Night shift?

I work a rotating shift schedule, 2 weeks days 2 weeks nights, repeat.

Regarding nutrition, I've found that I can be quite successful if I prepare and pack my meals and snacks in advance. Night shift does make it more difficult for me to find the motivation to go exercise though, and I don't have any good advice for that one. I just have to force myself out of the house sometimes.

I exercise immediately after work. Get off around 6a. I bring my workout clothes with me so I dont have to bother going home. As far as food goes, I normally eat most of my calories at dinner so I don't get very hungry at work, but I bring a protein shake just in case.

I used to work 12 hr long shifts and went to school day time. I managed to loose 50 lb. then by working out 5 times a week on days off after day sleep. All my food was prepared at home, so I always knew how many calories I am taking in. I used to have 2-3 snacks during the shift as well. It is harder for night shifters but possible if there is enough sleep and rest, which is critical.

Pack your lunch, and take options.

What worked for me:

I made my own "uncrustables" on whole wheat with pb and grape jelly. Just cut them in half and freeze. Make a bunch and stack them in the freezer, and grab one on your way out the door. Plop it in your pocket. Around 2 hours later that sandwich will be ready to eat. How lazy do you have to be to make and freeze your sandwiches ahead of time you ask? Nightshift lazy with a commute in Los Angeles on the 405. On a side note, people will laugh at first when you bust this out of your pocket. Even more so if they know it is there and smash your pockets. I never could eat right when I woke up, so this was my "breakfast" and was ready as soon as I was hungry. Filling and fast.

I also took plain instant oatmeal in a ziplock baggie for "dinner" and heated it in a disposable coffee cup before giving report, let it sit until after report (hot water on demand is useful for this), and ate it on my way out. Add a spoon of peanut or almond butter, a sliced banana, and cinnamon if you like. No waking up starving at 1130, no dishes to wash at home, and no time spent on meal prep and eating. Dinner is served. Without the oatmeal plan, I would raid the fridge or wake up starving and then raid the fridge.

I also liked to prep my items at home for easy meal making. Before I start my workweek, I would rinse and chop lettuce, veggies, fruit, etc. So everything was grab and go. Snacks were ready, and if I wanted to make something my onions, bellpepper, spinach, mushrooms, or whatever were already chopped, diced, sliced, and ready. If I didn't use them in the 3 or 4 days, I just stuck them in the freezer. This is useful if you like to make veggie egg scrambles when you get up (my go-to if I don't want a sandwich or am hungry before I leave for work).

I usually cooked one item for the "week":mexican quinoa, chicken and rice, steamed veggies, soup, baked sweet potatoes, veggie burgers, hardboiled eggs or whatever and packed them as individual portions in tupperware. I do the same with salads: stack the beans, cheese, veggies/toppings in the bottom of the tupperware for the week, and add a few handfuls of costco powergreens on the work day. Take a container of salsa in your tote for dressing...done! I also put a pitcher of water and 4 tea bags in the fridge so I could take tea. So each shift I could take my tote, grab an entree, fruit, string cheese, yogurt, oatmeal baggie, frozen sandwich, one treat (cookie or chips or cereal or nuts also pre-bagged to grab and go) and fill my Nalgene bottle full of iced tea and was out the door. No thinking, no calorie counting, just grab and go. Preparation and routine will be your best friends! Again, if you don't use it you can freeze it.

I drank my coffee on the way in made with 1 cup milk for some calories and protein, and by 2130 was ready for my sandwich, then 0100 my entree and treat, 0300 my fruit and yogurt, 0500 my string cheese, and 0730 my oatmeal was ready to go and off to drive home and bed. The times are fairly estimated as work can get unpredictable, but that is about my breakdown and met my calories for the "day". I split my food log into time frames for meals.

As far as the exercise goes, I stacked my 3 nights in a row. First shift I workout in the day before work, next day a 30 minute dvd at home before work, third day I just go to work, sleep, and exercise when I wake up, either outdoors or if it dark I go to the gym. I have never had much luck doing my workouts after work, and get better workouts in if I sleep then exercise.

It took me a few years to get into this routine, but it has worked for the past 5+ years.

I'm a night shifter. I go to the gym on my lunch break (we have an in house gym here, very fortunate). Every second night is lifting, then the days in between I either take a long walk after work or do some cardio in the gym or have a rest day. I track my calories from 12 am to 12 am. I limit what I eat during the day to make sure I have enough calories to fuel my night activity. I bring protein shakes and keep protein bars in my bag for emergencies. Prepare your meals ahead of time so you can calculate the calories you're taking in.

I started working 12 hour night shifts about 2.5 months ago. I worked 10 hour day shifts doing a similar job for the past 15 years. Between the holidays and the swap to nights, I've gained 10-13 pounds and it is so discouraging. I work Friday Saturday Sunday 7p-7a and spend the 85% of the night sitting in front of 2 computers running sleep studies. I am still doing fairly well getting my exercise (5 times per week) in but have found that i have NO self control over what I put in my mouth in those 72 hours. Well, realistically when i leave work on Saturday morning until I get home and go to bed Monday. I'm usually over tired and I crave Carbs and sweets. It is so frustrating. I bring my meals and snacks to work with me which are super healthy for the most part and filling. But when i stop to get a coffee on the way home or the grocery store its like the muffin and/or bagel jump from the shelf to my cart, the toaster and before I know it I've ate it. Then its like some switch turns on and I can't get enough food in. I keep hoping the warmer weather will get here soon so that I can maybe force myself outside when the binge bug hits

.

runfoorun wrote: »

I exercise immediately after work. Get off around 6a. I bring my workout clothes with me so I dont have to bother going home. As far as food goes, I normally eat most of my calories at dinner so I don't get very hungry at work, but I bring a protein shake just in case.

How soon after work and working out are you able to sleep? I dont think I would be able to "cool down" and sleep after working out!

I worked 12.5 hour night shifts either 7 on and 7 off or 4 on 1 off 3 on 6 off. What I did that worked for me (last time I was on here) was formed a hiking group. We would hike after work 3-5 miles and then go home and go to bed. On my days off I would plan longer hikes 4 - 10 miles that I would do with my group or with my dog. For food I ate a meal at 5 PM that my husband prepared, usually a taco or chef salad or a leftover pre portioned meal I had prepared during my days off. I would take a fage yogurt, a string cheese, cut veggies, and fruit to snack on. I also took my 12 cups of water, some tea bags, and occasionally a lean cuisine. It worked really well for me 90% of the time. My problem was our Taco Tuesdays and Friday Mexican food nights. Most times I would try to bring something similar but occasionally it was rough. When pizza was ordered I would get a thin crust veggie no cheese (mmmmm) I also pre logged my meals for my work week so I could look to see what i was having. This also made shopping easier and made it easier to stick to the plan. You can do this!!