Tired of giving in to late night eating? You don’t want to ruin all your hard work to become lighter and healthier. But, if you know you’re going to be up late and know you’ll want a snack, you can plan ahead to avoid needless weight gain.
Here are some quick tips to help you plan a late night snack without big regrets.
First, make sure you have eaten breakfast, lunch, and dinner. When you skip meals you tend to snack more. You may have the idea that you hardly ate all day so you have a lot of calories to spare. Not so fast! When you skip meals, your metabolism slows down. Then, if you take in those calories later and don’t use them up, you store them as fat.
Second, eliminate unhealthy snack food from your home / dorm room
Third, try these tips to plan healthier late-night habits.
1) If you feel like a snack, have a large glass of water with lemon.
2) Try sipping on decaffeinated herbal tea.
3) Brush your teeth and remove yourself from the kitchen.
4) Try chewing sugarless gum.
5) Have sugarless Jell-O on hand its only 10 calories per serving.
6) If you really enjoy having an evening snack every night then have a planned snack, try and keep the calories 150 to 200. Choose a protein snack it will keep you feeling satisfied. Or choose a complex carbohydrate like fruits or vegetables. They are high in fiber and will also keep you full. Or choose a combination of the two.
7) Here are some ideas for snacks that are around 150-200 calories
Sweet snacks
- Plain fat free Greek yogurt (8oz 90 cal) with fresh blueberries (82 cal/cup)
- An apple with nut butter (1Tbsp)
- Frozen grapes, (62 calories/cup)
- sugarfree sorbet.
Salty snack ideas
- Left over cooked vegetables with 1oz of cheese
- . Celery and nut butter(2 Tbsp)
- , Hummus (3 Tblsp) and raw vegetables
- Olives and cheese
- Pickles
- Skinny pop popcorn 4 cups
After you have had your planned snack, stop. Remind yourself that is it! Find something to do next: read a book, play a game, go for walk, listen to music, or take a relaxing bath.
Find out more about how you can lose weight by understanding how your body responds to certain foods. Get our free weight loss insights, with my best tips to discovering a lighter and healthier you. Instant access right here.