent listened to Jason Fung, give it a whirl..there is science to back omad. Im determined, but refuse to be held hostage with details. The diet mentality has to go..and learning to unhook from wrong info clears the path..im starting to lose, again, and keep getting healthier with what food really is supposed to be AND seeing when we eat and how often is probably most important..letting our bodies do what they were designed to do
 
- That´s what I thought *sigh* I guess I'll get used to it eventually. The fact that I don't do it on weekends helps I think.
- And I tried the mouth wash today and it worked!
- As for my heartbeat, I'm usually around 60BPM. The bounding pulse doesn't happen often and it only happens at night when I'm in bed. It's definitely not anxiety. If it happens more often, I'll go see a doctor.

Thanks for the tips!
Do you need to take minerals? If you follow KETO and only eat once per day you may want to add pink salt into your water a few times a day or supplement.
 
I started at 64 years old. I'm almost 67 and have been omad for all that time. I'm not as regimented today as I was starting out. Meaning I only ate once and at dinner. Now if the kids are around on the weekend and they have a snack, I probably indulge. But usually I'm omad and one plateful. That's it. Oh I eat a banana just before my one meal a day. It's high in potassium and good fiber.
 
From my experience, I think you just need to allow some additional time for your body to adjust. The human body is quite resilient and will deal with the hand it is dealt to a great degree over an elongated timeline.

As far as not being able to eat large meals? That should not be that big of a deal over time either I suspect. You did manage to get overweight in the first place, so it stands to reason that your body should have little difficulty putting away what it needs to in one sitting.

I suspect another problem you might be having is that with your Keto lifestyle you have to put away a pretty massive quantity of food in order to reach your needed caloric levels. Over time I have learned that with my activity level I need about 1800-2000 per day to achieve weight loss and remain sane. If those 2000 calories had to be filled with chicken breasts, riced cauliflower, etc. then I have to think I would need gargantuan servings to hit my levels. Which would suck. Eating would no longer be fun. More of a chore like doing laundry or vacuuming the living room.

I know just about nothing about Keto, nor do I have any desire to, but there has to be Keto friendly food items out there which are highly caloric and will get you where you need to be. Load up those chicken breast with heavy cheese, ranch dressing, or whatever else you have on hand to pump up those numbers. Are there any Keto deserts out there that are decent and don't taste like chewing on asphalt? This could be another potential option to explore.

As for me, I no longer care about counting carbs, marcos, etc. or adhering to some plan. The inherent beauty of OMAD from my perspective is the freedom to completely ignore these standards.
 
Top