Late Night Snacking

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VBJONLY
VBJONLY Posts: 25
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello Everyone!

I am a wife, mother, and a returning college student. My overall goal is to lose 60+ pounds by next year. But I would like to lose 20 pounds before I graduate this summer in August. I have been working out 5 days a week doing both cardio & strength training. So here is my problem I try to stay within my calorie deficit, but lately I have been snacking on chips, cookies, or whatever I can find in the frige or pantry when I'm up studying late. I don't want to sabotage my weightloss progress, but I how do I stop this late night snacking when I'm up late studying?

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  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    Throw out the chips, cookies and whatever and stop buying it. Seriously. If it's not in the house, you can't eat it, right? You may be the only one dieting in your home but does your family really need to eat that stuff, either?

    Buy lower calorie, nutritionally dense snacks instead.
  • MorganMoreaux
    MorganMoreaux Posts: 691 Member
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    I have a huge problem with late night munching as well. During the day I am on point with my nutrition, but I always want to snack at night, and I usually crave junk food. I have finally weaned myself off of candy bars and chips.l, so now when il the craving sets in I either much on cereal or popcorn. I really like The Kashi Lean and Fit line - it's not really high in calories and now that I'm off super sweet food, ilI find it satisfies the sweet tooth. I still measure and log it into MFP as sometimes it puts me over my calorie limit. As for the popcorn, I use an air popper and put fresh Chilean olive oil on it with a little Himalayan salt. The olive oil has nice pepper undertones and combines nicely with the salt, and it's a beneficial fat. Again, I premature and log it. I find that even if I go over my MFP limits with these snacks I don't gain a lot of water weight during the night, and usually don't impede my over all weight loss. That being said, I wish I had suggestions for the late night snacking but as I still suffer from that as well I have nothing meaningful to contribute lol. Good luck!
  • kbanzhaf
    kbanzhaf Posts: 601 Member
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    Choose better foods to snack on: Nuts (I prefer almonds), dill pickles, carrots, celery, apple, etc.
    I agree with SueinAz, don't keep those high calorie, salty snacks in your house. I am the same way....if it is there, I eat it, so I try to keep most foods like that out of my house (I live alone, and tend to buy those things only when I have family visiting). Dill pickets, carrots, apples, etc. give me the 'crunch' I crave!
    Be sure your evening meal has plenty of protein so that you feel full for a longer period of time. Drink plenty of water in the evenings as well (yes, you may have to get up during the night, but it helps to keep you full too).
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
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    SueInAz wrote: »
    Throw out the chips, cookies and whatever and stop buying it. Seriously. If it's not in the house, you can't eat it, right? You may be the only one dieting in your home but does your family really need to eat that stuff, either?

    Buy lower calorie, nutritionally dense snacks instead.

    Or make room for these foods in the evening. I ate a donut and some chocolate yesterday. was within my calories (I logged 15 cals over, but I had an apple core I didn't subtract from my apple entry).

    OP, if you know that you tend to eat more in the evening (and it tends to be calorie dense) then opt for nutrient-dense (low cal) foods for during the day so you can eat way more in the evening. CICO, if you eat within your calories you can eat whatever you want. Or if you go over one day then you can simply eat a bit less every day afterwards so you maintain the weekly deficit.
  • BodyByButter
    BodyByButter Posts: 563 Member
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    I plan a "meal" at that time, knowing that I will want something. If you look at my diary, you'll see it's listed on there in its own category. One of my favorite things is to make an egg and cheese English muffin.
  • LoveTraveling
    LoveTraveling Posts: 6 Member
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    Hi VBJONLY, it sounds like you might be overworked and stressed.

    Maybe your cravings are your body's way of keeping your energy up through the late-night studying. How about a cup of tea (a lightly caffeinated tea), or going to bed earlier?
  • VBJONLY
    VBJONLY Posts: 25
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    LoveTraveling wrote: »
    Hi VBJONLY, it sounds like you might be overworked and stressed.

    Maybe your cravings are your body's way of keeping your energy up through the late-night studying. How about a cup of tea (a lightly caffeinated tea), or going to bed earlier?

    LoveTraveling you hit the nail on the head! Yes, my plate is truly full with school and my daughter's therapy I don't have time for me. I have started drinking green tea at night when I am up late studying.

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