You start the day with a big, balanced breakfast, have a light snack in the afternoon, a light lunch, and even pass up sweets on the way home. Then the evening comes and you let loose. All your efforts are spoiled! Is it always a bad thing to eat in the evening? The truth is that it’s not necessarily bad to eat at night, but the temptation to binge eat and consume snack food seems stronger at the end of the day.
Why is It So Hard to Stop Snacking in the Evening?
When you’re all business during the day, planning meals can come as second-nature. You may even pack a well-balanced lunch so you can stay healthy and energized throughout the workday. However, evening time is when most people relax and take a load off from a long day of work. This is when you may allow yourself to snack a little bit or order out, or even just munch on a little of everything without really paying attention. Before you know it, you’ve weighed yourself down with unhealthy foods. In this sense, it seems that it’s clearly bad to eat at night.
Make a Workable Plan for Dinner
One way to get around thinking it’s bad to eat at night is to have dinner plans in place. The way you spend time setting out a healthy lunch for yourself in the morning—do that for the evening as well. When you’re tired and lacking ambition after doing all your work, the last thing you want to do is scheme up some kind of healthy dinner.
In the morning while you’re packing your lunch, take a couple extra minutes to think about dinner. By the time you get home, all you have to do is follow your plan. This should keep you from aimlessly roaming through the refrigerator until bed time.
How Much Should You Eat at Night?
Studies show that it’s best to eat 70% of your daily calories before evening. You should allow at least 90 minutes of settling and digestion before you go to bed. It can be bad to eat at night if you eat a large meal and then go right to bed. Sleeping can upset your digestion, and you can also have trouble sleeping if your body is trying to digest.
For best results, plan ahead for a balanced, healthy dinner that falls well before bedtime. This should aid with digestion and help you to wake refreshed and energized for a new day.
