All I Wanna Do Is Eat At NIGHT!!!!

eeelizabeth2012

I do fine all day. I eat high protein breakfast. High protein morning snack. Lunch. Snack. Supper. As soon as I am done supper... I WANT FOOD! I usually cave and eating something else by bedtime. I am not hungry. But I am craving something!!! Sometimes sweets, sometimes carbs. I researched this and apparently we do this for evolutionary reasons. But... it is sabotaging things for me. Any suggestions? Ideas? Do you have this issue?

auddii

If you know you want to eat at night, try saving some calories for later and plan a snack at night. Make sure it fits your macros, but sweets/carbs aren't bad if you're getting enough proteins and fats as well. I love ending the night with a serving of gelato or ice cream, and it really seems to wrap up my cravings well; you just have to make sure to portion it out and leave room in the daily calories.

Also, personally, I am usually hungrier at night, so I eat a small breakfast, small lunch, small afternoon snack, and then I eat about 40% of my daily calories after 6pm. Just find what works for you; meal timing doesn't matter.

Goaldn2015

I love popcorn made on the stove with coconut oil,but by night I don't have the numbers .. I think its just fine tweaking every day we will find what works for us.

sunshyncatra

I save 200-450 calories so I can have a night snack. In the beginning, I would log those calories ahead of time so they would be there. My favorite night snack choices are air popped popcorn with butter, chocolate, and/or a cocktail

Katiebear_81

I also save some calories for night - some wine and a sweet snack (usually fruit or chocolate) are things I love. If I've saved enough calories for a banana and some wine, my boyfriend's chips and dip don't look so tempting!

crazykatlady_

auddii wrote: »

If you know you want to eat at night, try saving some calories for later and plan a snack at night. Make sure it fits your macros, but sweets/carbs aren't bad if you're getting enough proteins and fats as well. I love ending the night with a serving of gelato or ice cream, and it really seems to wrap up my cravings well; you just have to make sure to portion it out and leave room in the daily calories.

Also, personally, I am usually hungrier at night, so I eat a small breakfast, small lunch, small afternoon snack, and then I eat about 40% of my daily calories after 6pm. Just find what works for you; meal timing doesn't matter.

^This! I am like you. I am fine during the day, but night time rolls around and I just want food. Sometimes I am genuinely hungry, but often not. So, I save some calories for night time, and I try to eat a salad (but I put something in it that makes me feel a little indulgent. Like something crunchy, some nuts, a few croutons, some sunflower seeds.). More often than not, this works for me and I still stay in my calorie budget.

bluesarah13

I am the same way. I'm good all day and then I get home, have dinner and want to snack ALL evening. Like you, I'm not hungry. Mostly just bored. So, I taught myself to knit. This keeps my hands distracted as I watch tv. For me, it's all mental. If I'm distracted, I won't think about snacking.

AshleyRKnutson

When I get like that, I grab a couple spoons of peanut butter and a few multigrain crackers. It always does the trick for me...and my husband does it too. We like the honey peanut butter, so that helps kick the "sweet" craving.

lemur_lady

I have the same issue! I usually allocate anywhere from 200-400 calories for an evening snack but its still so hard sometimes not to go crazy. I think its because I get bored in the evenings so I snack to give me something to do.
I find putting on my headphones and listening to some good music can help keep my mind off of it.

eeelizabeth2012

Thanks everyone! I used to do the peanut butter thing. I got into a routine of having a piece of fruit as a dessert but then later on I would want something more. My issue with saving calories is I only have 1200 per day as it is. I will keep at it though! Thank you.

w0den

Go to bed early! If I can't distract myself from the craving, I just get in bed

Chain_Ring

LOL @ "evolutionary reasons"................No I think you do it because you're hungry.

SwankyTomato

eeelizabeth2012 wrote: »

Thanks everyone! I used to do the peanut butter thing. I got into a routine of having a piece of fruit as a dessert but then later on I would want something more. My issue with saving calories is I only have 1200 per day as it is. I will keep at it though! Thank you.

I bumped my calories to 1450 because it is a more realistic goal for the day for me and is still a calorie deficit diet.

1200 is the very bare minimum.

Figure out your TDEE. That will help with what your caloric needs really are. My guess is that 1200 is really not a suitable level for you.

http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

eeelizabeth2012

Pedal_Pusher2point0 wrote: »

LOL @ "evolutionary reasons"................No I think you do it because you're hungry.

No. It is not hunger. I have no problem eating if I am hungry. It is the the types of food I am wanting and the specific times. Some literature I found does talk about how we tend to want high energy food at a time when our body is more likely to store it as fat for later on. Others talk about hormones and insulin spikes, etc. I have always been this way. It doesn't matter if I have a big meal or a small meal or a carby meal or a meal that is just protein and veggies. It is not psychological either. It is an uncomfortable feeling in my stomach (not hunger) that seems to only be relieved when I continue to eat. But, yes, sometimes I can trick it with tea or a small snack of some sort.

itsclobberintime

Skip breakfast, eat more later.

eeelizabeth2012

w0den wrote: »

Go to bed early! If I can't distract myself from the craving, I just get in bed

This is a good idea. I really should be getting more sleep anyway

eeelizabeth2012

itsclobberintime wrote: »

Skip breakfast, eat more later.

Is this really a good idea though? I heard breakfast is important for metabolism. And that it should be within the first hour of waking. Also, a high protein breakfast usually lasts me until lunch time before I am hungry again.

meganjcallaghan

eeelizabeth2012 wrote: »

itsclobberintime wrote: »

Skip breakfast, eat more later.

Is this really a good idea though? I heard breakfast is important for metabolism. And that it should be within the first hour of waking. Also, a high protein breakfast usually lasts me until lunch time before I am hungry again.

I can't say for sure, but I think that's bunk. Or maybe just untrue for me. I'm up by 6:30 am and don't generally get hungry or eat until closer to 11 or 12. SOMEtimes as early as 10 depending on convenience and my schedule for the day. It actually makes me feel sick if I eat within the first few hours of waking up. When i log something in my diary as "breakfast" it would probably be more accurate to call it "lunch #1" lol. I do the bulk of my eating (probably around 65% - 70% of my calories) between 8 and 11 pm

itsclobberintime

eeelizabeth2012 wrote: »

itsclobberintime wrote: »

Skip breakfast, eat more later.

Is this really a good idea though? I heard breakfast is important for metabolism. And that it should be within the first hour of waking. Also, a high protein breakfast usually lasts me until lunch time before I am hungry again.

Your metabolism is not affected to any significant degree by meal timing. It is mostly affected by activity.

42carrots

I can get pretty snacky at night too, what I find often works is having a small snack, like some dark chocolate, and then I do an extra thorough teeth brush/floss/mouth wash, more often than not it helps me focus less on wanting to keep snacking so I don't sabotage my clean teeth!

Milenac93

When i get hungry at night I'll brush my teeth so that eating would taste bad and then i sit at my computer and make progress pictures so I can see how much my body has changed so that I'm occupied without wanting to eat to get back to my "before" picture!

arditarose

Don't let it sabotage your deficit then. I prefer to eat two dinners, one around 400-500 calories, and another little meal or dessert anywhere between 200-400 calories every night. On 1600 calories a day, I make it work. Tonight I get toast and peanut butter washed down with my favorite tea. And I've already had scrambled eggs, zucchini, squash, onions, tomatoes. Yum.

sympha01

A lot of people have more interest in food at the end of the day instead of at the beginning. Eat a lighter breakfast and/or a lighter lunch to save calories for the evening. I eat more than half of my daily calories after 7pm every day. I personally do eat a light breakfast and lunch, and focus on getting high quality protein and some carbs and fiber at those times: mostly to fuel my morning workout sesh.

LovenderNurse

Yes I do this too. Actually looked this up and what I found was that it means your body is running low on energy. You can either fuel it with food or recharge it with sleep. If you want to lose weight, try a low calorie snack and go to bed earlier.

KANGOOJUMPS

go for a run

ausiani

Having a disturbed sleep pattern 4-5 hrs average, I often want to eat in early hours of the morning eg 1-4 am. Spoke with my Gp who suggested that it could be related to thyroid problem ( this is all ok) or there is some link between 0CD and overeating particularly at night. As I am a mental health professional, will explore this option.

MustLoveCats21

When I eat at night it's because I'm bored. So my solution would be to keep yourself busy with something that will keep your mind occupied away from food. Take up a hobby?

BoxerBrawler

This is all good advice and all good suggestions. I don't really have much to add. I am an evening snacker as well. For a long time I fought it successfully. But I realized that when I do have a snack or two before bed not only do I sleep better, but I actually feel thinner in the morning. I like to have a bowl of popcorn and some chocolate or some fresh berries with whipped topping. Yup sometimes I'm just craving carbs so I'll have some Better N Peanut Butter on reduced carb/fat bread. That usually works and will save me from an all out binge But I know how it goes... you're not hungry at all, just craving something sweet, so you have something sweet and then you crave something salty so you have that, then back to something sweet... It's quite the mind game isn't it? I have come to a point where I prefer (now) to go to be slightly hungry and have a great breakfast by around 7:30 AM. I've always been a breakfast person anyway, now it consists of lotts of egg whites, meats and veggies. Yum! That holds me over to well into the afternoon. My lunch is usually light and sometimes I just snack instead of having lunch. Point is, the rest of my food is pushed further into the day so by the time I am eating my dinner it's early enough for some digest time but late enough to avoid snacking. Hope this helps.

trina1049

I love to eat later in the evening. I save calories by pre-logging my food. After dinner, later in the evening, I have a serving of Greek yogurt with a serving of fruit (the serving size depends upon how many calories I have after exercising) then a tablespoon of almond butter with a cinnamon toast. I sleep better and feel much better when I'm not hungry at night. I eat smaller portions for breakfast, lunch, and a normal dinner. Lost 41lbs. so far. so it's working. When you eat is not as important as what you eat. Just make sure that you're maintaining a calorie deficit.

KHaverstick

Like others have said, I also want to snack at night, so I budget for it. I'm petite, so my goal is also 1200 cal/day, and I make it work. I usually have 200 or so calories left at the end of the day. And sometimes if I'm feeling snacky at night and don't have the calories, it actually motivates me to get up and exercise for 20-30 minutes so I can have a little snack.

fevre

Something that helped me a lot was trying lots and lots of veggies until I found ones I really liked, and turning those into my evening snack. Baby carrots, an arugula salad, brussel sprouts, or asparagus are all options I turn to now instead of a bag of chips.
Slightly related, but I also had to kick the habit of having a beer or glass of wine every evening. Since it was more about having something interesting to sip rather than the alcohol, I've been able to switch it out for seltzer water with a dash of cranberry juice and/or fresh lime juice.