Can't stop bingeing at night

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iluv2jump221
iluv2jump221 Posts: 38 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi! So I have struggled with this mild binge-eating habit for about a year now, and every day I eat super clean and tell myself that I won't eat after dinner, but when the time after dinner comes, I always end up eating unnecessary food (whether it be healthy or dessert) and feel disgusting and bloated. I get to a point where I just eat everything in sight, especially peanut butter and ice cream. I wish i could throw it all out but my family eats it too! I have literally tried everything to get rid of this habit. I really need to lose at least 5lbs (i am 6ft tall, fairly muscular, and 160lbs) because I do prom dress modeling and Im an avid competitive equestrian so basically I need to be super lean. Ugh. :(
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Replies

  • YaGirlMaddi
    YaGirlMaddi Posts: 88 Member
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    Nice to see theres another equestrian on here! Make sure you eat lots of protein. especially for dinner. Protein crushes your appetite BIG time.
  • KateTii
    KateTii Posts: 886 Member
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    Why not just make room in your day for the after-dinner treats? You might not be able to eat everything in the house, but you should be able to make enough room to wiggle in some satisfying treats - which should stop the endless eating.
  • mlclark86
    mlclark86 Posts: 33 Member
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    You could try filling the time with something else...I know when I had this problem last time I tried to start a healthier life, I would go for a walk if I was thinking about food. If I couldn't walk I would make it a point to get to bed as early as possible (within reason) so as to not give me so much time to think about food. Also, you may want to consider eating slightly less at dinner and then having a small healthy snack a bit after. You could still consume the same calories but just divide it a little differently to allow you to indulge in a snack after dinner...then just make it a snack you want regret.
  • CAgirl_InMA
    CAgirl_InMA Posts: 4 Member
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    I have the same problem, so I try to have one small treat each night, like a cup of hot cocoa or something that isn't too bad. I also do much better when I go to bed earlier, sometimes I think that I eat because I'm tired.
  • martyguy74
    martyguy74 Posts: 14 Member
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    I like to eat some cottage cheese with sugar free jello. The cottage cheese contains protein so it fills me up.
  • SteveMFP123
    SteveMFP123 Posts: 298 Member
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    I get bored at night and I overeat. I always leave calories left over for the inevitable binge.
  • madeleineld
    madeleineld Posts: 75 Member
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    I have the same problem, and something that helps me (sometimes) is brushing my teeth and using listerine after my last meal--I think it makes me feel more done with eating, and it feels embarrassing to have to brush my teeth a second time after a binge, which can stop me from doing it.
  • iluv2jump221
    iluv2jump221 Posts: 38 Member
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    YaGirlMaddi wrote: »
    Nice to see theres another equestrian on here! Make sure you eat lots of protein. especially for dinner. Protein crushes your appetite BIG time.

    Aaah cool another equestrian! What kind of riding do you do? And ok i will make sure i eat plenty of protein!
  • flipshine
    flipshine Posts: 1 Member
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    Glad to see there's other people struggling with this problem. I too suffer from binge eating, and it starts from the moment I start driving home from work. I've tried everything from eating more protein, eating heavier meals during breakfast and lunch but lighter during dinner, and also tried distracting myself. It worked some days, but then I revert back to bingeing a couple days later. It got so bad that I gained 15 pounds in a matter of 3 months, and the worst part is most of the weight went to my belly and thighs.

    Then I came across an article online. Binge eating disorder is actually psychological and most likely stems from how you're feeling. I notice for me it strikes hardest when I'm bored or when I'm unhappy. And another interesting fact is that most people that suffer from this disorder are actually thin (or at least started that way). Here's a link to the website I found. You might find it interesting and helpful:

    https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/binge-eating-disorder
  • iluv2jump221
    iluv2jump221 Posts: 38 Member
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    Thanks everyone so much for all the great advice!!! :)
  • iluv2jump221
    iluv2jump221 Posts: 38 Member
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    madeleineld wrote: »
    I have the same problem, and something that helps me (sometimes) is brushing my teeth and using listerine after my last meal--I think it makes me feel more done with eating, and it feels embarrassing to have to brush my teeth a second time after a binge, which can stop me from doing it.

    That is such a good idea I'll try it tomorrow! Thanks!
  • hollynurse803
    hollynurse803 Posts: 11 Member
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    I love everyone's suggestions. I find brushing teeth a good way to discourage more eating. Also fond something to keep your hands busy like crocheting, puzzles, paint by number...
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
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    KateTii wrote: »
    Why not just make room in your day for the after-dinner treats? You might not be able to eat everything in the house, but you should be able to make enough room to wiggle in some satisfying treats - which should stop the endless eating.
    ^Yep! This helped me, as I wasn't contantly obsessing about not having this or that. If I want a treat, I will make room for it in my calories for the day. Sometimes I will even pre-log treats before my meals! I tend to go through phases where I'll have a chocolate bar a day and I'll still lose weight if I stay within my calories. Cutting out foods usually lead to bingeing for me.

    If it fits, I eats. :wink:
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,616 Member
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    I binge every night (within my calories). I eat lightly during the day and then have most of my calories at one time at night.
  • L_Master
    L_Master Posts: 354 Member
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    iluv2jump221 wrote: »
    Hi! So I have struggled with this mild binge-eating habit for about a year now, and every day I eat super clean and tell myself that I won't eat after dinner, but when the time after dinner comes, I always end up eating unnecessary food (whether it be healthy or dessert) and feel disgusting and bloated. I get to a point where I just eat everything in sight, especially peanut butter and ice cream. I wish i could throw it all out but my family eats it too! I have literally tried everything to get rid of this habit. I really need to lose at least 5lbs (i am 6ft tall, fairly muscular, and 160lbs) because I do prom dress modeling and Im an avid competitive equestrian so basically I need to be super lean. Ugh. :(

    This has, more or less, been my struggle. I'm just begun to get a handle on it over the last 6 months, and some things that have helped for me.

    1) Paying attention to hunger - What I mean by this is it's very easy, especially when you're used to binging on all kinds of sugar and fat, to start getting cravings. Often these cravings feel ALOT like you're hungry. What's worked for me to distinguish between the two is ask myself "Would I be totally cool with going down and eating a plateful of brocolli". If the answer is no, then I start to realize I'm not hungry, just craving.

    If the answer is yes, I say okay and go grab a glass of water and make myself a small, maybe 200kcal plate of good food and then wait 30 mins. Usually I don't have a problem after that, if I'm still crazy hungry I might eat another round

    2)Decoupling Food from Pleasure - I think a large portion of people that struggle with weight loss, especially binging, do so because they are emotional/boredom eaters. Quite possibly without knowing it. I've come to realize over the past year this really describes me, and I was pretty oblivious to it for a long time. Often at times where I didn't really have anything better to do, I'd find myself staring into the refrigerator holding the door looking for something to catch my eye. That's boredom eating, not hunger. Brocolli test works good there, and then I've made it my goal to try and replace that boredom eating with 15 minutes of being productive in some way.

    The other danger is emotional eating. Which ranges from eating extra junk food because you slayed a hard workout that day, to craving food as a result of a stressful day, to wanting to treat yourself because you accomplished something meaningful. For me personally this is a very dangerous mindset. Food = Reward/Comfort just doesn't mesh well with weight loss, and makes it really easy to find excuses to eat more.

    3)Chew, but don't swallow - I don't know if I'd call this a recommendation, but it worked for me. I would chew the junk food I wanted to eat to get the taste, then spit it out. Did it for about 2 cookies, then thought about it for a second and was thoroughly grossed out and all I could wonder is what, exactly, was I *kitten* doing? Helped me realize that I had a pretty bad mindset about food if I was willing to do that just to satisfy some cravings.
  • julie_zepeda
    julie_zepeda Posts: 8 Member
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    This was a great post. I have the same issue and will try this recommendation as well as read the website provided earlier.
    L_Master wrote: »

    This has, more or less, been my struggle. I'm just begun to get a handle on it over the last 6 months, and some things that have helped for me.

    1) Paying attention to hunger - What I mean by this is it's very easy, especially when you're used to binging on all kinds of sugar and fat, to start getting cravings. Often these cravings feel ALOT like you're hungry. What's worked for me to distinguish between the two is ask myself "Would I be totally cool with going down and eating a plateful of brocolli". If the answer is no, then I start to realize I'm not hungry, just craving.

    If the answer is yes, I say okay and go grab a glass of water and make myself a small, maybe 200kcal plate of good food and then wait 30 mins. Usually I don't have a problem after that, if I'm still crazy hungry I might eat another round

    2)Decoupling Food from Pleasure - I think a large portion of people that struggle with weight loss, especially binging, do so because they are emotional/boredom eaters. Quite possibly without knowing it. I've come to realize over the past year this really describes me, and I was pretty oblivious to it for a long time. Often at times where I didn't really have anything better to do, I'd find myself staring into the refrigerator holding the door looking for something to catch my eye. That's boredom eating, not hunger. Brocolli test works good there, and then I've made it my goal to try and replace that boredom eating with 15 minutes of being productive in some way.

    The other danger is emotional eating. Which ranges from eating extra junk food because you slayed a hard workout that day, to craving food as a result of a stressful day, to wanting to treat yourself because you accomplished something meaningful. For me personally this is a very dangerous mindset. Food = Reward/Comfort just doesn't mesh well with weight loss, and makes it really easy to find excuses to eat more.

    3)Chew, but don't swallow - I don't know if I'd call this a recommendation, but it worked for me. I would chew the junk food I wanted to eat to get the taste, then spit it out. Did it for about 2 cookies, then thought about it for a second and was thoroughly grossed out and all I could wonder is what, exactly, was I *kitten* doing? Helped me realize that I had a pretty bad mindset about food if I was willing to do that just to satisfy some cravings.

  • iluv2jump221
    iluv2jump221 Posts: 38 Member
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    L_Master wrote: »
    iluv2jump221 wrote: »
    Hi! So I have struggled with this mild binge-eating habit for about a year now, and every day I eat super clean and tell myself that I won't eat after dinner, but when the time after dinner comes, I always end up eating unnecessary food (whether it be healthy or dessert) and feel disgusting and bloated. I get to a point where I just eat everything in sight, especially peanut butter and ice cream. I wish i could throw it all out but my family eats it too! I have literally tried everything to get rid of this habit. I really need to lose at least 5lbs (i am 6ft tall, fairly muscular, and 160lbs) because I do prom dress modeling and Im an avid competitive equestrian so basically I need to be super lean. Ugh. :(

    This has, more or less, been my struggle. I'm just begun to get a handle on it over the last 6 months, and some things that have helped for me.

    1) Paying attention to hunger - What I mean by this is it's very easy, especially when you're used to binging on all kinds of sugar and fat, to start getting cravings. Often these cravings feel ALOT like you're hungry. What's worked for me to distinguish between the two is ask myself "Would I be totally cool with going down and eating a plateful of brocolli". If the answer is no, then I start to realize I'm not hungry, just craving.

    If the answer is yes, I say okay and go grab a glass of water and make myself a small, maybe 200kcal plate of good food and then wait 30 mins. Usually I don't have a problem after that, if I'm still crazy hungry I might eat another round

    2)Decoupling Food from Pleasure - I think a large portion of people that struggle with weight loss, especially binging, do so because they are emotional/boredom eaters. Quite possibly without knowing it. I've come to realize over the past year this really describes me, and I was pretty oblivious to it for a long time. Often at times where I didn't really have anything better to do, I'd find myself staring into the refrigerator holding the door looking for something to catch my eye. That's boredom eating, not hunger. Brocolli test works good there, and then I've made it my goal to try and replace that boredom eating with 15 minutes of being productive in some way.

    The other danger is emotional eating. Which ranges from eating extra junk food because you slayed a hard workout that day, to craving food as a result of a stressful day, to wanting to treat yourself because you accomplished something meaningful. For me personally this is a very dangerous mindset. Food = Reward/Comfort just doesn't mesh well with weight loss, and makes it really easy to find excuses to eat more.

    3)Chew, but don't swallow - I don't know if I'd call this a recommendation, but it worked for me. I would chew the junk food I wanted to eat to get the taste, then spit it out. Did it for about 2 cookies, then thought about it for a second and was thoroughly grossed out and all I could wonder is what, exactly, was I *kitten* doing? Helped me realize that I had a pretty bad mindset about food if I was willing to do that just to satisfy some cravings.

    Thanks so much for all the advice!! Its really helping me out! I will admit i have done the chew and not swallow thing...and its gross. But i will keep everyhting in mind thanks!
  • ellidahl
    ellidahl Posts: 5 Member
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    I struggle with this one too. One tip I use is to keep my hands busy with crafting etc, if my hands are crocheting I can't eat anything!
  • mylittlerainbow
    mylittlerainbow Posts: 822 Member
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    The prelogging so as to save calories for evening does help. The crafting as ellidahl mentioned works for me. And my most effective strategy is to brush my teeth and rinse after dinner, and then I CAN'T eat any more!
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
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    You could try not eating till midday or 1pm? That way you'll probably have the calories for it.

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