I used to be really bad about eating at night, mostly because for the majority of the time, my schedule was to where I was asleep for most of the day and shortly after I woke up, I would eat dinner.
My nighttime eating wasn't nearly as controlled as yours is, though. It was more like binging, even though it was my 'daytime'.
From what I understand, it's not so much you shouldn't eat at night, but really just not right before you go to bed, because you're body, after winding down, prepares to store the calories you have just consumed for the 8-ish hours you are about to sleep.
My rule of thumb is mostly not to eat if I feel tired, sleepy, or sluggish, since I see it as my body preparing for 'hibernation' and will store what I eat as extra fat for extra energy when I wake up. If I feel like I could stay up for another three or four hours, I will get a healthy snack, like some grapes or oranges, or half a sandwich and eat the other half for a mid-'morning' snack, about halfway between breakfast and lunch, or when I get back from my walk after breakfast, when my metabolism will be at its peak.
If I do start to get the munchies when I'm feeling tired, I'll get a bottle of water and distract myself with something fun, such as pinterest or other things, until the craving goes away which, after the bottle of water, it usual does.
I used to be a night eater, I would work all day and when I find some free time (which is usually night) I would start the eating feast
But these days I always have a good breakfast and a not so large lunch, at dinner I would have usually salad. I stay up late cuz of my 1 year old son . So when I get hungry at night I go to the kitchen making sure not to open the fridge and make a large mug of coffee if I'm hungry still I would eat a cucumber.
I don't save up the majority of my calories for the evening. I find that makes me too hungry and I end up overeating. I save enough for a good size dinner (500-600 calories) and a snack afterwards - typically popcorn. It's starchy and I have a lot to munch with a 100 cal bag.
If I'm still hungry, I've gotten hooked on drinking decaf coffee. I don't like hot tea. For my coffee, I brew the grounds with cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg then mix it with splenda and fat free half and half. It's warm. It's flavorful and yummy. It makes me feel content and I'm not going to bed on a totally empty stomach which I do not do well with.
Last edited by FrecklesTX; 04-04-2012 at 09:58 PM.
I'm a late night snacker as well. It doesn't help that I have to stay up really late to work, I sometimes go to bed at around 3 A.M.
I try to go for healthy stuff, but for some reason I end up craving potato chips and grilled cheese
I'm not much for breakfasts, I can't really eat when I wake up, I can barely have an apple or an orange and then I get hungry late in the afternoon.
Night are always my down fall. Once I start I can't seem to be able to stop eating. My solution is not to eat anything at all after supper. If I don't start I am able to control the snack demon that lurks within me.
Larry
I do the same thing and I feel so proud of myself if I actually stay away from the food. It's a big ego boost, telling myself that I can do it! Also, if I feel the need to snack, I just go hit the elliptical machine, but sometimes there just isn't any energy left to do that. Ironically, if I do hit the machine, I lose my appetite altogether.
So my solution, crazy as it sounds, is I drink coffee all day, then diet coke to curb my appetite. Then I eat a tiny little dinner, then....I snack all night.
Your regimen wouldn't work for me, but if it works for you, great! We're all different.
I do a lot of things that many others here wouldn't endorse, such as planned binges (a few times a year) and many pure-carb meals. If I don't eat well during the day, however, I find myself looking forward obsessively to the evening, which doesn't help my productivity or creativity. I prefer to space out my meals evenly, with about 500 calories for each meal, and an extra 500 calories for snacks and drinks throughout the day. Plus, breakfast is my favourite meal, followed by lunch and then dinner, so I don't want to deprive myself of yummy breakfast foods.
The beauty about losing weight is that we can each do it in our own way.
just so long as you're getting the nutrition you need and you don't feel weak, go for it. i might suggests swapping water for some of your other beverages, because it sounds like you'd get pretty dehydrated.
I got into a bad habit of snacking at night, and it really started cutting into my daily calories (I start counting my "day's" calories with dinner).
So, this week, I've made a concerted effort to not eat anything after dinner. I figure that I will only eat dessert on the weekends. The only exception is that I can have a bit of fruit after dinner if I need it. At first, this was really, really hard. I would dream about food the first few nights. However, I've been reading a lot about willpower, and I've found two strategies that seem to be working for me: 1) resist the urge for 15 minutes, and it will probably go away; 2) don't leave treats out on the counter as my willpower will be challenged each time I go to the kitchen. Also, I have two espressos every night (have been doing this for years), and that's my after-dinner ritual/treat.
I am amazed at how many calories I've been saving just by not eating after dinner!
So, do what's best for you, but the above is what has worked for me.
The time of day you eat, eating before bed, number of meals per day... none of it really matters outside of how it helps you adhere to your overall CALORIE goals.
It takes your body up to 72 hours to fully digest a meal, so do you think your intestines know that it's a certain time of day? The idea that eating a certain number of meals per day or eating before you go to bed actually having an impact on how much weight you gain or lose is a myth.
What DOES matter is how many calories you eat, if you have certain habits that cause you to overeat/binge/undereat, etc. Whatever works for you in terms of your lifestyle is perfect!
Night time is the worst for me as well. I almost never eat breakfast, and am usually not hungry until after my workout (if I dont work out I could go almost all day without eating).. I eat the majority of my calories at dinner, and usually 200-300 more between dinner and bedtime.. I honestly think though, that I have adapted this due to my IBS flaring in the mornings after i would eat.. but as long as you dont eat to many calories, it truly doesn't matter when you eat them
I have become very convinced that my very best eating pattern is fasting until 11:00 or noon, even, and then eating a decent brunch, working out, eating a snack post workout and a late dinner around 7:00-8:00 pm. This keeps me from overeating because I'm fasting most of the day and night, and when I do eat I am satisfied and have fuel right when my body demands it. It is incredibly comfortable and I don't get hungry like I worried I would, with skipping breakfast. It's nice
Do look into intermittent fasting if nighttime eating is what you struggle with. It might help your dietary adherence immensely to stack your meals in such a way that at at night isn't off plan but precisely what you should be doing! Then the rest if your day is set up to support that action, rather than the action undermining the rest of the day. Voila
Yep! What she said!
Look up Eat-Stop_Eat or Leangains. The style of eating you are referring to is Intermittent Fasting Leangains style. :-)
I used to be really bad about eating at night, mostly because for the majority of the time, my schedule was to where I was asleep for most of the day and shortly after I woke up, I would eat dinner.
My nighttime eating wasn't nearly as controlled as yours is, though. It was more like binging, even though it was my 'daytime'.
From what I understand, it's not so much you shouldn't eat at night, but really just not right before you go to bed, because you're body, after winding down, prepares to store the calories you have just consumed for the 8-ish hours you are about to sleep.
My rule of thumb is mostly not to eat if I feel tired, sleepy, or sluggish, since I see it as my body preparing for 'hibernation' and will store what I eat as extra fat for extra energy when I wake up. If I feel like I could stay up for another three or four hours, I will get a healthy snack, like some grapes or oranges, or half a sandwich and eat the other half for a mid-'morning' snack, about halfway between breakfast and lunch, or when I get back from my walk after breakfast, when my metabolism will be at its peak.
If I do start to get the munchies when I'm feeling tired, I'll get a bottle of water and distract myself with something fun, such as pinterest or other things, until the craving goes away which, after the bottle of water, it usual does.
It's hard to believe, but from what I have read, it is actually a myth that your body stores fat while you are sleeping. It is also a myth that not eating slows down your metabolism. Your best fat-burning window is 18 or so hours after your last meal. Your metabolism doesn't slow down until you've fasted for 30 or more hours.
. So when I get hungry at night I go to the kitchen making sure not to open the fridge and make a large mug of coffee 
if I'm hungry still I would eat a cucumber.
