Recently, I wrote about how late night eating is no worse for your waistline than eating at any other time of day. That's true, and I'm glad that myth about late-night eating has finally been put to bed. However, eating at night isn't without a caveat.

For many people, eating late at night consists of snacking on popcorn, chips or other treats. If these treats are in moderation, that's not such a bad thing. But late-night eating often equals mindless eating, and that's never a good thing. Just think about it -- you're watching the latest episode of Lost and munching on chips straight from the bag. Before you know it, half the bag is gone and you don't even know how it happened.

Just because you have a green light to eat late at night doesn't mean you can eat mindlessly. Opt for healthier snacks such as cut veggies and hummus and always measure out your snacks so you don't eat more than you intend.

I want to eat at night. Always. And while I don't indulge all the time, I do nibble after the sun goes down more often than not. Fortunately, I've wised up to the ways of late-night snacking and rarely weigh myself down with heavy, calorie-laden, sugary treats. There was a time, yes there was, when my husband and I would tear into a bag of Doritos while watching TV. We'd savor big bowls of ice cream and crunch into yummy Oreo cookies too. Now, we do better. Fruit salads are our usual nighttime indulgence. Just had a great one last night -- strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, watermelon, grapes, and kiwi satisfied our urges, guilt-free.

Eating at night is OK -- if you do it right. So read on -- here are five tips for entertaining that midnight snack you want so badly.

• Before you eat, drink something. Thirst could be tricking you into thinking you're hungry. If you drink something -- make it two cups of water -- and still feel hungry, proceed to the following tips.

Source

As your online fitness trainer, I'm giving you homework for the week. No eating after 8:00 PM. Easy enough, right? Late-night snacking is the downfall of millions of people trying to lose weight, so let's all do it together. It may even be an issue for those who don't actually think it's an issue. So start tonight.

Make sure you have a satisfying dinner and then turn your attention elsewhere. Exercise, read, play games, pay bills ... whatever! Just don't chow. Step on the scale tomorrow morning to find out exactly what you weigh, and then step back on the scale a week from now. It'll be fun! It's a short-term test which may lead to long term results. If you lose significant weight this week, you'll know that late night snacking is an issue for you. Continue the late night snacking ban, and you'll continue to lose!

Of course, frequent challenging exercise along with eating healthy is the way to lose weight. Late-night snacking is a unique habit, though, which may be responsible for any extra pounds you're dragging around. Seven days. 8:00 PM. Give it a go, and fill us in on your success!

Although we all have our own unique biorhythms, studies have shown that there are more benefits to being an early bird versus being a night owl. Of course if you're happy as is, then don't change! But if not, you may find that getting up early can have so many great benefits, you might want to consider setting your alarm a little earlier from now on. Things like seeing the sunrise, having time to exercise, and generally doing things without rushing can really help to reduce stress levels. What better way to start the day than relaxed and happy?

I'm a night owl at heart, so I hear ya that it's 'just so hard' to get up early! If you need help (I do!), read over these ideas for ways to help make the switch successfully.


Via LifeHacker

Source

Anyone who has tried dieting knows the rules: to avoid weight gain, kick the midnight munchies. It's a common belief that eating before bed yields undesirable results, but like anything else, moderation is the key. Like this article suggests, it's not so much about indulging after dark as it is about how much and what you are consuming.

Truth be told, getting most of your calories in during the day is ideal. People are most active at this time so it makes sense. However, many of us don't go to sleep right after dinner so feeling a little hungry closer to bedtime is completely natural. So is raiding the fridge really that bad? Not if you limit your intake to less than 150 calories. Don't go for the ice cream or cake either. Go for something unprocessed like fruit or cereal.

Of course, you could always check out the Top 10 foods for sleeping better to get some more ideas. Grabbing a small after-dinner snack is not that bad, but starving yourself to avoid any additional calories could backfire. Restlessness from a hungry stomach could send you scrambling to fill the void at midnight when you least need it.

Source

My 59 year old, male client Jody showed up to train on Friday, March 3rd with paperwork to validate all of his hard work. Jody's been training with me since December 22, 2006. He showed up at 320 pounds and on March 5th, 2007 he's down to 286 pounds. A spectacular loss of 34 pounds. He's been working out with me or on his own almost every day of the week since, and has adopted eating habits of the fittest. No diets ... just common sense.

Besides wanting to lose lots of weight, Jody and I discussed the goals he had for his life. He wanted to golf without low back pain, sleep free of apnea, fly without seat-belt extenders, sit in bleachers comfortably at the NCAA final four, and most importantly live long and well with his amazing family. Since Jody was a diabetic, I felt it important to point out that he was on his way to earning blindness and limb loss. Jody grimly nodded.

Friday was such a proud day. He had visited his internal medicine doctor and came back with fabulous results. His blood sugar levels had dropped by 60% and his doctor proclaimed we'd worked a miracle. He's almost in the normal range. Jody showed up with his "report card" and we cheered about his results. The doctor seemed to lose any concern about Jody's diabetes. I mentioned how nice it was that he wasn't going to have to worry about shots or blindness. At that point he confessed that before he began training he was waking up with blurry vision! I was shocked. Jody's only comment was that he guessed it was "never too late!"