It’s Friday and that means tonight is movie night!
Whenever I stay up late, I always get the snackies. And by snackies, I mean, I want to eat carbs, and lots of them. If you are looking for ways to cut out or avoid late night snacking, here’s a few tips:
- Eat enough during the day, and make it high quality. It will help stave off hunger.
- Avoid “white foods” {i.e. sugar and flour}. They don’t do much for your body nutritionally speaking {though, your taste buds will probably tell a different story}, and they cause insulin spikes that make you feel hungry right after eating.
- Distract yourself with a hobby. Whenever the snacking mood strikes, lure yourself away from the pantry or fridge with something else you love to do {looks like I will have the BEST planned garden ever}.
- Brush your teeth. {This one is my favorite–I don’t know why, but I never want to take the two minutes to re-brush my teeth, so I avoid eating.}
- Have a glass of water instead. Sometimes thirst is mistaken for hunger. {If only water tasted like cookies.}
- Go to bed. Crazy idea, I know, but sometimes, the best thing is to just go to bed hungry {or at least, thinking you are} with the promise of a tasty breakfast running through your dreams.
- Watch for triggers in your nightly routine that make you want a snack. Maybe it’s when you sit down to watch T.V. or when you sit down at the computer? Try to change the triggers or make a conscious effort to resist the snacking urge when the triggers are involved.
- Exercise. It will distract you, help you sleep better, and act as a natural appetite suppressant.
- Embrace the snack. Instead of letting the desire to snack sneak up on you, embrace it. Plan for it each night and choose a healthy option, like a piece of fruit or some yogurt with granola.
- Call a friend. Sometimes snacking isn’t the result of hunger at all, but boredom.
How about you, how do you avoid late night snacking?
~Mavis
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Christine says
I started drinking MetroMint water to help with the cravings. Chocolatemint water is my favorite. Just that little bit of chocolate taste – tells my brain that I am eating a chocolate bar and the brain is happy.
Jennifer Jo says
#9 is my favorite option, minus the “healthy” part.
Cheryl says
Herbal tea (with no caffeine) helps me relax and keeps the sanckies at bay!!!
Jane says
I went a whole month and a half without snacking after dinner. It was hard, but so rewarding- I felt so much better in the mornings and shed some weight (I am exercising more, too). But, alas, I relapsed- but now I’m only snacking on carrots and hummus- incredibly filling and it boosts my fiber:-).
Mavis says
Hummus is awesome. I cannot get enough of that stuff!
bonnie fuentevilla says
um……………….it’s a habit.
That parts is true. Maybe if someone introduced me to the whole ” delayed gratification ” thing when I was a kid, you know……one cookie now, two, if you wait…blah blah blah.
So, it’s too late for me. However, anything low calorie and healthy has NO LIMITS. Carrots and veggies and now that summer is almost here, WATERMELON.
Bill Dungan says
For late nite snacking try eating popcorn. It will fill you up fast and is very low-to-no calories.
LuAnn Braley says
Thanks for the tips. This is a big (no pun intended) issue in our family.