Night time binges. : (

valeriejdx · February 2018

Hi all,
I am really struggling with binging at night. I can have a great day of eating balanced meals and staying under or at my limit. I could finish dinner and be completely satisfied, then right before I go to bed I'll have the intense urge to start snacking. There are times when this turns into a full on binge (peanut butter sandwiches, chips, cheese, etc). I really need this to stop because it undoes any progress I make during the day. Sometimes I'll even wake up in the middle of the night and go to the kitchen for this type of eating.

Any tips or insight? I would really appreciate it.
Thank you

paulerdmann1 · February 2018

Having a protein shake at night when the cravings hit can help. Having one that's around 100 calories will leave you feeling guilt free and satisfied. Hope this helps.

Also water. Water water water. Keeps your stomach receptors happy and full.

kpendleton19 · February 2018

I agree with a protein drink at night and lots of water. I've been doing 16:8 intermittent fasting as well where I eat between 1pm to 9pm. I think it really helped me more açcountable to my food intake.

samaranicolew · February 2018

I have the exact same issue! I used to think it was a mental thing because my body probably didn’t really need any more cals.

cmriverside · February 2018

The way I solved this is 1.) I go to bed three hours after dinner. 2.) I make sure to hit all my protein, fat and fiber needs in my meals. 3.) I don't under-eat during the day. 4.) The kitchen is closed after dinner.

tirowow12385 · February 2018

Alot of the foods I see that people are snacking or binging are salty. Did y'all cut out table salt out of your diet? If you're just gonna satisfy your cravings on salty foods, might as well sprinkle a dash of salt and ingest it, that's salt craving solution minus all the added calories. See if that helps the craving go away.

valeriejdx · February 2018

Thank you everyone for your responses!
I think my major issue is that I'm not eating enough protein during the day. I will look into the shakes for sure if I don't see an improvement by the end of the week.

jumpsquats · February 2018

What time do you usually go to bed? And do you exercise at any point in the day?

Wadeeee · February 2018

I'm sure everyone is going to have a small variance of opinion on how to correct this. For me, when trying to combat a negative behavior, I have to plan ahead. On tough days/weeks, it is a major help to know exactly what I'm going to eat. It sort of keeps my mind from wandering away from the plan...which I might add, isn't super strict, and doesn't require hours of meal planning.

Usually, each morning, I'll decide what I'm going to eat for the day, based on what is in my fridge. Like on Friday, while having my morning coffee, I decided I would have a roasted pepper and hummus wrap for lunch (with low-cal lemonade), and two slices of pizza for dinner with a homemade vanilla cupcake for dessert. As already mentioned, this plan was based on what I already had in my fridge. Then, when I felt the urge to snack before bed, I had calories left...and grabbed a fun size Reese's (okay, you caught me...I had two). Did I really need the added sugar, especially after having a cupcake? Not really, but I was able to eat what I was craving without ruining my entire day.

Until you're able to beat the urge to snack, I would reduce your daytime calorie consumption by a few hundred calories, and bank them to satisfy those nighttime urges. I personally would even go as far as planning the actual snack. For example, I might cut back on the amount of cream/sugar in my morning coffee, and cut out my after-lunch piece of chocolate to save enough calories for a late night piece of toast with a slather of peanut butter. That way, my mind isn't feeling that I've deprived myself, because I'm technically still allowed to snack, but with self-control.

Plan all that you can! I've even found that after being committed to planning for a while, that I make better conscious decisions in the event that something doesn't work exactly as planned.

Hope this helps!

sendtoharvey · February 2018

Oy... same problem.. I always kill something at night

wishes214 · February 2018

When I get the munchies I try to fill myself up with water. If I'm still hungry popcorn helps sometimes.

DivaDreamer77 · February 2018

Personally I'm trying to embrace mindful eating. It has worked wonders for me.

Basically whenever you eat anything, good or bad. A great if food day or an emotional eating day. Log it. Every single chip so to speak.

It really helped put my habits in perspective, and it also helps me keep track of not only what I eat, but when and why. Analyze more than just hunger, why are you binging at night? Is it habit? Is it emotions controlling yourself? Find out what it is and aim to change it. One habit at a time.

You do not necessarily have to cut the munchies cold turkey, in my personal opinion the time of day you eat won't ruin your diet. It's more about the quantity. Are you craving chips, have one serving, and weigh it out. Craving salty foods? Have some salted almonds or even crisp pea veggie chips. There are a lot of substitutes for the type of foods you are munching. Buy low calorie bread, no sugar peanut butter which is made by real peanuts, are just a couple examples of what you can do to better your situation. At least it works for me..

All the best.

janisseshirley · February 2018

I was having this problem too. I would start to feel hungry a few hours after I ate. My doctor told me that it might be due to my diabetes, that I was having spikes. I eat dinner around 5, so I allow myself a healthy snack around 8 pm. I also had to allow myself time for my body to adjust to the changes I was making.

Jingsi84 · February 2018

Skip breakfast and you’ll have more calories at night if you prefer to eat then.

artbyrachelh · February 2018

A cup of hot tea helps me sometimes.

Night time binges. : (

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