Hunger Pains @ Bedtime

  • I have severe hunger pains at bedtime! I just started my new healthy eating/weight loss plan Monday. Monday night I had a little discomfort and a little trouble getting to sleep. But Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights were nearly unbearable!

    The pain is so severe that I cannot sleep! It is 5:19am here and I still haven't managed to fall asleep!

    I have stopped eating by 7:30pm...but now I might change that.

    Any tips or advice is appreciated.

    Thanks!
  • Hi Whitwhit,

    No matter what the diet your doing is I don't think you should be in pain! You poor thing.

    Why don't you have a mid evening snack to keep you going- like a small portion of nuts or a handful of sugar snap peas?

    I also get hunger pains at night (although I tend to eat dinner around 8pm), my solution is to make mmyself a big pot of decaf tea around 10pm or 10.30pm and snuggle up on the couch with a fashion magazine to give me encouragement. You'll probably find your own perfect snack solution but I definitely think you shouldn't just suffer through it. You won't stay on plan that way. Plus getting a good night sleep helps you lose weight apparently!

    Good luck, D
  • I usually snack on some popcorn and ice water with lemon around 8 or so. Light buttered popcorn is only 100 cals and 1 fat gram for 5 cups. It's a filling snack, keeps me satisfied through the night. Good luck finding what works for you!
  • The decaf tea someone mentioned is a good idea. Also, some low sodium chicken broth can make you feel warm and full. It has so few calories that it shouldn't matter much how late you take it.
  • Hey Whit Whit

    Eventually your body will adjust to it's new eating schedule. I also have a cutoff time, so I don't eat after 7 either.

    Sometimes I will eat a pickle or 2, or a piece of low fat cheese....just something little and then I get out of the kitchen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • I get that sometimes too, but only before I fall asleep...try a very small bowl of healthy cereal with skim milk
  • Thanks so much for all of your suggestions! I just went grocery shopping and I bought Kraft Cheese Slices (bar type things). They are individually wrapped and have 120 calories each. I also bought some yogurt too.

    I plan to eat a snack around 9 (I go to sleep around 12 or 1 usually). I believe I will be able to stay within my calorie range which is 1300-1500 cals.

    Thanks Ladies!
  • I usually just have a cup of tea. Maybe two.
  • I have this problem too. But I find if I drink a ton of water (three glasses) within a couple hours of going to bed, I go to sleep full. I even wake up not hungry. I read an article once where it said we tend to mistake being thirsty for hunger pains and most times we think we are hungry just drinking a glass of water will fix that.
    ~Ana
  • I eat before bed. Typically, it's just some bedtime tea, vanilla yogurt with a *small* orange and cinnamon on top. It's just over a hundred calories and it gets counted.
  • I have the same problem...I just need a bedtime snack. I have a cup of skim milk with some sugar free hot cocca or a small bowl of cereal before bed...fills me up enough to sleep well, and the caloric value isnt too bad. Ive lost over 20 lbs at this point...and I ALWAYS eat before bed if I am hungry....true hunger is your bodys way of saying its out of fuel.....you wouldnt run your farrari on empty, because it could damage the carberator...nor would you fill it with gas until it was pouring over the paint job....why run your one of a kind, one and only body on E or overfill it till u wreck the "paint"?