Evening Snack Monster-what do you do?

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Nighttime is the most challenging time of day for my diet. I am able to follow my diet no problem during the day, maybe because I have two toddlers that keep me BUSY. But after my two kiddos fall asleep, all I want to do is decompress-or snack. Sometimes I am able to restrain myself, but I basically fail every night. What can I do to distract myself from wanting to eat everything in sight? And I hate hot tea so please don't suggest ha ha
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Replies

  • abelcat1
    abelcat1 Posts: 186 Member
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    Hehe... do you like coffee? Make a bowl of coffee, a thick layer of milkfoam (200 cl whipped wery dense) and a sprinckle of sweet cocoapowder. Drink coffee, spoon the foam... It´s not icecream or whipped cream, but still very comforting and filling. This is my go-to-snack when I am tempted to snack to much. aprox. 100 cals pr bowl. Sometimes you just have to feed the craving some whipped air...;-D
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    I snack at night. I typically save 250 calories for it and savour my Cadbury Milk chocolate bar as I watch TV and drink a diet coke.

    Sometimes I have more left so I have chicago style popcorn or my new thing sweet chili and sour cream kettle cooked chips.
  • drivenbonkers
    drivenbonkers Posts: 33 Member
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    Are you drinking enough water thru the day and getting enough protein and fats?

    Sometimes when I think I'm hungry, I'm just thirsty. A very large glass of water, hot or cold, (can add a squirt of lemon or lime juice) wait a while, then reassess.

    I keep low calorie snacks on hand. I like plain almonds (or other raw nuts) about 100 calories worth. They contain fats, and are satisfying.

    Is there something else you can do to keep busy? Read a book? Take a bubble bath? Get a bit of exercise? Be kind to yourself.

    It takes a while to retrain yourself out of old habits.
  • kern11
    kern11 Posts: 37 Member
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    i save my calories for night.
  • tekkiechikk
    tekkiechikk Posts: 375 Member
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    Well, there are the 'healthy' standards- vegetables. Blah, boring. I prefer yogurt (Dannon Lite & Fit Greek yogurt, only 80 calories- and also really good frozen) or popcorn (Jolly Time Kettle Korn 100 cal snack bag). Last night I made a box chocolate cake mix (using diet cola instead of oil and eggs) and 'frosted' it with PBFit. A good size piece is only 185 calories and it is really good (chocolate and peanut butter, what's not to love??). PBFit is my new go-to for late night snacking- 2 TBS is only 55 calories (compare it to 190 calories for the same in peanut butter). Bonus, my husband loved the cake, too, so he'll eat most of it.

    I've read that sometimes our hunger is really thirst, so try a tall glass of something you love. There are no bad snacks, just bad portion sizes I think. Find what you love and either eat less of it or find a lower calorie alternative. Good luck!
  • breathless575
    breathless575 Posts: 140 Member
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    I'll take a sleeping pill and go to bed.
  • gabylewis22
    gabylewis22 Posts: 41 Member
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    I know that 'making things' when your just craving the naughty thing that you KNOW is in the fridge/cupboard is near on impossible. What do I do? Go and do something else until it's time to go to bed. Go for a jog, or to the gym, or do an exercise DVD or SOMETHING to keep your mind off food! It's the only way for me. Either that, or go to bed early!
  • Of_Monsters_and_Meat
    Of_Monsters_and_Meat Posts: 1,022 Member
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    sorry, I saw my name.

    chocolate almond milk, cottage cheese, yogurt, ice cream, deli slices, children's tears. These are my go-to snacks. I save enough calories so it is not really an issue.
  • onedayTHISYEAR
    onedayTHISYEAR Posts: 34 Member
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    Something we are trying to avoid too....

    So for me I automatically put in about 400 calories...
    for me this covers
    the hot drink I have
    some yogurt (piece of fruit) all about 100 calories
    and a LITTLE something else

    These are put in first thing in the morning, so reduce the amount you eat during the day to compensate.

    When I can manage to go to bed without having all of those (sometimes just the hot drink gives me the calmmmmm that I need) and so I feel even better.

    Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed and on a good day I go to sleep a little hungry.

    SOME ideas that SOMETIMES work for me, other times NOT a chance lol! As I am not a good sleeper and up many times in the night that does not help either :s
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
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    Something we are trying to avoid too....

    So for me I automatically put in about 400 calories...
    for me this covers
    the hot drink I have
    some yogurt (piece of fruit) all about 100 calories
    and a LITTLE something else

    These are put in first thing in the morning, so reduce the amount you eat during the day to compensate.

    When I can manage to go to bed without having all of those (sometimes just the hot drink gives me the calmmmmm that I need) and so I feel even better.

    Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed and on a good day I go to sleep a little hungry.

    SOME ideas that SOMETIMES work for me, other times NOT a chance lol! As I am not a good sleeper and up many times in the night that does not help either :s

    Why?
  • truelight_photo_craig
    truelight_photo_craig Posts: 347 Member
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    My go to evening snacks are greek yogurt with some bran cereal (thing grape nuts , or Meijer bran bits), reduced fat cheese sticks and a few wheat thin crackers, or popcorn with a touch of butter and Slap yo Moma hot seasoning. The best trick I found to stop eating at night was to make sure I brush my teeth around 8:00pm. Guarantees I won't eat after ;) .
  • breathless575
    breathless575 Posts: 140 Member
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    cityruss wrote: »
    Something we are trying to avoid too....

    So for me I automatically put in about 400 calories...
    for me this covers
    the hot drink I have
    some yogurt (piece of fruit) all about 100 calories
    and a LITTLE something else

    These are put in first thing in the morning, so reduce the amount you eat during the day to compensate.

    When I can manage to go to bed without having all of those (sometimes just the hot drink gives me the calmmmmm that I need) and so I feel even better.

    Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed and on a good day I go to sleep a little hungry.

    SOME ideas that SOMETIMES work for me, other times NOT a chance lol! As I am not a good sleeper and up many times in the night that does not help either :s

    Why?

    I totally understand this. When you feel calm knowing you didn't exceed your calorie allotment for the day, it is easier for you to sleep. It give a clear conscience.

  • bmele0
    bmele0 Posts: 282 Member
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    I break my day down into 3 small meals and 3 snacks and that third snack is a night snack. If I want more night snack, that's what I use some of my exercise calories for. Typically have anywhere from 250-400 extra calories.
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
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    cityruss wrote: »
    Something we are trying to avoid too....

    So for me I automatically put in about 400 calories...
    for me this covers
    the hot drink I have
    some yogurt (piece of fruit) all about 100 calories
    and a LITTLE something else

    These are put in first thing in the morning, so reduce the amount you eat during the day to compensate.

    When I can manage to go to bed without having all of those (sometimes just the hot drink gives me the calmmmmm that I need) and so I feel even better.

    Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed and on a good day I go to sleep a little hungry.

    SOME ideas that SOMETIMES work for me, other times NOT a chance lol! As I am not a good sleeper and up many times in the night that does not help either :s

    Why?

    I totally understand this. When you feel calm knowing you didn't exceed your calorie allotment for the day, it is easier for you to sleep. It give a clear conscience.

    I was referring to the "Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed".
  • breathless575
    breathless575 Posts: 140 Member
    Options
    cityruss wrote: »
    cityruss wrote: »
    Something we are trying to avoid too....

    So for me I automatically put in about 400 calories...
    for me this covers
    the hot drink I have
    some yogurt (piece of fruit) all about 100 calories
    and a LITTLE something else

    These are put in first thing in the morning, so reduce the amount you eat during the day to compensate.

    When I can manage to go to bed without having all of those (sometimes just the hot drink gives me the calmmmmm that I need) and so I feel even better.

    Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed and on a good day I go to sleep a little hungry.

    SOME ideas that SOMETIMES work for me, other times NOT a chance lol! As I am not a good sleeper and up many times in the night that does not help either :s

    Why?

    I totally understand this. When you feel calm knowing you didn't exceed your calorie allotment for the day, it is easier for you to sleep. It give a clear conscience.

    I was referring to the "Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed".

    Why no eating 3 hours before bed? It has to do with the window of time that your body is actively digesting. If you go longer without eating at night and have a gap of 8-12 hours of not eating, it gives your body time to heal itself. Your body can't heal itself if it is busy digesting food.
  • happyhenglers
    happyhenglers Posts: 17 Member
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    I think the key is the word "decompress". Growing up, my dad would come home and have one drink to decompress. When I was a stay at home mom, it was a glass of red wine. When I went back to work, it became snacking. Now I've found other things that work: putting on my woobies (comfy, pajama-like clothes), a good book, or online browsing, or a candlelight yoga class that is really close to my house (so it doesn't feel like a chore). Each feels like I'm spoiling myself because I have no other Me time. I think the trick is to figure out what your mind is telling you that you need. If you're doing everything else the folks above suggest (like enough protein, fats and overall calories), then it is probably an emotional need that's driving the snacking.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,947 Member
    edited April 2015
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    I have a bowl of low cal yogurt 1-2 hours before I go to bed.

    Sometimes it is just the yogurt ... sometimes I add various things to it depending on the number of calories I have available.

    It's 11 pm and I just finished my yogurt ... and I'm now thinking of grapes.

  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    Options
    cityruss wrote: »
    cityruss wrote: »
    Something we are trying to avoid too....

    So for me I automatically put in about 400 calories...
    for me this covers
    the hot drink I have
    some yogurt (piece of fruit) all about 100 calories
    and a LITTLE something else

    These are put in first thing in the morning, so reduce the amount you eat during the day to compensate.

    When I can manage to go to bed without having all of those (sometimes just the hot drink gives me the calmmmmm that I need) and so I feel even better.

    Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed and on a good day I go to sleep a little hungry.

    SOME ideas that SOMETIMES work for me, other times NOT a chance lol! As I am not a good sleeper and up many times in the night that does not help either :s

    Why?

    I totally understand this. When you feel calm knowing you didn't exceed your calorie allotment for the day, it is easier for you to sleep. It give a clear conscience.

    I was referring to the "Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed".

    Why no eating 3 hours before bed? It has to do with the window of time that your body is actively digesting. If you go longer without eating at night and have a gap of 8-12 hours of not eating, it gives your body time to heal itself. Your body can't heal itself if it is busy digesting food.

    Can you evidence any of that? Of course you can't. It's just regurgitated non-evidence based myth.

    Your body is 'actively digesting' 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, until you die.

    What is your body healing, and why does it need a specific time to do this?

    Why can this "healing" not take place at the same time as "actively digesting". Are our bodies unable to only carry out one function at a time?

    In summing up, you are wrong.
  • Of_Monsters_and_Meat
    Of_Monsters_and_Meat Posts: 1,022 Member
    Options
    cityruss wrote: »
    cityruss wrote: »
    Something we are trying to avoid too....

    So for me I automatically put in about 400 calories...
    for me this covers
    the hot drink I have
    some yogurt (piece of fruit) all about 100 calories
    and a LITTLE something else

    These are put in first thing in the morning, so reduce the amount you eat during the day to compensate.

    When I can manage to go to bed without having all of those (sometimes just the hot drink gives me the calmmmmm that I need) and so I feel even better.

    Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed and on a good day I go to sleep a little hungry.

    SOME ideas that SOMETIMES work for me, other times NOT a chance lol! As I am not a good sleeper and up many times in the night that does not help either :s

    Why?

    I totally understand this. When you feel calm knowing you didn't exceed your calorie allotment for the day, it is easier for you to sleep. It give a clear conscience.

    I was referring to the "Do keep in mind that ideally you shouldn't be eating 3 hours before bed".

    Why no eating 3 hours before bed? It has to do with the window of time that your body is actively digesting. If you go longer without eating at night and have a gap of 8-12 hours of not eating, it gives your body time to heal itself. Your body can't heal itself if it is busy digesting food.

    http://www.webmd.com/diet/diet-truth-myth-eating-night-causes-weight-gain

    91500200260f2991fac1c12942fb2cd1.jpg
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,947 Member
    Options
    Machka9 wrote: »
    I have a bowl of low cal yogurt 1-2 hours before I go to bed.

    Sometimes it is just the yogurt ... sometimes I add various things to it depending on the number of calories I have available.

    It's 11 pm and I just finished my yogurt ... and I'm now thinking of grapes.

    10 grapes consumed. :)

    And BTW - I mentioned that it is 11 pm. I'll be in bed before midnight. I like eating quite close to bed time so that my stomach feels a little bit full when I go to bed ... I sleep better that way - gnawing hunger wakes me up ... and so that I'm not ravenous in the morning. :)