Like many people, my willpower is at its lowest after the sun goes down. I'm tired, a little cranky, and I've spent the whole day trying to make good decisions. That's when the cravings start, and it's when I'm most likely to willfully shut off the logical and/or virtuous part of my brain and just go ham in the kitchen. Lately I've had more success resisting. Here are the most useful strategies I've implemented, Number 4 being the most recent revelation.
1. Purposefully keep my calories lower earlier in the day.
I skip breakfast most mornings and have a light lunch, so that I'm not going to be left with something skimpy and disappointing in the evening, when I want a big meal the most.
2. Eat a dinner I know I'm going to enjoy
I eat pasta three times a week because I love it and it never disappoints me. In general, dinner is a carb-fest for me. I love carbs. I love bread. I love rice. I love pasta. My lunch tends to be very protein and fiber focussed so that I can do this in the evening without feeling gross the next day.
3. Include vegetables to stay full.
Reasonable pasta portions are nowhere near size I used to pack away, so I make sure to eat them at the same time as a big serving of vegetables. Now I can eat a reasonable amount of something I like but still get that "full" feeling. Keep in mind, these should be vegetables you like, prepared how you like.
4. Weaponizing procrastination
Sometimes steps 1-3 are not enough. As a recovering binge-eater, I know that feeling full isn't always enough on its own to stand between me and a binge. I'm usually overtaken by a vague "second dinner, second dinner, second dinner" feeling shortly after I've finished dinner number one and have no more calories left. What I do now is instead of rooting around in the kitchen, I try to figure out exactly, specifically, what I want to eat. I allow myself to crave. I name the very specific foods that I want and how I want them. Then I wait. I don't necessarily tell myself "no," I tell myself "not yet" and I do other things. I tell myself "after this task" or "after this episode" or "after so-and-so goes to sleep." The craving gets less intense the longer I wait, but doesn't go away. Then I go to bed, open MFP and log the specific food I'm craving into the next day. Sometimes, if I'm feeling desperate, I plan on eating it for breakfast (even if it's cake) and adjust my day accordingly so that it fits. The next morning I wake up feeling proud of myself for resisting and usually am back to feeling mentally tough enough to cancel my cake-breakfast plans. Sometimes I eat the cake anyway, but it's okay because I've planned it out and know that there's room.
Anyone else have a specific contingency plan for dealing with late night cravings?
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