Can't Stop eating in the middle of the night.

Try a hot cup of tea
It works for me
Something with no caffeine like camomile or mint i dont do this un the middle of the night but i do it before bed because i try to stop eating 4 hours before bed

I have similar habits. I'm truly surprised that nobody has yet told you to just drink some water and go back to bed and get over it. That doesn't work for me though. Especially on higher millage weeks. I do try to stick to liquids though so it does not disturb my sleep and nutrition plan much. Slamming a glass of cold almond milk really helps the midnight munchies for me; chocolate or plain. Most of the time that's enough to satisfy, but every once in a while I will have a spoonful or two of nut butter. No big deal. I don't care to beat myself up over eating when hungry (no matter what time it is) as long as I'm choosing nutrient dense foods.

plan an evening snack prior to bed - I eat a small bowl of cereal every night as I'm reading in bed

I always preplan my night snack. I may even exchange out my daytime snacks so I can have a larger night time snack...that's how necessary a night snack is for me, haha! I tried to just not have a night time snack and led me to bingeing or when one of my kids would wake me up in the middle of night, it would be super hard not to go grab something out of the kitchen. So I now have a single serve bag of popcorn and a fanta zero and it works out perfectly!

I would just plan a snack for that time that fit my goals personally and not fight it.

If you don't want to eat then get a drink and go back to bed.
Eat something right before going to bed.
Don't get up and go to the kitchen during the night.
It will probably take a month or so to change your habit.

I've heard this is a side effect of some sleep meds. Do you take any?

Seems like a pretty calorie dense snack!
As long as you're counting that as part of your daily calories, you should be okay. However if that's in addition TO what you're eating, you're going to probably find your progress lacking sooner than later.

Are you purposefully avoiding food for X time before bed?
Ideally I wouldn't want to be eating in the middle of the night, or have fractured sleep.

serindipte wrote: »

Or you could keep your late snack and just save the calories for it.

I agree with this. Sometimes it's best not to fight your body and just work your diet around your quirks.

vsevertson wrote: »

You literally wake up in the middle of the night, to eat?? I've never heard of such a thing. (What the heck is a "low crab tortilla? That sounds gross! )[/quote]

I am pretty sure that he meant low "carb" tortilla. You can find them in the tortilla section. They are more like a wrap. Way less calories than a regular tortilla.

[/quote]

LOL!!!! I can't believe I didn't catch that. DOH! (Seriously I was thinking that had to be disgusting... )

I've been doing this and I really need to cut it out. My sleep pattern is shot anyway and this doesn't help.

As a former "sleep eater", I can say that you just needs to find what works for you-- there are a lot of great ideas in this thread. For me, it was actually mood related, and had nothing to do with the actual foods. If you normally always crave sweets, it can reflect a decrease in serotonin levels. I was really great at cutting out sweet/carbs during the day, but as soon as I was asleep, I went and ate them anyways. Best advice I can give is try a small protein/fat snack before bed, but if you are still looking for the sweet, there might be something else that needs to be addressed first.

As long as its within your calories have something 20 minutes before bed. Give it at least 20 to digest (otherwise I might get heartburn, your results may vary). Make sure its emotionally satisfying, as a late night TV watcher I prefer to have a big bowl of air popped corn while watching TV, with some real butter, as long as calories can afford it! If its something sweet you crave, try switching sugar out with stevia to avoid blood sugar spikes, that "sugar rush" can also keep you awake. I'm also a big fan of string cheese.

What are you doing in the four hours or so before bed? Tea, coffee, cola, sugary drinks, alcohol can cause you to pop awake when you don't want to. Alcohol especially. Are you sure its not your bladder waking you up, and when you're up you think of food?

Try taking magnesium before bed, its a great relaxer for me. Are you mentally prepared to sleep? Do you hit the electronic gadgets before bed? They say that can be a factor keeping some from a solid nights sleep.

Sometimes the worry about my diet and food itself can keep me awake, darn brain.

What time is your

mcs_runner wrote: »

As long as I can I remember I have always woke up in the middle of the night craving a snack. Most of the time it will be a low crab tortilla with a table spoon of honey and almond butter (sometimes x 2). There has been times where I have had a quaker chocolate peanut butter granola bar and almond milk, which is a lot better than what I use to have.
I just want to stop eating at night period and I don't know what to do about curbing that midnight craving for something sweet.
Any ideas on what to do?

What time is your "middle of the night"? I actually go to bed a bit late, but if I get up again its definitely not for a snack. Do you eat your daytime meals at a regular designated time, or is it just random snacking when you feel the urge. It might just be a matter of training your mind to eat at more "normal" times, and avoid snacking.

Is the issue that you're waking up and eating, waking up, or eating? I've had plenty of "it's 3am, I think I'm hungry" times, and sometimes I can just roll over and go back to sleep. Sometimes I've caved and had the snack. I'd more than likely guess that you're possibly dehydrated and your body reads it as hunger, and your brain goes "LET'S HAVE MARSHMALLOWS" (not that that happened to me last night...). Get up, have a glass of water, tell your brain to shut up and try and go back to sleep. It may not always work, but the more you can ignore it, or get around it, hopefully the less you'll wake up with a craving.