Night eating

Blue_Snowflake

I've heard that you shouldn't eat late at night and you should gradually have smaller meals throughout the day. I'm never very hungry in the morning and tend to eat most in the evening... Is this bad and why?

Touji

Calorie balance is the only thing that matters. You will still lose weight if you eat late at night but stay under your calorie limit for that day.

That said, there's no purpose in eating if you're going to be asleep in an hour or two. You will not need the energy from the food for anything.

angiewf

I do eat a small supper, but that's because I tend to have an acid stomach and if it gets empty and grumbly it will keep me awake. If you eat at night have something light, anything fatty will lie on your stomach and make you uncomfortable.

BonnieandClyde29

I work over night and don't eat that much sometimes when I first wake up, unless I'm really hungry it shouldn't matter but I wouldn't eat right before bed, unless I am still hungry at that point

PennyVonDread

Your body doesn't care what time you eat. I have been working graves for months and the weight keeps falling off. I eat all night and go to bed full. It is really more about what you eat, and as a student nurse, most Food+Nutrition classes I took emphasized this. Calorie counts on foods are often incorrect by 12-20%. So you can count religiously, and it will help, but ultimately it's what you eat. Not all calories are created equal. You should eat within an hour of waking up. It starts the metabolism and pulls it from it's slower sleep mode, so to speak. If this is inconvenient, drink a glass of milk or have a light snack. Sugar will help wake you up, so fruit is a good choice. It doesn't need to be a full on meal. Late night snacking tends to add pounds because often, people have not been eating regularly or enough. When you get ravenous, you are more likely to scarf down junk food; the body needs a pick-me-up and what better than salt, sugar, and fats conveniently packaged and ready to eat?
. It's also easier to eat most processed food compared to hearty, organic products. A good example: a glazed doughnut and a medium banana both have about 14g sugar... But most people wouldn't sit down and eat a whole bunch of bananas (compared to eating out of a box of doughnuts).
. For best results, eat often enough that you don't end up "starving," and have healthy food options readily available. That way, when cravings hit, you'll be more likely to make the better choice. Don't take this as medical advice, just my personal input to the topic.

JesterMFP

I'm not usually hungry in the morning and prefer to eat most of my calories in the evening. It's worked fine for me. Find a way of structuring meals that suits your preferences, hunger levels, energy needs through the day. When I say energy needs, it's not because your body suddenly stops needing energy when it's asleep (you need to look at total energy consumption and intake across the day - it all balances out) but obviously if you find that skipping breakfast makes you feel weak and lethargic during the morning, then that's not ideal. Other issues to take into consideration are potential indigestion when you go to bed, your blood sugar levels if you are diabetic, and whether eating light earlier in the day makes you overeat later. If those things aren't a problem, then it's fine to eat your main meal late at night.

Also, you don't need to "start" your metabolism after being asleep. Your metabolism is working all the time (unless you're dead).

Kr1ptonite

I have a Casein protein shake just before i go to bed. Doesn't do me harm.

PennyVonDread

Also, you don't need to "start" your metabolism after being asleep. Your metabolism is working all the time (unless you're dead).

Well duh, but metabolism is just a word to describe the rate at which rxn take place in the body. It is true that eating/exercising are things that stimulate metabolism, and it is slower while the body is asleep. Not everyone has a decent understanding of health sciences, so I simplified it. Sorry.
Also, I'm diabetic and eating when I wake up doesn't make me over eat. Not eating regularly is more detrimental to my health.

Everyone's body is a little different. If you know what times of day you're likely to be hungry, you can schedule meals then. Or if you just suddenly feel like you're starving at certain hours, maybe schedule meals/snacks before you hit that point.

JesterMFP

Also, you don't need to "start" your metabolism after being asleep. Your metabolism is working all the time (unless you're dead).

Well duh, but metabolism is just a word to describe the rate at which rxn take place in the body. It is true that eating/exercising are things that stimulate metabolism, and it is slower while the body is asleep. Not everyone has a decent understanding of health sciences, so I simplified it. Sorry.

I wasn't actually aiming that at you (I gathered you might be a health professional or something from your post), but at the OP or anyone else reading the thread. It's actually a pretty common misconception around here.

_Waffle_

Meal timing is irrelevant. Just hit your calorie and macro goals each day.

g33kmommy

I've been eating a late night snack this entire time that I've been on a diet as long as my calorie levels allow for it. I try to make sure it's nothing with a lot of sugar / sodium though. Meal timing doesn't matter! I've still lost (and kept off) almost 60lbs in five months doing this.

Gee_24

My day goes like this, and the odd eating times are because these are the times Im hungry:

6am: Wake up.

7am: Cup of tea.

* Nothing for hours, I work from 8am - 3pm and have nothing but coffee or juice on breaks *

5pm: " Lunch "

10pm: "Dinner"

11pm - 12am: Snack. Either a sweetie or cereal.

I go to bed no later than 12am. Lost 25lbs so far.

Eating 2 hours or less before bed has done nothing negative for me thus far. And I love sleeping on a full stomach. :P