Night Shifts

prettyinpink86_123
prettyinpink86_123 Posts: 15
in Introduce Yourself
Hi guys my name is Laura and I live in Bradford England with my husband of nearly six years. I have around 80lbs left that I still want to lose. Starting from a week today I will be doing night shifts at my job working 8pm till 8am. And I have no idea of what to eat and at what times to eat. Currently I hate eating late as it makes me feel ill. We do not have a oven at work just a microwave so I am unsure of what healthy foods to bring with me and I am worried about snacking. My current shift at work is 4am till 12 noon so I only eat fruit at work. My work colleagues are suggesting take out I have told them that I wont be doing that.

Any help tips and advice would be much appreciated thank you xx

Replies

  • swiley835
    swiley835 Posts: 1
    I work night shifts too! (: What I have been doing, is finding different types of soup that are sold in a box. You get two cups out of the box and they normally range from 100 cal to 150 cal a cup, which is one serving. They fill me up quick! And you can heat them in the microwave! Also, Kellogg's has a TON of healthy snacking food, and normally I will try to eat every 4 hours. So, I only eat twice at work since I work an 8 hour night shift. Normally, I will eat soup and some saltines when I arrive at work, and then later I will eat a salad with some chicken. If I get a little hungry in between, I'll grab some Kellogg's cracker chips or some popcorn. This really helped me lose 13pds in 2 weeks. I hope that this was helpful!
  • lumyrainstar
    lumyrainstar Posts: 36
    I'm also starting a night shift job. Thank you for making this thread I"m going to follow it also to figure out a game plan
  • HMVOL7409
    HMVOL7409 Posts: 1,588 Member
    Did nights for years, stopped and recently went back. I think you'll adjust to eating later and it doesn't matter what you eat and a microwave will do. I still log 12a-12a and just set my meals by time blocks instead. From 7p-12a I will usually have a meal to fill up my remaining macros for the day. A go to bulk meal we make for the week is rice, quinoa, black beans and lean beef. It heats up well and is very filling. 12a-4a will usually be snacks such as quest bars, Greek yogurt and trail mix. If I hit the gym right after work around 8 am, I will have some oatmeal and a piece of fruit around 6 am. If I go straight home and to bed, I will have a protein shake right before and then eat lunch when I wake up and continue on. Anything you normally eat will do just fine.
  • gloriamenard
    gloriamenard Posts: 10
    My name is Gloria. I am a nurse and I have worked nights for 20 years. However, I work 7pm to 7am. I eat a home cooked supper before work. I snack at midnight and then I eat a lean cuisine, some yogurt, fruit and veggie straws at about 2 am. I eat an egg white omelet with ham in the morning with a side of fruit and milk. I think the secret is to eat frequent small meals. It is important to exercise frequently. I log from 6am-to 6am
  • LightersUp
    LightersUp Posts: 36 Member
    I work nightshifts once a week from 11pm-7am. I eat my "breakfast" between 7pm-8pm, then do my exercise at 9pm. Get to work at 11pm, I don't eat "lunch", I only eat fruits and drink water. I get home at 8am and go straight to sleep, I don't eat once I get home because I'm so tired and I don't wanna sleep with a full stomach. I know it's bad but I get scared that if I eat with a full stomach, it might turn into fat and I might mess up my whole eating routine. I only work nightshifts once a week, if that makes any sense.
  • kar328
    kar328 Posts: 4,159 Member
    I'm a night shift person too - currently at work. I work 7P-7A. Our cafeteria closes at 9, before that it's all greasy foods so I stopped eating their food over a year ago. I was bringing frozen food to work but am trying to get away from overly processed foods. I make sure I eat a real dinner around 4:30-5P before I leave for work. I work in a busy delivery room so you're not guaranteed a break and it's better to bring things you can heat quickly or just grab. Now what I'm finding is working for me is bringing lots of things like cheese sticks, fruit, hardboiled eggs, yogurt and spacing them according to however busy we are. Right now I'm munching on sugar snap peas. When I get home in the morning, I eat something before I go to bed as well. I find this works better for me because I don't feel like I'm eating two breakfasts, a lunch and a dinner.
  • HMVOL7409
    HMVOL7409 Posts: 1,588 Member
    I work nightshifts once a week from 11pm-7am. I eat my "breakfast" between 7pm-8pm, then do my exercise at 9pm. Get to work at 11pm, I don't eat "lunch", I only eat fruits and drink water. I get home at 8am and go straight to sleep, I don't eat once I get home because I'm so tired and I don't wanna sleep with a full stomach. I know it's bad but I get scared that if I eat with a full stomach, it might turn into fat and I might mess up my whole eating routine. I only work nightshifts once a week, if that makes any sense.

    Eating before bedtime does not convert food to fat. A myth that sadly won't go away.
  • lacroyx
    lacroyx Posts: 5,754 Member
    I've been on the night shift for 4 going on 5 years now and all of my weight loss has come while working nights. From a weight loss perspective it ultimately comes down to calories in vs calories out. I did a lot of trial and error with my eating habits and found an Intermittent Fasting type of eating worked best for my schedule. I work from 11pm-7am and typically eat 2x in a 24 hr period. I'll have my 1st meal at work between 3-5am and then on days I work out, I will eat again after my workout usually between 11am-Noon.

    The reason I found this works best for me is sleep. I tried eating small meals every 2-4 hrs, 5-6x in a day and it just doesn't work for me. I find if I eat within 2 hrs before going to bed, I will end up waking up needing to go to the bathroom about 80% of the time interrupting my sleep so I stop 2 hrs before I go to bed. The same rule applies for me when it comes to working out but in this case I tend to get sick so when I plan my workout time, I avoid eating at least 2 hrs before I do.
  • gloriamenard
    gloriamenard Posts: 10
    I agree. The fat conversion myth if you eat right before bed it will turn to fat will just not go away.
  • lacroyx
    lacroyx Posts: 5,754 Member
    I work nightshifts once a week from 11pm-7am. I eat my "breakfast" between 7pm-8pm, then do my exercise at 9pm. Get to work at 11pm, I don't eat "lunch", I only eat fruits and drink water. I get home at 8am and go straight to sleep, I don't eat once I get home because I'm so tired and I don't wanna sleep with a full stomach. I know it's bad but I get scared that if I eat with a full stomach, it might turn into fat and I might mess up my whole eating routine. I only work nightshifts once a week, if that makes any sense.

    Eating before bedtime does not convert food to fat. A myth that sadly won't go away.
    Agreed. I avoid it only because it messes up my sleep but it will not turn into fat if you go to bed with a full stomach.
  • LightersUp
    LightersUp Posts: 36 Member
    If it's a myth, then can someone tell me why or what?

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