I'm starving at night!!!!!!

L

lora-kate1

Cathlete
Help!

I am trying sooooo hard to lose some weight and have actually, for the first time ever, calculated my caloric consumption. I have been slim all my life until my mid 30's when after my third child I had an extra 15 pounds that wouldn't go away! I don't want to work out 2 hours a day like Gweneth Paltrow and Madonna (they look amazing and only use 3 pound weights - go figure). I am 41, 5'8" tall and I am trying to eat roughly 1600-1700 calories per day. I try to have protein at every meal and snack (egg whites, whey powder, almonds, chicken, fish, etc) I work out 6 days per week and do cardio 3 days for about an hour each and weights for 3 days (a 3 day split) for also about an hour each. I also do abs for 10 minutes 3 times per week. I do great following my food during the day and I am full after dinner but within an hour or two I am ravenous!! Is this just a bad habit and if I abstain the hunger pains will pass! It seems ridiculous but I could eat a house by 9 pm at night! When I was younger I never ate at night but now I can't seem to break the habit! Help!!!

Typical day

2 cups tea
1/2 cup all bran mixed with homemade granola with 1/2 cup skim milk
Shake with 1/2 cup berries, 1/2 banana, 1/4 cup spinach puree, 2 T protein powder, 1 t peanut butter and water
3 cups water before lunch
1 cup black bean and veggie salad
1/2 cup egg whites
1 low sugar/low fat/high fibre date bran muffin
9 baby carrots or other veggies
1/2 ounce almonds and an apple
1 small piece dark chocolate
3 cups water before diner
1 medium chicken breast (no skin)
1 cup brown rice
2 cups lettuce
1 cup brocolli and carrots
1-3 cups water
1-1/2 cups milk with 1-2 teaspoons cocoa

I was thinking I should eat some cottage cheese and yogurt during the day?! HELP!!
 
At 5'8", maybe you need to up the calories a bit during the day. I get hungry on certain nights, but not to the point where I'm miserable. I'm sure others will have some great advice for you.

Speaking of Madonna, I'm a big fan, but I think she's looking pretty drawn and unhealthy lately. Maybe it's just the photos.
 
I agree with Lori (there we go, Lori :p) your calorie intake sounds a little low. Sometimes those cravings at night indicate that something in your diet may be missing. If that is calories, vitamins, or as it was in my case, fat (gasp), I don't know. You may have to track what you eat on fitday.com, sparkpeople.com, myfitnesspal.com or Cathe's online nutrition program and experiment a little bit.

There was an interesting thread just a month ago, maybe that helps and I am sure other people will be chiming in.

http://www.thecathenation.com/forum/showthread.php?t=250582
 
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One thing that has helped me is that I've increased the protein during the day. (Thanks to the suggestions from people on this website:) .) I am not starving at dinner time and so I'm not stuffing myself. I don't really want to eat after dinner, either. (I still need to work on the emotional eating but that's another topic. :confused:) Who knows, maybe this will work for you, too. Good luck!
 
I have been tracking my calories to about 1500-1700 a day - 1500 is really hard to stick to without the hunger pains...but I am about 5'2 - so it could be too low a calorie deficit for you. If you feel okay (energy wise) stick to it ... I found the stomach needs to get used to having less food in it. I often struggle with nightime munchies so I try to eat something low calorie and filling - a bowl of raspberries works (if you buy frozen you can suck on them while they melt and this helps the munchies too) or a cup of yogurt 80 calories or less - or a cup of hot milk (protein and filling because you have to drink it slowly) I am with you on the struggle - it is worth it I have dropped from a size 8 to a 4 and have been able to maintain at about 1700-1800 eating clean. Good luck!
 
Add carbs at night to help with the sleep. When Andrew has practice at night, I feed him more carbs so he can sleep, ie bread.
 
Being hungry is not a “bad habit” or a lack of will power. Stop telling yourself that.

If you are ravenous, then the obvious answer is there is something wrong with your diet, not with you.

Hunger is a biological response to the physiological condition of needing food.

If you are famished at night, then you under ate during the day and need to eat something.

It is important to remember that you can consume too many calories during the day and still have under ate because you didn’t get enough of some nutrient.

You are suffering from malnutrition.

Malnutrition is defined as a medical condition caused by an improper or insufficient diet.

Strong feelings of hunger or an abnormal appetite are ways your body tells you that you are malnourished.

So maybe you are eating vegetables, but you aren’t eating enough of a variety or enough fruit. Maybe the deficiency is related to protein, iron, minerals, or fat soluble vitamins. Or maybe your new diet is too restricted calorie wise and you just need to eat more.

Keep a food diary for a few days. Try entering a days worth of food into a nutritional calculator like the one at NutritionData.com, maybe you are grossly underestimating the number of calories you’re consuming during the day. Maybe you need to add more variety to your diet, maybe you’re not getting enough manganese, or iron, or whatever. It is hard to guess these things.

Variety in your diet is very important to achieving proper nutrition and for avoiding diet burn out.

Try eating more protein during the day, or perhaps you need to add back in some carbs. Have some toast with breakfast, have a banana and a glass of milk at night. Your body is telling you to eat more food because it needs nourishment. Honor what your body is telling you and you’ll be healthier and happier for it.
 
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Lora-kate, I had the same problem. Something drastically increased my appetite (may have been a medication I was on), and I was desperate: either stop gaining weight or start calling in nude to work! :p I had to devise some clever solutions very quickly to stay in my clothes. I chose what has worked for me in the past: eating a large volume of food with a low calorie count. I am NOT a portion control person, so this is what works for me.

For dinner, I have a salad made of an entire bag of lettuce mix, with a lot of shredded red or white cabbage, raw mushrooms, julienne squash and carrot strips, chopped scallion, raw broccoli and/or cauliflower and red pepper and a 3.75 oz. can of tuna or salmon. I add exactly 4 tblsps of Newman's light vinegrette dressing which has 90 calories. I add lots of freshly ground pepper and eat slowly. For a snack I eat a large bag of Redenbacher's Smart Pop. It takes at least a half hour, if not an hour to eat those 240 calories. Then I core an organic apple with a apple-corer (so pretty!) and eat the slices during the course of the evening. The calories are low, but believe me, it's pretty hard to feel hungry after an evening like that. I'm essentially eating all evening long! ;) By the time I have to go to sleep, I'm tired from all that chewing. :p

Desperate times call for drastic measures. HTH!
 
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