No eating after 7pm

jdelisle
jdelisle Posts: 1,050 Member
edited September 19 in Health and Weight Loss
I am having such a hard time not eating after 7pm! On weekdays I am up around 7:30 am and usually in bed by 11:30 pm or so. I get home from work around 5pm. I have no problems staying well within my calories until after supper, then I want to eat really unhealthy things right up until I go to sleep!

Have stuck with the 7pm rule first day today (started dieting seriously again on January 1, this time for the long haul though!). Am only at 1008 calories for the day (aloud 1200 + extra for exercise) so I am doing really well today (may or may not have something to do with red team weigh in tomorrow!) :) Just hope that I can keep it up!

What kinds of things do you do to overcome your evening cravings?

Replies

  • jdelisle
    jdelisle Posts: 1,050 Member
    I am having such a hard time not eating after 7pm! On weekdays I am up around 7:30 am and usually in bed by 11:30 pm or so. I get home from work around 5pm. I have no problems staying well within my calories until after supper, then I want to eat really unhealthy things right up until I go to sleep!

    Have stuck with the 7pm rule first day today (started dieting seriously again on January 1, this time for the long haul though!). Am only at 1008 calories for the day (aloud 1200 + extra for exercise) so I am doing really well today (may or may not have something to do with red team weigh in tomorrow!) :) Just hope that I can keep it up!

    What kinds of things do you do to overcome your evening cravings?
  • sunflower8926
    sunflower8926 Posts: 485 Member
    I struggle with this, too. I like to stay up late - I am a night person - so I find that I want to eat late, too. I have been working on making sure that I eat something for breakfast, and try to stick to making myself have "meal" times rather than snacking all day.
    But what I find works best at night is to drink lots. I like to drink tea and coffee, but too much of that is bad, too, so I have started drinking herbal teas. They are calorie free and give you something to reach for automatically if you are watching TV or on the computer.
    If I get really desperate for food, I snack on rye crackers that are super low in calories.
  • hleighb
    hleighb Posts: 3
    When you feel like snacking, drink a BIG glass of water, brush your teeth and go to bed...the extra sleep will help you lose more belly fat!
  • redsrandomthoughts
    redsrandomthoughts Posts: 23
    I am a crocheter I keep myself busy with that but I also exercise around 7 or 8 because thats when my apts gym is cluttered with beautiful men that I just drool over hahaha kidding. When I get hunger pains I also chug a big glass of water.

    Cheers!
  • redsrandomthoughts
    redsrandomthoughts Posts: 23
    you know they say if you brush your teeth you dont feel like eating and your dentist will love you. :)
  • jazpiri
    jazpiri Posts: 114 Member
    I like to drink peppermint tea. I also like to commit myself to doing pilates or yoga 30min before bed which keeps me from snacking because I don't want to do those exercises right after eating. Have you ever tried doing a downward dog after eating? :happy: Take my advice and don't.
  • amymeenieminymo
    amymeenieminymo Posts: 2,394 Member
    From everything I have read, and from my own personal opinion, it does not matter what time you eat. If you think about it, it doesn't make sense that you cannot eat after a certain time. MFP automatically creates a deficit so that you lose weight, so the calories that you're alloted is what your body NEEDS to function. So if you need to eat 1200 calories through out the day, then you need them, period. It shouldn't matter if it is 3pm or 7 pm or 11 pm.

    I think the whole "no eating late at night" mostly comes from the notion that eating later in the evening typically involves snacking on bad foods while watching TV. But if you still have 400 calories to eat and it is after 7pm, then I say eat them. Besides, I've heard everything from no eating after 3 pm to no eating after 9pm. So how can the notion be true when there is such a variance in when you have to stop eating?

    It's just my opinion, but as long as I have calories leftover and I am hungry or need them, I eat whenever and I have lost 25 pounds. Good luck
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
    I agree with Amy.
    I sometimes eat as late as 11 because I work until 9 and need a few hours to wind down, and being so busy at work I barely have time to eat. Your body doesn't know what time it is, and if you stay within your calories, you will still lose fat regardless of what time you eat. The food you eat at 5PM isn't even halfway through your digestive tract by 9PM, so you are technically still 'eating' even though you're not chewing. And it doesn't matter! Eat if you are hungry--why starve yourself? Eat your exercise calories--once again, don't starve yourself. Less is not always better.
  • hmo4
    hmo4 Posts: 1,673 Member
    They say 3 hours before you go to bed to stop eating. My cut off is 8:00. This is very hard for me too, but it is my personal challenge for this week. I'm drinking my water, and will have green tea and brush my teeth like you guys have said. Let's do it together!:bigsmile:
  • shemricquick
    shemricquick Posts: 33
    I agree with Amy as well! I do not think that it should matter when you eat because if you still have calories left and you don't eat then you could be putting your body in starvation mode!
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,420 Member
    I believe it is still Calories in minus calories burned = calories retained. The end.

    And songbyrdsweet knows her facts. She's all educated and stuff. :glasses:
  • Starrotts
    Starrotts Posts: 164
    :mad: i too have a hard time not eating at night ......I was doing so well for i know only 4 days and then last night 2 pieces of toast , I am so pissed at myself i could scream .....today i will try harder
  • greeneyedgirl829
    greeneyedgirl829 Posts: 335
    I have a hard time with this too. My BF doesn't get off work until 9 so that's dinnertime for him. Not a problem, only thing is that I want to eat with him :smile: lol anyways, I think I agree that as long as you eat healthy at night, it doesn't truly matter what time you eat. I like to cut off any food for about an hour before I sleep though. Tea, brushing teeth, and Yoga sound like wonderful ideas to me :bigsmile:
  • keiko
    keiko Posts: 2,919 Member
    I agree with Amy & Songbyrdsweet. I would not eat anything real heavy just before I go to bed. But I don't think there is anything wrong with eating healthy foods after 7.
    One of my favorite snacks is popcorn & a movie. (at home with real popcorn not microwave) I adjust my calories during the day so I can enjoy this.
    Don't deprive yourself. I think when you do you are setting yourself up for failure. The more you think you can't have something the more you end up wanting it.
  • dkell
    dkell Posts: 408 Member
    I'm not the one to give advise right now cause I'm stuck but isn't your daily calorie count what you need to follow?:huh:
  • supergirlie00
    supergirlie00 Posts: 169
    I've tried sticking to this rule before and it doesn't seem to help. I work really odd shifts sometimes 7:30- 12am or 5-9pm and only a 15 minute break in between so I usually eat when I get home after being at work. Is that bad or is there any way I can fit meals into my random shifts?
  • keiko
    keiko Posts: 2,919 Member
    I've tried sticking to this rule before and it doesn't seem to help. I work really odd shifts sometimes 7:30- 12am or 5-9pm and only a 15 minute break in between so I usually eat when I get home after being at work. Is that bad or is there any way I can fit meals into my random shifts?

    I would try to eat something during the break. But I know 15min is a short time so maybe just some fruit or yogurt.
    I don't think it's bad to eat when you get home. As long as you don't feel sick when you go to bed. Shift work is hard and it's hard to keep a schedule. You need to eat when you can.
  • age1389
    age1389 Posts: 1,160 Member
    I too agree with Songbird and Amy. If you over eat at dinner every day of your life and say dinner is at 5 you will still gain weight. The time doesn't matter it's what and how much your putting in your mouth. I say eat a small light snack if you want it.


    -Adrienne:heart:
  • Alisha28
    Alisha28 Posts: 406 Member
    Why can't you eat after 7 pm. I always do. I get hungry at night also(which is a sign of an increased metabolism in some cases). Its what you eat not the time you eat. My night snack is usually a half cup of Dannon light and fit non fat vanilla yogurt and mixed berries on top with a little special k yogurt and fruit cereal on top or kashi go lean and some lite cool whip. Its great and healthy you will not miss ice cream.:smile:


    Alisha
  • AmyNVegas
    AmyNVegas Posts: 2,215 Member
    On the 3 hour diet I am doing it allows for no food at least 3 hours before bedtime except a treat of about 50 calories. Since the treat is about 50 calories it won't cut into the digestion time. I usually slice up an apple with the skin/peel on it in thin slices and wait until I can't stand it anymore then I eat it. The fiber fills me up and the crunch takes care of the need to snack. I savor each little slice and make it last. So far this has been enough the past 3 nights since I started it. Hopefully I'll last. LOL!
    Amy

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  • yellow_pepper
    yellow_pepper Posts: 708 Member
    So, this objective is practically impossible for me...

    1) When I work late, I can't order dinner on the company's dime until 7pm. I know that I could eat the cost, too, but financial incentives to eat later are in place, and I respond rationally.

    2) When I don't work late, I make plans to go out, and that usually means having dinner or a drink some time around 8.

    I manage by keeping my calorie intake in the 1000 range before dinner, whenever dinner is. Then, I have a light dinner (if I haven't exercised) or a bigger one if I did - or if I decide to eat my deficit, too.
  • amymeenieminymo
    amymeenieminymo Posts: 2,394 Member
    My night snack is usually a half cup of Dannon light and fit non fat vanilla yogurt and mixed berries on top with a little special k yogurt and fruit cereal on top or kashi go lean and some lite cool whip. Its great and healthy you will not miss ice cream.:smile:


    Alisha


    MMM, that has been my breakfast lately, half a cup of light and fit vanilla yogurt, some low fat granola cereal and some kind of fruit on top. The light coolwhip on top sounds like a delicious way to make a dessert snack out of it :love:
  • ellelit
    ellelit Posts: 806 Member
    for me, 2 hours before bedtime is my minimum. any more than that and i can't sleep because of hunger pains. one of my fave 8pm snacks is a glass of skim milk. if you deprive yourself you're just going to end up going crazy and dreaming about bacon all night.
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