I've been on a 1300 calorie diet for a couple weeks now and eating every 2-3 hours. But sometimes when hour three comes, I'm just not that hungry. Or if I have a lot of coffee in the morning, my appetite is surpressed and I'll be lucky break 1000 calories. Should I force myself to eat when I'm not hungry to keep up my metabolism and to stay clear of "starvation mode"?

It is extremely unhealthy to eat less than 1200 calories per day, regardless of your size, 1200 is the recommended minimal caalorie intake for all people. Your current age, height, weight, and gender should dictate how many calories you consume daily. If you have not done this already, you can google "bmr calculator" and determine a baseline for your caloric needs. Factoring in activity levels may increase that number.

My recommendation is that you should continue to eat every 2-3 hours whether you are hungry or not, but make sure that you are eating enough calories. You are right on the mark in that this will keep your metablosim going and help to mainitain stabile blood glucose levels. The fact that you don't feel hungry is possibly an accomplishment.

Now there is one other consideration... it is possible that you are not feeling hungry because you are already in starvation mode. If you are not eating enough calories, your body will attempt to shut down the metabolic function. Also, as a protective mechanism, feelings of hunger diminish or disappear, and you may experience a false sense of euphoria.

You don't need to eat much if you are eating every 2 hours. I do recommend that you have 5 or 6 equal meals throughout the day, but you may prefer to have 3 larger meals and 2-3 snacks spaced in between them. Its also recommended that you try to balance your carb/protein/fat ratios - try targeting 50% carb, 25% protein, and 25% fat.

Good luck!

Great, thank you! I think I'll go grab a snack :)

the world health organization says the minimum caloires for good health is 2100 caloires and that at 900 caloires the body is dying. if you try to reduce to lose weight it will only backfire.

RR oh the lack of hunger could be you training your body not to send hunger signals due to you not eating enough and it could also be a sign of slower metabolism.