Night shift loser

jiffers

Hi all!

Just recently found the site and am looking forward to being accountable to myself and my computer, George, to finally get off my *kitten*.

I'm trying really hard to get jump started on finally losing enough weight to make my back happy with me again. My biggest issue is that I work 12 hour night shifts at a hospital and most of the diet and advice pages I've found are geared towards normal day light people.

Anyone else a vampire who has some ideas for incorporating work outs into a world that exsists when the gurus are sleeping?

Jen >^..^<

ltgarrow

While I dislike the term vampire, especially after the whole Twilight thing. I find myself a graveyarder again. The only ideas that I find that make sense is to START the day (whatever time you wake up) with a good workout. Whatever that may be, it gets the blood going and helps focus on the goal.

I'm sure I have more, but thats the first one I could think of.

breviceps

Hi Jen,

We're kindred spirits, I too am a nurse and I work P Shifts like you. When I lost weight several years ago, I would go to the gym after work, even if it was just for 30 minutes and it worked for me.

On my new unit, one of the nurses brought in her pedometer one night and figured out that by doing 17 laps around the floor, it was equivalent to 1 mile. I'm not sure how your unit is set up, but maybe on your downtime, you can brisk walk around your unit. And if you're really motivated enough, how about the staircase?

And in terms of logging in my calories when I work. I consider "breakfast" the first meal when I wake up in the afternoon. It helps if you use midnight as your cut-off point as your next day. So essentially your "lunch" will be after midnight and your "dinner" is a small meal when you get back home.

Hope this helps!

Brian

emmalousmom1

I'm a nurse also who primarily works night shift, I start my days at 12 midnight, eat night and day, just stay in my calorie range:)

cinrn68

I'm also a nurse, but I work rotation, so 12-hour days and nights. And on my days off, I have kids that get up at 6:30 a.m. for school, so some of my work days (like when I've been off and then am back on nights) end up being reallllllly long!! I do my working out on my days off and take my "off" days on the 2nd or 3rd shift that I'm working consecutively. When I work my 12-hour nights, I eat my biggest meal around 10 p.m. and then I don't eat for the rest of the night until I get home from work and then I have breakfast.

Leslietheriot

I have primarily worked nights. I treat my day (from the time I wake up until I go to sleep) just the same as anyone that is up and about during daylight hours. No matter what time of day or night I wake up, I still have the same routine throughout my "day".

jdad1

I have been on night for 7 years. I am supposed to be on 8 hour shifts but i am forced to work 12 or 16 hour shifts very often.

I find it to be best for me to go with a midnight to midnight logging schedudule. I created a section called "at work/nights". This is where i log everything i eat at night. Then whenever i wake up is when i have "breakfast".

Feel free to add me as a friend if you want to. I am a true Vampire. I would drink blood but it always makes me go over on my calorie goal. :laugh:

Cait_Sidhe

This is my copy/paste response to most threads asking how to keep on track while working nights:

I work 8:30pm-8:30am. 24 hours is 24 hours no matter how you look at it. I have my food diary split up into time segments and Iog my food into the time slot that I ate it, being sure to not go over my goal for the 24 hour time period. I bring all of my food to work with me and pre-log everything so there's usually little variance. If it doesn't fit in my budget, I (99% of the time) don't eat it. On my overnights, 4p-8p is when I am on my way to work. I usually have a protein bar to prevent me from eating stupid things. Then I eat my breakfast before clocking in. Around midnight or so I eat a meal and I eat another one closer to morning so I'm rarely truely hungry.

8am-12pm
12pm-4pm
4pm-8pm
8pm-12am
12am-4am
4am-8am

Or whatever works for you. No need to complicate it. My diary is always open if you think it may help.

I also work part time during the day, so I just log my food in whatever time slot it fits in.

I know you didn't ask about food, but I figured I'd stick that in there. As far as when to workout, just find something that works for you and stick with it. Personally, I'm incapable of waking up early to exercise. I just can't do it. This is how my exercise/work schedule works for me:

Monday (day off): I run and am trying to fit a martial arts class in
Tuesday (12 hour overnight): I lift heavy before going to work.
Wednesday (12 hour overnight): Rest day
Thursday (12 hour overnight): Run in the morning when I get off work after my Wednesday overnight
Friday(day off, but I stay up to rearrange my schedule): Lift heavy when I get off work then wander around aimlessly until I feel like going home.
Saturday(part time day shift): Attempt to get up early to run. That never happens. Walk a minimum of 1 hour due to public transportation.
Sunday(part time day shift): Lift heavy after work.

I work a lot, but I manage to fit it in. I'm currently working 3 jobs. For my 12 hour overnight shifts I have a commute of at least 1.5 hours each way. Saturdays I work in a different state and commute 3 hours each eay. Sundays I work 2 blocks from my house. What works for me isn't going to work for everyone else. But seriously, if I can fit it in, so can you.

Mavrick_RN

Like the others I'm a nurse AND I work rotating shifts 1 day shift and 2 night shifts a week.

You can customize your meals to anything you want. I have mine by time of day Breakfast 07 - 12, Lunch 12 - 17, Dinner 17 - 21, Night Meal 21 - 07, and Snacks.

Make your workouts/exercise a priority. On my days off and my first night shift I force myself to get up by 09 and go to the gym.

Now that biking season has arrived here in Kansas City I really have enjoyed the last week. Two hour bike rides don't seem like exercise. And I just bought myself a Polar heart monitor to keep a watchful on those calories burning off!

CaffeinatedConfectionist

I also rotate, so I work 12 hour daytime shifts on weekends and then graveyard shifts midweek (like right now!) so I can relate!

And in terms of logging in my calories when I work. I consider "breakfast" the first meal when I wake up in the afternoon. It helps if you use midnight as your cut-off point as your next day. So essentially your "lunch" will be after midnight and your "dinner" is a small meal when you get back home.

I also do this, more or less, in terms of logging both food and exercise, although it gets more complicated on the days that I'm flipping between shifts.

The main thing that I have found handy in terms of food (I know you asked about workouts, but...) is to pre-pack my meals to take to work and, most importantly, to pre-log them. I have found that if I pre-log food, I am less likely to get off track with my eating, because then I know exactly how much damage I will be doing.

In terms of exercise, I am fortunate in that I have an elliptical and a barbell set and bench at home, and have access to a treadmill at work that I can use when there is downtime. I'll probably be hitting that in about half an hour here if things stay quiet. And while working graveyard shifts definitely has its downside, I have actually found it pretty convenient in terms of gym accessibility. My gym happens to be 24 hours, but even if it had normal daytime hours, I would be able to stop in when I get off work at 7 and join the day shifters who are doing their morning workouts.

But I agree with the advice already given to get in a workout when you first wake up, if you can. I used to hate this, but now I really enjoy it and I feel like it helps me keep my day on track. It also helps me wake up quickly, which I often need because of my weird schedule. If you have access to a gym that is open late, that might work for you, or if you can exercise at home. I know that can be complicated if you live with people who are on a day shift schedule, and it can be dangerous to run outside late in the evening, but there are probably some options that will work for you!

Good luck to you!

NurseSturgill

Hey there! I'm also a 12 hour night shift nurse. The first step is , taking the plunge and trying to be healthier, so congrats on making that choice MFP is fashioned towards the daylight folks, but that doesn't mean we can't use it the same. My breakfast is my first meal after I wake up. And then I move on as if it were a normal day.

As far as exercise, I know it's hard to work in, but it's not impossible. I try to work out as soon as I open my eyes for the day. Waiting until I get home just doesn't work for me, because by them I'm just plain tired from being on my feet all night. You can also try little things like parking the farthest from the building that you can, taking the stairs, taking the long route to wherever it is you're going (when possible). When it's slow at work, I sometimes will just walk around and do random things (clean, organize, whatever) so that I'm moving. If I'm feeling frisky sometimes I will just walk downstairs to use the restroom and take the stairs back up instead of using the one on the unit. That way, I can get a break from the unit, and get some exercise all at the same time Sometimes it's the little things that make the difference. Exercise can be anything. It doesn't always have to be the standard walking, running, lifting, etc.

You can add me if you'd like. I'm on every day

tiggercub20

I work 12 hour shifts on nights. I work 6pm to 6 am. I've been on this shift for a few YEARS now and have put on about 30 lbs. I need to drop the weight, I feel SOOO bad. There are many days I might not get a real lunch break, more like heat up food and eat as fast as possible or grab fast food and eat it while driving (I've been really good about not having fast food often). I have been having a hard time holding myself accountable food wise. It has been my guilty pleasure. I have a high stress job and eating is apparrently my method of coping, I'm trying to change this to listening to music. I have time to snack but not time to sit down and eat at work. I am also getting married in September. I had lost about 10 lbs a few months ago but have gained most of it back. I feel like a yo-yo. I stick to counting calories for a while (and lose weight) and then I get stressed out or lazy and quit (and gain it back). I am promising myself that I will make time to sit down and have real (healthy) meals at work, and to go jogging at least 3 days a week. I would never break a promise to anyone else and I need to learn to put myself on my top priority list. I really need some help holding myself accountable and sticking to this. If anyone need some help as well please let me know, we could help eachother! Thank you so much for listening!