Eating late at night? Y/N? Why?

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  • BurtHuttz
    BurtHuttz Posts: 3,653 Member
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    i mostly disagree with this statement.

    my favorite time to eat is 9pm

    I agree with this disagreement.
  • n0ob
    n0ob Posts: 2,390 Member
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    when I was lifting 4-5 times a week and running every day and doing something on my "rest" days, I would wake up at 2-3 AM and eat 400 cals or so of peanut butter.

    Ah, to be young again...
  • firstsip
    firstsip Posts: 8,399 Member
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    I don't eat at all before I go to bed because my body completely shuts down when I sleep. I mean it. It goes into a metabolic coma, I burn no calories, and I wake up much heavier every day. That's why I don't weigh myself in the morning; I gain a tremendous amount of weight the night before because my body did absolutely no burning of fat or calories. It was completely shut down.
  • dg09
    dg09 Posts: 754
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    Yes AND no.

    Eat all the way up to 11:59PM and then stop, any time after that you run the risk of turning into a gremlin.
  • miracole
    miracole Posts: 492 Member
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    I definitely snack at night, even if it is the 5 minutes leading up to going to bed. But then again I also tend to do quite a bit of exercise at night (for example used my spin bike for 90 minutes last night starting at 8:45pm) and my long runs are always Saturday mornings so I carb load as necessary the night before both at dinner and in my snacking (love my stove top popcorn maker). Eating before bed often gives me more energy first thing in the morning as well. I tend to hit the snooze button a few too many times and then bring my breakfast in to work with me, if I haven't eaten a sufficient amount the night before the bus ride into work may make me feel nauseous from hunger!

    Sometimes I'll even fit in an extra calorie burn just so I CAN snack late at night. And my results speak for themselves!
  • lauren3101
    lauren3101 Posts: 1,853 Member
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    I don't eat at all before I go to bed because my body completely shuts down when I sleep. I mean it. It goes into a metabolic coma, I burn no calories, and I wake up much heavier every day. That's why I don't weigh myself in the morning; I gain a tremendous amount of weight the night before because my body did absolutely no burning of fat or calories. It was completely shut down.

    lol

    Unless you die every night, I can assure you this does not happen.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    I don't eat at all before I go to bed because my body completely shuts down when I sleep. I mean it. It goes into a metabolic coma, I burn no calories, and I wake up much heavier every day. That's why I don't weigh myself in the morning; I gain a tremendous amount of weight the night before because my body did absolutely no burning of fat or calories. It was completely shut down.

    Maybe you should set an alarm for the middle of the night so you can eat something to kick start it.
  • firstsip
    firstsip Posts: 8,399 Member
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    I don't eat at all before I go to bed because my body completely shuts down when I sleep. I mean it. It goes into a metabolic coma, I burn no calories, and I wake up much heavier every day. That's why I don't weigh myself in the morning; I gain a tremendous amount of weight the night before because my body did absolutely no burning of fat or calories. It was completely shut down.

    lol

    Unless you die every night, I can assure you this does not happen.

    Perhaps I do. La petite mort.
  • glamouritz64
    glamouritz64 Posts: 85 Member
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    Time of day has nothing to do with it. If you have calories left, eat if you're hungry.

    I completely disagree with this statement. Every person's body composition is different, and the way our bodies breakdown calories is different. Also, depending on WHAT you eat before going to bed (and how often you do it) can be problematic.

    You can disagree, but medical conditions aside we are all very similar in the biological processes that happen. We all gain weight from energy surpluses and we all need a deficit to lose weight because thermodynamics.

    We certainly have different preferences so in that regard you might feel a certain way about when you eat, but simply put: you don't gain weight from eating at a specific time if you're eating in a calorie deficit.

    So I guess "slow metabolisms" are a myth. Gotcha.
  • ahviendha
    ahviendha Posts: 1,291 Member
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    yes. if i'm hungry i eat. or else i'm extra hungry in the mornings and also likely to faint or feel dizzy while working out.
  • 1shauna1
    1shauna1 Posts: 993 Member
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    I just saw a news report on this recently. It's not that it matters what time of day you eat. They said that if you're eating after dinner, it tends to be less healthy foods and mindless snacking, which can cause the problem. So I think if you're hungry late at night, if you have the calories and can make a good choice, go for it.
  • fit4lifeUcan2
    fit4lifeUcan2 Posts: 1,458 Member
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    As a general rule I won't eat after 6pm, it seems my body stores it and I always gain weight...but that is me, and it may just be my perception, I don't really know, but I stick with my rule as best I can.

    I was this way as well till I got a peptic ulcer and now I have to space out my food throughout the day or else I'm in agony and will wake up in the middle of the night in absolute pain. My weight lose was going really well till i had to eat late at night. I"ve been stuck at the same weight now for almost 2 months. So for me it was working to stop eating after dinner time and not eat before bed or late at night. But since I have to eat now at night before bed or risk pain I have to step up my exercise to get things moving again. We are all different. According to my biology professor who actually has a PHD your body does change when you sleep. You have certain chemicals in your body that are more active at night while you sleep and others that are not active while you sleep. These chemicals help you metabolize foods etc. There are reasons why certain meds that are only taken at night and some have to be taken in the morning. Its because our body's chemistry changes while we sleep.

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/489157-does-your-metabolism-slow-down-at-night/
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    Time of day has nothing to do with it. If you have calories left, eat if you're hungry.

    I completely disagree with this statement. Every person's body composition is different, and the way our bodies breakdown calories is different. Also, depending on WHAT you eat before going to bed (and how often you do it) can be problematic.

    You can disagree, but medical conditions aside we are all very similar in the biological processes that happen. We all gain weight from energy surpluses and we all need a deficit to lose weight because thermodynamics.

    We certainly have different preferences so in that regard you might feel a certain way about when you eat, but simply put: you don't gain weight from eating at a specific time if you're eating in a calorie deficit.

    So I guess "slow metabolisms" are a myth. Gotcha.
    What does this have to do with eating at night? Yes we have different total energy requirements but this has absolutely nothing to do with nutrient timing.
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
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    I eat up until I fall asleep...as long as I have calories left and I'm hungry, the kitchen is open!
  • VorJoshigan
    VorJoshigan Posts: 1,106 Member
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    I don't eat at all before I go to bed because my body completely shuts down when I sleep. I mean it. It goes into a metabolic coma, I burn no calories, and I wake up much heavier every day. That's why I don't weigh myself in the morning; I gain a tremendous amount of weight the night before because my body did absolutely no burning of fat or calories. It was completely shut down.

    lol

    Unless you die every night, I can assure you this does not happen.

    Perhaps I do. La petite mort.
    EVERY night? I'm impressed.

    To the OP, YES BECAUSE LATE NIGHT FOOD IS DELICIOUS.

    Eat when you're hungry, so eat less throughout the day if you know you're going to eat it up at night. The "don't eat after 5" stuff is just BS in that it's a technique for eating less overall. It's a good shortcut for people who aren't journaling their food, or for dumb people, but there's nothing magically diabolical about evening calories.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    Your metabolism has no idea what time it is.
  • WinnerVictorious
    WinnerVictorious Posts: 4,735 Member
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    Time of day has nothing to do with it. If you have calories left, eat if you're hungry.

    I completely disagree with this statement. Every person's body composition is different, and the way our bodies breakdown calories is different. Also, depending on WHAT you eat before going to bed (and how often you do it) can be problematic.

    You can disagree, but medical conditions aside we are all very similar in the biological processes that happen. We all gain weight from energy surpluses and we all need a deficit to lose weight because thermodynamics.

    We certainly have different preferences so in that regard you might feel a certain way about when you eat, but simply put: you don't gain weight from eating at a specific time if you're eating in a calorie deficit.

    So I guess "slow metabolisms" are a myth. Gotcha.

    i'm not trying to be snarky, but i think you're misunderstanding what "metabolism" truly means. when you breathe, you burn calories. when you keep a constant body temperature, you burn calories. there are hundreds of other chemical and biological processes (i.e. metabolic processes) going on inside your body whether you are awake or asleep, that all require energy, which is the burning of calories. these include the processes related to digestion. you spend roughly 1/3rd of your life sleeping. you burn roughly 1/3rd of your daily energy expenditure while you are sleeping. unless you believe that you stop breathing while you are asleep and that your body temperature drops to room temperature while you sleep and that all of those other constant metabolic processes come to a screeching halt while you sleep, then there's no way you can disagree with the statement you disagreed with.
  • fit4lifeUcan2
    fit4lifeUcan2 Posts: 1,458 Member
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    http://www.livestrong.com/article/489157-does-your-metabolism-slow-down-at-night/

    Time of Day
    The time of day may also affect your metabolism, whether you are asleep or awake. A 2011 study conducted by researchers from Northwestern University demonstrates that there is a link between your body's circadian rhythm, or the natural wake/sleep cycle that humans experience, and your metabolism. Your body is hardwired to gear down at night, which lowers your metabolism whether you are awake or asleep. A disruption in your natural wake/sleep cycle also has an effect of slowing your metabolism by causing your body to produce more hormones that are related to feelings of hunger and weight gain.


    Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/489157-does-your-metabolism-slow-down-at-night/#ixzz2HxslZe00
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Iwas lead to believe you should try and have your last meal 3 hours before going to sleep as you dont burn off the calories and your body will store the fat. im not sure how true this is but i use this method. try eating more earlier in the evening then you
    should avoid getting hunger pangs later on

    Since you are still alive while you are sleeping, then yes, you still burn calories.
  • WinnerVictorious
    WinnerVictorious Posts: 4,735 Member
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    http://www.livestrong.com/article/489157-does-your-metabolism-slow-down-at-night/

    Time of Day
    The time of day may also affect your metabolism, whether you are asleep or awake. A 2011 study conducted by researchers from Northwestern University demonstrates that there is a link between your body's circadian rhythm, or the natural wake/sleep cycle that humans experience, and your metabolism. Your body is hardwired to gear down at night, which lowers your metabolism whether you are awake or asleep. A disruption in your natural wake/sleep cycle also has an effect of slowing your metabolism by causing your body to produce more hormones that are related to feelings of hunger and weight gain.


    Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/489157-does-your-metabolism-slow-down-at-night/#ixzz2HxslZe00

    nowhere does that article state by how much. does it slow by 50%? or 30%? or 15%? or 5%? or 3%?

    isn't it interesting how a crucial detail like that has been omitted?

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