If you finish a meal and think, “Why am I still feeling hungry?” please know there’s nothing wrong with you. This is completely normal, and there are several logical reasons why you’re hungry again soon after eating. 

In today’s society, that’s hypervigilant of health; we often forget to prioritise satisfaction in meals and snacks. You might also know about physical hunger, but what about the other types of hunger? Or perhaps your hunger and fullness hormones are out of whack! 

In this article, we’ll dive into the difference between satisfaction and fullness, intuitive eating, and how you can stop feeling so hungry after eating. 

What is fullness? 

Fullness is a state of feeling filled completely or at capacity. We can translate this definition to eating when you think about your stomach. It has a specific capacity, right? 

When we hit it, we’re arguably full. 

But even if you have this sensation of fullness, it doesn’t stop you from still feeling hungry. 

What is satisfaction? 

According to The Cambridge Dictionary, satisfaction is a “pleasant feeling that you get when you receive something you want or when you have done something you want to do.” 

We can apply this definition to food satisfaction, which is the pleasant feeling we get when we eat something we want. One of the biggest reasons we still feel hungry after eating a meal is that it wasn’t satisfying or we didn’t actually order what we wanted. 

Why do you feel full but still hungry? 

I remember a client telling me they went out for breakfast and wanted bacon with their poached eggs. But they were trying to lose weight, so they ordered mushrooms and spinach instead. On their way home they stopped at the supermarket, bought bacon and ate it all when they got home – feeling so overly full it was NOT satisfying. 

We may satisfy our physical hunger and feel at capacity if we’re still thinking about and looking for other food because we haven’t satisfied our mental or taste hunger. I know it’s easier said than done but I can’t overstate how important it is to order what you feel like. 

Another classic example is when you’re trying to eat healthy or on a diet. You make a big bowl of salad for lunch – lettuce, tomato, cucumber, avocado, chickpeas, and grilled chicken. 

Sure, you’ll feel psychically full after eating it, but if you don’t add the flavour, texture, and carbs like a dressing, crunchy elements (fried shallots, broken corn chips), and filling fats like cheese or nuts and seeds, it’s normal to be hungry again an hour later. 

Experiment – If you resonate with this example, I have an experiment for you. 

Prioritise flavour and texture and add protein, carbs, fat and fibre to each meal. See if it changes how quickly you feel hungry again after eating. 

Need help coming up with satisfying and filling meal ideas? Join My Spring Spritz Program 

The role of our hunger and fullness hormones 

I can’t write an article about why you feel hungry after eating without discussing your hunger hormones – Ghrelin (initiates hunger) and Leptin (initiates fullness). 

Ghrelin

Ghrelin is produced in the stomach and signals the brain when you’re hungry. Ghrelin levels rise before a meal and fall after eating. Factors that can increase your ghrelin levels and contribute to feeling like you’re always hungry include dieting, irregular sleep patterns, high stress, trauma, executive functioning, dopamine response, and more. 

Leptin

Leptin is a hormone produced in fat cells that decreases appetite and feelings of hunger (it signals to the brain when you’ve enough energy stored and feel full). But we can become resistant to leptin, which means we struggle to feel full. 

There isn’t enough research to show exactly how this happens, but in my experience, the deprivation and restrictive nature of dieting play a role. We think we can outsmart our bodies, but we can’t – I’ve outlined why we can’t stick to a diet here. 

Eating for fullness vs. satisfaction 

One of the biggest problems with diets and why they don’t work long-term is because they focus on fullness rather than satisfaction. Fullness is the physical side of satiation or satiety, while satisfaction is the mental side of satiety. If you want to feel satiated, you must feel full and satisfied. If you feel hungry again after eating, ask yourself if you prioritise your satisfaction. 

This is why I’m so passionate about helping women become intuitive eaters in my Co-Pilot program – it revolves around satisfaction. Once we consider the restrictive and rigid nutrition guidelines and give ourselves permission to honour our satisfaction, we often start to feel fuller quicker and hungry less often. 

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How to make a more filling and satisfying meal 

So, how do you make a satisfying and filling meal? I explain this information in great detail in my self-paced Spring Spritz program, but here’s a sneak peek. 

Protein 

“At the top of the list, when you Google “what foods make you feel full”, you’ll find protein. That’s because protein slows our digestion. 

Fibre 

The next filling component of a meal is fibre. This is why diets always recommend eating fruit and vegetables—they fill you up. The problem is that they’re not satisfying cooking in the “allowed” methods – blanched, boiled, or steamed. 

Carbs

One of the biggest problems I see is people avoiding carbs. This is a problem becuase our brain needs carbs to function. If you don’t have carbs, you’re not addressing your mental hunger. Which means you’ll be craving and searching for carbs soon after. Aim for a source of lower GI carbs at most meals – but feel free to include higher GI carbs if you prefer the taste of them – if you add protein, fibre, and fats to the meal, it will lower the overall GI of the meal. 

Flavour/Fats 

Another huge red flag is when I hear what clients eat if they fear fats. I get it. Fats have been demonised for decades, but here’s the thing: Fat makes a meal more filling (it helps slow down digestion) and satisfying (it tastes delicious). Not to mention, fats are essential to absorb fat-soluble vitamins A,E,D, and K. 

Fun/Texture 

We need to think beyond taste and flavour to make a truly satisfying meal. In Intuitive eating, we talk about a concept of sensory-specific satiety. When we eat a food that ticks a certain sensory aspect we’re craving, e.g., smell, appearance, or texture, we’ll feel satisfied and eat less food.

Curious about what working together looks like? Get in touch to find out more.