How to Stop Yourself From Nighttime Binging

Overeating seems to be a common issue that many people can’t seem to shake. You wake up and have a protein-packed breakfast, a salad for lunch, a well-balanced dinner, and a handful of nuts or berries for your midday snacks. But not too long after dinner, you find yourself mindlessly opening up the pantry and ripping open a bag of potato chips while you watch your favourite TV show. And that only gets your cravings started, as the unraveling of all your healthy habits throughout the day begins, you find yourself a bottomless pit by evening’s end, filled with empty calories and a whole lot of guilt.

But what exactly causes so many of us to overeat like this? Perhaps it’s because you were far too restrictive with what you ate all day. “Not eating enough throughout the day makes your mind and body much more vulnerable to overeating at night,” says nutritionist Stephanie Clarke, R.D., of C&J Nutrition in New York.

“There’s a common misconception that in order to lose weight, you have to feel deprived and hungry,” says Willow Jarosh, R.D. But all that deprivation is really causing an emotional battle with the foods we are forbidding ourselves to have, and creating a “I give up” mentality that leads to serious overeating and the inability to lose weight like you want.

So how can you prevent nighttime binging? “You should never feel like, ‘I’m so hungry, I’ll eat anything,’ or, ‘I’m so full, I need to lie down,’” says Jarosh. “Eat when you just start to feel your stomach rumble, and stop when you’re satisfied but not stuffed.”

And Stephanie Clarke, R.D., of C&J Nutrition in New York says, “Keeping your blood sugar stable makes you feel more energized, which keeps you emotionally balanced—since your energy levels aren’t spiking and crashing.”

Do you find yourself uncontrollably snacking in the evening?

For meals that will fill you up and cut down on potential snacking, check out the BodyRock Meal Plan!

Source: Women’s Health

 

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