eating late due to work

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reala728
reala728 Posts: 31
in Health and Weight Loss
i recently got a new job were im working 3pm-12am. breakfast and lunch are easy, but "dinner" happens around 7, and because i get home so late i feel more hungry than tired. i know eating late is a terrible practice, but letting the hunger ride cant be all too good either. i came to the simple conclusion of eating a small snack such as an apple or something when i get home, but the problem here is, after eating a snack i dont feel tired. if i ate a big meal the "food coma" would kick me into dreamland easy, but something small wont do it for me.

so what is the best course of action in this situation?
edit: when i say i "dont feel tired" i mean i CANT sleep. i'll be laying in bed until like 5 or 6am before i finally knock out.

Replies

  • jessicae1aine
    jessicae1aine Posts: 885
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    What time you eat is irrelevant, so long as you ARE eating. If your third meal ends up at a wonky time, so be it. :) My meals are 2pm, around 630pm, and then sometime between 11pm and 3am.
  • GiGiBeans
    GiGiBeans Posts: 1,062 Member
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    I take it you get a meal break at work? Make that your largest meal, breakfast your 2nd largest and have a light meal when you get home. Give your body a chance to adapt. I eat dinner around 7:30 pm and workout around 10pm. That would keep some up all nite but my body is use to it.
  • reala728
    reala728 Posts: 31
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    what my eating schedule right now is generally:
    9 to 11am - breakfast
    2pm - lunch
    7pm - dinner (during break)
    arrive home at around 12:30am

    each meal is honestly pretty small, like a 2 egg omelet for breakfast and lunch and dinner will be about a small plate full of rice, chicken and mixed veggies (i'd estimate 2 cups total). since its all homemade its hard to get an exact calorie count.
  • jessicae1aine
    jessicae1aine Posts: 885
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    since its all homemade its hard to get an exact calorie count.

    I'm curious - how is it hard to get an exact calorie count on homemade food? O.o I'd think it would be harder with non-chain restaurants or something.
  • LokiOfAsgard
    LokiOfAsgard Posts: 378 Member
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    I don't think time is an issue
    but, maybe make your breakfast bigger and your dinner smaller.

    I read all the time that your metabolism is a bit faster in the mornings, which is why people always say not to eat late.

    BUT
    If this schedule and meals size is working for you, now, why change it? :bigsmile:


    ETA: If you have a scale and/or measuring cup, adding in homemade foods isn't hard.
    It just takes more time because you need to add in each ingredient separately
  • reala728
    reala728 Posts: 31
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    haha with restaurants i always just typed in the name and it always had what i was looking for. im actually pretty new to cooking so the majority of the stuff i make doesnt really have a specific name.. just stuff i threw together without any real measurements or recipes. me cooking is pretty much "that looks like enough rice for x amount of chicken, lets just throw some veggies in to add some nutrition". then i just ration it out for the week.
    not great but hey it works :p

    @loki: im just worried that i might be over eating since getting home and eating would make that a whole other meal to add. im working at a call center so im sitting down throughout the day so theres really no justification in that.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,959 Member
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    Eating late is NOT a terrible practice, it really doesn't matter what time you eat, unless you have trouble sleeping on a full belly.

    As for homemade food, enter into the recipe builder and you have an accurate count. Can be a little time consuming the first time for each meal but so worth it.
  • reala728
    reala728 Posts: 31
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    omg i didnt know there was a recipe builder... this will DEFINITELY help!
  • jessicae1aine
    jessicae1aine Posts: 885
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    Ahhh. :P Well, I definitely recommend a good food scale for your kitchen. I bought a cheapy from Walmart for like $15, but I'm going up to the $30 digital that we use at work - which also came from Walmart.



    As for your metabolism being faster at a specific part of the day, that's irrelevant. Calories in vs. calories out, paired with some muscle mass math, means you lose weight. My largest meal of the day is pretty much always my last one - and sometimes my others total a whole 200-300 calories. I've been losing 3-4 pounds a week for the last month.
  • LokiOfAsgard
    LokiOfAsgard Posts: 378 Member
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    @loki: im just worried that i might be over eating since getting home and eating would make that a whole other meal to add. im working at a call center so im sitting down throughout the day so theres really no justification in that.

    Then you might have good reason to try big meals in the morning and small meals in the evening.
    And measure those ingredients! xD

    Time consuming, but worth it.
  • dumb_blondes_rock
    dumb_blondes_rock Posts: 1,568 Member
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    haha with restaurants i always just typed in the name and it always had what i was looking for. im actually pretty new to cooking so the majority of the stuff i make doesnt really have a specific name.. just stuff i threw together without any real measurements or recipes. me cooking is pretty much "that looks like enough rice for x amount of chicken, lets just throw some veggies in to add some nutrition". then i just ration it out for the week.
    not great but hey it works :p

    @loki: im just worried that i might be over eating since getting home and eating would make that a whole other meal to add. im working at a call center so im sitting down throughout the day so theres really no justification in that.

    Measure EVERYTHING....its tedious, but if you don't most likely you are underestimating your calories. I buy bulk chicken and when I get home, I weigh it out and put it in separate baggies so when im ready to cook its already proportioned. I do tha will all meats and I measure out nuts and things like that too because I def will overeat on those
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,959 Member
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    omg i didnt know there was a recipe builder... this will DEFINITELY help!

    Yup! Food tab, then recipes sub-tab, then "enter new recipe" on the right. You enter each of the ingredients, how many serves it is, give it a name and save it. You can add it again and again by going to the recipes tab in your food diary after that.
  • skinnytayy
    skinnytayy Posts: 459
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    It doesn't matter what time you eat. All that "don't eat after X time" is B.S.
    In 2010, I lost nearly 40lbs (fiance lost 45 or so) and we ate whenever we were hungry. Now here I am again and I've lost 17lbs (fiance lost 34lbs) and we both eat whenever. He works one week from 4am-4pm and a second week from 4pm-4am so we eat at ridiculous hours. Hasn't affected us, hasn't affected anyone else, won't affect you.
  • reala728
    reala728 Posts: 31
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    alright well i put everything together and it looks like the way i've been eating will actually allow for me to eat another portion, similar to what i have been eating. so thats perfect. and if the time doesnt really matter then i'll just go for it! should be enough to get me to sleep. thanks for all the quick replies and advice guys!
    and i'll try watching my measurements a bit closer from now on, since these were all just estimates. im sure it cant be all THAT far off.
  • irishblonde2011
    irishblonde2011 Posts: 618 Member
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    I worked in the airport for 6 months crazy shifts like 4pm-2am and a 1.5 hour drive home and I lost a good bit of my weight over that time. It doesn't matter what time you eat. The key is to be organised. Get used to having everything packed and ready for work breakfast/lunches/dinners etc. You can do this. Good luck.

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