In My Bed..

HealthyHippie2k16
HealthyHippie2k16 Posts: 7 Member
edited December 2024 in Motivation and Support
My main issue is overeating at night... I work 2nd shift so I get off around 11pm and no matter how little or much I've eaten though out the day, I'm starving to death when I get home. I can do wonderful the whole day and then I walk in my door and have to eat everything in sight. I don't know if it's my schedule or something internal but I really need some advice on what to do

Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    Budget calories for a post-work meal.
  • Sira125
    Sira125 Posts: 152 Member
    I would guess you are tired and your body is trying to substitute food for sleep. Also, you have a habit going and will need to break it.

    Are you attempting a normal or shifted sleep schedule?
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    Plan! @jemhh is right!
  • HealthyHippie2k16
    HealthyHippie2k16 Posts: 7 Member
    Sira, I have absolutely no set sleep schedule.. one night I'll be exhausted by midnight.. other times I'm up until 7am after an hour nap. I guess I should invest in sleep aid. Liz and Jem, I do that but I can't stop. I'll eat that meal, then something else. I was the same way as a teenager.. I'd get home from school and go straight into the kitchen and start gobbling stuff down from not eating at school. I always thought that might be something to do with it.. like I trained my mind to always think I'm hungry after a long day away.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    is it part of your 'now i'm home' thing? i struggle with transitions in general, and i think i have these kind of signal behaviours/habits that i use to kind of announce to myself that okay, now i'm home or okay, now we're about to head out. it sounds kind of like this might be one of those signals for you. it could be that it's especially significant to you as well, if your daily routine is so inconsistent that you can't get much stability out of the 'routine' itself. because there isn't one, basically.
  • HealthyHippie2k16
    HealthyHippie2k16 Posts: 7 Member
    I think you're probably right on the money, Canadian.. The question is how do I break it?
  • Sira125
    Sira125 Posts: 152 Member
    Lack of sleep or poor sleep quality will make losing weight and controlling eating much harder. Sleep helps regulate hormones that influence hunger.

    Ideally you would go to sleep and get up on a regular schedule even on days off. Blackout curtains to keep your circadian rhythms from resetting from sunrise. You might invest in a lamp like those used to treat SAD and sit in front of it every "morning" for 30 minutes or so.

    You might also think about creating a ritual for arriving home that you can substitute for eating. Actual planned steps so you know if you accomplished it or not.
  • HealthyHippie2k16
    HealthyHippie2k16 Posts: 7 Member
    Thank you so much, Sira! I do have a sunlamp already.. (I get SAD every winter).. Perhaps, I'll invest in sleepaid, curtains and find a substitute when I come home.. Very helpful and thank you! <3
  • Sira125
    Sira125 Posts: 152 Member
    Good luck!
  • jo_nz
    jo_nz Posts: 548 Member
    I haven't come straight from work in the evening, so this may not be a helpful suggestion for you.

    I have subbed my evening snacks with hot drinks - usually a nice cup of tea. It's become a nice relaxing ritual and I don't go to be hungry like I did when I just tried to have nothing.
    If I've got calories leftover from my day I might have a little cheese and fruit.
  • HealthyHippie2k16
    HealthyHippie2k16 Posts: 7 Member
    Jo_nz, I bet a nice mug of hot cocoa with some sleep aid would help! I'd be knocked out! LOL
  • Evamutt
    Evamutt Posts: 2,889 Member
    I worked the 2nd shift for 15yrs. I wasn't hungry when i got home but went right to bed, but I'm not working now so I'm hungriest around 6-8pm so i save more calories to eat then
  • HealthyHippie2k16
    HealthyHippie2k16 Posts: 7 Member
    I think that I'm not taking into account my schedule. The eat most at breakfast etc etc but technically my breakfast is in the afternoon..
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    HealthyHippie2k16 wrote: »
    I think you're probably right on the money, Canadian.. The question is how do I break it?

    um. i guess the issue would be to try and figure something out that you'd be able to a) do as consistently as you can do the eating, and b) at least partly enjoy/unwind with.

    my going-out thing is to clean up the kitchen. my coming-home thing (which i don't get to do very often) is to go take a hot bath. i LOVE to do that, or if nothing else i'll go straight to my room and change into different clothes and save the bath for bedtime like a small kid. i'm not sure what would work best for you though. people are different.

    maybe just knowing what's going on in your mind will help you to narrow down other things you're unconsciously doing to remind yourself that the work day is done? if i were coming home that late every day i think the temptation to take a mug of hot milk or cocoa into a bath would be pretty hard to resist. i do that sometimes with a protein shake if i've had a late workout.
  • crackpotbaby
    crackpotbaby Posts: 1,297 Member
    I'm a nurse and work a variety of shifts. I also feel like eating when I get in around midnight after a late.

    I've found cutting up an apple and eating it with about 20g of peanut (or other nut) butter helps satisfy the craving for sugar, salt and fat. Sitting down to eat slowly with a cup of tea helps me too.

    I usually end up in bed about 01:30, 02.00 am but a snack as above usually adresses the cravings.

    After the little measured snack I brush my teeth which helps me avoid eating anymore.
  • Sira125
    Sira125 Posts: 152 Member
    I like the tea idea. Celestial Seasonings makes several herbal teas (no caffeine) that don't need sweeteners. Bengal Spice is great if you like cinnamon.
  • 1nprgr3s
    1nprgr3s Posts: 61 Member
    I was finding that all day while I work I am never hungry. I use to eat healthy meals and snacks at work but I would still over eat when I got home. So I stopped eating while I work. I have a piece of fruit if I'm hungry but otherwise I don't eat until I get home. So I eat lunch when I get home and then I eat dinner a bit later. I end up not having time to binge that way.
  • Mary_Anastasia
    Mary_Anastasia Posts: 267 Member
    If you're okay with Jell-O, I found that a great thing to eat before bed without breaking the calorie bank, when I just NEEDed to eat something. Having a large glass of water before a meal, and a hot cup of tea or almond milk afterward really helped too.
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