Bedtime Snacking is Normal!

Can we please take this time to NORMALIZE bedtime snacks for adults?! It’s absolutely NORMAL to be hungry at night, even as an adult! Why? Read on.

1. On a biological level, our livers can store readily available energy to fuel us for about 3-6 hours. Overnight, our bodies can go longer do that because we aren’t doing as much. So, if you think about eating dinner at about 6 pm, being hungry at 9 isn’t a strange thing! (You can totally be hungrier before then, too! That’s not “wrong”). ESPECIALLY when you first stop dieting as you may experience some hyper-metabolism… (i.e. SO HUNGRY!)

   
   

2. Yes, our bodies can pull from other energy stores when in need of fuel, but that’s not their preference (this is why intermittent fasting may not work for everyone).

   
   

Some good bedtime snack options.

3. When it comes to WHAT to snack on, it depends! The pairings presented below in the image are some great options depending on your mood/needs. Of course there are many more. The cherries (pistachios are also an amazing natural melatonin-rich snack) help you sleep a bit more soundly  but ice cream is also TOTALLY fine! Everything in MODERATION! It’s important to honor your cravings. Avoiding them will just come back to bite ya in the butt by way of overeating that craving food when you finally get access to it. No craving? You still deserve to snack if your body is asking for food. So in these instances, pick something with gentle nutrition like protein + complex carb or maybe some fiber in there to stabilize our blood sugar and avoid insulin spikes. Try to combine the macronutrients and avoid eating JUST carbs. You will never go wrong when you do. Again, this is to keep your blood sugar stable and to avoid poor sleep.

Other examples of great snacks:

***remember, combine carbs with a protein.

• Tryptophan-rich foods (tryptophan is an essential amino acid which the brain uses to synthesize serotonin, the sleep hormone):

  • turkey/chicken, salmon

  • dark green leafy veggies

  • eggs

  • seeds/nuts (especially almonds and walnuts)

  • pumpkin seeds (also rich in magnesium)

  • peas

• Pro-serotonin carbs:

  • quinoa

  • beets

  • sweet potatoes

  • oats

  • bananas

  • apples

  • lentils

  • garbanzo (chickpeas) and kidney beans

• Other:

  • dark chocolate

  • yogurt (preferably Greek).

NOTE: being tired CAN impact your ability to eat intuitively. It makes it much, much harder. So that’s important to consider when eating at night as well. “Am I just tired?!” “Am I getting enough sleep?!” Why? Because lack of sleep can cause cravings!