Does it matter what time you eat?

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babydiego87
babydiego87 Posts: 905 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hey,

I do shift work and often don't get to eat until 8pm at times. I'm just wondering how much this affects weight loss and if I should make a conservative effort to eat my last meal earlier?

Ta
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Replies

  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,473 Member
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    yep, thats not good to eat late at night.
  • badmojo108
    badmojo108 Posts: 72
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    Unless eating late gives you heartburn, or makes sleep difficult it doesn't matter at all when you eat.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    No, eat when it fits your schedule.
  • PBsMommy
    PBsMommy Posts: 1,166 Member
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    I don't eat "dinner" until about 10 P.M.... This has never affected my weight-loss
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    Hey,

    I do shift work and often don't get to eat until 8pm at times. I'm just wondering how much this affects weight loss and if I should make a conservative effort to eat my last meal earlier?

    Ta

    Eating late will not contribute to weight gain or impair fat loss any more than eating early will, assuming the same total intake in both cases.
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
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    yep, thats not good to eat late at night.

    Very common MYTH. As stated above, unless it interferes with sleep, eat whenever you want.
  • GiddyupTim
    GiddyupTim Posts: 2,819 Member
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    Side Steel might be wrong.

    http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/really-timing-of-meals-affects-weight-loss/?src=recg
  • raeleek
    raeleek Posts: 414 Member
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    It' doesn't matter when you eat as far as weight loss.

    The only thing about eating late is possible gi upset. I was advised by my gi doctor to avoid eating a few hours before bed only because I do have some gi issues.

    Your metabolism is on all the time and it will burn off calories all the time.

    Calories in calories out, that simple.
  • mandipandi75
    mandipandi75 Posts: 6,035 Member
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    Hey,

    I do shift work and often don't get to eat until 8pm at times. I'm just wondering how much this affects weight loss and if I should make a conservative effort to eat my last meal earlier?

    Ta

    Eating late will not contribute to weight gain or impair fat loss any more than eating early will, assuming the same total intake in both cases.

    ^ Can't explain it better than that
  • TheDarlingOne
    TheDarlingOne Posts: 255 Member
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    I work 14 hour shifts - 8a-10p....so often i'm not able to eat the last bit of my pre-planned meal line ups til 10p on ride home. then i'm asleep by 12midnight (if not earlier sometimes). i have lost 10lbs this past month so it hasn't effected me. Biggest thing I can contribute that to though is PRE-PLANNED part....not just all willy nilly when i clock out lol
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
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    Ignore the first reply you got (they are wrong) and read the rest... then you have your answer.
  • missability
    missability Posts: 223
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    I am no expert, so I'm not gonna say...yep it's bad, or nope it don't matter.....BUT, I have been doing my little experiment since January 1, 2013, (5 weeks ago) when I joined. I log log log, stay away from sugar and all so called 0 calories sugar subs. I get plenty of sugar from grains and fruit. I weigh myself every morning and the reason is because I like to print out my progress report every couple weeks and compare to the day to day weight loss....what I have discovered. is that when I eat a big lunch, and keep supper light in calories and stick with mostly proteins and fats, the next day I always either have a loss or stay the same. But when I eat a big supper full of carbs I start bouncing up and down by a pound on the scale.....so....for me it's more about what you eat at night more than the time.....but that's just me and my 2 cents...:) Beth Ann
  • babydiego87
    babydiego87 Posts: 905 Member
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    Thank you very much guys :wink:

    Guess I will have that fruit after all
  • now_or_never13
    now_or_never13 Posts: 1,575 Member
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    yep, thats not good to eat late at night.

    Do you have anything to back this up????

    Eat whenever is best for you OP... meal timing has NO effect on weight loss as long as you are within calories.
  • mjterp
    mjterp Posts: 655 Member
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    There is a whole biochemical response to this... VERY basically, calories in/calories out
    HOWEVER, in laymans terms, what you eat turns to blood sugar and your body decides what to do with it. IF you are exercising and USING that blood sugar, it will be burned off and any extra needed should be taken from fat stores (assuming the body has enough time to make that change...if it has to wait too long for the fat conversion, it will go for a quick source, which is muscle, unfortunately) IF, however, you eat and then go to sleep and your metabolism is slowed related to the sleep cycle...and all of those delicious calories aren't needed at the moment, they will be stored...AS FAT.
    Think Sumo wreslter. Those guys work out like 8 hours a day and eat ALL of their calories (albeit HEALTHY calories, believe it or not) before they head to bed...

    SO...does it matter what time? it depends...
    Oh...and by time in this situation I don't mean CLOCK time. obviously working odd shifts just changes when your body burns what. metabolism slows whether you sleep at night or during the day...not during a prescribed "clock time."
  • babydiego87
    babydiego87 Posts: 905 Member
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    yep, thats not good to eat late at night.

    Do you have anything to back this up????

    Eat whenever is best for you OP... meal timing has NO effect on weight loss as long as you are within calories.
    Partly why I asked also, since I have quite a few extra calories hanging around, even though it's nearly 930 now I still wanna get as close to eating them all as I can.
  • bennscrappy
    bennscrappy Posts: 9 Member
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    Side Steel might be wrong.

    http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/really-timing-of-meals-affects-weight-loss/?src=recg

    I am anxiously awaiting a response from the Intermittent fasting experts on this study. Usually they can find flaws with studies like this.

    For me, even if it does turn out eating late isn’t optimum, I don’t care. It works best for me. I have been doing intermittent fasting for over a year now, typically eating all my calories from 4:30pm-8:30pm every day. The most important thing is to not let dogma scare you out of doing what works for you. Having my nightly feast is fantastic.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    Side Steel might be wrong.

    http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/really-timing-of-meals-affects-weight-loss/?src=recg

    Study used self reported intake and rather heavily flawed expenditure estimates to arrive at 2.2kg difference in weight over 5 months. Find me an example using tighter controls on energy balance and I'd happily consider it as strong evidence against my claim.

    .
  • GiddyupTim
    GiddyupTim Posts: 2,819 Member
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    Side Steel might be wrong.

    http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/really-timing-of-meals-affects-weight-loss/?src=recg

    I am anxiously awaiting a response from the Intermittent fasting experts on this study. Usually they can find flaws with studies like this.

    For me, even if it does turn out eating late isn’t optimum, I don’t care. It works best for me. I have been doing intermittent fasting for over a year now, typically eating all my calories from 4:30pm-8:30pm every day. The most important thing is to not let dogma scare you out of doing what works for you. Having my nightly feast is fantastic.

    I don't know, obviously. This is one study. But, it seems it might perhaps be quite consistent with the idea behind intermittent fasting.
  • GiddyupTim
    GiddyupTim Posts: 2,819 Member
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    Side Steel might be wrong.

    http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/really-timing-of-meals-affects-weight-loss/?src=recg

    Study used self reported intake and rather heavily flawed expenditure estimates to arrive at 2.2kg difference in weight over 5 months. Find me an example using tighter controls on energy balance and I'd happily consider it as strong evidence against my claim.

    .

    You may be right. But, one can always quibble about some minor aspect of methodology. It needs to be replicated. In the meantime, I am not so sure we can make unqualified, categorical claims.

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