Getting a good 7 or 8 hours of sleep each night is one of the best (and cheapest) ways to lose weight. But with all the stresses that many of us face today, getting a “good” night’s sleep is becoming more and more difficult.
In looking through my personal notes, I came across the following list of foods that make a good night-time snack. For various reasons, snacking on these foods (don’t eat more than 200 calories) won’t tax your digestive system and will help you relax, calm your racing thoughts, and in some cases even provide serotonin and melatonin, two hormones that help us sleep.
- Warm milk – contains some tryptophan, which also acts as a gentle sedative (and it appears that the calcium helps the brain use the tryptophan).
- Chamomile tea – acts as a gentle sedative, great for calming the mind.
- Honey – causes the brain to stop releasing orexin, which is a neurotransmitter linked to alertness (don’t over-do it though, because too much honey has a stimulating effect).
- Banana – releases serotonin and melatonin; also acts as a natural muscle relaxant.
- Oatmeal – provides melatonin, and it’s filling without loading you up with too many calories.
- Almonds – contain tryptophan and also act as a natural muscle relaxant.
Turkey on Whole-wheat bread – the carbs in the bread cause your body to release insulin, which then helps the tryptophan in the turkey get to your brain, where it’s converted to serotonin and thus encourages sleep.
Generally speaking, you can mix and match items from this list, just try to keep it below 200 calories total and you won’t experience the typical negative effects of eating late in the evening.
Train hard and pray harder,
Brandon
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