healthy before-bed snacks, to avoid waking up hungry...

phoenikia

I realize some people don't eat after a certain time. Unfortunately, I'll often wake up hungry, with hunger pains, if I don't have something in the 2 hours leading up to bedtime, even if I've eaten the number of calories set out in MFP during the day. I realize I could try to go to bed 2 hours earlier, but that usually doesn't happen. ;-)

If I end up waking up from the hunger pains in the middle of the night, I have trouble getting back to sleep unless I get out of bed, head to the kitchen, and have some leftovers, or some cereal and/or yogurt. By this point, I often need closer to 300-400 calories to get myself back to sleep, so I'm slightly better off eating a 200 calorie snack to avoid waking up later and ending up eating more.

Usually, I have around 100-200 calories worth of peanut butter and apple/banana, or hummus and bread/flatbread/pita, and some water or tea, an hour or 2 before bed.

Thanks for any ideas or suggestions.

freddykid

If I need to snack I grab a handful of cashews or peanuts. I try to avoid carbs and only eat things that take a long time to burn.

1stplace4health

Try to limit your fluids when you eat meals. If you drink all your liquids before meals and only drink something an hour after you will feel fuller longer.

NakeshiaB

Maybe try a hot chocolate with skim milk? I would go for something small but filling and low GI:

Berries;
Natural yogurt (you can add a little honey if you have a sweet tooth);
Apple slices with almond spread;
Baby carrots dipped in sour cream;
Small handful of nuts;
Crispbread spread with cottage cheese and a sprinkling of crushed walnuts;
Hardboiled egg (mash some paprika or chilli into the yolk for extra flavour).

pinkyleigh83

I usually do a tbsp of peanut butter or almonds.

dangerousdumpling

A piece of string cheese does it for me.

stormydaze_02

I'm hungry now (it's 10.45 pm where i live) and just having some carrots with hommus. That often does the trick for me. ALso, as others have suggested, nuts, or a small bowl of cereal. Good luck!

phoenikia

Thanks for all the wonderful ideas. Good luck to all of you, too!

phoenikia

I had been eating some yogurt , hummus or peanut butter before bed (usually a portion with roughly 200-300 calories) but I've recently found filling up on some carrots and radishes also does the trick. I guess it has something to do with making myself feel full, even if it's mostly water. I've also been saving a little leftover brown rice or quinoa from dinner, to have a small amount before bed, in case the raw vegetables won't do the trick.

I've been finding avoiding anything salty or sweet after dinner keeps me from overindulging on snacks before bed.

There's sort of a fine line for me- if I don't eat enough, I can't sleep or I wake up hungry, yet it's very easy for me snack after dinner and end up with an extra 350-500 calories (beyond my caloric goal) between dinner time and 11 pm, which ends up cancelling out my exercise and keeps me on the plateau. I'm trying to leave an extra 200 calories for after dinner, to allow for my post dinner snack/mini-meal.

kidtachyon

Lately I've been eating a serving of Cheerios with 1% milk. It makes me feel satisfied before bed but only gives me about 200 calories.

RockinTerri

I find something light does the trick for me - usually. Last night I did indulge a bit with a small shortcake with strawberries and blueberries, topped with a small scoop of vanilla custard. It was so good!