Skip to content
  • Register
    • We are pleased to announce that as of March 4, 2025, an updated Rich Text Editor has been introduced in the MyFitnessPal Community. To learn more about the changes, please click here. We look forward to sharing this new feature with you!

    How do I separate my days?

    Posts: 5 Member
    edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
    I'm a nurse and I do a lot of 12-16 hour shifts (sometimes 20)- my primary shifts are over night. (6p-6a at one job, 10p-6a at another unless I pull a double) I don't really know how I should separate my days.. I.e: yesterday I woke up at about 9am (yay insomnia), I had a breakfast bar... then unfortunately, I didn't have time to eat again until approximately 8pm (I did snack on trailmix throughout the day).. so I ate at 8pm, then again at 3am... I feel like my eating schedule is all mixed up and I'm not really sure what days to log the food. I thought about just giving my self a 24 hour period- 8a-8a? I don't know.. My eating pattern is so irregular.. and I really want to be as accurate as possible.

    Does it even matter, or am I completely over thinking this?

    Welcome!

    It looks like you're new here. Sign in or register to get started.
    Sign In
    Register

    Replies

    • Posts: 6,771 Member
      Doesn't really matter as long as it all averages out in the end. I just log when I eat, midnight is when the next day starts (I can get funny sleeping patterns due to insomnia). I work from a weekly average (can be viewed under the nutrition tab in the app) so if one day it looks like I only ate 800 calories the following day or day prior will likely be over to compensate.
    • Posts: 1,139 Member
      I work nights, too. What I do (rather than the default "Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snack") is 12:00 am to 6:00 am, 6:00 am to 12:00 pm, 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm, 6:00 pm to 12:00 am. It works for me. It's far less confusing than trying to figure out if the meal I ate at 2 am was a midnight snack, breakfast, lunch or dinner.
    • Posts: 1,233 Member
      I started to reply and tell you that you are overthinking it. Ultimately total calories consumed over time is what matters. But then I read your whole post and some of the replies and my head started to spin a bit. :D More power to you all with the crazy work schedules! My hat is off to you!
    • Posts: 114 Member
      I work second shift so my last meal is after 12:01am unless I get to leave early. I log it under the previous day and if I go over a little I can put it on the next day. As long as you are within your calories on average you'll be okay.
    • Posts: 2,396 Member
      seska422 wrote: »
      Think of it as a weekly calorie goal that you are trying to hit rather than day-to-day.

      I have my diary set with six meals that are named for four hour blocks of time, such as 12 AM to 4 AM, and just log whatever I eat/drink in the correct time slot.

      This is a great idea. Another suggestion (which I can't take credit for as I saw it in another thread), is to change your time zone setting on MFP so that your days on the app better correspond to your schedule.
    • Posts: 4,159 Member
      darkrose20 wrote: »
      I work nights, too. What I do (rather than the default "Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snack") is 12:00 am to 6:00 am, 6:00 am to 12:00 pm, 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm, 6:00 pm to 12:00 am. It works for me. It's far less confusing than trying to figure out if the meal I ate at 2 am was a midnight snack, breakfast, lunch or dinner.

      This nurse does the exact same thing.

    • Posts: 12,344 Member
      What I eventually did was eliminate all the meals in my diary and just record everything I eat for the day as a single list. My schedule tends to be variable, so I just log midnight- to-midnight each day for the sake of simplicity.
    • Posts: 5 Member
      darkrose20 wrote: »
      I work nights, too. What I do (rather than the default "Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snack") is 12:00 am to 6:00 am, 6:00 am to 12:00 pm, 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm, 6:00 pm to 12:00 am. It works for me. It's far less confusing than trying to figure out if the meal I ate at 2 am was a midnight snack, breakfast, lunch or dinner.

      Thank you
    • Posts: 5 Member
      Thank you all for the replies, really insightful
    This discussion has been closed.

    Welcome!

    It looks like you're new here. Sign in or register to get started.
    Sign In
    Register

    Quick Links

    Categories