Does meal timing matter at all?

GreatSaltLuke

I've seen so much advice about staying away from carbs and/or calories in general right before bedtime and that the later in the day you eat something, the more of it will be converted to fat, etc. The MFP plan doesn't appear to pay any attention to timing of meals but I noticed today that I ate all my protein grams early in the day and ended up with mostly carbs left to eat so I had a very carb-heavy pasta meal right before bedtime. Is this detrimental to my diet even though I stayed within my calorie range?

Mr_Bad_Example

No.

Phoenix_Warrior

Meal timing is irrelevant. I've been having a good size snack every night for 5 months now and it hasn't stalled me. The body doesn't care when you give it food, just that it gets its necessary macronutrients.

dorothytd

No.

Ditto.

bajoyba

I don't pay any attention to what time of day I eat, or when I consume which macros. I just eat when I'm hungry or when I get around to it, and I try to hit my macros by the time I go to bed. It doesn't seem to have affected my weight loss at all.

Also, the protein goal that MFP gives you should be thought of as a minimum. Unless you have a medical reason to restrict your protein intake, don't worry about going over your protein goal.

Mr_Knight

If you are highly active, yes, it can matter.

Otherwise, the effects of intake timing are negligible.

CyberEd312

Well lets see I eat whenever it fits my preference, I eat carbs, I eat in bed every night, and I hit my caloric intake and macros and have lost a few pounds so meal frequency has no bearing when it comes to weight loss in my opinion..... Best of Luck

ninerbuff

If it did, then I should be super overweight since I eat almost 75% of my calories after 6pm. No it doesn't matter.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Kevalicious99

I never worry about eating later at night .. and I am doing just fine in my weight loss. So .. as far as I am concerned, eating whenever you want is just fine, including at night. I do eat every 2.5 hours though .. just so I am never hungry.

CharChary

it does for me.

I have to space my meals out because I struggle with my relationship with food lol. For me this works. (every four hours) it helps keep me satisfied/less anxious and stay within my limit.

martyqueen52

I usually eat my pop-tarts and a bowl of Egg Nog ice cream at night dude. Meal time is something made up by a 90lb carb wary school girl.

susannamarie

It's based off studies that showed that people who ate earlier in the day tended to weigh less. However, these studies didn't take caloric intake into account. People who eat late at night often tend to be mindless munchers while watching television and munch their weigh through boatloads of calories. If you control your calorie intake, it really doesn't matter.

mmapags

it does for me.

I have to space my meals out because I struggle with my relationship with food lol. For me this works. (every four hours) it helps keep me satisfied/less anxious and stay within my limit.

That is your preference and you have found what works best for you. That being said, there is no metabolic advantage for you or anyone else relative to weight loss (fat loss) and meal timing. It's all about preference, performance and adherence.

hastingsmassage

It does for me, I eat dinner for lunch and small meal around 6pm, nothing after 6-7pm. I lost 120 lbs since 2nd feb 2013. I closed my old account due to hate and stupid people etc etc. You know how it is here when you doing good.

Diet_Soda

It has never mattered to me. I am a calorie in, calorie out kind of girl. I like things simple.

CharChary

it does for me.

I have to space my meals out because I struggle with my relationship with food lol. For me this works. (every four hours) it helps keep me satisfied/less anxious and stay within my limit.

That is your preference and you have found what works best for you. That being said, there is no metabolic advantage for you or anyone else relative to weight loss (fat loss) and meal timing. It's all about preference, performance and adherence.

Precisely. I know there are people who eat once a day (just a really huge meal) and do just fine that way.
Everyone's different.

greenmonstergirl

I have eaten the same thing everyday for a year now and I have experimented with eating at different times and for me, yes it matters when I eat. Do what works for you though.

meeper123

If it did, then I should be super overweight since I eat almost 75% of my calories after 6pm. No it doesn't matter.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Lol same here i don't get to eat dinner until almost 10

BenjaminMFP88

There's nothing scientific based that i've read that suggests that meal timing matters. That being said, I will say this only from personal experience so take it as nothing more then broscience. But I found that not eating an hour before my workout and eating within an hour after my working helped me significantly. It could just be a placebo, but then again, I could care less since i'm seeing progress :]

JoRocka

it does for me.

I have to space my meals out because I struggle with my relationship with food lol. For me this works. (every four hours) it helps keep me satisfied/less anxious and stay within my limit.

That is your preference and you have found what works best for you. That being said, there is no metabolic advantage for you or anyone else relative to weight loss (fat loss) and meal timing. It's all about preference, performance and adherence.

THIS

I eat about 5-700 calories after 11 PM because I have to eat after I work out- I'm famished. I would die if not.

Do what WORKS for you, fits your life style and your needs.

cfredz

no.