Late workouts and post workout meal ?

simply_healthy

Hi All,

Okk.. I m back with another ques... Its usually advised not to eat after 7 in the evening.. now if I plan to workout frm 9-11 pm .. Is it ok for me to have a protein smoothie after workout or should I just have a fruit after workout ?

diannethegeek

Unless eating late gives you heartburn or causes you sleep problems, it isn't a bad thing to eat late at night.

cwolfman13

meal timing is irrelevant. I consume around 300 calories post workout at around 7:15 PM and then my actual dinner which is usually in the 500-700 calorie range at 8:30/9:00 PM. I burn roughly 2700 calories in a 24 hour period...meal timing is irrelevant. There is no magic insulin fairy that comes to visit you in the middle of the night to make you fat...it's a myth, just like santa, the tooth fairy, or any of the other fairy tales.

JoRocka

^^ agree

meal time is irrelevant.

eat the food- make sure you eat a surplus if you want to bulk- or a deficiet if you want to lose. easy peasy lemon squeezy.

melindasuefritz

smoothie-
but my policy is not to eat after 9 pm

Pearsquared

It's all good. "Don't eat after 7pm" is another one of those "Correlation =/= Causation" problems. The correlation is "People who eat at night tend to be heavier." Those who read this incorrectly made it a causation: "Eating at night makes you fat."

Unfortunately, that causation doesn't take into account that people that munch at night tend to make unhealthy choices because it's a "late-night snack" from something easily accessible and not properly portioned. If you plan a meal and include it in your calories, there is nothing physically making you fat. The "no eating after 7pm" is all a mental game.

Tiznonay

Idk why people keep quoting "times" to not eat after... that number varies quite a bit with what time you go to bed. I exercise in the evenings, and then eat my biggest meal of the day after that. Just depends on your schedule.

Shouldn't eat right before bed, of course. But other than that, I'm inclined to believe that meal time is, indeed, irrelevant.

AlchemyOfTheBlackSunCult

First off, no, you can eat at whatever time of the day you want to eat, it won't make a difference.

Second off, you don't need a post workout protein shake, it won't harm you in any way, but it really won't make a difference.

As an anecdotal evidence, I workout at 8pm, eat anywhere between 1000-2000 calories and then go right to sleep, and I am losing body fat and holding onto muscle (and getting a **** load stronger). Granted, that 1000-2000 calorie meal fits into my daily caloric goal, and I try my hardest not to stray too far away from my macro nutrients (some days i'll go over in fat, under in carbs and vis versa)

simply_healthy

Idk why people keep quoting "times" to not eat after... that number varies quite a bit with what time you go to bed. I exercise in the evenings, and then eat my biggest meal of the day after that. Just depends on your schedule.

Shouldn't eat right before bed, of course. But other than that, I'm inclined to believe that meal time is, indeed, irrelevant.

I usually come home from gym around 11ish and prefer to go to bed around 11:30... so I am not sure whats the best post workout meal for me...

srk369

Idk why people keep quoting "times" to not eat after... that number varies quite a bit with what time you go to bed. I exercise in the evenings, and then eat my biggest meal of the day after that. Just depends on your schedule.

Shouldn't eat right before bed, of course. But other than that, I'm inclined to believe that meal time is, indeed, irrelevant.

I usually come home from gym around 11ish and prefer to go to bed around 11:30... so I am not sure whats the best post workout meal for me...

There are a lot of nights that I'm just finishing working out at that time. I sometimes just have a handful of almonds and a bottle of water on my way home from the gym.