snacking at night

hewson44

i'm fine throughout the day, i stick to my plan to the last calorie...

then comes evening and the urge to snack and binge!

the cravings for cookies and crisps are like crashing waves!

how do you guys beat the cravings? any tips would be much appreciated

therealangd

I'm a night time eater too. I leave room in my day for it, and then I make good choices.

hopefloatsup

I've been trying to figure this out too! After the kids go to bed, it's my "me" time. I sit, relax, and do my computer work for a few hours. That seems to be the worst time for me. I'm a snacker. I always have been. I'm trying to force myself to eat more well balanced MEALS. I think it's making it harder for me. I don't do breakfast - never have. I have my 3 cups of coffee and I'm good until lunch. However, since starting this, I've been trying to eat breakfast.

My plan (and I have no clue if it will do any good) is to continue on my coffee in the morning, but at least try to have a piece of fruit in the morning. Lunch, I will just have something small like normal, and Dinner, we eat as a family, so it's our main meal. I think my problem was more of WHAT I was eating. I wouldn't eat healthy, therefore I'd eat more for portions. I NEED to learn to make room for my night time snacking or I'm going to fail. It's a lifestyle change....and I'm slowly learning that it doesn't happen overnight. That's been my BIGGEST struggle so far.

hewson44

it sucks! i used to binge like crazy as well at night, and now its become a habit.... so its hard to break!

gotta keep thinking of how good i will feel without a big gut haha!

starrybirdy

I'm worse at night - planning ahead is the best strategy - save a few cals if you can or exercise to earn a few


I like a small bowl of breakfast cereals in the evening sometimes - it fulfils that sweet craving but is substantial enough to feed my hunger

hewson44

yeah ive been trying that recently, planning all my meals and calories so i dont have room to snack!

just so hard!

i might give the cereal thing a go because it tends to be sweet cravings i get!

better a bowl of muesli than a pack of cookies ha!

emstgm

It is a hard habit to break, especially if it's paired with another habit, like watching TV. That is probably one of the biggest contributing factors to my being overweight. However, I discovered Fiber One 90 calorie brownies. Don't get me wrong, they're not as good as the real thing, but I'm happy with the. So when I've stayed within my goal for the day, if there's room, I have a brownie and 1 cup of skim milk. My little treat. For the snacky munchy things that I crave, I try to hold out for the weekend when I like to have some popcorn with my family while watching a movie.

lmalaschak

Maybe it's a bad idea, but I save calories for it. My breakfast and lunch are always quite small and then in the evening I can eat quite a lot, actually. I'm sure some will say this isn't the way to do it, but so far it's working.

kylesmommy89

Maybe it's a bad idea, but I save calories for it. My breakfast and lunch are always quite small and then in the evening I can eat quite a lot, actually. I'm sure some will say this isn't the way to do it, but so far it's working.

This! It's working for me, too.

alygover

I find eating about 1/2 - 1 cup of frozen wild blueberries really works for me when I'm craving a sweet snack at night. I feel like I'm eating a snack that is sweet, but there aren't too many calories in it. Also, since they are frozen it kind of forces you to eat them more slowly than other snacks.

donald149

My nutritionist recommended 7 hours sleep per night and when I did this, the cravings actually went away. Before this I was sleeping 4-5 hours a night and would be searching the cupboards for anything sweet at night. Even gobbling down chocolate chips to feed the cravings.

xMsAlly

Try sleeping earlier? Can't eat if you're not awake lol

Edit: Donald beat me to it

lmalaschak

My nutritionist recommended 7 hours sleep per night and when I did this, the cravings actually went away. Before this I was sleeping 4-5 hours a night and would be searching the cupboards for anything sweet at night. Even gobbling down chocolate chips to feed the cravings.

Donald, there is no shame in eating 16 Ghiradelli 60% bittersweet chocolate chips. Not that I EVER do that, EVER.

nicehormones

I'm the same. I find if I at least allow myself like one piece of dark chocolate and eat it slowly, I am fine. I am not good at denying myself things that I want. It works for me.

wilberfamily

I try to build in calories for a snack in the evening. On work days I tend to eat 5 smaller meals a day and then a snack at night. It is so much harder if I feel deprived. About 11 years ago I lost 101 pounds and kept it off for 5 years and I had an evening snack all that time too. You can have evening snacks and still lose/maintain weight. You just have to plan for it.

Masachapa

I save a few calories for an evening snack. That way, you can have an occasional treat without feeling guilty!

xXKatrinaXx

i crave food at night too and just leave room for it. Usually I try and log my day earlier what I know Im going to eat so I know how much room I have (and leave some room for night snacking)

Ive ditched ice cream for arctic zero ice cream (i get it raleys or whole foods) its 150 calories a pint and if you pop it in the microwave to soften up it really does taste like ice cream. its good

Also vita muffin tops i get them in chocolate flavor and they are 100 calories each . Those cure my chocolate cravings.

racha2424

I have the same problem. Some snacks I eat in the evenings are sugar free pudding, Smart Pop 94% fat free kettle corn, rice cakes with peanut butter, and skinny cow ice creams.

Danpellizzari

I usually get hungry right before bed. That's when I grap some Greek yogurt or cottage cheese. I also het a handful of almonds or walnuts. This helps fuel me while I sleep. And usually the yogurt eases my sweet tooth.

keywestsunset

What do you do in the evenings? My trigger was watching tv. I would snack the whole time I was watching tv. I cut out how much tv I watch in the evenings and that really helped with my evening snacking. Now it's not a habit to grab a bag of chips and stuff my face while in front of the tv.

Julesalison

Drinking lots of sweet herbal tea (naturally sweet, like cinnamon apple, decaf chai, etc). Also grapefruits (you can eat the whole entire thing for hardly any calories) and air popped popcorn. Good luck!

muwchck

I actually split my calories between 3 meals and 3 snacks a day. Sometimes my snacks are like meals too, just depending on what kind of day I'm having. Some days I exercise extra hard so I can have something special (or 2 servings of something). I've found that more often than not, I'm ending up with extra calories at the end of the day, and no need for them. I also drink a glass of water when I get a craving for something, and then wait 20 minutes. If I still want it after 20 minutes, then I go get a snack. If I have to walk around the apartment complex so that I can have those calories some nights, I do. I've gotten so much better about eating more whole foods (fresh fruits and veggies), and it leaves me with lots of calories left for my late night cravings too.

A70sgirl

I like to finish my day with a 40 calorie popcicle. (all american pops are my fav)
It's sweet, it's low in calories...and I'm just used to calling it good once I've eaten that.
Then I brush my teeth. I don't like to eat after I brush my teeth, so I think that helps in a weird way as well.

mang26

I have a glass of low fat milk and a cookie most every night. I have also been trying some of the low fat low cal. recipes people share on here. Its ok to snack just count the calories.

Aerohead21

I actually am one of the few who prefer working out at night (so not a morning person). I find if I have preplanned activities I can avoid snacking. Tonight is laundry night and I hang around here to educate myself and get support.

harleygirlT

I am the same way and to make it worse, I eat after I fall asleep....My husband says I get up and eat and I don't even remember doing it! So strange! It's like sleep walking only sleep eating. I have started keeping a piece of dark chocolate or a 100 calorie snake pack near the bed and factor it into my day! Hoping it helps, stay tuned!

sarahc001

I historically eat most of my calories in the evening. I tried to eat more during the day (today, for the first time) and find myself with the urge to snack/drink sweet cocktails...instead, I've been drinking hot lemon water with a bit of stevia and it feels like a great treat- not quite a cosmo, but close. We'll see if it has worked when I complete my diary for the evening. :-) Good luck!

hewson44

didnt realise so many people are the same haha!

skinny cow icecream is a good one! next time i shop ill be grabbing some of those because i love icecream

i do tend to snack watch tv or even reading haha maybe i should go for a walk, just not to appealing in english weather

so hard, though im better equiped with ideas for the snack attack!

babsy300

snack during the day so at night your not so hungry too drink water in replace of eating snacks thats why they say eat 5 meals during the day too after 7 you dont want too eat cause that will be stored as fat.

chubbychristianchick

I find that flavored teas with some stevia and a touch of sugar free vanilla almond milk really help curb the cravings. I really like apple cinnamon with a splash of vanilla extract taste just like apple pie. Also if really really hungry I will make myself a 1/2 of a protien shake. Most of the time I'm not actually hungry I'm just craving that sweetness. Sugar free wearther's hard candies are great as well.

1shauna1

Snacking at night is my worst habit and the hardest to break.....I really feel a lot of the time it is from boredom and not hunger (for me at least).....guess I need some new hobbies!