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Not Really Hungry

Eat mindfully. Lose weight. Change your life.

The Core Four

Core Four is the Not Really Hungry weight loss method that focuses on the four main habits needed for lasting weight loss.
The Core Four post provides an overview, and each habit is covered in depth in the other posts.

 

The Core Four

08/10/2019

The Core Four is the Not Really Hungry weight loss method that focuses on the four main habits needed for lasting weight loss.

One definition of the word habit is “an automatic response.” Wouldn’t weight loss be easier if we did what was best for our body automatically? We just have to keep trying and keep practicing until we turn our behaviors into habits.

I started this concept back in 2014 with my Habits of a Loser posts. I was developing a system at that time, but I never finalized anything. My original framework included 15 different habits!

As I was thinking about how to cover the topics in the podcast, I realized that my original framework was just too overwhelming. It was overwhelming even for me, and I wrote the posts! I was making it way too hard, and it was preventing me from really committing.

Planning the podcast helped me realize that I needed to simplify. I needed to pick the TOP habits and focus on those instead of trying to change every single thing at once. Hence, The Core Four was born. The other habits are still important of course, but they all support The Core Four in some way.

Core Four

Habit 1 – Handle Your Hunger

To truly handle your hunger, just stop eating when you’re not really hungry. Simple, right? Not so much.

We eat for so many reasons and most of them are not physical hunger. We eat when we are stressed, sad, mad, tired, bored, lonely, anxious… the list goes on and on. But the common theme is that we are using food to escape. We don’t want to feel those emotions so we eat to distract or numb ourselves. Sometimes we even eat just because we need to relax or decompress. Eating gives us an excuse to stop and sit for a few minutes.

Learning to handle your hunger will be a process. There will be experimenting and stumbling along away. This is normal. Repeat after me. It is normal to struggle as you try to change. It doesn’t mean that you can’t do it.

This habit is the most important and the most challenging, but it’s worth the effort! Once you get control over your hunger, it is totally empowering. YOU are in charge, not your hunger or your emotions.

To dig deeper into this habit, just check out the Handle Your Hunger post or listen to podcast episode 3.

Habit 2 – Plan & Reflect

Plan and reflect is the second habit in The Core Four. Planning gives you a road map to follow, and reflecting helps you assess how much you enjoyed your trip! They are both important and work together to help you succeed.

I know that planning doesn’t come naturally to everyone, and not everyone enjoys it (gasp!), but hopefully I can help you see the benefits. For me, planning what I will eat removes stress from my life. It takes away decision drama and eliminates impulse eating. Planning helps me focus and gives me a way to hold myself accountable. It also saves me time and money!

The key items to remember about this habit:

  • Planning should be fast. Don’t overthink it.
  • Keep your plans simple and realistic.
  • Reflecting doesn’t have to be negative.
  • Use your reflecting to improve, not to berate.

In order to streamline the process of planning and reflecting, I created The Core Four Planner! It gives you a format to follow for a weekly plan, daily plans, daily reflections, and weekly reflections.

To dive deeper into reflection, check out the Progress Not Perfection Journal. There are 60 different thought provoking questions provided, or you can create your own topics. The journal includes 100 reflection pages for you to explore the fears and challenges that are holding you back.

For more details on this habit, check out the Plan & Reflect post.

Habit 3 – Drink Water

Is this one of the most boring suggestions ever? I know it sounds SO rudimentary, but our bodies NEED water. Have you ever heard of any healthy eating plan that didn’t recommend drinking water? Probably not.

The most important thing to know is that water is necessary to burn fat! If you want to lose weight, burning fat should be a top priority. Water also gives us more energy, helps with digestion, and helps our skin look better. You can read the Drink Water post for all the details, but those are the key points.

Aim to get about 8 glasses (64 ounces) per day. This can vary depending on the person or circumstances, but you can use your urine color as a guide. You want it to be pale yellow. Clear means you are over hydrated and dark means you are dehydrated.

If drinking water is hard for you, really examine what you think about water. Do you think it’s boring and bland? Try telling yourself it’s refreshing and nurturing instead. You might feel silly at first, but our thoughts are powerful. It really makes a difference what we tell ourselves.

Habit 4 – Sleep More

Most of us love sleep and never get enough of it! Our lives are so busy and we always seem to be over scheduled and overwhelmed. We need AT LEAST 7 hours of sleep, but many of us barely get 6 and would do better with 8 or 9. Sleep is important to our overall health, and we can’t keep running on fumes.

When we aren’t getting enough sleep, our metabolism and hormones get all messed up. As the hunger hormones get off balance, your body makes you feel like you need to eat AND makes it harder for you to know when you are full. Awesome, right? Your stress hormone is also elevated when you don’t get enough sleep which also causes an increased appetite in some people.

On top of the hormone imbalance, lack of sleep dulls activity in the part of the brain responsible for decision making. So your brain literally isn’t working like it should when you are sleep deprived. When you are tired, your cravings will be worse because your body is craving energy. Your resistance to those cravings is weakened due to your sluggish brain.

To dive into this topic even more, read the Sleep More post. And then go to bed! We all have plenty of reasons (or excuses), but we really need to make sleep a priority to live our best lives.

SUMMARY

Now that you know the basic premise of The Core Four, it’s time to get to work. Make a simple plan for tomorrow and stick to it. As you follow your plan, think about WHY you are eating and question if you are really hungry before you eat. Also strive to drink some water and get more sleep. That’s it!

If you want to learn more, read the full posts on each of the Core Four habits. If you want structure, consider purchasing The Core Four Meal Planner or the Progress Not Perfection Journal. If you want support, join the Not Really Hungry Community on Facebook. You can do this. I’m here to help!

Filed Under: Core Four, Habits of a Loser Tagged With: #corefour, #habits

Change Your Life with a Daily Plan

02/22/2020

Back in my blogging days before I had my son, I used to create and share weekly meal plans. These plans showed what I was going to eat for EVERY meal and snack for all 7 days. Every week I complained about how hard it was. I also raved about how it saved me stress throughout the week but again complained that it was hard to stick to. I wonder why no one else ever wanted to do this meal planning thing with me?

What I’ve learned over the past year is that it doesn’t have to be hard AT ALL! The reason it felt hard was because I was trying to plan 49 different things (between meals & snacks) as well as figuring out all the points values and hoping nothing would change. Imagine me rolling on the floor laughing right now. THINGS ALWAYS CHANGE.

Now my weekly plans are more general. I list ideas of what I’ll eat and what I need to shop for, but I don’t get specific and commit to anything until the day before. Now my weekly plan is more of a guideline and my daily plan is what I commit to.

After my long hiatus with weight loss, I couldn’t even create a weekly plan. It was too much. When I restarted in May of 2019, I was focused entirely on daily plans. I did that for a long time and found lots of success on the scale by just making and following a daily plan. Then as I built more confidence, I moved into a new way to plan a little more in advance with my new version of a weekly plan.

When I followed Weight Watchers in 2009-2010, I was the queen of tracking. I was SO committed that not a single bite went in my mouth that wasn’t written down. Until the minute I slipped up and went over my points. Then it was an eating frenzy and NOTHING was written down.

I would feel like a failure and then sabotage myself. My inner voices loved these moments. Bingy Becky would encourage me to just eat and eat because she knew that tomorrow we’d be strict and deprived again. Hungry Helen would tell me I should keep eating because she was tired of being hungry and unsatisfied. Negative Nancy would say that I shouldn’t even bother trying because I’d already blown my day, and Scared Sarah would believe her and doubt if I’d EVER be able to get myself under control.

So ALL THAT DRAMA was wrapped up in overeating. Even if the overeating was small, it didn’t seem to matter. I liked the data that tracking provide me, but I obsessed over the numbers and didn’t give myself room for change or stumbles.

I’ve realized that my daily plans now are basically a version of pre-tracking like I did back in my WW days. However, my approach and mindset now is completely different. Making (and following) a plan helps me avoid impulse eating and decision drama, but I do not have any off limits foods and I do not feel deprived like I used to.

When you are ready to start, keep is SUPER simple. Write down the food you will eat for the following day. Be realistic and plan food you are willing to eat. Then follow that plan and don’t eat anything you didn’t plan for.

The free Quick Start Guide takes you through starting a daily plan in 4 easy steps.

The biggest lesson I had to learn was to stop making it so complicated. I used to think simple wasn’t good enough or wouldn’t get me results, but that’s not true! Consistently following a simple plan is way more effective than sometimes following a strict or complicated plan.

Now my plans are more realistic. My plans are not based on points or calories. I plan foods that I really want to eat, and I look forward to my meals. (No more dreading my tiny frozen meals!)

I plan for splurges but also don’t allow myself to eat mindlessly anymore. I have reconnected with my body’s hunger signals that I had ignored for years, so now my portions have naturally gotten smaller over time. I don’t mind smaller portions when I am mentally AND physically satisfied.

I do still try to make healthy choices most of the time, but I don’t have any rules about macros or a certain number of servings of one type of food. It all balances out. I never thought I’d be able to feel that way after obsessing so much about points and serving sizes and the number of servings I’d strive to eat per day, etc, but the daily plan helps me with that too. I’ve learned that following my plan combined with following my hunger scale leads to results.

Some people resist planning because they think it is restrictive, but for me it is actually freeing. I am eating foods I love and truly enjoying my meals. I don’t have to think about food all day or struggle with making “good” decisions in the moment because I just follow my plan. I don’t have as many cravings as I used to because nothing is off limits. If a craving comes up, I plan it for a future day. I don’t feel the need to eat everything I want the second I want it. I’m okay with delayed gratification.

It’s funny how we want things more when we make them off limits. I used to have such issues with donuts. I loved them and had a hard time resisting them. I used to get angry when there were free donuts at work because in my mind they were off limits because they were too high in calories/points. But now that I’ve cut out all the extra eating I was doing when I was not really hungry, I don’t stress about the calories of an occasional donut. Now that donuts are not off limits and I know I can have one any time I plan for it, they are not as tempting. I can usually take it or leave it. That is a HUGE change for me, and it just happened gradually the longer I was following my daily plan and working on my thoughts about hunger, deprivation, and satisfaction. I know it might feel impossible in the beginning, but I’m telling you from experience that you can get there.

For me, the daily plan was a game changer. When I combined the daily plan and the hunger scale, it was life changing. I started losing weight without feeling deprived and it didn’t feel hard because I started small. I did not try to overhaul everything at once. I started simply by planning my food and then slowly made improvements (a little at a time) to the type of food and portion sizes I was eating.

What is stopping you from making a daily plan? Is your Negative Nancy inner voice working overtime? What thoughts are holding you back?

  • You don’t need a special planner.
    I started with scrap paper and notes on my phone.
  • You don’t need tons of time.
    It takes two minutes to jot down your food.
    Aren’t you worth two minutes?
  • You don’t need to buy special food.
    Plan your food with what you have on hand right now or plan what you will eat at a restaurant.
  • You don’t need to wait until Monday.
    Start TODAY. There is nothing magical about a new week or a new month. When you’re ready to change your life, start that new life as soon as possible.
  • Stop telling yourself it is too hard.
    We make it hard by thinking negative things. You can’t turn off those thoughts, but you can work on redirecting them to more helpful, positive thoughts. When your brain says “I can’t,” you say “Actually, I CAN!”

YOU CAN DO THIS! I’m here to help! Join the Facebook Community or connect with me through email (tanya {at} notreallyhungry {dot} com), voicemail (330-595-4662), or text message (330-595-4662).

Let me know what questions you have, what you’re struggling with, and what you need help with. I’ve got you! Also be sure to listen to the podcast for more ideas, support, and motivation so you can Eat Mindfully, Lose Weight, and Change Your Life!

Filed Under: Core Four, Meal Planning

Episode 5 – Drink Water & Sleep More

10/05/2019

Episode 5 discusses the final two habits of The Core Four Method – Drink Water and Sleep More.

Topics covered in this episode:

  • Health benefits of drinking water
  • How much water you need
  • Tips for increasing your water intake
  • How sleep affects weight loss
  • Ideas for overcoming sleep issues
  • How caffeine affects sleep
  • SEND ME YOUR QUESTIONS for a Listener Q&A Episode!

Links mentioned during the episode:

  • Reusable water bottles – Visit my Kit store
  • CBTI – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia
  • NPR Life Kit – Sleep Better
  • The Science of Sleep
  • Sleep/Meditation Apps
    Headspace for iOS or Android
    Calm for iOS or Android
  • Sleep Podcast – Sleep With Me for iOS or Android

Ways to Connect:

  • Email: podcast {at} notreallyhungry {dot} com
  • Voicemail: 330-595-4662
    Leave a message and hear your question on a future podcast!

Share the love

If you are enjoying the podcast, please rate and review the show on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. It helps more people find the podcast and lets them know it’s worth checking out. This is the most helpful thing you can do for a Podcaster, so rate all your favorite shows!

Also please share the podcast with your friends. It’s a huge compliment if you enjoyed an episode enough to tell someone else about it!

Filed Under: Core Four, Habits of a Loser, Podcast

Episode 4 – Plan & Reflect

09/16/2019

Episode 4 focuses on the second habit of The Core Four Method – Plan & Reflect.

Topics covered in this episode:

  • Benefits of planning
  • Why we resist planning
  • Weekly Plans
  • Daily Plans
  • Daily Reflections
  • Weekly Reflections
  • 21 Day Challenge

Links mentioned during the episode:

  • The Core Four Meal Planner
  • The Daily Plan Printable
  • The Progress Not Perfection Journal
  • Join the private Facebook group

Ways to Connect:

  • Email: podcast {at} notreallyhungry {dot} com
  • Voicemail: 330-595-4662
    Leave a message and hear your question on a future podcast!

Share the love

If you are enjoying the podcast, please rate and review the show on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. It helps more people find the podcast and lets them know it’s worth checking out. This is the most helpful thing you can do for a Podcaster, so rate all your favorite shows!

Also please share the podcast with your friends. It’s a huge compliment if you enjoyed an episode enough to tell someone else about it!

Filed Under: Core Four, Habits of a Loser, Meal Planning, Podcast

Episode 3 – Handle Your Hunger

08/30/2019

Episode 3 digs into the first habit of The Core Four method – Handle Your Hunger.

Topics covered in this episode:

  • Mindful eating
  • 4 Steps to Handle Your Hunger
  • The Core Four Hunger Scale
  • Why we overeat

Links mentioned during the episode:

  • The Core Four Meal Planner
  • The Progress Not Perfection Journal

Ways to connect:

  • Email: podcast {at} notreallyhungry {dot} com
  • Voicemail: 330-595-4662
    Leave a message and hear your question on a future podcast!
  • Facebook Community

If you are enjoying the podcast, please take a minute to give us a review wherever you get your podcasts. It lets other people know what the show is about and helps more people find the show!

Filed Under: Core Four, Habits of a Loser, Podcast

Episode 2 – The Core Four

08/18/2019

In this episode, I explain the foundations of The Core Four method. You’ll learn how the method was created and how it can help you get started TODAY.

THE CORE FOUR METHOD

  • HABIT 1 – Handle Your Hunger
  • HABIT 2 – Plan & Reflect
  • HABIT 3 – Drink Water
  • HABIT 4 – Sleep More

Links mentioned during the episode

  • The Core Four Meal Planner
  • Not Really Hungry Community on Facebook

Filed Under: Core Four, Habits of a Loser, Podcast

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