How to Cut Snacking After Dinner!?

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  • healingnurtrer
    healingnurtrer Posts: 217 Member
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    Danp wrote: »
    jaydutchie wrote: »
    Thank you guys! I like the brushing teeth idea and maybe opt for a protein heavier snack. I usually don’t go over my calorie limit but it’s definitely a bad habit that I wanna kick.

    Out of curiosity what makes you think that after dinner snacking is a bad habit? What do you see as the downside or negative consequence of consuming a part of your daily calorie target later in the day?

    I'm curious too. For me, stopping late-night snacking resolved some reflux issues. Not sure if there's another reason it'd be necessary if it doesn't cause you to go over calorie goal.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    If you enjoy the snacking and are not over cals, I don't see any reason to worry about it.

    Personally, I much prefer eating my cals at meals, so made a decision to do so. Cutting out late night snacking was more about not snacking in general, which I prefer, and that I tend to eat dinner late anyway.

    Deciding the structure you prefer for your meals/snacks and then sticking to it will work, whatever the schedule chosen, IMO (I have nothing against IF, but it's hardly unique in being helpful for this). If mindless evening snacking is just a bad habit, maybe try to replace it with something else -- I used to have herbal tea in the evening which substituted for a desire to snack at times.
  • Lobsterboxtops
    Lobsterboxtops Posts: 92 Member
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    I’ve developed a tea habit in the evening. For me it’s part of the winding down process that helps signal that bedtime is coming, and it’s something that I can keep up when I’m traveling for work. Something very satisfying about the ritual of sitting down with a hot beverage and a tv show or a book.


    I’ve never been an evening snacker, but sometimes will have treats which my tea. I’ve been into the the brookside açaí dark chocolate things..or crack berries as I call them. They are easy to portion and satisfy my want for a snack.

    So I guess I’m with the others that say find a substitute ritual/habit to replace the snacking with. Plenty of non food ones available, such as hand intensive hobbies that can be picked up and set down without a lot of effort (knitting, paracord item making, etc.), light activity (dish washing, counter cleaning, mail sorting/shredding).

    I find that it’s the mindless activities that are the dangerous ones, internet surfing, tv watching, game playing.
  • JenSD6
    JenSD6 Posts: 454 Member
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    I like to keep a few calories for a small snack, like a serving of low-cal ice cream or a small bowl of popcorn. If I'm out of calories and fighting an urge, then I do something to busy my hands like work on my art or play a video game.
  • almostsuperpowered
    almostsuperpowered Posts: 135 Member
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    I grew up with chips being a nightly routine. Nowadays I reach for a perrier.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    jaydutchie wrote: »
    Thank you guys! I like the brushing teeth idea and maybe opt for a protein heavier snack. I usually don’t go over my calorie limit but it’s definitely a bad habit that I wanna kick.

    Why do you think this is such a bad habit? I snack on popcorn after dinner when my wife and I are watching t.v. before bed...I don't see anything wrong with it at all. If it's not taking you over your calorie targets, I don't see the issue. Having some popcorn after dinner isn't treating your body badly.
  • Pamela_Sue
    Pamela_Sue Posts: 563 Member
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    This was also my struggle. For me it was non-stop evening snacking. I stopped buying chips and things I didn't control very well and substituted with cheese and crackers and fruit. I always plan for 1 large snack in the evening 2-3 hours after dinner and fit it into my calories. Knowing I have 1 big snack in the evening greatly helped me stop the constant evening snacking.
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
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    Love the recommendation to brush your teeth after dinner - that's a sure habit breaker.

    We recently moved from the suburbs to a very rural setting where internet went from high speed cable to satellite. At first the kids hated this as their routine was to watch something. While we were camping in the new home while packing/unpacking I introduced the kids to charades. The kids enjoyed this so much it became a nightly routine and they can't wait to act out their favorite scenes.

    Now we still have snacks during this time, but it is drastically reduced. Another poster mentioned in a different thread that they started reading more than watching TV and noting the difficulty in snacking while reading. Clearly one tactic is to engage our brains and distract us from mindlessly snacking.
  • jaydutchie
    jaydutchie Posts: 11 Member
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    I don’t think that having a snack after dinner is a bad thing. It’s that I’m eating when I know that I’m not hungry—just out of habit. So I’d like to listen to my body more and what it needs
  • Danp
    Danp Posts: 1,561 Member
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    jaydutchie wrote: »
    I don’t think that having a snack after dinner is a bad thing. It’s that I’m eating when I know that I’m not hungry—just out of habit. So I’d like to listen to my body more and what it needs

    Fair enough. You have to do what you feel is right for you.

    For what it's worth thought, there's also nothing at all wrong with eating for pleasure. Food, eating, taste. It's all a sensory experience which can be enjoyed for the experience alone, rather than just to achieve nutrition and sustenance.

    If you're in the habit of having a late night snack is it perhaps because you enjoy your late night snack? If that's the case and, as mentioned previously it's not having a negative effect why deprive yourself that enjoyment?

  • RedAbilty
    RedAbilty Posts: 15 Member
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    Drinking any kind of herbal tea! not only do they taste great they lower your appetite and helps make you feel full.
  • midlomel1971
    midlomel1971 Posts: 1,283 Member
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    A mug of hot tea keeps me occupied if I'm going something like watching TV. Normally after dinner and all of my mom chores, I go to the gym, so I'm pretty occupied.

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