Eating less calories on shorter days: yes or no?

Cinspawn

If I wake up super late (say, 3 PM) and go to bed at my usual time, do I still get to eat all the calories for that day? I aim for 1500 kcal a day right now, whether I wake up at 8 am or 3 PM.

But isn't that cheating? It feels so off to be able to have so many calories in the end of the day cause I woke up so late. It seems to good to be true. Aren't I using less calories when sleeping more, and thus I need to eat less, too? On those short days?

Can someone help with the math or science on this because I feel like I still don't fully understand. I'm afraid of eating more calories than I use and thus slowing my weight loss.

__TMac__

Yes, you’d burn fewer calories that day, but you do use calories while sleeping, so it wouldn’t be a dramatic difference. I’d focus on eating normal meals, until satisfied, during my waking hours, which would probably mean fewer calories.

Then again, if you’ll be staying up late that next night (since you’ll have o my been awake for a few hours), you might need another meal.

Common sense should prevail, I think.

callsitlikeiseeit

if i slept till 3pm my fiance would have me hospitalized cause something is WRONG. hell, he called panicked yesterday cause i slept till 6 am lololol

anyways, it doesnt matter. eat to your calorie goals or not. one day doesnt make a difference.

juliamfu161

Well I get that. Usually I just take out the calories from the 1st meal. My husband works night shift as a paramedic and comes home and plonks out like a light. He usually doesn't wake until 1-2pm. So I basically give him two meals, a lunch and dinner. Usually that'll end up being about 1000 kcal or so for the day. He says he's not hungry on those days so at least I know that I'm not starving him, lol.

deannalfisher

I eat all my calories no matter what time of day I get up

freenowphoever

When I worked nights, I would eat less calories on my first night off & tack them on to my first night back as those were longer

CarvedTones

I would worry more about getting the count right across a span of days than each individual day.