How to deal with late night cravings.
Nevada103164
Posts: 2 Member
I have discovered while trying to get back on track from a vacation that I have an issue with late night snacking. It has kept me from feeling good and reaching my goals. I have no clue on what to do because the cravings can be quite strong and last for long periods of time. It can be hard to deal with sometimes and my will power only goes so far. Does anyone have some advice they'd be willing to share?
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You don't really have to do anything with them. They will pass.2
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I plan some snacks.
How low do you have your calories set? A lot of people come on here with their number set at 1200 calories because that’s as low as MFP will allow. And find their attempts to adhere to the most stringent deficit get harder the longer the day goes on. Then identify the issue as night eating, when the issue is more likely not eating enough.
I plan about 8-9% of my calories for evening snacks. One at 8 pm. A small one just before bed. Why the timing? I find delay easier to manage than just say no. So I wait for 8ish for my main snack. But I still have a bit of a reserve. Having nothing left in my calorie account until tomorrow doesn’t feel so good. So if I want something before bed, it’s available. Sometimes I skip that one.5 -
That is a very smart approach, thank you.0
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There's someone who is friends with a mate of mine who I loathe. She's gigantic. If I want to eat garbage I look her up and count her chins. Works every time. I just tell myse;f "Giving in and eating rubbish" is what Scarlett would do" and the urge to eat goes.
I don't even give in and eat something "healthy" because you're teaching your brain that wanting = getting.4 -
This is a big struggle for me, if I'm just relaxing watching some tv, my two solutions are:
- Do some exercises, crunches, press-ups etc. Nothing major, but it's normally enough to help the cravings pass.
- Go to bed
I do like 88olds solution, and this isn't a problem if I've been exercising during the day as I will have plenty of calories available. But if it's a rest day I'm always tight on cal's.1 -
jenniehamilton100 wrote: »There's someone who is friends with a mate of mine who I loathe. She's gigantic. If I want to eat garbage I look her up and count her chins. Works every time. I just tell myse;f "Giving in and eating rubbish" is what Scarlett would do" and the urge to eat goes.
I don't even give in and eat something "healthy" because you're teaching your brain that wanting = getting.
Well this is gross.
As for advice, I usually honestly assess if I'm bored or actually hungry. I'm usually bored. So I'll text a friend or go to bed and read a book, take a nice bath or even just play a quick game of sudoku or something on my phone so I'm not thinking about food.
If I'm actually hungry, I will have a snack even if it puts me slightly over my goal, but it will be a snack that I've got semi-planned at about 100-150kcal. Like usually a bit of toast and jam, or one of those NAKD snack bars or a few rice cakes with a cup of decaf coffee. I use sweetener so coffee is only about 15kcal for milk and hot drinks keep me feeling full and satisfied. Sometimes just the coffee is enough tbh. Sitting all night thinking about food and feeling deprived is not a mentally healthy thing for me to do with my history of over restriction and binge-eating, so sometimes going a little bit over my goal is the healthiest thing to do in the long term.
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Nevada103164 wrote: »I have discovered while trying to get back on track from a vacation that I have an issue with late night snacking. It has kept me from feeling good and reaching my goals. I have no clue on what to do because the cravings can be quite strong and last for long periods of time. It can be hard to deal with sometimes and my will power only goes so far. Does anyone have some advice they'd be willing to share?
I have the same issue. I eat later, have upped my water throughout the day and I go to bed two hours earlier than I used to . If I really can’t handle it, I will eat a sugar free russel stover pecan treat or a little yogurt.
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jenniehamilton100 wrote: »There's someone who is friends with a mate of mine who I loathe. She's gigantic. If I want to eat garbage I look her up and count her chins. Works every time. I just tell myse;f "Giving in and eating rubbish" is what Scarlett would do" and the urge to eat goes.
I don't even give in and eat something "healthy" because you're teaching your brain that wanting = getting.
You sound so proud of yourself, or that you think you're funny or something but let me be the one to tell you you're an ignorant Jerk.0
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