After dark eating - CAN YOU PLEASE HELP ME?

I have always consumed the greatest percentage of my calories in the evening.  I used to just snack and snack all evening (pre CC) and I know that was a great contributing factor with my weight problem. 

My question is.... WHAT do you do to keep from eating in the evening?  I know that when I am super busy, I don't snack but then I cannot fall asleep because I am so hungry.  I used to try to fight the urge to eat something and after hours of tossing and turning and sleepless nights, I have learned to just get up and get something so I can get to sleep. What I eat is healthy (rice cake, some cereal & milk or a couple of carrots) but I REALLY want to stop this and sleep without having to have a full tummy.  I have tried ignoring it, drinking water (then I'm up all night having to pee), sex (makes me more hungry), reading, watching tv, etc. but unless I have something, I cannot sleep.  I know that the most fit people consume most of their calories earlier in the day (how do they sleep hungry?)

We usually have dinner around 6pm.  I usually do 1200-1400 calories a day.  ANY SUGGESTIONS?  What do YOU do about eating after dinner?  Does anyone else have to have something before they go to bed?  I would LOVE to tackle this hurdle... all help and suggestions are GREATLY appreciated! 

I know how you feel. I am much more hungry at night or at least I think I am because I don't have as much to keep my mind on. So what I do is I consume less calories during the day, so I have a lot of snack calories to consume at night. And I eat high protein stuff such as yogurt and milk. Hope this helps!

With a 6pm dinner, I probably eat 2 additional snacks before going to bed. Obviously this depends on how late I was staying up, but when I have a lot of homework I would probably do something like a cup of tea after dinner or around 7, a snack at 9 and a snack at 11.

If I was staying up later than midnight, I would try to delay the snacks so I could have a bite or two of SOMETHING very soon before bed. I don't sleep well otherwise!

When I am alone, I eat dinner more towards 7-7:30 so the hungry problem isn't so bad.

Basically, it's better off if you don't deny yourself. Just make the snack calories EFFICIENT as possible and factor them into your daily calories, and it will not hurt you. 

I just want to stop eating at night - like at 8pm - the kitchen is closed (lol).. but... then, I cannot sleep.  I usually have a few calories left to play with so that's not the problem.  IF I COULD stop eating at night, I would make SURE that I upped the calories during the middle of the day...

hmmmmm....I could try upping the calories at lunch but... what if I am still starving at bed-time???  Then I will blow the day and that can't happen - I'm on a mission!  lol 

Drink a ton of water. You may have to go potty a few times during the night but your belly will be full.  Also, sugar free jello with sugar free cool whip. This stuff is practically water and gives you some flavor.

One thing that helped me, this might be different for you, is to snack on healthy foods and eat slowly. This sounds simple but I found, especially the slow part, really hard. For example, other than dinner (which is always veggies), I only eat fruit when I snack in the evening. So for example, when I had some grapes today, I first counted (NOT estimate) 20 grapes, placed them into a small bowl so it seems like a lot, and took about 3 bites per grape. I took the time to slowly chew each bite and then only took the second bite when I have swallowed the first. After finishing one grape, I would pause for a second, mostly because I don't eat in front of the TV/doing nothing and thus I needed to continue whatever I was doing(in this case it was homework), and sometimes when I'm focused I forgot I even had food right next to me! This type of controlled eating doesn't make me feel guilty when I reach for another 20 grapes an hour later.

Another important thing is to really learn to tell yourself NO when you want to snack on junky foods. For me, my mom eats whatever she wants and still is skinnier than me, and she loves to eat cookies and sweets and such, so they are always around in the kitchen. But I have trained myself to ignore them and only focus on my fruits. Today I even counted my grapes infront of my mom's 5 lb container of Danish shortbread cookies, MY FAVORITE type for as long as I can remember.

However, if switching to fruit is too dramatic for you, you can start with healthier, but just as sweet snacks, such as fat free light yogurt. My mom comes home late so I eat dinner pretty late (still haven't eaten and it's past 10 pm), but I've never had a problem with eating late because my mom never makes anything other than veggies for dinner. Eating healthy is a much more important focus.

I hope that helped! ^^ Good luck!! 

I am just confused why you are so determined to completely stop the eating at night? Are you trying to fix some other problem?

Thanks for the sugesstion - I will try the Jello  - maybe, since it's mostly water, I can ween myself from consuming in the evening. 

I know there are LOTS of low and no cal choices out there but it's not that I want to limit my evening calories, I want to stop EATING at night and having to have that full belly feeling to sleep.  The Jello sounds like a great way for me to start.

 Thanks!

 

I am having a very similar problem.  I have been increasing my calories for maintenance, but I'm still in the habit of not eating much throughout the day, so night time comes and the hunger just hits...hard...and I'll end up eating like, 1,000 cals or more...It fits in my allowance but I hate eating so close to bed time and at night and stuff...Something I need to fix too =P

Like, I start eating dinner at 5 usually, then after that it's NONSTOP trips to the kitchen.  Yeah not good...but I almost feel like I can't eat more during the day!  If I eat more throughout the day I get nervous because I think I'll still be just as hungry at night then go OVER my allowance...Goodness it's a frustrating cycle...

Best of luck getting through it!  I'm sure you can!

When I want to eat late, I eat late.

I usually go to bed anywhere from midnight to two in the morning. I have breakfast at 10 AM, a light lunch at 2 PM, dinner at 6 PM, one snack at 9 PM, and one at 11 PM.

The 9 PM snack usually consists of a little bit of cereal (not a sugary cereal) with strawberries and/or blueberries, and a few ounces of light soy milk. During the winter, I make a hot vegetable stew that is only 40-45 calories for a full bowl, and have it with a few lowfat saltines.

The 11 PM snack is usually a small container of fat free fruited yogurt or some fat free cottage cheese with a little bit of fresh fruit as a garnish.

And this is on 1200 calories a day. I feel full, believe me!

I think it is a myth that it is wrong to eat before you go to sleep. I can't sleep on an empty stomach. Sure, it can cause heartburn, but I usually have my last snack at least an hour before I go to sleep. I think what is important is what kind of food you eat before you go to bed.

This makes me curious about what sorts of food you usually have for dinner. I'm also on a 1200-1400 cal. diet and eat dinner anywhere from 5 to 7, and I noticed that when I have Korean food (I'm Korean), which tends to have much more lean protein, vegetables, and some sort of broth-based soup as opposed to when I decide to eat "American" (going out for a burger, chicken fingers, etc.) I feel no need to eat later in the evening. If you tend to eat food that's not as nutritionally dense and you limit your calories, that may be why you still feel hungry. 

Also, take a look at your breakfast. Apparently, (and unfortunately, I don't have the links with me -- sorry!) whatever you eat in the morning has a huge role in what your body ends up wanting for the rest of the day, which is one of the many reasons why it's important to have a very healthy and nutrient-dense breakfast. 

Another possibility is that since you've always tended to munch at night, that's what your body's used to.

Either way, I agree with what previous posters have said -- listen to your body's cues, but don't overindulge. Maybe you can try slowly weaning yourself off of your nightly habit by changing what sorts of food you have. Someone mentioned drinking a glass of milk. Another possibility is hot tea, or maybe some broth? I don't know how you feel about plain broth though, so maybe a small cup of low-cal soup? Ideally, you should wait four hours after a meal before you go to bed, but since hunger is what's keeping you up, a relaxing, warm, and mostly liquid snack might do the trick and mitigate whatever harm sleeping on a fuller stomach would have.

Good luck! 

Original Post by a-yoyo:

One thing that helped me, this might be different for you, is to snack on healthy foods and eat slowly. This sounds simple but I found, especially the slow part, really hard. For example, other than dinner (which is always veggies), I only eat fruit when I snack in the evening. So for example, when I had some grapes today, I first counted (NOT estimate) 20 grapes, placed them into a small bowl so it seems like a lot, and took about 3 bites per grape. I took the time to slowly chew each bite and then only took the second bite when I have swallowed the first. After finishing one grape, I would pause for a second, mostly because I don't eat in front of the TV/doing nothing and thus I needed to continue whatever I was doing(in this case it was homework), and sometimes when I'm focused I forgot I even had food right next to me! This type of controlled eating doesn't make me feel guilty when I reach for another 20 grapes an hour later.

Another important thing is to really learn to tell yourself NO when you want to snack on junky foods. For me, my mom eats whatever she wants and still is skinnier than me, and she loves to eat cookies and sweets and such, so they are always around in the kitchen. But I have trained myself to ignore them and only focus on my fruits. Today I even counted my grapes infront of my mom's 5 lb container of Danish shortbread cookies, MY FAVORITE type for as long as I can remember.

However, if switching to fruit is too dramatic for you, you can start with healthier, but just as sweet snacks, such as fat free light yogurt. My mom comes home late so I eat dinner pretty late (still haven't eaten and it's past 10 pm), but I've never had a problem with eating late because my mom never makes anything other than veggies for dinner. Eating healthy is a much more important focus.

I hope that helped! ^^ Good luck!! 

Thanks for your thoughts.  It's not what I eat (I eat rice cake, carrots, skim milk, kiwi, grapefruit) - it's just that I can't sleep unless I have SOMETHING and I was told that eating at bed-time is the worst!   I don't eat junk and again, that's not the problem.  I think I'll up my lunch calories, try the jello for a week then switch to just water.   Thanks!

Original Post by feanor:

I am just confused why you are so determined to completely stop the eating at night? Are you trying to fix some other problem?

Other problem? No.

 My doctor said that I should try not having any calories after 8pm. 

I also eat two snacks after dinner, but work until 12:30 a.m. & usually am awake until 3 a.m.  I also have difficulty sleeping unless my belly is full.  Although, after restricting my calories for two months, I find it easier to sleep if my belly is less-than-engorged, which was not the case before I started CC.  One thing I find very helpful is to eat a really huge salad about an hour before bed -- that way I feel full when I go to sleep, but I don't feel bloated in the morning.  Another thing that's kind of nice is to make a cinnamon tea (1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, add to hot (near boiling) water, let steep 3-5 minutes, & I like to add 1 tbsp honey) & sip on that before bedtime.  I liked that it made me feel full, but also found it made it difficult to sleep (but, I'm one of those ppl who can't have coffee four hours before bedtime).  I think it's natural to want to eat something every few hours.  Probably has something to do with metabolism. 

 Edited to add:  I think the "no food after 8 p.m." rule works really well if you go to sleep @ 10 p.m.  Also, remember that any strategy that leaves you feeling starved at any point in the day is pretty well doomed to failure.

Can you eat dinner later? A healthy late afternoon snack could hold you until dinner. I find if I eat between 7 and 8 then I'm usually ok - but any earlier and I want to eat again in a few hours.

Thanks - the cinnamon tea sounds yummy and soothing.  I will try that now - it's bed time and I am STARVING.  I only have decaf tea so that wont keep me up.  I just drank a liter of water and I'm STILL hungry. Maybe the flavor from the cinnamon will help.

 It seems like almost EVERYONE eats or has something at bedtime. 

THANKS EVERYONE - SOME GREAT IDEAS and motivation.

I forgot to mention-- odd as it sounds, a hot shower or a hot bath always seems to decrease my appetite. Not when I am hungry enough to be having pangs, but if I am in the 'well, I COULD have a snack' state of mind. Might be worth trying.

Original Post by feanor:

I forgot to mention-- odd as it sounds, a hot shower or a hot bath always seems to decrease my appetite. Not when I am hungry enough to be having pangs, but if I am in the 'well, I COULD have a snack' state of mind. Might be worth trying.

Hey - I never thought of that!  I used to do that when I was quitting smoking... You can't smoke OR EAT(!) in the shower. 

wow .. im goign to try that ..slow eating ie ...

how does one sleep hungry ... i find it hard to sleep unless i ahve had a big meal ..

 

help !!!!

 

I've eaten in the shower... yeah it's awful...

You could try consuming a good fat at dinnertime. I'm kind of an evening muncher, too, so here's a few things that I found helps me go to bed without feeling like I'm starving.

Eat a salad with olive oil at dinner. The fat keeps you feeling really full.

I do the cup of tea thing, too, sometimes with honey as a treat instead of a full-blown dessert.

4 oz. of juice does wonders on an empty tummy. I used to wake up in the middle of the night, unable to fall back to sleep because I was hungry. If I get up and swallow just a few sips of juice, it raises my blood sugar enough to help me fall back to sleep. (And, if you're not guzzling a full glass, it won't keep you up all night peeing, and it won't put a huge dent in your calories...I think 8 oz. of apple juice is 120 calories, so 4 oz. would be half that.)

Popcorn. I'm not sure the brand, but someone makes 100-calorie mini bags. It feels like such an indulgence to sit and eat a "whole bag" of popcorn and it only be 100 calories (it was pretty low in fat, too)!