General Overeating Question

[gandalftheking]

I have a Charge 2 hence posting here, but I realise this is for a more general forum, which maybe doesn't exist here or i missed it.

I've done well since Boxing Day 2016, and have lost a good amount of weight, however plateauing and a loss of discipline (and one 'cheat day' a week...) have crept into the picture over time.

My main issue and question here for you folks though is evening snacking... I would not even call it binge eating, it's just a time when all the good work I have done right through the day can easily be undone.

I've tried all the usual >> drinking water (but need to do better at that), going for a walk, waiting 10 minutes, not having snacks in the house (instead I'll just raid old cereals or dry bread with some honey!).

I seem to do ok with meditation audios for various things, and was wondering if anyone has come across one specifically for evening snacking? i know there are general ones but am looking for something very targetted.

Any other views of course I'll take on board. Thanks

[LZeeW]

@gandalftheking  I moved your post to this forum.  I think it is a much better fit for your question.  You might want to browse this forum -- I'm sure you will come across a thread or two about evening snacking.  Some suggestions might already be at your fingertips.

[Dominique]

@gandalftheking: you’ve been on this journey for more than eight months. It’s a long time, especially if you have lost a lot of weight during that time (as appears to be the case). It’s impossible to sustain weight loss at the same, rapid pace forever (or at least very long). The law of diminishing returns (you need to produce more effort, eat less food etc. for smaller results) kicks in. It’s caused in part by the metabolic adaptation that takes place, diet fatigue, hormonal changes etc. You may want to consider a full diet break. Also have a look at the Losing All Your Weight At Once video mentioned in the discussion on The Dreaded Plateau, and see whether it would be relevant to your current situation.

[gandalftheking]

Thanks Dominique (yes re loss, circa 30lbs). The first thing I clicked on was 'full diet break' lol!

I will read this link but having had a break before this usually means a gradual creeping on of weight as my eating starts to pick up the pace again... I know that's not the content of the link and as I say will read with interest. Thanks also for the other link, and I think yes the odd day of going silly then dropping back into the plan has resulted in maintenance at best, yo yoing 3-5 pounds every couple of weeks at worse.

In the end it's discipline - but if anyone knows of any audio's that work for them I'd be interested to know also.

[Mukluk4]

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@gandalftheking wrote:

Thanks Dominique (yes re loss, circa 30lbs). The first thing I clicked on was 'full diet break' lol!

I will read this link but having had a break before this usually means a gradual creeping on of weight as my eating starts to pick up the pace again... I know that's not the content of the link and as I say will read with interest. Thanks also for the other link, and I think yes the odd day of going silly then dropping back into the plan has resulted in maintenance at best, yo yoing 3-5 pounds every couple of weeks at worse.

In the end it's discipline - but if anyone knows of any audio's that work for them I'd be interested to know also.

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If you are maintaining or slowly creeping, I would suggest upping the exercise (really get out of your comfort zone here).  There's only so much celery that a man can take before you must have steak and taters.  

[Daves_Not_Here]

Hi @gandalftheking -- I struggle with the same issue.  As to discipline, I have very little.  I can resist anything but temptation.  

Here's what works for me: I try to remove the need for self-discipline.  That means I have to go into the evening with no hunger.  Here's what I do:

• Save up my uneaten calories so that I can have a relatively large and satiating dinner at 6:00 PM
• Have 64 ounces of water drunk by 6:00 PM
• Eat fat (avocado) and avoid carbs and sweets for dinner to reduce cravings.
• Go to bed early enough to ensure 8 hours of sleep (most of my after-dinner snacking happens late at night, so being asleep prevents it).
• Don't resist - as soon as I feel hunger coming on, I immediately have a glass of water and low-carb snack (slice of cheese or hard-boiled egg) to stifle the craving.  If I eat crackers or cereal it's over because my cravings spike and I mow through the whole box.

[gandalftheking]

Yes the water I'm ramping up for sure, been so bad about water (drink coffee mornings only and caffeine free diet coke)...

I think I'm lazy about the exercise side too as 7500 steps has been my goal for months - most, not all, days I get to that, so can be left with 300-500 after dinner which just gets tempting. 

Thanks for the advice though which I will take on.

EDIT: yes to the water again, and it's good to know I'm not the only one who can plough through crunchie nut cornflakes on a bad day, lol

[gandalftheking]

Mukluk4: Comfort zone.. yes thats it really. I've stuck at the same steps goal for months and months now...

[Daves_Not_Here]

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@gandalftheking wrote:

Yes the water I'm ramping up for sure, been so bad about water (drink coffee mornings only and caffeine free diet coke)...

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@gandalftheking - ah, Diet Coke -- I binge drank Diet Coke and Diet Dr. Pepper for 40 years up until 2 months ago, and finally gave it up to make room for the water.  Made a huge difference in reducing my hunger cravings!

I've heard that some recent studies have found that artificial sweeteners can trick our systems into producing more insulin leading to increased hunger.  I have certainly found that avoiding Diet Coke has helped.  My substitute: Club Soda.  Still has the bubbles, I can binge drink it in the evening, get a good burp on, but no hunger cravings.

[WavyDavey]

I notice two dynamics at play when I have evening cravings for food:

1. Shorting myself on calories earlier in the day (especially breakfast) almost invariably leads to overeating at night. Since I can't easily eat a big breakfast, I budget for a small evening meal at 8pm (as well as a small breakfast, lunch, dinner).

2. Unprocessed stress from the day, triggering emotional eating patterns at night. As stress would accumulate in the course of a day, if I wasn't handling it well, it could lead to overeating at night. Solution has been to be more mindful of stress levels, and use meditation to curtail stress before it triggers food craving.

[gandalftheking]

@WavyDavey Great observations here! I'll take these on board.

[Julia_G]

@Daves_Not_Here, I agree with you on the diet drinks issue.  I have found those new studies interesting and compelling.  I lived on diet coke and diet Dr Pepper for years myself, but it has been a very, very long time since I have drunk the stuff.

I still think if you MUST drink tonic/sodas the sugar free ones are better for you (better for your teeth, at least)  but I am no longer convinced they help with weight loss.

[Daves_Not_Here]

@Julia_G - oh, yeah, I now remember another study found that people who drink diet soda had triple the gain of visceral fat - it is referenced here:  http://time.com/3746047/diet-soda-weight-gain/

[DavidSchneier]

I stock up on all sorts of responsible snack choices for my late night needs. Tons of fruit, some nuts and a few frozen treats (Italian ices = 100 calories). I also try and drink a flavored, non-carbonated beverage for dessert (I can, fortunately, drink coffee after dinner and still fall asleep).

I also tend to save up spare calories for after dinner snacking as well (usually have 200-400 calories to consume). I embrace the concept that denying myself or suffering hunger is self-defeating and likely to lead to weight gain. As long as I keep to my daily calorie budget, all is well.

[Daves_Not_Here]

@DavidSchneier - great idea about going into the evening with a unconsumed calorie reserve.

One of the benefits of running a large calorie deficit is that if you snack or "cheat", you still have a deficit.  Worse case, you break even.  This past Labor Day weekend I ate and drank with no restraint, but my net calorie overage was only 290 calories.

[Julia_G]

@Daves_Not_Here, very interesting study.  Thanks for sharing!