I got a question from a reader named Rick this week:
If this sounds familiar, you’re definitely not alone.
When people join Nerd Fitness Coaching, over 70% tell us they struggle with stress eating, emotional eating, or nighttime snacking.
I recorded a short video explaining why simply “trying to stop snacking” usually backfires – and what tends to work better.
WATCH: STRUGGLING WITH NIGHTTIME SNACKING? TRY THIS INSTEAD
If you’d rather read than watch, here’s the short version:
1. Eating at night isn’t the problem.
If you genuinely need more calories or nutrients for the day, eating at night is completely fine! (Contrary to popular belief.)
The challenge most people run into is when they find themselves snacking even when they’re not hungry, often as a way to decompress after a long day.
2. Going cold turkey rarely works.
If nighttime snacking has become your main way to relax or reward yourself at the end of the day, simply removing it often leaves a gap that’s hard to sustain.
3. Build a “decompression menu.”
Instead of trying to eliminate the habit immediately, come up with a few other things you genuinely enjoy that help you relax at the end of the day.
Examples might include:
- making herbal tea
- reading
- stretching
- listening to music
- playing a game
- journaling
Even if you choose one of these alternatives some of the time, that alone can start shifting the habit.
The goal isn’t quit snacking at night, forever!
It’s to understand the habit and expand your choices. 💪
4. Upgrade your Batcave to make the alternative choice easier.
At the end of the day we’re usually tired, and that’s when we tend to default to the easiest and most familiar option.
A few small changes to your environment can make a big difference.
Things like keeping your go-to snack foods out of immediate reach, or setting out your book in a visible and easy to access place.
Heck, you could even try putting your book IN the pantry where the snacks usually are!
The goal is to rely less on willpower and more on an environment that gently nudges you in the direction you want to go.
—
So Rick, if you’re reading this, that’s where I’d start.
Instead of trying to eliminate the nighttime snacking overnight, experiment with adding a few other ways to decompress and adjust your environment so those choices are the easier ones.
Try it for a week or two and see what you notice.
Then we learn and adjust from there. 🔥
– Matt
P.S. If you want to submit a question like Rick, you can!