End of day binges!

Are you getting enough sleep?  I try to get atleast 7-8 hrs at night so my body has enough recovery/rest time and will be ready to bring on the next day. What are you doing at the end of your days?  When I'm up late and watching tv I always want food, even when I'm not hungry but when I open up a book or make some tea or take a hot bath to help relax me the cravings usually subside.  But when I am actually hungry and not just wanting food I'll have a little snack like toast/english muffin and some cinnamon/light butter.

Are you eating enough calories? Are you "nutritionally" balance (ie, getting enough fats, proteins, carbs, or nutrients)? Are you dealing with stress/anxiety/depression/sadness etc? Are you not eating any of your favorite foods now that you're counting calories?

Those things are what you should reflect on before & after a binge. Before and after a binge, you should try journaling your feelings and such, and try to look and see if there's something that keeps reoccuring.

runningbuns is also right, if you're watching TV, you're more impulsed to eat.

Before you give into a binge, consider alternatives. I found this journal post: clicky, to be extremely helpful. No matter what, just remember that today is a new day, and don't freak out about a binge. You'll figure out what triggers you sooner or later.  :)

Thanks guys. I get 7-8 hours a night. I have tea, eat sugar free popsicles. I am just a late night snacker, and not really that late....around 7:30 or 8:00. I am very disciplined with my type 1 diabetes, training and exercise, but low resistence right before bed.  Maybe I will journal and write to people around that time to give myself a surge of motivation. Why is this so hard?! UGH! 

Maybe you just need to give yourself a snack at that time at night. I know if I don't eat at 9PM, I'm extremely hungry before bed and I can't sleep well. Adjusting your calories to give yourself some space to have a planned snack would help a bunch.

It's tough, but you can persevere! :)

Thanks. I think you are right. If I actually have a small bowl of cereal, or an apple, instead ot he "stand and eat at the counter", I will be more satisfied.

Thanks so much!

Original Post by riccis:

Why at the end of the day do I binge?!I'm not really even hungry!

I can relate!!! Old habits are hard to break.  I do keep enough available calories for a snack.  I do sugar free dark chocolate pudding.  Makes me feel sinful!!! LOL!!

I should buy individual puddings, or make some sugar free jello and treat myself to a little dollop of fatfree cool whip on top. As long as I don't keep getting up and eating more! Last night I had three diet hot chocolates with fat free cool whip. Three! I excuse myself cuz it is Sunday, the day I used to allow myself to eat unrestrained in college, but c'mon! Moderation! I'm 36 and can't do that anymore!

You're not alone, fruit is good though. I never eat as many portions as I should so I'm trying to cut some up and snack on it on the sofa. Somehow if it's cut up it seems more of a treat that a chore, in fact the only problem is keeping it to myself.

I was going to go on about how I had a horrible relationship with food, but instead I should just recommend Paul Mckenna's I Can Make You Thin.

Read it, follow the techniques, because it actually works to stop binges and think about food normally. I had serious problems with this, and even though the tapping seems strange, it works.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3838 34256176536312&ei=-Ep-SYHeDouk-wGi06TkCw& amp;q=paul+mckenna&emb=1

possibly stress from a long day, makes you want to lash out in the food department, I know that used to be one of my triggers.

Okay, for dinner I had two eggs on a light multi grain english muffin with hummus and hot sauce (a trick so I eat slower). Then a quick handful of Bugles (thanks to my hubby) as I headed out the door to walk my dog. I am still okay in the calorie dept. I also worked out for 50 mins before dinner. Sometimes that triggers me wanting to eat more.....I will have a sliced up apple and light hot choc later on. Wish me luck!!

I'm the same, I end up feeling really hungry and wanting to binge in the few hours leading up to bedtime more than any other time. I think with me it might be a boredom thing so I usually have a light snack and try to occupy myself. Good luck with it!

I had an apple and HC and was pleasantly satisfied..... however around 9:30 started to think about another Hot Choc so I went to bed and read. I made it! But I am going to my friends tonight and she always has fresh baked cookies or brownies... I am going to bring my tea and lots of gum. Wish me luck!

This is my downfall too! I can do great until around 6PM then it's like I can think of nothing else. grrrr. I have found however that reserving that time to go to the gym helps me.  I used to race and squeeze the gym in at lunch or right after work but this way I can relax and take my time-trying out new exercises I've come across on the internet if I want  and once I'm finished, not only is it nearly time for me to sleep, but the endorphins have kicked in and I don't feel nearly as compelled to reach for my comfort food. Just a thought to add to the already great ideas mentioned already. :D cheers!

Arrgh! I hate these! The worst for me is snacking if I have to stay up really late to study... tea works well for me but its still really hard to stay away from the chips because i get ridiculous cravings for salty carbs...

sometimes i just go to bed earlier lol ...or brushing your teeth when you have a craving helps too! try it! it kind of convinces me that i am definitely done eating for the day when i've already got a clean mouth haha

Yes, I agree the teeth brushing helps! I remember late nights studying.... veggies and fruits help out.... and sugar free popsicles! I can go through a tonne of them! But study partners can sabotage things! LOL!

I made it through last night at my freinds without eating any brownies....man they looked good. I instead popped a piece of gum and rewarded myself when I got home with a diet hot choc and a cut up apple. Yayyyy. Baby steps. I am down a few pounds and hopefully keep the scales going south!

Another evening. I had a big homemade salad with oil and vinegar with an english muffin on the side. Then I cleaned my house for an hour an a half - my Mum is coming to visit on the weekend. I am now going to have my hot choc and apple and call it a night. Can't wait to see what the scales say tomorrow.... I have my fingers crossed.

i feel like end of the day binges get to a lot of people who are trying to diet. i seem to "deprive" or watch my calories all day, and then at the end of day (when i'm tired, getting ready to chill out, relaxing, with friends) it's so much easier to think back at how "well" i did with eating that day and to "reward" myself. but with calorie counting, i think it's easier to see that i only have, say, 60 calories left, and i can't find a bad snack for only 60 calories. heck, even an apple has more than 60 calories. so i end up not eating anything.

A naturopath told me that eating a small amount of protein in the hour before bed will promote healthy sleep.  She's talking a couple slices of turkey, OR a spoonful of peanut butter OR a small container of yogurt.

For me, even more important than counting calories is changing my relationship with food and my eating habits.  I LOVE sugar-free dark chocolate pudding - so much so that it is nearly impossible for me to eat that ridiculously small amount the package says is a serving.  And if I start binging on "healthy" snacks, it's the SAME behavior that lead me to be 100 pounds overweight.

I also do not want to spend my calories on empty items that have very little nutritional value.  For me, treating myself with food is a slippery slope.

Yeah, I go to bed if I have no more calories and the kitchen has become a crackhouse of temptations.  Hot tea is good and if it's caffeine-free it will soothe me into sleep.

I agree with ch672557 about dieting and denial - I can only survive on willpower alone when I feel deprived - by the end of the day my willpower button is worn out.

I made it another night. Yayy.

Mad4moon made me laugh. I will make a package of sugar free pudding with skim milk and have one serving. Next commercial break I get up and have another - it's only two servings right? Then I end up going and grabbing the darn bowl and eating the rest. EVERY TIME! Plus, I have dirtied two bowls when I could have just sat down with the original and a big spoon right off the bat! LOL! But I forgive myself, record the calories and write in my journal, and concentrate on making progress. Now I know not to make a package of pudding unless I have some people to share it with....