Eating and Tracking on a Night Shift Schedule

Nikipowpez · April 2011

I work the night shift in a hospital. I generally work 3 twelve-hour (7p-7a) shifts a week (Sun, Tues, Wed). On my nights off my schedule goes haywire. On weekdays I try to still sleep during the day and am up at night. I am usually only able to sleep about 4 hours before I have to get up and get my daughter from school. I occasionally nap at night, mostly out of boredom. On weekends... Friday I pretty much end up sleeping all night so I can be up bright and early Saturday morning with my daughter. How should I be tracking my calories and exercise day-wise? I know this site automatically switches to the next day at midnight. I have been tracking everything from the time I wake up and count all that on the same day until I go to bed. And exercise, if I work on a Sunday night and exercise at the gym Monday morning before I go home and to bed, should I count that as a Sunday or Monday exercise? This becomes an issue for me because I've been having a hard time just getting the recommended 1200 calories on my days off. As I have been reading in the community, a lot of people recommend also eating back the calories you burn when you exercise. I'm wondering if my crazy schedule mixed with incorrect tracking has led to my issues with actually losing any weight. Any insight or advice is appreciated! Thanks!!

McKayMachina · April 2011

I work from home and keep crazy hours so I count the time in between bed my day. Whatever you choose, just be consistent. Don't mark something for tomorrow if you eat it just before going to sleep sort of thing.

edemaknn · April 2011

I have often wondered this myself. I work midnights in an adult foster care home (11p-7a) and then I go to school all day til about 3pm. For the last little while I have been starting my days when I go to work, so 11pm everyday. This includes my day offs which do get a little wacked out from flip-flop schedules. I try to treat the night as if it were day and the late afternoon/evening as night time. I tend to eat when I get to work, a snack in middle of my ****, breakfast before classes, and a sandwich before bed. However, your days are on 12 hr shifts so its different a bit for you. I also think just trying to keep up with this schedule in general effects everything.

abaker768 · April 2011

I work 3+ 12's a week also, I do the Midnight to midnight thing. I don't sleep very well even when I'm home or off no matter what time of day it is!

Noctuary · April 2011

I work the night shifts as a waitress so I don't get home till about midnight. I moved the time zone in my settings back a few hours. So now I can work on adding in my day's food till about 3am before it changes to the next day. Just makes things easier for me.

peacehawk · April 2011

I had the same dilemma. I started with tracking from waking in the evening, but I sleep at night on my days off, so it was all mixed up. And, to top that off, I kept putting stuff on the wrong day because the phone app automatically switches to the next day at midnight, and I kept forgetting to flip it to other people's yesterday. What I also don't really define my meals breakfast lunch dinner the way other people do. Dinner may be at 2 am or at 8pm, depending upon if I'm eating at home or work. So, I went into the settings area and renamed my meals into block of time. I now start my fitness day at midnight and end at midnight so I don't have to mess with the apps date switching and my sleep switching. That seems to work out well for me. I also have trouble getting enough calories because of my schedule, but tracking this way reminds me to eat. If we don't get enough calories, our bodies think we are heading into famine and start storing food for later-in our fat cells. So yes, it could be part of the problem for both of us.

xraychick77 · April 2011

I also work night shift at a hospital. mine is a two week schedule. work three nights, off two, work two nights off three. etc.

i go from midnight to midnight. even on my days/nights off.

ps if you have a hard time eating to much then dont...it doesnt hurt..its a big myth that you NEED to eat 1200 cals and eat back exercise cals..why eat back all you worked so hard at taking off? makes no sense..plus there is no science to back any reason up..

distant_dreamer · April 2011

hi i'm glad u brought this up as i was wonderin the same!!!

i too am a nurse, constantly switchin from long days to nites all 12.5 hr shifts too!

i started MFP this wk, what i've done (and i dont know if this is best way or not but......) i start tracking food from breakfast, regardless of day/nite shift (even when i work nites i have breakfast when i get home before goin to bed !!!) then track for the nxt 24 hrs,

exercise, i guess i should do the same but this morning (post nite shift) i walked for 30 mins and have logged that from today. so i guess my tracking day starts at 7-8am and ends the followin day at same time!

i hope this makes sense! am gonna add u as friend (if thats ok!!) be good to have more friends who do nursin/shift work!!

xx

Sezmo83 · April 2011

I worked shifts on security while doing weight watchers (7am-7pm then I'd change to 7pm-7am, then back again) and I found logging midnight to midnight worked best for me. Obviously some days my diary would look odd to people with cereal at dinner time and a proper meal at breakfast time but I found I didn't get all messed up on shift changes and days off doing it this way.

lacroyx · April 2011

I work 3+ 12's a week also, I do the Midnight to midnight thing. I don't sleep very well even when I'm home or off no matter what time of day it is!

I've been working graveyard 11:30pm-7:30am 5 days a week. for over 3 years now and I do the midnight to midnight thing too. except I actually been sleeping well. 7-9 hrs. I don't stress over it.

tnaconde · April 2011

see if there is a way to switch your timezone hours so they line up better to what a normal day for you would be. maybe japan.

Eating and Tracking on a Night Shift Schedule

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