What suggestions does anyone have to s... - Weight Loss Support
What suggestions does anyone have to stop eating sweets late at night?
Simple, don't buy them!
Willpower!
Have Chocolate or sweets once a week and don't buy them any other time. Also cut amount of TV do other stuff that will reduce eating. I can't stand TV see it as a waste better stuff to do than sit about watching rubbish
I have chocolate or sweets once a week and that's it don't buy them any other time and to eat late at night ie after 8pm of anything is bad your matabalisiom slows down at night and your burn less cals You should not eat anything after 8pm bad. Its very easy to eat healthy not skip meals ie not skip breakfast and not eat after 8pm. Writing shopping lists help.
I agree that it is helpful to write shopping lists and only to buy chocolates and sweets in a small portion and eat them at the time, rather than having a stash in the house. It really helped me when I started losing weight to make sure as many things as possible were in single portion size packets, so it is easier to stop at a sensible portion size.
However, there is no reason to specifically avoid eating after 8pm. Timing and frequency of meals is down to personal preference, there is not a particular pattern that is "best" for losing weight. See for example:
sheffieldweighahead.nhs.uk/...
Of course if you have a medical condition like diabetes there might be a reason to have a special meal plan. The link above also mentions heartburn as a reason to avoid a large meal just before bedtime.
(I would add that I nearly always eat my evening meal after 8pm and I have lost getting on for 5 stone, so clearly late meals are not a problem for everyone).
its bad to eat after 8pm your body burns less cals at night and depending on what you eat it stays in your body. Its a doctor who again told me this as well as eating three healthy meals and three healthy snacks mixed with plenty of exercise can speed up your matabalisiom and help you burns more cals to maintain weight. Not eating after 8pm is something since I lost weight 6 years a go have never done and it works same with not skipping breakfast. It shows that people who don't eat after 8pm and eat breakfast are slimmer people and its true. I am only size 8 and my Dad is only a 30 weist size. I could never eat after 8pm too late to even consider a meal your body can't burn it off like it could if eat at 5pm or 6pm. if You eat after 8pm your silly its far too late to give your body time to burn it and depending on what you eat it will sit in your body not being burnt. Like toast and bread should never be eat at night. Your body don't burn cals like it does during day at night
I don't want to get into a big discussion about this, but as you didn't read the link I posted, see quote below:
"I’ve heard that eating late at night makes you more likely to put weight on. Is this true?
This is a common belief but there is little evidence that eating late causes weight gain. What matters is the total number of calories you eat over the day, balanced with how many calories you use up with physical activity. Dietitians recommend spreading your food intake out over the day with three meals, the exact timing of meals will depend on your lifestyle. Eating late can lead to heartburn in some people so if this affects you it might be worth trying to eat earlier."
Fair enough if you found that for you, not eating after 8pm was best. But there is no reason to tell other people that they need to avoid eating later in order to lose weight, because there is no evidence that is the case. Yes you burn less calories at night - if you are sleeping not a night shift worker! Assuming you ate the same calories over course of the day, then there is no reason to think eating at a certain time of day would affect weight loss in any way. The food will just used in fueling activity the next day if it is all not used up over night.
I disagree to all this. What I have been told by a doctor is probably right and when I lost weight I never eat after 8pm and still don't eat after 8pm and probably never will. I feel you should eat at a decent hour and not eat too late. Not to tell other to avoid eating after 8pm is not something people should be told to do but your common sence should make you reliese late eating is bad. I think I know a lot more about it because a doctor told me and It works that's why I keep weight off and maintain the weight I lost weight to. Not many people loss weight and can control it and keep it off.
And maybe it depends on what you get up to after 8.00 pm !! You don't see fat vampires very often and they have all their calories after dark.
I disagree its not always about putting weight its about other stuff eating late can do to your body its a bad habit to get into but each to their own.
I think that if eating before 8pm works for you then good for you. Really it is all down to burning more calories than you eat in a day. I would love to be able to eat my dinner before 8pm but as I don't get in from work until 7.45pm, it is either a case of eating after 8pm or not eating dinner. Now I think that eating a healthy dinner whatever time it is, is infinitely more sensible than not eating dinner because 8pm has passed.
You should always eat dinner if you can't have it at what I think a decent hour then eat less than a full dinner maybe a sandwich or a salad but not a full meal . Not good for your body or stomac eating too late. I was brought up to never eat after 8pm and look at my family none of us are big yet the rest of my family uncles auntys etc who eat dinner later are all big overweight or obese says something.
So I should stop eating a varied diet in order to just eat a salad or sandwich after 8pm to make sure that I am not eating too much? Neither of which would really cut it for me after a long day at work!
I ate dinner last week every night after 8pm and lost 6lbs when I stepped on the scales Sunday morning - hasn't done me any harm.
Unless you have nutritional training or can point us to the scientific evidence that says meals should not be consumed after 8pm, I think you will just have to accept that just because it works for you does not mean that a) it will work for everyone and b) that anyone who does eat after 8pm (whether because of time constraints or because they want to) should be made to feel bad.
I don't agree that eating after 8pm is bad for you, if calories in are less than calories burned throughout the day and week, then you will lose weight, regardless of when you eat them.
If anyone would like to look at this link it debunks some popular food myths, including not eating after 8pm (myth 10): lifehacker.com/5847591/10-s...
Don't give a shit after 8pm is a no no if it works for you great but its doing your body no good eating that late. Most of my family eat late and are late eater they are overweight or obese tells you something. I eat breakfast and regular health snacks in between my meals and don't eat my main meal or anything come to that after 8pm and I am only size 8 tell something. If it works for you great but Not something I could ever do or put my body under strain of late eating. Not good to go to bed on a full stomac that's going to sit with all sorts in it until the morning. Depending what it is you have eat some of that will stay as fat and not get burned off. Certain food are a no no for after 8pm
Are you aware that your metabolism, digestive system and colons do not stop working after 8pm, now when you are asleep. They may slow down slightly, but food does not sit in your stomach overnight until you wake, to continue breaking your food down in the morning. What a ridiculous thought!!
But if it works for you - fair play.
We shall have to agree to disagree on this.
Yes you burn less cals at night and it recommended you eat with less cals. I lost weight 6 years ago dropping four dress sizes which have maintained ever since. Got proper decent help to loss weight and its helped keep four dress sizes down. I don't agree anyway in eating after 8pm no matter what it is and things like eating bread late at night can sit in your stomac and not get burnt off you should not eat things like that unless you can burn it off earlyer in day when you eat it. If eating later works for you great but would never agree on some thing like that thing its stupid way to deal with weight
Don't buy them 
No seriously, I know what you are going through! The craving can be so strong! But that is just your body telling you how addicted to sugar you really are.
Try replacing sweets with a half cup of greek yogurt with some blueberries or any other type of berry.
Or even a boiled egg!
My partner and I used to be avid consumers of sweets and chocolate in the evening while watching the TV. It was and still is a very hard habit to break.
We now go the yogurt and berry route.
Good luck!
Don't watch TV and don't sit about as much. I think TV and sitting about house is when you will eat more. I think sitting about house and watching lots of TV is a waste so much crap on TV and it just makes you get lazy. You should eat fruit at night and nothing after 8pm as said before.
I don't eat sweets but have a similar problem with cheese & crisps so I don't have them in the house.
Aloha I drink a cup of casein protein before bed. Mix with ice. Casein is a slow release protein. Will stay with you throughout the night. It's not a carb so it's ok before bed also plain popcorn is ok.
Michael Bing
Master Personal Trainer
Nutrition Counselor
Put a load of grapes in the freezer! Yes, they're a high sugar fruit but better than sweets and chocolate. For those days when you're watching a film at home and need something sweet to munch on, they're great. They're like little ice-lolly bites and being frozen, they take longer to eat so you enjoy them for longer! Just keep an eye on your portions. Good luck x
Just don't Your body doesn't need sugar, it just wants it because it's used to having it. If you fancy something sweet have an apple or a couple of grapes instead. I've been virtually sugar free (apart from natural sugars) for about 6/7 weeks and don't even think about it any more. Was hard the first few days but now just don't worry. Remember that you have the willpower to go out and run, so you can easily conquer the odd sugar craving
Try fruit, suck sugar free polos or chew gum or have a cup of coffee or a 40cal hot chocolate but the one that works best for me, is simply clean your teeth, the minty taste stops you from wanting to eat.
eat sweets or chocolate once a week and stick to it. Sugar free polo's can give you the runs if eat too many and clean teeth is not good idea. Best thing is to eat smaller portions of the right food three small healthy meals and three healthy snacks
Choose an alternative then prepare it well in advance,so when the urge gets to you your new chose is ready and waiting.
If you know you have trouble with eating certain foods, just don't buy them. At the end of the day, if they're not in the house then they won't go in your mouth. Apparently it takes 30 days to change a habit. Set yourself a goal, don't buy them for 30 days and see how you feel on day 31. I have done this with many things and in all honesty I get to day 31 and wonder why the heck I didn't give them up sooner. Trust me, your body will thank you in the long run.
The easiest thing to do is just not buy them. I used to be able to eat one of the 400g dairy milk bars every evening, now I just don't buy it, I get my shopping delivered to avoid temptation and I save a fortune I also have an aerobic step at home and when I get the urge for sweets to avoid going out I get the step out and keep going until I collapse on the settee, then i'm too tired to go to the shop. Also the exercise means bonus calories and the best part about the step is that you can do it while the tvs on.
The thing is to find something that works for you. Think about what it is you're doing when you start wanting the sweets. Is it because the tv went on and you're in the habit of having a treat? Is it because you've had a bad day and the sweets are comfort food? Until you know what it is that makes you turn to the sweets you won't be able to stop having them. I tried cutting out all sweets and biscuits, I lasted 2 months then they became all I could think about and I binged. Now I go for a walk on my lunch break (3 miles) and have a sweet when I get back, that way I've ate it at a sensible time, the calories are already worked off and i've had my sugar fix. This works for me, it was hard at first as habits are hard to break but perseverance has got me through and now it's normal
Not helpful Lisa11, just critical of some of us that have deeper issues than just being 'lazy'.
Most are lazy these days that's why country Is full of fat people. If you have deeper issues address them and sort them out.
Hi Joannf54,
If you have difficulty kicking a bad eating habit - whether that's a particular food you binge on, boredom eating, comfort eating the main strategies really are much the same:
Prevent - don't have the sweets / chocolate / cheese or whatever in the house, so you just can't have it. OR stop getting yourself into the situaton where you eat the 'bad' things, as in stop going to that cafe / pub / person's house. (You can be creative here, you're way of preventing the recurring problem of visiting that aunt who demands you eat those gorgeous cakes she always bakes, might be to not visit her at home, but take her out somewhere so that you can better control the situation.
Distract - look at what happens in the run-up to you doing this and change your routine so that you do something different / change the behaviour. Instead of sitting on the sofa, watching TV and mindlessly munching, busy yourself with another activity.
Substitute - make yourself a nice bowl of salad type nibbles - cherry tomatoes, carrot batons, etc. - and have those instead. Or some fruit. It'll feel a bit odd at first, but you can change your habit for a better one. Or perhaps, serve it differently. If chocolate's your problem, then how about some raspberries, some zero-fat yoghurt and just a tiny grating of dark chocolate over that? Much better than woofing down the 100 g bar of Galaxy or whatever.
Delay - when you're about to tuck in, put it off for another 20 / 30 minutes - you may well find that 'cooling off' period helps you to muster your self-control.
But it's also worth looking at just why you do binge on sweets, especially late at night. Where do you think you got the habit from? Sounds like it might be a childhood thing of keeping sweets and then tucking into them secretly after 'lights out'.
Maybe you just need to ask yourself whether, nowadays, as an adult, if that behaviour really serves you all that very well. And once you really take on board that that behaviour / habit really doesn't serve you very well - in fact it does you no favours at all - you'll probably find it easier to consciously reject it.
I do jewellery making it keep hand an mind busy so find a hobby that u like to do that
Really good positive advice Doikosp. I found that really helpfully. Probably we could have some healthy recipes for 'treats' from others. I love chocolate and I find that breaking dark chocolate into small portions, having one a day and keeping individually wrapped in the fridge just stops me 'gorging'. Gino D'Campo does a great recipe for banana 'ice cream'. You just chop bananas into chunks and freeze until solid, then blitz in a food processor and there you have it. I've experimented with other fruits with varying degrees of success, but it's good fun trying!
I remembered this link from before that has some low-cal snack suggestions:
nhs.uk/livewell/loseweight/...
Now it is summer I also like ice-lolly or frozen yoghurt. Both of which come in at under 200kcal for a decent portion size. I've heard about the banana "ice-cream" but I don't have a food processor to try it 
Do you think it would work with a hand blender as well?
I don't buy them anymore but i prepare a mixture of fruits, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and apricots and it seems to have worked so far.
lisa11. You have no idea what my or anybody else's issues are. There are some things in life that we can not solve. Please don't come on here and criticise what you clearly have no clue about. We are all entitled to an opinion but we are not entitled to judge.
If I feel like a sweet ,,, I have a low fat (light) drinking with a few of those little mallows made with skimmed milk does the trick for me ...I also buy raisins in asda ther is about 12 small packets in it handy if your out and about good luck x
i agree- don't buy them. do online shopping, that way you won,t be tempted
On line shopping just a boring easy way out. Get down to your local supermarket and buy the food you need to get your head around no junk and not going down the departments. Write shopping list that works
I find if I do something other than watch TV it helps me forget about reaching for nibbles. Knitting or sorting photos sometimes works. And not keeping a stock of biscuits etc. in the house helps.
Replace sweets with a low calorie hot chocolate drink with a wafer biscuit.
I used to be the same.. now I have a low fat yoghurt and add fruit like banana/strawberries/raspberries/blueberries to it. If I really want something that feels a bit 'naughty' I will have one chocolate lime or a jaffa cake. It does take willpower to stop at one and it isn't easy!!! Bad habits are usually broken within a few weeks, by not buying them you are already taking control and online shopping is a really good tip. I now find healthy recipes and add the ingredients to my online shopping list throughout the week and yes that includes, evening meals, breakfast ideas, lunch for work and even desserts.
It IS possible to break the habit, especially if you have a great support network good luck!!!
what i was going to say don't buy them. after a while you will think why did i eat sweets.
Brush your teeth early with a toothpaste that just doesn't go well with sweet food, so the lingering taste of toothpaste in your mouth just makes you feel Yuck about eating it?
I agree with the don't buy them brigade. I have zero will power when it comes to eating sweet things-and if they are in the house then I will seek them out! The only way I can deny myself food like for me is not to buy it in the first place. Chocolate is slightly healthier than sweets- try that as an alternative for a while, especially real dark chocolate more that 70% cocoa solids.
Do not buy any sweets from the shop. Tell people you live with not to buy you sweets from shops.
Maybe you eat them late at night because there is little to do at this time except, as others have said, sit about watching TV. And have you noticed how many food ads come on in the late evening?
Imagine you're a kid in wartime. Sweets were rationed to 4 ounces a week, and you might have had to walk 2 miles to the next village to get them. The only reason they weren't banned at all was 'morale'. You think a bit differently about them then!
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