I need to stop snacking in the evening ideas please!

sapphora

Hi all I've upped my exercise and loving it also trying to do weights at least 3x a week for strength. I can see my body getting stronger but even after 10 weeks it's my belly still flabby and my weight is not dropping.

I know it's my fault once evening hits and the kids go down I can eat anything sugar savoury and self sabatage the whole day. Does anyone else struggle with this?

daniip_la

If you like to snack in the evenings, save some calories for it. That's what I do.

charlenekapf

i struggle badly with this. i can't sleep if i don't eat something and end up screwing up my deficit most of the time. wish i could offer more advice

DoneWorking

Don't fight it, accommodate it. Just set up your last meal as a snack (I do mine at about 8:30 to 9:30), enter a reasonable snack in and then build the rest of your diary with the remaining calories. Also, changing meal times helped me here. Breakfast at 9, lunch at 1 and dinner at 6. Maybe put more of your calories into dinner. One more thing, drink two eight ounce glasses of water 20 - 30 minutes before you eat. It helps fill you up. Good luck.

bethannien

The key for me (because this is a huge issue for me too) has been pre logging my day as much as possible. That way I know almost exactly how many calories I have to play with at the end of the day.

The other thing has been not keeping tempting stuff in the cupboards.

B4Rachael

If I feel like snacking and find myself in the kitchen after I put the kids to bed I drink a glass full of water and leave the kitchen. If I end up going back for a snack later then I grab another glass of water and 100 calorie pack of something. The 100 calorie packs are nice because I feel like I got my snack but I didn't kill my progress since 100 calories is a flexible range from day to day. nonnis.com/thinaddictives/pistachio-almond-thins/ these are my newest favorite!

ItsyBitsy246

If willpower is an issue, and you can't work it into your day, don't bring it into the house! Might not be too popular with the kids though.

peterbuller8

My kids keep all the snacks hidden in their rooms if i can't see them i tend not to want them.
It did take a few weeks to get used to it but now it's not a problem.

rebellez

I totally hear you and I have the same problem after the kids go to bed. I find if I brush my teeth when they do or drink herbal tea sometimes it can help. I guess mine is mainly due to stress - I'm not hungry and maybe I should try doing some mindfulness activities - meditate or something?

rachealjane24

I struggle with this badly. I turn off the lights in the kitchen and close the baby gate. The physical act of closing the kitchen helps mentally shut it down too. I also drink peppermint tea all evening. I make a big pot and put it on the dining table for me to access.
Since reading about not eating outside of the 8 hour period each day i have lost 8kgs.

rebellez

rachealjane24 wrote: »

Since reading about not eating outside of the 8 hour period each day i have lost 8kgs.

Yes I've read that intermittent fasts each day of 16 hours can put your body into fat burning mode - what hours do you do?

Journeydujour

The fact that you like to eat sugar probably means you are looking for an extra pick me up of energy since you are getting tired at the end of the day. Try to notice if you are actually just tired, and allow yourself to rest if that is what you really need. My pitfall is nighttime snacking and it took me a while to analyze why I was doing it. I love staying up late at night, so I reach for high carb and other sugary foods at night, which then compromise my sleep quality so it really backfires. I am still working on drinking water, and going to rest when that is actually what my body needs. Good luck.

LoFoSho100

This might be a silly solution, but it works for me. After I have an evening snack that I hope will satisfy my need to take a trip to the night snack buffet (but it never actually does and I always want popcorn and ice cream at 11pm-LOL), I brush my teeth. The minty freshness does not mix well with snacks...and I know if I snack, I will have to brush again. Ha!

JeffreyOC

I try my best not to eat after 7pm however if I'm really hungry I'll just have a bit of fruit.

kommodevaran

Well, you don't have to stop snacking, you just have to stop overeating. Plan your meals (and snacks) better, and don't bring anything into your house that you don't intend to eat.
If you overeat in the evening because you have undereaten all day, eat more earlier in the day.
If you overeat in the evening because you haven't had optimal nutrition, plan for more nutritious meals.
If you overeat in the evening because you have missed flavor all day, plan for better tasting and satisfying meals.
If you overeat in the evening because you are bored, go for a walk or run or dance or read a book, or whatever.
If you overeat in the evening because you are tired, brush your teeth and go to bed.

tasaiar1

I struggled with this!
Still do sometimes, I have a toddler and a baby and breastfeeding. So I just put it down to my body demanding more sugar for milk.

But deep inside I know it's because that's the only time without the kids and my only resting time lol
so what I found works for me, is to allocate one treat per night (to stop me from binge snacking)

And the first few weeks I had to hide everything away in a box over the cupboard, it'd make noise bringing down and kids would wake up so I never went for seconds.

Slowly my body adapted, and I still have my one treat a night

smotheredincheese

I try to eat my dinner later in the evening so I don't have so much time left to snack afterwards.
I also make sure I've always got enough calories left for dessert, and try to brush my teeth as soon as I've used up all my calories - I'm less likely to eat after I've brushed my teeth so that helps.
Also getting an adult colouring book has been helpful because it gives e something to do with ym hands to prevent my from idly snacking.

bellabonbons

I have always been an evening snacker. This is what I love about my fitness pal I save calories for having evening snacks.

StealthHealth

daniip_la wrote: »

If you like to snack in the evenings, save some calories for it. That's what I do.

+1

callsitlikeiseeit

stop buying *kitten* to snack on

save the calories for room for a snack

victoria_1024

I save calories for the evening. I try to eat lots of protein and healthier options during the day, and then once my kids are in bed its popcorn and m&ms for me! Every single night. Lost 90 lbs and I've been maintaining since April doing this lol. I am very intentional about weighing out m&ms and popcorn though so I'm not just mindlessly eating all night. Sometimes I change it up and eat a big bowl of ice cream but it's always "junk" food.

cee134

Snack on vegetables. You can't go wrong, regardless of when you do it.

ogtmama

I save 100 calories for a low calorie frozen chocolate thing after dinner and then I brush and floss my teeth...after that, just vanilla or berry tea.

Angierae75

I leave room for an evening snack in my calories. If I don't need anything, great. If I do, the calories are available.

melaniehubbard

I save 200 to 300 calories for the evening and munch on fruit and veggies

CoachJen71

Another evening snacker here. I prelog at either maintenance or a deficit, then eat my exercise cals back as evening snacks. (Except for my bedtime yogurt and hard candies. Those are built in to my pre-logging. Exercise cals are for filling the 6-9pm slot. You can see my diary, if you like:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/diary/CoachJen71 )

CoachJen71

charkelsey wrote: »

i struggle badly with this. i can't sleep if i don't eat something and end up screwing up my deficit most of the time. wish i could offer more advice

My too! That's what I use my bedtime Greek yogurt for.

BillMcKay1

I was a huge evening snacker.

Harder for those with kids, but we just started eating dinner a bit later. Usually around 6:30-7:30. Doesn't give a lot of time to get hungry and hit the snacks before it's lights out. Dinner around 7ish and I leave 140cal for a protein shake around 9:30. Lights out at 10.

oolou

The idea may seem counterintuitive but I just read this article about how to beat cravings. Could be worth a try? Personally I try to budget my calories to include some for evening snacks.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4lM8YkdnPc1b6LSHs5LT0tm/the-big-craving-beating-experiment

sfa90

Eating dinner more late works for me, and If I am really dying for a snack, I eat some fruit like watermelon or berries.

cwolfman13

allot some calories daily to evening snacks. portion them out accordingly.