Any Night shifters here

niclink79

I work night shift wondering if anybody has any secrets on logging food or how their day to day goes while having rotating schedules

Lshona

I'm a night shift nurse. I try to bring my food with me, it keeps me from hitting the snack machine.

Frmn

I agree with above comment. Bring your food with you. This will help keep you on the right track. As far as how the day goes, as long as you are getting the same amount of sleep and are keeping consistent with your diet, You should be ok.

indymedic86

I label my meals, "Meal 1", "Meal 2", "Meal 3", "Meal 4", "Meal 5". It doesn't matter what time I'm awake, that's how I log them. You can also try labeling time frames, like "0700", "1000", "1300", "1600", and "1900", if that helps.

Hyperbum

I work 3 nights a week as an RN. I agree with taking your food in with you. I find it all too easy to graze if I don't have a meal or healthy snacks ready to go. I also stick to the "normal" eating setup (breakfast, lunch, dinner). My night meal counts as my breakfast then I get my sleep and log the lunch and dinner before work. I don't stick to any routine eating or sleeping as on days off I convert back to a day cycle. It can be tough working nights but it is possible to stick to your goals.

itiog

My food logging day begins/ends at 10:00 am (bedtime). It's easier to have a definite parameter.

needtolose1979

Thanks for the feedback. I bring my food and try to space it out since I work 12 hour shifts. So far I am one week in and going strong!

Tarataboo35

I have a large meal before my shift (dinner) and I have something light whilst on shift, keep healthy snacks to hand, and I tend to have a smoothie before going to bed on the morning

RNamd23

I also work night shift and am trying to figure out how I want to log. As of now, I've been logging all that I eat in one of my days in the same day on the journal. Once I sleep, a new day starts.

LittleMissAlx

I've just started working nights, and this seems to be working for me, at least for now.
I have a light meal just before I leave for work then have my main meal at about 10pm-12am depending on how crazy work is. Both high protein. Then I have yoghurt as an evening snack, and bring a banana and pain au chocolat with me for breakfast before I head home to sleep.
If I manage to get a couple of hours sleep during the night, I can usually get up early afternoon and pop to the gym/do some chores... before it all repeats!
I pre log to make things simpler, cook things in batches then I can spend more time sleeping, and try not to bring any extra food with me - because if there's chocolate in my bag, I'll eat that instead of the good stuff!! Good thing about night work is at least the shops aren't open in the middle of the night if you get cravings!
Oh and I bring a 1.5L bottle of water with me and try and drink it all on my shift.
I convert backwards and forwards pretty easily, so when I'm not on nights, I eat meals like a normal day person.

rlpomeroy

I just do my tracking midnight to midnight

xvolution

I usually do five six-hour night shifts, which fits in perfectly with my eating schedule [eating every six hours]. I just log everything as I eat it, lunch right before work and dinner right after.