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Late
night snacking is the downfall of many a diet plan and can
ruin the best intentions to stay on track to lose weight.
Research has shown that our inhibitions are lower at night,
making it much harder to avoid things we know are bad for
us.
And
while a well-planned snack can actually be a good thing if
it’s during the mid-morning or mid-afternoon to help spread
out calories and give the body a little metabolism jumpstart
and energy boost, a late night snack can be lethal to your
weight loss plans. In fact, doctors have even given it a
name now for their patients: NES (Night Eating Syndrome).
So we
know it’s bad for us – what can we do to overcome it?
Here
are a few tips to keep in mind:
1.
Brush Your Teeth
This is
the simplest way. Although it doesn't always work, it
usually helps, and it's great for your dental health, too!
Brushing your teeth tends to weaken your appetite and helps
a lot of people to avoid late night snacks.
2.
Never Starve During the Day
Make
sure that you eat enough during the day to avoid feeling
hungry at night. If you starve yourself, you will be so
hungry in the evening that a binge will be unavoidable. 5-6
healthy meals a day won't just stop late night snacking, but
will also help your overall diet by keeping your metabolism
steady.
3.
Drink Instead of Eating
If you
really feel hungry, try drinking hot water or tea to help
soothe your appetite as well as fill your stomach somewhat.
For obvious reasons, it's best to stick with decaf drinks,
or you won't be able to sleep for the next few hours! Avoid
sweetened drinks like a plague - orange juice may be
healthy, but all the sugar in it isn't.
4.
Stay Active
Try to
keep your body moving and your hands busy during the
evening. Relaxing on the sofa is a great way to de-stress
after a long day; however, it also puts you at the highest
risk of unconscious eating. If possible, try going for a
quick evening jog - it will not only stop the craving, but
also burn up some calories in the process!
5.
Keep Junk Food Away
If you
really can't help late night snacks, make sure they're
healthy. This means turning your house into a junk
food-free zone. Store only those foods that are healthy for
you. Fruits and vegetables are great, since they not only
will your stomach, but also contain little calories.
6.
Make sure that the dinner you eat is “protein-heavy” to help
stop the carb cycle.
7. Portion out snacks.
Portion control is the
secret of weight maintenance. All foods can fit into a
healthy diet, but only in the serving size that makes sense
for your goals. For example, 1 oz of pretzels (small
handful) has about 120 calories; the whole bag can have up
to 300 calories.
8. Learn to differentiate
between hunger and boredom.
Are you really hungry or
just needing something to occupy your hands while you…..?
9. A good bedtime treat is
a mug of low calorie hot chocolate at around 40 calories;
there are also
loads of flavors to choose from. Or try a soothing herbal
tea. The warm drink will also help you sleep.
10. Set a snack time limit
– for instance promise yourself that there will be no
snacking after 7pm – and stick to your guns!
Make the effort
to break the cycle!
It's up to you to take action and the make the decision to do something
about your late night snack habits. Remember habits can be
broken and replaced with new habits. And to create a
healthy habit you just need to stick to, and repeat, your
new plan until it becomes "routine'. Once you see the
difference it makes to your health and fitness results, not
only will this help motivate you to continue, but you'll be
kicking yourself that you hadn't done this earlier.
Exercise:
List activities that you
do in the evening which creates the desire to late night
snack.
List activities that you
can substitute for the above or how you can replace the late
night snack attack:
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