Can't Stop eating in the middle of the night.

mcs_runner

As long as I can I remember I have always woke up in the middle of the night craving a snack. Most of the time it will be a low crab tortilla with a table spoon of honey and almond butter (sometimes x 2). There has been times where I have had a quaker chocolate peanut butter granola bar and almond milk, which is a lot better than what I use to have.
I just want to stop eating at night period and I don't know what to do about curbing that midnight craving for something sweet.
Any ideas on what to do?

annacole94

Make sure you're eating enough during the day. Have a small snack with protein before bed. And then... just stop! You'll likely wake up hungry for a couple days, and then it will be over. Your body learns to expect food at the usual times you eat. You can change that, but it sucks for a little bit.

emeraldbullsnake

Try a hot cup of tea
It works for me
Something with no caffeine like camomile or mint i dont do this un the middle of the night but i do it before bed because i try to stop eating 4 hours before bed

Reaverie

I don't know what it's like to want to eat at night (I'm lazy.. I'm enjoy sleeping to much), but I have changed my mornings. When I was overweight at 21, I would get up at 6am with my stomach burning and clawing. It was so bad I couldnt move right away. It was agony. Then I had to grab SOMETHING, even a handful of cereal, just to get it to stop. I couldn't function until I did. I hated it. It wasn't fair. So.. I decided to suffer with that agony to punish my system for trying to dictate to me when it was going to eat. I starved myself until noon. It hurt. I won't lie. I couldn't move for several hours. But after several weeks passed, the pain became less and less frequent. Now, I don't feel hungry at all until noon.

melaniefay82

I have similar habits. I'm truly surprised that nobody has yet told you to just drink some water and go back to bed and get over it. That doesn't work for me though. Especially on higher millage weeks. I do try to stick to liquids though so it does not disturb my sleep and nutrition plan much. Slamming a glass of cold almond milk really helps the midnight munchies for me; chocolate or plain. Most of the time that's enough to satisfy, but every once in a while I will have a spoonful or two of nut butter. No big deal. I don't care to beat myself up over eating when hungry (no matter what time it is) as long as I'm choosing nutrient dense foods.

DietVanillaCoke

As odd as it sounds, cheese always cures my midnight sweet tooth. I only eat a little as I'm lactose intolerant... like quarter a coon tasty cheese slice. Ends up being around 20-22cals but always makes me happy.

Sometimes it will cause issues, as my stomach will go a little nutts but I still really enjoy it and it helps my cravings. Another thing if you're still dead set on sweets, make a cup of tea with stevia. I have a strawberry stevia drink i use in tea. Makes all my tea taste like strawberries. I also add a little almond milk as i like my tea milky. All up 0-1gm carbs

deannalfisher

plan an evening snack prior to bed - I eat a small bowl of cereal every night as I'm reading in bed

serindipte

Or you could keep your late snack and just save the calories for it.

SarahStarr86

I always preplan my night snack. I may even exchange out my daytime snacks so I can have a larger night time snack...that's how necessary a night snack is for me, haha! I tried to just not have a night time snack and led me to bingeing or when one of my kids would wake me up in the middle of night, it would be super hard not to go grab something out of the kitchen. So I now have a single serve bag of popcorn and a fanta zero and it works out perfectly!

jamierobinson12

Try and consume a big portion of your carbs at night it may help you sleep through.

Lounmoun

I would just plan a snack for that time that fit my goals personally and not fight it.

If you don't want to eat then get a drink and go back to bed.
Eat something right before going to bed.
Don't get up and go to the kitchen during the night.
It will probably take a month or so to change your habit.

fitmom4lifemfp

mcs_runner wrote: »

As long as I can I remember I have always woke up in the middle of the night craving a snack. Most of the time it will be a low crab tortilla with a table spoon of honey and almond butter (sometimes x 2). There has been times where I have had a quaker chocolate peanut butter granola bar and almond milk, which is a lot better than what I use to have.
I just want to stop eating at night period and I don't know what to do about curbing that midnight craving for something sweet.
Any ideas on what to do?

You literally wake up in the middle of the night, to eat?? I've never heard of such a thing. (What the heck is a "low crab tortilla? That sounds gross! )

goldthistime

I've heard this is a side effect of some sleep meds. Do you take any?

vsevertson

[/quote]

You literally wake up in the middle of the night, to eat?? I've never heard of such a thing. (What the heck is a "low crab tortilla? That sounds gross! )[/quote]

I am pretty sure that he meant low "carb" tortilla. You can find them in the tortilla section. They are more like a wrap. Way less calories than a regular tortilla.

medic2038

Seems like a pretty calorie dense snack!
As long as you're counting that as part of your daily calories, you should be okay. However if that's in addition TO what you're eating, you're going to probably find your progress lacking sooner than later.

Are you purposefully avoiding food for X time before bed?
Ideally I wouldn't want to be eating in the middle of the night, or have fractured sleep.

ActionAnnieJXN

serindipte wrote: »

Or you could keep your late snack and just save the calories for it.

This is what I do. I have a yogurt or a piece of cheese nearly every night in bed before I go to sleep. Works for me.

Need2Exerc1se

serindipte wrote: »

Or you could keep your late snack and just save the calories for it.

I agree with this. Sometimes it's best not to fight your body and just work your diet around your quirks.

lseed87

Eat more during the day. Focus on protein, carbs and fiber.

fitmom4lifemfp

vsevertson wrote: »

You literally wake up in the middle of the night, to eat?? I've never heard of such a thing. (What the heck is a "low crab tortilla? That sounds gross! )[/quote]

I am pretty sure that he meant low "carb" tortilla. You can find them in the tortilla section. They are more like a wrap. Way less calories than a regular tortilla.

[/quote]

LOL!!!! I can't believe I didn't catch that. DOH! (Seriously I was thinking that had to be disgusting... )

olyamhc

It's a habit and just needs to be broken. It will be uncomfortable, but possible. Likely you need to pay attention to your thoughts and feelings and learn how to tolerate hunger and cravings. Both do go away and don't last for very long.

laineybz

I've been doing this and I really need to cut it out. My sleep pattern is shot anyway and this doesn't help.

BiomedDent

So bad for your teeth

fbrogan

As a former "sleep eater", I can say that you just needs to find what works for you-- there are a lot of great ideas in this thread. For me, it was actually mood related, and had nothing to do with the actual foods. If you normally always crave sweets, it can reflect a decrease in serotonin levels. I was really great at cutting out sweet/carbs during the day, but as soon as I was asleep, I went and ate them anyways. Best advice I can give is try a small protein/fat snack before bed, but if you are still looking for the sweet, there might be something else that needs to be addressed first.

postchrysalis

I go to bed really, really late most nights so nighttime snacking has always been a problem for me. I make sure to always give myself a 100-150 kcal allowance (at least) for that. Fresh/frozen Greek Yogurt and/or fresh/frozen fruit, Jello (10 kcal/cup), peppermint balls (20 kcal/ball), or dark chocolate squares usually does the trick (since sugar is usually what I crave), though sometimes I'll eat boiled eggs, a cheese or PB&J sandwich (light multigrain bread ftw!), or protein/energy bars (Quest Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Protein Bar or Clif Chocolate Chip/Mint-Chip Energy Bar).

I don't snack at night nearly as often as I used to, but when I get the urge to the aforementioned food choices usually does the trick, and since I usually have at least 100 kcal leftover I don't feel guilty about it, either.

I'm not sure how to curb the urge, unfortunately, though I've noticed that eating too much protein for dinner makes the nighttime cravings worse.

successgal1

As long as its within your calories have something 20 minutes before bed. Give it at least 20 to digest (otherwise I might get heartburn, your results may vary). Make sure its emotionally satisfying, as a late night TV watcher I prefer to have a big bowl of air popped corn while watching TV, with some real butter, as long as calories can afford it! If its something sweet you crave, try switching sugar out with stevia to avoid blood sugar spikes, that "sugar rush" can also keep you awake. I'm also a big fan of string cheese.

What are you doing in the four hours or so before bed? Tea, coffee, cola, sugary drinks, alcohol can cause you to pop awake when you don't want to. Alcohol especially. Are you sure its not your bladder waking you up, and when you're up you think of food?

Try taking magnesium before bed, its a great relaxer for me. Are you mentally prepared to sleep? Do you hit the electronic gadgets before bed? They say that can be a factor keeping some from a solid nights sleep.

Sometimes the worry about my diet and food itself can keep me awake, darn brain.

frankiesgirlie

I read through this thread and don't think anyone asked you...are you aware you're doing it at the time or are you kind of sleep walking and either don't remember eating at all or VERY vaguely remember eating and then find the "evidence" such as dirty dishes, wrappers the next morning?
There's a reason I ask.

TonyB0588

What time is your

mcs_runner wrote: »

As long as I can I remember I have always woke up in the middle of the night craving a snack. Most of the time it will be a low crab tortilla with a table spoon of honey and almond butter (sometimes x 2). There has been times where I have had a quaker chocolate peanut butter granola bar and almond milk, which is a lot better than what I use to have.
I just want to stop eating at night period and I don't know what to do about curbing that midnight craving for something sweet.
Any ideas on what to do?

What time is your "middle of the night"? I actually go to bed a bit late, but if I get up again its definitely not for a snack. Do you eat your daytime meals at a regular designated time, or is it just random snacking when you feel the urge. It might just be a matter of training your mind to eat at more "normal" times, and avoid snacking.

nowine4me

In the middle of the night, I eat Lenny & Larry cookies. Crumbs in the bed and all. Then I'm stuffed. And sleepy.

Afura

Is the issue that you're waking up and eating, waking up, or eating? I've had plenty of "it's 3am, I think I'm hungry" times, and sometimes I can just roll over and go back to sleep. Sometimes I've caved and had the snack. I'd more than likely guess that you're possibly dehydrated and your body reads it as hunger, and your brain goes "LET'S HAVE MARSHMALLOWS" (not that that happened to me last night...). Get up, have a glass of water, tell your brain to shut up and try and go back to sleep. It may not always work, but the more you can ignore it, or get around it, hopefully the less you'll wake up with a craving.

Lxftcoastenvy

As long as it fits in my macros /calories I drink my protein shake before bed..A powder mixed with water not the premade. No sugar but still cures a craving for sweets since it's flavored and I feel really full. I use peanut butter chocolate so similar to your granola bar cravings..Plus since it's not super amazing tasting after downing that I don't even want more food..Meaning when I eat something good like an actual snack I often crave more things even if I'm full.
It'll probably take a awhile to kick the habit, maybe drink a full class of water with lemon to fill up before going for snacks.. Even though yours seem healthy enough.