The art of putting down the fork

Fat4Fuel2

I can eat really well, healthy and proper portions, and stick to my calorie allotment until dinner. It's not the night time munchies, it's the dinner munchies. I simply crave food and want to munch directly after dinner. How do you say no? How do you put down the fork and walk away? I've tried water, a distraction, a peice of fruit, but I always end up finding something to munch on. How do you simply stop eating?

ILoveFroggies

I face a similar thing! I don't know whether this resonates with you too, but for me I think part of the issue is I don't eat enough during the day (like, I eat regular meals that are large-ish in size, but it's still not enough compared to what I'm used to eating) and so by the evening I kind of let loose, seeing as I've been 'relatively good' all day. I think a solution might be to snack a bit more regularly/allow yourself more calories in the daytime so you're not ready to go crazy at night? Because seriously, even if you're 'sticking to your calorie allotment', it could be that it's still not enough, and therefore your body's sending you hunger signals.

Or, it could be that you crave additional food not due to a nutritional deficit but because of habit. Or, it could be related to your emotions (Do you find you eat a lot in the evenings to deal with stress? To distract yourself from things you're worried about? Etc). I don't know, the reasons behind it are highly individual, so it's up to you to identify them. Then, if for example you conclude that the post-dinner munchies are a response to negative emotions, you could look at alternative ways to deal with that.

If all else fails and you find you can't 'put your fork down' no matter what you try, I suggest you brush your teeth. That way, you'll be like 'Ooh, my mouth is so clean now! Had better not ruin it!'