What time should I stop eating?

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rita27ny
rita27ny Posts: 820 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi,

I go to my bikram yoga class at 8pm and I stop eating at 6pm. After my bikram class I have a fiber one chocolate bar and some veggies along with water. I end up falling asleep at 2am and waking up at 7pm for work.

What time should I stop eating? Is there a cutoff time for not eating and not put on any weight?
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Replies

  • laddyboy
    laddyboy Posts: 1,565 Member
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    3 hrs before bed as a general rule of thumb.
  • froggzy1015
    froggzy1015 Posts: 178 Member
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    Here is an article I read yesterday.... http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/weight-loss/eating-help/control-cravings/8-diet-rules-meant-to-be-broken/?page=1

    I think the information on here is good for anyone trying to lose or maintain weight. Good luck!
  • jennywrens
    jennywrens Posts: 208
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    I don't worry about times in terms of weight loss - certain foods will give me indigestion if I eat them before bed but weight loss wise I don't have 'rules' about times of day
  • 4theking
    4theking Posts: 1,196 Member
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    When your at your calorie limit.
  • lexiwho
    lexiwho Posts: 178 Member
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    I eat until I'm out of calories for the day, sometimes this includes within 30 minutes before going to sleep. A lot of stuff I've read has said that it doesn't matter when you eat as long as you have the calories for it.
  • halfmarathon52
    halfmarathon52 Posts: 14 Member
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    I think this is a pretty good interperation of the eating before sleep debate.

    Whether or not to eat before bed is a common debate among weight-loss seekers. Though research findings are mixed, the total amount of food consumed daily, physical activity and overall lifestyle habits remain significant elements of maintaining healthy weight. While avoiding night-time eating may hold benefits for some, it is not necessarily helpful to everyone. A knowledge of how evening eating habits contribute to your weight and wellness can help you make positive dietary decisions.

    Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/87749-eating-before-bed-gaining/#ixzz1PXFCapfH
  • laddyboy
    laddyboy Posts: 1,565 Member
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    Here's the thing. It take about 3 hrs for your body to process the food in your stomach. You also burn calories while you sleep. Do you want to burn food in your stomach or stored fat? Over a short period of time this might not make a difference but over the long run it adds up. When i'm cutting I don't eat 3 hrs before bed. When trying to add muscle I eat right up to bed time.
  • TheKitsune6
    TheKitsune6 Posts: 5,798 Member
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    Here's the thing. It take about 3 hrs for your body to process the food in your stomach. You also burn calories while you sleep. Do you want to burn food in your stomach or stored fat? Over a short period of time this might not make a difference but over the long run it adds up. When i'm cutting I don't eat 3 hrs before bed. When trying to add muscle I eat right up to bed time.

    You're body doesn't magically store everything as fat because you are asleep. Excess nutrients are stored as fat but if someone is in a deficit your metabolism doesn't just shut down. Yes, it slows, but no studies actually show any link between fat storage and eating before bedtime. It's fantastic if that works for some people to prevent overeating but there is no science to back up that claim.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    When your at your calorie limit.

    Sensible answer!
  • laddyboy
    laddyboy Posts: 1,565 Member
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    Here's the thing. It take about 3 hrs for your body to process the food in your stomach. You also burn calories while you sleep. Do you want to burn food in your stomach or stored fat? Over a short period of time this might not make a difference but over the long run it adds up. When i'm cutting I don't eat 3 hrs before bed. When trying to add muscle I eat right up to bed time.

    You're body doesn't magically store everything as fat because you are asleep. Excess nutrients are stored as fat but if someone is in a deficit your metabolism doesn't just shut down. Yes, it slows, but no studies actually show any link between fat storage and eating before bedtime. It's fantastic if that works for some people to prevent overeating but there is no science to back up that claim.

    I didn't say that. What I said was you still burn calories while sleeping...if you're stomach is empty the energy required to run your organs has to come from somewhere...fat stores.
  • TheKitsune6
    TheKitsune6 Posts: 5,798 Member
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    Here's the thing. It take about 3 hrs for your body to process the food in your stomach. You also burn calories while you sleep. Do you want to burn food in your stomach or stored fat? Over a short period of time this might not make a difference but over the long run it adds up. When i'm cutting I don't eat 3 hrs before bed. When trying to add muscle I eat right up to bed time.

    You're body doesn't magically store everything as fat because you are asleep. Excess nutrients are stored as fat but if someone is in a deficit your metabolism doesn't just shut down. Yes, it slows, but no studies actually show any link between fat storage and eating before bedtime. It's fantastic if that works for some people to prevent overeating but there is no science to back up that claim.

    I didn't say that. What I said was you still burn calories while sleeping...if you're stomach is empty the energy required to run your organs has to come from somewhere...fat stores.

    The math on that doesn't add up. If you'd eat the same amount and the only difference is the time you are eating then you would have exactly the same BMR, fat burning, food digestion, all of that. The only difference is what burns when - not how much.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    When you eat doesn't affect weight loss as a general rule. I've read posts from people who say they give themselves a cutoff because they tend to binge at night, and in that case setting a limit would be a good idea and would help weight loss. But that's behavioral and personal. By the time I get home from work, work out, shower, and fix dinner it's usually 8:30 - 9:00 before dinner is on the stove. It's never affected my weight.
  • trud72
    trud72 Posts: 1,912 Member
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    totally with laddyboy,, at least 3/4 hrs before bed time!!
  • rita27ny
    rita27ny Posts: 820 Member
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    after my workout i have a light meal. gain .5lb after the meal. How can I not gain back any weight?
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,653 Member
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    after my workout i have a light meal. gain .5lb after the meal. How can I not gain back any weight?

    You could not eat. (I'M NOT ADVOCATING THAT!)

    If you weigh yourself right after eating, that's "there's food in my body I just ate" weight. Not fat. It would happen if you drank a glass of water too.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    after my workout i have a light meal. gain .5lb after the meal. How can I not gain back any weight?

    Is that a serious question? You do realize that right after eating you would have the extra weight of the food you ate on the scale with you just as if you were holding it in your hands. Give it time to digest and your body to process/expell it. That's why it's best to weigh in the mornings.
  • mynameisuntz
    mynameisuntz Posts: 582 Member
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    Here's the thing. It take about 3 hrs for your body to process the food in your stomach. You also burn calories while you sleep. Do you want to burn food in your stomach or stored fat? Over a short period of time this might not make a difference but over the long run it adds up. When i'm cutting I don't eat 3 hrs before bed. When trying to add muscle I eat right up to bed time.

    You're body doesn't magically store everything as fat because you are asleep. Excess nutrients are stored as fat but if someone is in a deficit your metabolism doesn't just shut down. Yes, it slows, but no studies actually show any link between fat storage and eating before bedtime. It's fantastic if that works for some people to prevent overeating but there is no science to back up that claim.

    I didn't say that. What I said was you still burn calories while sleeping...if you're stomach is empty the energy required to run your organs has to come from somewhere...fat stores.

    The math on that doesn't add up. If you'd eat the same amount and the only difference is the time you are eating then you would have exactly the same BMR, fat burning, food digestion, all of that. The only difference is what burns when - not how much.
    Bingo!

    At the end of the day, regardless of when you eat, the net fat loss will be the same assuming you maintain calories/macronutrients. If you eat most of your calories earlier in the day, more fat loss will occur later in the day. If you eat most of your calories later in the day, more fat loss will occur earlier in the day. Your body seriously does not care when you feed it outside of EXTREME circumstances which, I can almost guarantee, no one here will endure.
  • rita27ny
    rita27ny Posts: 820 Member
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    I drink a lot of water and stay within my diet guideline. I workout and then drinks lots of water. I regain the lb i lost the next day. Should I cut my water intake or my food? If i cut my food intake it will be under my guidelines.
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,653 Member
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    I drink a lot of water and stay within my diet guideline. I workout and then drinks lots of water. I regain the lb i lost the next day. Should I cut my water intake or my food? If i cut my food intake it will be under my guidelines.

    Are you weighing yourself every day? Don't. That way only leads to madness unless you're fully aware that the number on the scale will lie to you day to day due to too much sodium or your food not being digested yet or not getting enough sleep or the diet gods just deciding not to shine down upon you at that particular moment.

    Weigh yourself once a week at the same time...in the morning after going to the bathroom and before eating, either wearing the same clothes or no clothing at all. Just be consistent about when you weigh yourself. Also, take measurements. Those are the true indicators of fat loss anyway.
  • laddyboy
    laddyboy Posts: 1,565 Member
    Options
    Here's the thing. It take about 3 hrs for your body to process the food in your stomach. You also burn calories while you sleep. Do you want to burn food in your stomach or stored fat? Over a short period of time this might not make a difference but over the long run it adds up. When i'm cutting I don't eat 3 hrs before bed. When trying to add muscle I eat right up to bed time.

    You're body doesn't magically store everything as fat because you are asleep. Excess nutrients are stored as fat but if someone is in a deficit your metabolism doesn't just shut down. Yes, it slows, but no studies actually show any link between fat storage and eating before bedtime. It's fantastic if that works for some people to prevent overeating but there is no science to back up that claim.

    I didn't say that. What I said was you still burn calories while sleeping...if you're stomach is empty the energy required to run your organs has to come from somewhere...fat stores.

    The math on that doesn't add up. If you'd eat the same amount and the only difference is the time you are eating then you would have exactly the same BMR, fat burning, food digestion, all of that. The only difference is what burns when - not how much.
    Bingo!

    At the end of the day, regardless of when you eat, the net fat loss will be the same assuming you maintain calories/macronutrients. If you eat most of your calories earlier in the day, more fat loss will occur later in the day. If you eat most of your calories later in the day, more fat loss will occur earlier in the day. Your body seriously does not care when you feed it outside of EXTREME circumstances which, I can almost guarantee, no one here will endure.

    Ummm, if you eat most of your calories earlier (tapering your meals) you will burn off more of it with daily activity as opposed to eating a larger meal at the end of the day when you're less active...so yes it does matter. Unless you're working out at night, you want the smallest meal at the end of the day and at least 3 hrs before bed.
    Really, this is common sense...this is not that hard to understand. Walking / Daily activities increase HR and consumes more calories than does sleeping.

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