Myth: You Shouldn't Eat After 7 P.M.
“However, there's no magic to the 7 p.m. time,” Dobbins says. “Losing weight is a matter of limiting our calorie intake, and most people tend to eat most of their calories in the evening, at dinner and snacking afterward.
Having a decent overnight fast may be a great place to start to give your gut bacteria a helping hand. Having a 10-12-hour overnight period, say 7pm-7am where no food is consumed, is a very traditional way of eating.
There's no set time you should stop eating to lose belly fat, but, as a guideline, you should avoid eating two to three hours before bed to stop it from disrupting your sleep and body clocks, which can cause belly fat gain. Studies show early dinners can help people lose weight.
Foods high in magnesium
Like tryptophan, the nutrient magnesium is also associated with better quality of sleep. When selecting your dinner vegetable, try adding a leafy green like spinach, which is high in magnesium. Nuts, seeds, avocados and black beans are also magnesium-rich foods.
Sleep in a cooler and darker environment.
According to a small study published in the journal Diabetes, people who keep their bedrooms at a steady temperature of 66 degrees for one month increased the amount of calorie burning brown fat in their bodies by up to 42% and boosted their metabolism by 10%.
Should I go to bed hungry? Feeling a little bit hungry before bed can be a good thing, as you don't want to feel overly full before bed. However, you don't want so hungry that you can't relax and fall asleep. So if you're struggling to sleep and find your stomach feels empty, a light snack may help you fall asleep.
Citrus fruits.
Oranges and grapefruits might be a go-to snack, but save them for drinks and meals earlier in the day. They can be tough on the digestive system and trigger indigestion that disturbs sleep.
If you need to snack at night (or want to sip on something before bed), try to choose something healthy. A great nighttime snack is cottage cheese or turkey (both high-protein) protein) and loaded with the amino acid tryptophan. Tryptophan is well known to make you sleepy–think about it after Thanksgiving dinner.
You Might Be Eating Too Little
This phenomenon is called “starvation mode,” and while your body isn't actually starving, it will naturally hold onto whatever calories it receives in an effort to help you maintain your energy balance.
Studies show that for optimal health, it's best to consume most of your calories earlier in the day rather than later — for example by eating a large breakfast, a modest lunch, and a small dinner.
The 4-4-12 method has a shorter fasting window—12 hours—but eliminates snacking between meals. The goal here is to fast for at least four hours between breakfast and lunch, four hours between lunch and dinner, and at least 12 hours between dinner and breakfast the next day.
It's best to stop eating about three hours before going to bed. That allows plenty of time for your body to digest the last food you ate so it won't disrupt your sleep, but leaves a small enough window before sleep that you won't go to bed feeling hungry.