Saving all my carbohydrates for the end of the day?

Crayvn

will saving your carbs for end of day effect your weight loss?..no...its mathematical really.. calorie intake-deficit =loss

is it better for your body overall?... you have to listen to your body...if you have plenty of energy through the day then eat your carbs whenever you want... if you would like to have more energy during the day..then eat more carbs then... its so simple really.. dont beat yourself over it

law1558

I am like you....shocked at the breakdown of my diet to see just how many come from carbs!!

I have heard that eating carbs in the early part of your day allows you more time to "burn" them off, if that makes sense. Seeing as how I'm only on day 2 of this MFP program, I don't know if it'll make much difference, but I'm hopeful!

EccentricDad

Hey everybody!:) So I've recently joined MFP and am still getting the hang of things here, please forgive me if this question's answer seems simple to any of you haha, because it sure isn't for me!

Right well a few days ago, I discovered that my diet is REALLY high in carbohydrates. In my calorie breakdown graph, 71% came from carbs, 9% from protein and 20% from fats...obviously I have been working on fixing this issue. But thus far the only way I find that actually works is to avoid bread and wheat as much as possible since my dinner's and afternoon snacks are normally pretty carby. Anyways, my question(s)-

1. Is it healthy to eat a lot of carbs all within a period of 3-4 hours?? And right before bed too. I try to avoid eating when possible after 7pm most days, but sometimes I have to change that to 8pm when I come home from volleyball practice which ends pretty late. I've heard that if you eat a lot of carbs your body converts the lot of them into fats:/

2. Also does anybody have any low-carb breakfast suggestions for me? These past few days it's been fruit with slices of lunch meat (banana, strawberries, and nectarines then usually 2-3 slices of chicken or ham and sometimes a tablespoon or two of organic whole yoghurt) which I find myself quickly growing tired of...

Hi,

I don't really want to answer your question the way it was asked because I need to understand some things first. What is your goal in your diet restriction and what would you say is your biggest struggle with restriction right now? This may seem random, but trust me, I am trying to help :flowerforyou:

Silverkittycat

because not every one is the same, dude. Seriously........why does every twenty something muscle head DUDE think they have all the answers, especially for women?

What are the metabolic differences between men and women?

Read!!!!! There are actually quite a lot.

jasonpclement

Ok i have read 0 of the responses to this. But I have no doubt people have dropped the, growth hormone, fat burning at night blunted by carbs etc etc...

Sure that "might" be optimal. Its not proven, and there are plenty of studies that show great weight loss on folks that save their carbs for night time. What you need to do is find something that works on the long term. A fitness guru by the name of Nate Miyaki vouches for this, and I support him 100%. It is much easier to go through your day eating low carb, and low calorie meals, and to save your night time for the bulk of your calories (including carbs). If you can stay within your calorie goal, and make this work (without cheating every two or three days) you will find success.

That aside, definitally look for alternative foods that give you more fat and protein. I'm not going anti-carb here, but 70% is very high. Stock up on family size bags of veggies, and eat half a bag, with every meal. Maybe a half a cup of rice, a ton of veggies, and a decent sized portion of meat.

Best of luck and enjoy! Get creative. Dieting, and feeling full is a bit of a hack. Load your belly with lots of low calorie high volume foods, drink a bunch of water with your meal and you'll do just fine .

tigersword

Ok, that doesn't make sense to me AT ALL. You want to eat all your "bad" foods RIGHT BEFORE BED? When your'e about to go lay down and drop your metabolism down!!!???

so carbs are bad foods. is that all carbs? if not how are good and bad carbs defined?

What if i work out late in the day right before bed can I still eat carbs then?

How much does my metabolism drop during an average 8 hour sleep and do you have any evidence?

Why would eating one type of food at one certain time be more important that the overall intake of that food and activity levels over the long term.

please respond.

because not every one is the same, dude. Seriously........why does every twenty something muscle head DUDE think they have all the answers, especially for women?

There is evidence to suggest that you do not burn your food as efficiently while sleeping as you do while being active.

There is evidence to suggest that eating too much of ANYTHING is probably bad. There is enough evidence to suggest that it is harder for some folks, especially women, to burn LOTS of carbs and sugars effectively, especially if they are already sedentary and overweight.

And I'm not saying carbs are bad. I'm saying that as suggested by the OP, carbs are HER "bad food". I have also noticed that when my diet is carb heavy, my weight loss slows or stalls. When it's protein heavy, my weight comes off much more easily. My weight comes off easier when I cut drinking and cut extra sugar, too. That's just me, but it's common for lots of women. Just because it wasn't true for you doesn't really make it a universal truth.

The op mentioned she has problems with carbs and wants to find a way to control them. I suggested a way that has worked for me, and others have mentioned it worked for them.

Sorry that bunks your whole "I know every damn thing about every damn thing" theory, kiddo.

No, there is no real evidence about when the best time to eat carbs is. In a full 24 hour period, it just doesn't matter. The only caveat is a metabolic illness, which is a rather small minority of people, and certainly not "most women." Just because something happens for you doesn't really make it a universal truth, either.

Sorry that bunks your "I know every damn thing about every damn thing" theory. Oh, and if there is this evidence that you claim, why don't you post it? Obviously you must have all the evidence that nobody else does.

SideSteel

because not every one is the same, dude. Seriously........why does every twenty something muscle head DUDE think they have all the answers, especially for women?

What are the metabolic differences between men and women?

Read!!!!! There are actually quite a lot.

But are they ones that would cause carb timing to significantly effect net change in fat storage or fat oxidation over time?

EccentricDad

Hi,

I don't really want to answer your question the way it was asked because I need to understand some things first. What is your goal in your diet restriction and what would you say is your biggest struggle with restriction right now? This may seem random, but trust me, I am trying to help :flowerforyou:

Bumping in case you didn't see this. Answer questions in quote attached.

EccentricDad

Sorry that bunks your "I know every damn thing about every damn thing" theory.

*Waves*
Good evening Tiger. I see you're feeling your fight as usual this evening.

Pixi_Rex

Carbs are NOT bad for you. Carbs are actually kind of important for your brain to function. Simple carbs (ie. white bread, white pasta, white flour - over processed carbs) can be kept to a minimum if you choose to but I know quite a few people who have lost 100 pounds and actually kept the weight off for more than a year that have never had a problem.

Before someone yells at me I know EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT... kind of, but not really. I have lost 13 ish pounds and honestly I eat white bread, pasta etc and I eat it all through out the day. I also eat between 8-9 pm and go to bed between 10 - 11pm. I know there are low carbers out there that are going to want to crucify me but seriously unless you have some kind of gluten intolerance (that has been diagnosed by an actual dr. and not Dr. Google) there is no reason to cut all the carbs out of your diet. You can change to muli-grain/whole wheat blah blah blah (which tastes better imo) but you do not need to cut them down.

Also what is making your diet carb heavy, lots of fruits and veggies? Because if that is the case they are deliciously good for you carbs that I wouldn't be cutting out of my diet - EVER.

The basic calories in vs calories works for most people once you figure out your numbers, and you are honest with yourself - weigh and measure etc.

You need to figure out what is best for YOU, not what works for your sister, your friend, your neighbors cousins neighbors brother etc. But for you. I eat majority of my carbs in the morning but its rarely ever because I plan it that way. Protein is important and try to get that up, but you need carbs and fat as well for your brain to work properly.

CharliePellegrino

Re: box loading for hours on end--Is your heart rate elevated continuously? If so, you are doing aerobic exercise by definition, and just happen to be getting paid for it. Sustaining your heart rate at an elevated level will prompt your body to more naturally want to burn carbs. If you starve it of carbs, or keep them to a lower or moderate level, it will mobilize fat instead, but a lot of people crash or have energy level/binge issues when doing this.

So what you are saying is that if I have low to moderate intake of carbs, my body will go into fat burning instead of carb burning? Theoretically speaking? In answer to your question about my heart rate being elevated: yes, it is elevated consistently until break time, and then after break it's consistent until my shift is over. I can still talk but I'm breathing fairly heavy. I'm of course sweating buckets, but staying hydrated by drinking ice water and gatorade. I'm not too fond of the gatorade though, as I see it as sugar.

MoreBean13

Bumpity.

Silverkittycat

because not every one is the same, dude. Seriously........why does every twenty something muscle head DUDE think they have all the answers, especially for women?

What are the metabolic differences between men and women?

Read!!!!! There are actually quite a lot.

But are they ones that would cause carb timing to significantly effect net change in fat storage or fat oxidation over time?

Yes and no. Still working on it...not quite on board with Judith Wurtman's staff's research....

EccentricDad

I am going to attempt this anyways without the necessary information.

Carbohydrates are used almost exclusively for energy. If you are filling up on the carbs at night, then it will help you stay full through the night but any energy unused will be stored and fat will be pushed into fat cells and stay there. If you eat your carbs early day after your over night fasting, the energy will be available for use and if you're eating starchy carbs you will maintain your fullness until the starch burns off. So based on the limited information I have, I would say it isn't a wise idea to eat them at night because your fasting overnight would only burn the carbs and not the fat causing you to GAIN weight instead of LOSE it.

The best thing you can do for your last meal is eat protein to repair for the day, get a big dose of healthy fats (unsaturated ones like from extra virgin olive oil or canola oil or almonds), and have some delicious non-starchy veggies to get you through the evening hours awake. Also, stop eating up 12 hours before you plan on eating breakfast. If you get hungry, drink some water because dehydration feels like hunger sometimes.

I really hope this is helpful. If it isn't, I can understand, just let me know what parts are hard for you and I can try help you any way that I can. :flowerforyou:

SideSteel

I am going to attempt this anyways without the necessary information.

Carbohydrates are used almost exclusively for energy. If you are filling up on the carbs at night, then it will help you stay full through the night but any energy unused will be stored and fat will be pushed into fat cells and stay there.

If you are in a calorie deficit, any theoretical fat storage that may occur at night will be oxidized. It does not "stay there".

You do not show a net fat storage if you are in an energy deficit.

EccentricDad

I am going to attempt this anyways without the necessary information.

Carbohydrates are used almost exclusively for energy. If you are filling up on the carbs at night, then it will help you stay full through the night but any energy unused will be stored and fat will be pushed into fat cells and stay there.

If you are in a calorie deficit, any theoretical fat storage that may occur at night will be oxidized. It does not "stay there".

You do not show a net fat storage if you are in an energy deficit.

Thank you, I did not know this. Nevertheless, it is still counterproductive having energy there burning when they could be burning fat at night instead.

Crayvn

If you are in a calorie deficit, any theoretical fat storage that may occur at night will be oxidized. It does not "stay there".

You do not show a net fat storage if you are in an energy deficit.

Correct

Sublog

You're constantly going between times of fat storing and fat burning. All that matters in losing weight is you spend more time burning fat than storing fat. It really is that simple. Stop trying to make things more complicated than they need to be.

EccentricDad

So based on the limited information I have,

I'm going to highlight the relevant info in the above post.

You're constantly going between times of fat storing and fat burning. All that matters in losing weight is you spend more time burning fat than storing fat. It really is that simple. Stop trying to make things more complicated than they need to be.

The OP posted they are having a struggle with their diet. I am simply trying to find out how I can help them with their diet so they can meet their objectives. Every single person has different struggles and not everyone has a "no nonsense" attitude about things. Because to be frank, sometimes nonsense isn't nonsense, it's just sense of the common type.

If the OP wants to discuss struggles, I would be willing to help them work with the struggles instead of criticism them for having them. It's called being empathetic folks, everyone is different and has special needs or problems.

CyberEd312

I am going to attempt this anyways without the necessary information.

Carbohydrates are used almost exclusively for energy. If you are filling up on the carbs at night, then it will help you stay full through the night but any energy unused will be stored and fat will be pushed into fat cells and stay there. If you eat your carbs early day after your over night fasting, the energy will be available for use and if you're eating starchy carbs you will maintain your fullness until the starch burns off. So based on the limited information I have, I would say it isn't a wise idea to eat them at night because your fasting overnight would only burn the carbs and not the fat causing you to GAIN weight instead of LOSE it.

The best thing you can do for your last meal is eat protein to repair for the day, get a big dose of healthy fats (unsaturated ones like from extra virgin olive oil or canola oil or almonds), and have some delicious non-starchy veggies to get you through the evening hours awake. Also, stop eating up 12 hours before you plan on eating breakfast. If you get hungry, drink some water because dehydration feels like hunger sometimes.

I really hope this is helpful. If it isn't, I can understand, just let me know what parts are hard for you and I can try help you any way that I can. :flowerforyou:

So would you say that i defy the laws of thermodynamics because every night for the past 38 months I have taken a 600 calorie snack to bed with me that consist of 2 cups of cereal (Reese's puff mixed with Krave double chocolate cereal eaten dry) and a glass of 1% chocolate milk and if not that then 2 golden delicious apples with same chocolate milk. And some how managed to lose 311 lbs. And I am ready to eat 1000 calories for breakfast at 6 in the morning... My Macro's have always been set 50/25/25 with Carbs leading the way.. So am I the exception to the rule???