I’m a Snacker... Help

KellyAnne_715
KellyAnne_715 Posts: 13 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So around 7pm after dinner I fight the urge to snack.... a lot. Even when I keep myself busy. I’m looking for ways to NOT SNACK when I know I’m full. Anything will help. Thank you!

Replies

  • L1zardQueen
    L1zardQueen Posts: 8,753 Member
    What are you snacking on? How many calories are you eating a day? You can save some calories for your evening snacks.
  • dewit
    dewit Posts: 1,468 Member
    Make yourself some relaxing/herbal/mild fruit tea (stay away from green, black, sour sorts).

    Sip on water.

    And this: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10794316/no-more-late-night-snacking-in-2020-may-2020-challenge#latest
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    Yeah, if you're eating enough protein and fiber and calories during the day this should be a painless process. If you're trying to restrict your calories too much or are not getting sufficient nutrition it will happen.

    So if you're eating enough in general - it's just a bad habit.

    If you're triggered by being in front of the TV, take a walk when it happens. Wash some dishes. Clean the tub. Straighten your closet. Certain spots will trigger me, even certain times.
  • KristyBlack
    KristyBlack Posts: 19 Member
    When I get the munchies late in the evening while watching tv, I snack on baby carrots and/or broccoli with a serving or two of fat free dressing.
  • owieprone
    owieprone Posts: 217 Member
    I find having something to fidget with (knitting, drawing, powerball or a fidget cube etc) along with either a cup of green tea and/or some chewing-gum are enough to stop me snacking. I am a boredom eater, so having my hands unentertained and my mouth feeling like it should have food in it is bad for me. I also do as others have suggested and have a snack in the evening. If it's a really bad craving that won't go away, I will get off my backside and do yoga or similar easy-going exercise while watching telly.
  • Eileen21255
    Eileen21255 Posts: 6 Member
    I also am munchy in the evening. I am trying to control myself but still find I have cravings. Tonight I went a little over my calories with some peanut butter and crackers. I took a little at a time instead of a lot all at once so I didn’t go crazy. It’s something I need to figure out as well.
  • Buttermello
    Buttermello Posts: 127 Member
    Dont eat breakfast and save the calories for a snack before bed.
  • mekelly
    mekelly Posts: 96 Member
    Try brushing your teeth right after dinner. If you snack after doing that, you have to go through the whole teeth cleaning process again.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    mekelly wrote: »
    Try brushing your teeth right after dinner. If you snack after doing that, you have to go through the whole teeth cleaning process again.

    Not good. There should be time between eating and brushing your teeth due to acids from eating. Wait for at least half an hour
  • dewit
    dewit Posts: 1,468 Member
    hexxennacht wrote: »

    I gotta say I really disagree here.

    When you’re losing weight, there will be times when you’re hungry. You’ll want snacks but won’t be able to have them. It’s a big change from the way you used to eat and it comes with growing pains. If it were a painless process, almost no one would be overweight.

    Going from god-knows-how-many cals a day to 1200...I was hungry. Most of the time. I wanted snacks. I had cravings.

    This is just how it is.

    Yes, one has to embrace being hungry as part of the process and as a harmless event, when it's just an occasinal event. If it's a continuous state, then you must be doing something wrong. 1200 cal may come from a variety of food, some more filling than others. You can also eat much more than that if you burn more.

    I think the question here was about braking a habbit and not about occasionally being hungry at night. There are clever ways to stop this habbit.
  • moonangel12
    moonangel12 Posts: 971 Member
    I definitely second 1) keeping hands busy (for me it is hand quilting), and 2) gum... some days I chew a LOT of gum! Also, preplanning a snack is a good plan, I usually keep some spare calories to have a small bowl of cereal with my husband at night. Yesterday when I was feeling munchy I grabbed a handful of carrots and took them outside... of course, even being carrots, as soon as my children saw me it was eyes lighting up and asking me to share 🙄 (side note, one time when I was pregnant I wanted a bedtime snack to myself, so I got asparagus and water... my toddler still begged me for some).
  • MeganD1704
    MeganD1704 Posts: 733 Member
    1) keep your hands busy- I color
    2) I have found sugar free sparkling water flavored is where it is at for me. I like the Sparkling Ice brand- calorie free/guilt free and the bulbs give me that feeling I want from snacks
    3) If I absolutely have to snack- rice cake plain -35 cals
  • debtay123
    debtay123 Posts: 1,327 Member
    I save my breakfast calories for snacks in evening- I also when I have finished snacks or whatever- i chew sugarless gum-
  • Lynatea
    Lynatea Posts: 311 Member
    Sugar free jello, 10 calories for a cup.
  • Jelly_Belly_Jim
    Jelly_Belly_Jim Posts: 24 Member
    I’m also a snacker and knowing this I save a lot of calories for dinner and a late night snack.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,223 Member
    hexxennacht wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    Yeah, if you're eating enough protein and fiber and calories during the day this should be a painless process. If you're trying to restrict your calories too much or are not getting sufficient nutrition it will happen.

    So if you're eating enough in general - it's just a bad habit.

    If you're triggered by being in front of the TV, take a walk when it happens. Wash some dishes. Clean the tub. Straighten your closet. Certain spots will trigger me, even certain times.
    cmriverside wrote: »
    Yeah, if you're eating enough protein and fiber and calories during the day this should be a painless process. If you're trying to restrict your calories too much or are not getting sufficient nutrition it will happen.

    So if you're eating enough in general - it's just a bad habit.

    If you're triggered by being in front of the TV, take a walk when it happens. Wash some dishes. Clean the tub. Straighten your closet. Certain spots will trigger me, even certain times.

    I gotta say I really disagree here.

    When you’re losing weight, there will be times when you’re hungry. You’ll want snacks but won’t be able to have them. It’s a big change from the way you used to eat and it comes with growing pains. If it were a painless process, almost no one would be overweight.

    Going from god-knows-how-many cals a day to 1200...I was hungry. Most of the time. I wanted snacks. I had cravings.

    This is just how it is.

    What you seem to be saying is universal was not my experience, so . . . it's not universal.

    I was rarely hungry while losing, and then generally only when it was getting to be time for a meal. If it wasn't almost time for a meal, I'd eat a small but filling snack.

    It's important to pick a sensible weight loss rate (not too extreme), and to focus on what foods (and what timing) is most satiating for an individual. That will make the process easier, for many. If it were inherently and always a painful process, I probably still be obese - never have lost weight (nor maintained the loss for 4+ years since).

    Some people will unfortunately have the experience you report, of being hungry much of the time, and having to figure out how to cope. But not everyone, and those who do have that experience may find some benefit in trying a different routine.

    I'm with Riverside on this one, mostly.
    Buttermello wrote: »
    Dont eat breakfast and save the calories for a snack before bed.

    Oddly enough, I want snacks less at night if I get a solid breakfast with adequate protein. Won't be true for everyone, but will for some. Experiments with alternative routines are a good thing. :)
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,457 Member
    I always save a couple hundred calories for a chai latte around 8 pm (hot drinks full me up or quell hunger for some reason), and a small dessert around 9 pm.

    Dessert is typically either pudding made with Greek yogurt, or a slice of a cake baked with Greek yogurt in lieu of eggs and oil. (Greek yogurt. Wow! Is there nothing this stuff can’t do?)

    If I’ve gone over elsewhere during the day, it would probably be whittled back to a 100 calorie granola bar.

    But it keeps me in the mindset of having “earned” a reward and marks the absolute close of my eating day. I’ve trained myself not to eat after that.

    I find creating a routine to be very soothing and manageable.
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,457 Member
    ....and what others said, keep your hands busy. Idle hands are like the devils fork straight into my mouth. I do needlepoint or crochet. Nothing worse than having sticky, snacks fingers on a textile project!

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