Category: Eating Late

How to Curb Your Cravings Without Depriving Yourself

iStock_couple eatingsweets - cravings

Have you ever found yourself craving an entire bag of potato chips or a huge bowl of ice cream on a bad day?  Or, maybe some days seem harder than others to stick to your normal eating habits?  If so, you are NOT alone.

Research is showing us that controlling cravings is a lot less about will power and a lot more about creating new habits or in some cases addressing a nutritional deficiency.

Know What Your Cravings May Mean

If you’ve been finding it hard to satisfy your cravings, here’s what some of those cravings may mean and how you can curb them without feeling completely deprived.

    • Cravings for salty foods.  A craving for salty foods could mean that you are dehydrated or have a mineral or electrolyte imbalance.  It can also be caused by cutting back too much on your carb intake.  If you find yourself craving salty foods for no apparent reason, try drinking plenty of water and make sure that you are eating carbs with each of your meals.  Choose recipes with interesting spices and herbs to satisfy your craving for savory foods.  Add salted nuts to your diet.  Nuts make great snacks, taste great on salads, and work well in stir-frys.  Remember to pay attention to serving sizes which is usually around 1/4 cup or 16-18 nuts.  A small handful of nuts can go a long way.
    • Sugar cravings.  Research shows that a person can become physically addicted to sugar which means the more you eat, the more you want.  If you find yourself craving sugar often try grabbing a piece of fruit instead.  Deprivation can lead to binging so if sweets are one of your favorites it’s a good idea to incorporate them into your diet in moderation.  When you do decide to have a sweet treat avoid the artificially sweetened diet foods which can cause more intense cravings. Instead, eat small amounts of the real deal instead.  You are better off enjoying a piece of pie made from scratch or a 1/2 cup of real ice cream than you are eating  most processed desserts.
    • The late night snack.  Late night snacking can be triggered by a number of different things.  You may be over tired, justifiably hungry, or simply bored.  A lack of sleep can affect hunger controlling hormones so if you know you’ve been sleep-deprived, focus on getting at least 7.5  hours of sleep per night.  If you notice hunger pains in the evening and it’s been several hours since you’ve had dinner, you are probably hungry.  Eat a light snack that won’t interrupt your sleep.  If you’ve just eaten and you know you’ve been getting enough sleep you may be bored.  Try redirecting your attention to an activity unrelated to food.  Things like reading, stretching, organizing, folding laundry, or playing with a pet are all great ways to keep your hands busy doing something other than snacking.
    • When you’ve had a rough day.  There’s a valid reason you turn to Mom’s chocolate cake when you need a little pick me up on a bad day.  Eating “comfort foods” gives you a boost of serotonin and dopamine, which are feel-good transmitters that act like anti-depressants.  While it’s true that elevating your serotonin levels helps fight depression, turning to the sweets to elevate your serotonin levels may not be the best choice. You may feel great for a moment after eating a large piece of cake. However, when your blood sugar drops, you can go right back into the dumps and may experience guilt for sabotaging your weight loss goals.  Try experimenting with the lighter versions of comfort foods like a whole grain macaroni and cheese or berries with a small piece of dark chocolate on the side.  Or, turn to alternative sources of pleasure like taking a walk with your dog, enjoying a hot bath, or sipping on a glass of wine.

We all have food cravings from time to time. It’s knowing how to deal with them that will make or break our weight loss and/or management goals!

To your health and success!

Shared with love,
Jennifer Ledford

Can Eating Late Make You Gain Weight?

For years we have been teaching a calorie is a calorie no matter what time it is consumed. I mean it makes sense. It’s dark in your stomach. How does your body know what time it is? But, there is growing research now telling us that the body burns those calories differently at night than it does during the day.

Your body has a secret fat burning process at night!

The new thinking based on the research by Satchin Panda at the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California, is that the body burns some of the calories you eat for fuel during the day and the rest is stored in the liver in the form of glycogen. At night, your body converts the glycogen into glucose and releases it into your bloodstream to keep your blood-sugar levels steady during this fasting period called sleep.

Once the glycogen is gone, your liver starts burning fat cells for energy.

Lose weight in your sleep!

The concept that we burn fat while we sleep is not new at all. But, this new research gives some merit to the theory that a midnight snack could interfere with your body’s ability to burn fat between the time you go to bed and the time you sit down to breakfast.

So what time should you stop eating? Late night snackers tend to eat an average of 248 calories more per day than those who go to bed earlier. Most of those calories are consumed after 8pm.

Depending on what you have had for dinner that night, you may actually be hungry right before bed time. Make sure you are eating a balanced meal with lost of veggies, whole grains, healthy oils, and protein in order to feel satisfied.

Don’t go to bed hungry!

If you really are hungry and not just craving or bored, then have a piece of fruit, a 1/2 serving of yoghurt, or 1 piece of whole wheat bread to tie you over until morning.

If you are a late night snacker, you may not be getting enough sleep. This can cause weight gain. If you work the night shift, your body will adjust. However, the new research tells us that trying to “fit in” to a day schedule on your off days could be throwing your body out of whack. If you are used to having your larger meals during a swing shift, experiment with keeping the portions small when you normally would have been sleeping. Regular meals and sleep patterns seems to be the key.

Start the day of with breakfast!

Research has proven that regular breakfast eaters weigh less. When you eat within an hour of waking up, you help jump start your metabolism! Read  How Eating Breakfast Helps You Lose Weight for more details about breakfast and weight loss.

What do you do if you ate late the night before? Based on Panda’s research you want to wait 12 hours between the evening meal and breakfast. If you ate a big dinner at 11pm, then eating closer to lunch may help you burn off that late meal.

Overall the “new thinking” is telling us something we already know. While I wouldn’t get too freaked out about the occasional late night meal, regular meals and regular sleep help you lose weight and maintain it permanently!

Has this helped you with this subject? Have a late night habit you want to discuss? Please leave a comment below.  I love hearing from you!

Blessings to you and yours!

Jennifer