Third Shift

BrightEyesx3

Hello everyone! I haven't been on here for quite some time but at least I came back right? Anyway. I started working third shift as a full time CNA, and I am also a nursing student. I noticed in the past two weeks though I managed to pack on 10 lbs, which I'm not proud of at all I've been doing a bit of research and seeing that working this shift and losing weight is difficult as can be. Anyone have any suggestions that can help me?

P.S. - I read that people will eat small meals 5 times during their shift. However during my shift there gets to a point where I'm moving non-stop and don't have the time to eat.

atcalex

I work the third shift as well, and I too felt a little overwhelmed. I work 10hr shifts as a 911 operator and dont have a lot of time to eat when it is busy. For me, preperation is the key. If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail. I make sure to pack a full meal and plenty of snacks. It also helped me to think of what most people would consider as dinner as my breakfast and then take it from there. I also drink a lot of water because it helps keep me feeling full. Hope this helps.


-Alex

Cait_Sidhe

I'm not sure how much working overnights can really cause weight gain, other than using it as an excuse. Gaining fat is caused by eating too many calories which get stored as fat. It may be difficult to get enough sleep, but weight loss when working overnights is entirely possible. I've been working overnights for 10+ years and have lost all my weight concurrently. I just treat it as any other day, 24 hours is 24 hours.

BrightEyesx3

I'm not sure how much working overnights can really cause weight gain, other than using it as an excuse. Gaining fat is caused by eating too many calories which get stored as fat. It may be difficult to get enough sleep, but weight loss when working overnights is entirely possible. I've been working overnights for 10+ years and have lost all my weight concurrently. I just treat it as any other day, 24 hours is 24 hours.

Well, in my situation, I've been eating a bit more than usual during the day, but when it comes to working at night I only have been eating once on my break. I ONLY drink water, trying to drink a cup or two whenever I have the time. I also try to keep moving as much as possible.

Cait_Sidhe

You might want to save up most of your food for your shift. I work 12 hour shifts and wouldn't be able to do it with just one meal I don't think. I'll copy and paste my usual advice to those struggling on overnights, maybe someone will find it helpful.

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.

BrightEyesx3

I don't work 8 hour shifts though. I work from 11 pm - 7 pm 3 or 4 nights a week (depending on my schedule) and I work a 3 pm - 11 pm shift every week. It's even worse being a full time student too.

Cait_Sidhe

I work 3 jobs. Both days and night, I literally have 1 day off a week sometimes not even that. If you want it, you'll do it. If not, you won't. Doesn't matter whether it's night or day or how long your shifts are.

ETA: I'm not saying that you have to abide by the schedule I posted. It was just general advice for overnights.

mistesh

My early twenties included working the night shift a couple of times a week. I don't recall any particular downside to it, but when you're that age, anything comes easy. So given this thread some reading helped me warm up to the concept.

A very real aspect is sunlight vs artificial light:

"Working and eating late at night/early morning is dangerous to your immune system. The hormone melatonin, helps to regulate your circadian rhythm, or your body's biological clock, which involves digestion of food, ability to think clearly, hormones and many other body systems. Working in artificial light shuts down the release of melatonin, as well as contributes to sleep deprivation and digestive problems. Your night-time diet, if carefully planned, can boost immunity, increase alertness, improve your sleep and help you maintain a healthy weight."

Night Shift Diet
http://www.livestrong.com/article/318221-night-shift-diet/

About the meal schedule:

"Many night shift workers make the mistake of eating their main meal during their break, according to the Canadian Health Network. The body's digestive system is slowed during the overnight hours, meaning this overeating leaves a worker feeling sluggish and uncomfortable. The network suggests workers eat their main meal before the shift begins."

Eating Habits on the Night Shift
http://www.ehow.com/info_8152818_eating-habits-night-shift.html

And yet more on meals:

"Don’t eat a huge meal right at the end of your shift. It will just sit in your stomach as you try to sleep, leading to trouble digesting as well as disrupted slumber. Your body will have difficulty burning these extra calories and they can turn to fat."

How to Work the Third Shift and Stay Healthy
http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/wellness_articles.asp?id=217

I bring this up because some say 24 hours are 24 hours and it doesn't matter how you distribute your meals as long as the calorie count is the same. That's bean counting! And bean counting focuses solely on counting things rather than dimensions of life related to people.

What's wrong with bean counting?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2011/02/18/whats-wrong-with-bean-counting/

CaffeinatedConfectionist

Just copying/pasting my response to a similar thread from a few days ago:

tl;dr: pre-logging food, packing my meals, working out in the AM or as soon as I get home from work have helped me

I work split shifts, divided between 12 hour weekend daytime shifts and 8 hour graveyard shifts midweek. I have a few tricks or habits that I try to maintain to help keep me from going off the rails. For one thing, I always pre-log my day in the morning, or the night before, so that I have my meals and snacks for the day already laid out. Knowing just how much that candy bar will set me back from my goal really helps me avoid it. I also pack my meals and some snacks to bring to work with me, usually something that will travel well. Sometimes it will be something like whole-wheat apple muffin, two hard boiled eggs, and some baked oatmeal, or like tonight, I packed a container of tuna salad, and one of quinoa, bean & corn salad. Things that are high in protein and whole grains like that tend to keep me full longer. I also chew gum or have a mint if I am tempted to break into the junk food that is often lying around.

In terms of exercise, I don't feel much of an inclination to exercise when I get home, especially after the twelve hour days. But I have found that if I set out my exercise clothes in the morning and change into them IMMEDIATELY when I get home from work and get on the elliptical or pick up those weights, I can at least get a short workout in. Usually once I've gotten started, my energy comes back and I can get through a full workout. But if I sit down even just to check my email, I've lost the battle and usually can't get myself back up off the couch. The other thing that I try to do on days that I work nights, when I have a little more flexibility with my schedule/timing, is to work out as soon as I wake up (well, after I've had a cup of coffee...). If I get in some cardio first thing in the morning, it helps me wake up, which I sometimes need with my split schedule. It also seems to start my day off on the right foot; I am less likely to snack or eat junk if I feel like I am undoing all of my hard work from the morning. If I start snacking, but haven't exercised yet, my brain tries to justify it by saying "Well, I'll make up for it later, when I work out." Which is all well and good, unless I don't actually get around to it...

"Many night shift workers make the mistake of eating their main meal during their break, according to the Canadian Health Network. The body's digestive system is slowed during the overnight hours, meaning this overeating leaves a worker feeling sluggish and uncomfortable. The network suggests workers eat their main meal before the shift begins."
........................
"Don’t eat a huge meal right at the end of your shift. It will just sit in your stomach as you try to sleep, leading to trouble digesting as well as disrupted slumber. Your body will have difficulty burning these extra calories and they can turn to fat."

I have never had any issue with eating a large meal shortly before sleeping, in terms of weight loss. This article is an interesting read that discusses the idea of a metabolic slowdown while sleeping: http://www.biolayne.com/nutrition/carbs-at-night-fat-loss-killer-or-imaginary-boogeyman/

One particularly helpful paragraph:

Let’s tackle the issue of metabolic rate slowing down at night time first.  The logic behind this theory seems reasonable enough: you lie down in a bed and don’t really move, just sleep, so obviously you are burning less calories than if you are awake doing stuff, even if you are just sitting in a chair or couch resting, you have to burn more calories than just sleeping right?  At first glance this seems to jive with work from Katoyose et al. which showed that energy expenditure decreased during the first half of sleep approximately 35% (1).  However, these researchers did show that during the latter half of sleep energy expenditure significantly increased associated with REM sleep.  So, there are rises and falls in sleeping metabolic rate (SMR), but what is the overall effect?  Interestingly, at the very least it does not appear that the average overall energy expenditure during sleep is any different than resting metabolic rate (RMR) during the day (2, 3).  Additionally, it appears that exercise increases sleeping metabolic rate significantly leading to greater fat oxidation during sleep (4).  This seems to be in line with data from Zhang et al. which demonstrated that obese individuals had sleeping metabolic rates lower than their resting metabolic rates, whereas lean individuals had sleeping metabolic rates significantly greater than their resting metabolic rate (3).  So unless you are obese, not only does your metabolism NOT slow down during sleep, it actually increases!