Welcome to a new issue of Carol’s Corner. Hope everyone had a great weekend and you are all ready to start the new week fresh. Remember every day is shiny and brand new. So treat it as such. Forget what’s behind you and focus on what’s ahead . Figured I start out with a short little pep talk. Finally done attending all the funerals. Thank goodness. Hope that’s all for awhile. Love my outfit today. Loving this short sweater topper as it is allowing me to wear my sleeveless dresses. Hubby bought me it when he bought me the red dress for Valentine’s Day and it’s turned out to be a good investment. Today’s outfit name is”Color in Motion on the Pebble’s Zigzag Road”. I totally love the colors and patterns present in this dress and that became the basis for the name.

This is what I started out wearing with my outfit. But as my amazing new FitBit accessory arrived , I tried wearing it for the evening to make sure it worked right. I absolutely adore it. It’s going to look so beautiful wearing it with the black sexy number I am wearing to a wedding next weekend.

This is the most amazing piece to wear my FitBit Tracker in. It is a beautiful and might I add, unique bracelet ( it is hinged), that is made to house the tracker on the underside of the bracelet. I am going to post a closeup of the bracelet and one of the underside , so you can see how it is made.

This little pouch is on the backside of the bracelet. You insert the tracker and Velcro it in. I wore it last night to try it out and while hubby and I were walking from the car to the movie theater, it buzzed that I hit my step count. I got it from an Etsy sight called “FUNKtional Wearables”. They have many, many beautiful styles and colors to choose from . They also have necklaces you can buy also and next they will be having headbands. I still want to have a silver and gold style one. Hopefully my middle daughter will order me one for Mother’s Day. I also understand their customer service is excellent.

Ok so now on to the topic I have decided to choose for this issue. This is going to be on what one place calls “Nighttime Eating Syndrome” otherwise known as nighttime binging.

This comes from fit woman.com, in an article by Marsha Hudnall MS, RDN,CD titled ” 5 Tips To Stop Eating At Night”.

DO YOU HAVE NIGHT EATING SYNDROME(NES)?

Also known as ” midnight hunger”, NES is primarily characterized as an ongoing and persistent pattern of late-night overeating or binge eating.

DOES THIS SOUND LIKE YOUR ROUTINE?

1). You restrict, deprive yourself, or skip meals throughout the day, which leads to thinking about food constantly, and grabbing random snacks here or there, not considering what your body really needs or wants.

1). You don’t have any pre-dinner planning, so that you pick up take-out food on the ride home and then feel guilty about what you ate, which leads to even more eating. Or you eat a ton of cheese and crackers while you try to cook a “real dinner,” then don’t feel hungry for the dinner. Later you are hungry again, but just snack more.

3). You have a post-dinner ritual that’s all about overeating and zoning out. You change into loose comfortable clothes, plop on the couch with your e-reader, book, or laptop nearby and fire up the TV. Then it’s off to the kitchen on commercial breaks. You alternate between sweet and salty, so once you’re bored with one flavor you switch to the other. You don’t pay much attention to what you’re eating, or how full you’re feeling.

EFFECTS OF NIGHTTIME OVEREATING

Nightly routines such as this are a cause of weight gain in many women. It’s not just about the food that’s eaten either. Overeating at night can disrupt our sleep, leading to imbalances of hunger and satiety hormones, making it harder for us to recognize when we’re truly hungry or satisfied. Human growth hormone, which plays an important role in weight management , is also suppressed by late night carbohydrate consumption.

TOP 5 WAYS TO STOP EATING AT NIGHT

TIP #1: Eat enough during the day. Not eating enough “sets the table” for overeating at night. Eat more regularly and eat well-balanced meals earlier in the day to prevent overeating at night.

Tip #2: Explore what’s really going on. What purpose is the food serving for you? Is it helping with stress, lonliness, boredom, or procrastination? Determine the need it’s fulfilling and make a point of meeting that need in different ways earlier in the day.

For Example:

1). Add stress management techniques like yoga or meditation (or might I say prayer?) to your regular routine.

2). Plan entertaining activities that involve friends/family for the evening to target lonliness and boredom.

3). Work a reward such as a trip to the bookstore into the time frame between finishing work and starting household work back at home. If you’re not into books, might I suggest trying out a new lipstick or lipgloss or a new eye color? Anything that will make you feel good about yourself would be something to try here.

TIP #3: Add more fun to your life. Is eating at night your favorite way to relax and wind down? Is it the highlight of your day or your primary source of joy/entertainment/fun? If so, look at what is missing in your life that might give you a sense of joy, self nurture, comfort, etc… and add that in. You may find you’re less likely to fulfill that need with food.

TIP #4: Shake up your routine. We all have routines around eating that involve time of day, location, or activity. Changing these routines can help break the habit of eating at night. Example: If you’ve developed the habit of eating while working on your laptop at the kitchen table, move to your office. If TV is the cue to begin snacking, consider whether it’s essential to watch TV at night. If it is, pair TV watching with a new activity. Remember it will take practice, practice, practice before the new habit feels comfortable, so don’t give up if it doesn’t feel comfortable at first.

TIP #5: Get plenty of ZZZ’s. Develop a consistent evening routine and follow the tips to avoid sleep deprivation and weight gain. http://www.fitwoman.com/fitbriefing/sleep-deprivation-weight-gain/. When waking can’t be prevented and hunger strikes, have a small collection of go-to-foods that are easy to eat and brush out of your teeth quickly so you can get right back to bed, such as a glass of milk, a small yogurt , or a banana.

ELIMINATE YOUR TOP CUE FOR EATING

Sometimes, it can be as easy as changing one thing to break the habit of nightime eating. Better managing the top reason you overeat at night may take care of the whole problem.

I hope you have found this to be both helpful and enlightening, and that you can use the information found here to use as another tool in your toolbox of ideas, that will help you as navigate your own journey towards health and fitness. Just remember you are stronger than you think. Believe in yourself as much as I believe in you and you WILL succeed . One Quarter of 2015 is already behind us. Let’s make what’s ahead of us the best it can be. Till next time, God Bless.