How To Eat Later Dinners?

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cee134
cee134 Posts: 33,711 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am trying to figure out how people eat dinners so late.

I see people eating dinner at 8 PM or 9 PM and don't know how they wait that long.

I know if you eat a later lunch or a really big lunch it helps however that's not always possible. Also I'm curious if anyone know a way to do this without snacking between meals.
«134

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  • SteamPug
    SteamPug Posts: 262 Member
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    Split your lunch into two smaller meals, each lunch later or skip breakfast and eat a larger lunch? I guess it depends what time you wake up, I’m up at 6.30 so I couldn’t imagine leaving my dinner until that late. I usually eat my dinner at 4pm and then have a snack before bed at 9pm.
    But I don’t see how it matters if you’re doing okay eating earlier.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
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    I eat lunch at 1pm; a snack when I come home at 5:30 then hit the gym and cook when I'm back usually 9 or 10
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
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    It's my normal as I don't get in from work until around 6.30pm.

    I then run/walk/cycle for up to an hour then feed the dog before starting food for us.

    I eat breakfast around 1-2pm, lunch around 5pm then dinner at around 8pm. I don't snack between meals but do eat a snack around 10pm before bed.

    I eat large amounts of veg which I find filling so I don't feel hungry.
  • marissafit06
    marissafit06 Posts: 1,996 Member
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    I've always eaten late since I was a kid. I do find that on occasions when I eat earlier in the day, I tend to snack less and eat more mindfully.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    cee134 wrote: »
    I am trying to figure out how people eat dinners so late.

    I see people eating dinner at 8 PM or 9 PM and don't know how they wait that long.

    I know if you eat a later lunch or a really big lunch it helps however that's not always possible. Also I'm curious if anyone know a way to do this without snacking between meals.

    I eat dinner around 8:30 PM...I usually have a relatively small breakfast, decent sized lunch, and I do have a later afternoon/early evening snack.

    My wife gets out of work at 3:30 and picks up the kids from school...they're generally fed their dinner before I even get home which is typically a bit after 6 on a good day, but it's not unusual to get home around 7 PM...it's usually somewhere in between.

    2-3 days out of the week I get on my bike...mostly on the indoor trainer right now because it's dark, but I'll get back out on the road more when the time changes...usually only get an actual rode ride in during the winter on Saturday to give me my 3-4 days of cycling.

    So by the time I get my ride in and shower I'm usually already pushing 7:30/8:00. Time enough to get the boys into bed and read a story and get dinner started. I'm the primary cook, so that's my job...next thing you know, it's 8:30.
  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
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    Snacking between meals is fine as long as you include the calories in your daily goal. My evening meal is never before 7 PM and often later, and I very often have a snack between 4 & 5. It doesn't seem to matter much in terms of hunger when I start my first meal, but it very much matters that the calories I consume are selected for protein, fat and carb balance. I can tell you that a sleeve of "girl scout thin mint" cookies at 674 calories that I used to put away without thinking back in the bad old days is waaaaaaay less satiating to me than a peanut butter sandwich on sprouted wheat bread that I had as a snack yesterday for 233 calories, or the cup of greek yogurt, half cup of cottage cheese and 100 g of banana that I ate for breakfast (323 calories).
  • ashliedelgado
    ashliedelgado Posts: 814 Member
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    When I'm delaying a meal, I utilize water, black coffee, raw veggies, 100 calorie popcorn bags, and mints to help curb my appetite.

    I work days, 7:30 to 4, and my husband stays home with our 16 month old, and works 11pm-7am. They take an early afternoon nap, and then he goes to bed as soon as I get home, and it's important for us to eat dinner together so we see each other at all during the week. Sometimes, he got a good nap and cooked so we can eat early dinner. Sometimes, we eat at 9:30. You find ways to get there. I usually have an evening snack, also. So if we're having 9:30 dinner, I have that small snack at 6:00.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    I usually eat lunch around 2-3 PM unless I'm working later. Dinner isn't until 6:30 at the very earliest. Usually 7-7:30, occasionally not until 9:30. I don't normally feel hungry in between.
  • fitoverfortymom
    fitoverfortymom Posts: 3,452 Member
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    There's no way I could eat that late. I like to be in bed by 8:30 or 9 (although I get up at 4:15 am). When I get home from work around 5pm, I am HUNGRY and cook dinner right away.
  • BuffyBourbon
    BuffyBourbon Posts: 126 Member
    edited February 2018
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    I have six meals scheduled in MFP, although i often only eat 5 of them. I have Breakfast, 11sies, Lunch, Afternoon Tea, Dinner & Dessert all as scheduled meals. Usually i have EITHER breakfast or elevensies (often i'm not hungry right when i wake up so i eat my first meal at 11). Lunch is usually between 1 and 2pm. Then my Afternoon Tea is a small snack at about 4, usually a 90 calorie serving of cherries or something along those lines. That gets me through so that i get off work at 5, then start doing chores around the farm and then come in, clean up, and cook dinner. During the summer dinner at 7pm would be a luxury, it's usually 9pm. Then after i clean up the kitchen i'll sit down to watch tv and have dessert right then, or about an hour later. As long as i don't go to bed hungry i do fine so i like to eat light early so that i can have the other meals.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    I had dinner at 8 pm for several years because that is the way my schedule was. I usually had a snack about 3-4 pm.
    I generally eat dinner about 6-7 pm these days. Still have an afternoon or evening snack. I don't have an issue with snacking.
    I assume the way to do it without snacking is to eat a larger lunch or just get used to it.

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited February 2018
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    cee134 wrote: »
    I am trying to figure out how people eat dinners so late.

    I see people eating dinner at 8 PM or 9 PM and don't know how they wait that long.

    I know if you eat a later lunch or a really big lunch it helps however that's not always possible. Also I'm curious if anyone know a way to do this without snacking between meals.

    I eat lunch at noon (sometimes larger, if I plan a small dinner, but usually around 400-500 cal), and eat at 9. It's just habit plus usually being busy in-between (I either work 'til around 7:30 or else if I do leave earlier I work out or do some other planned activity -- I normally don't get home until around 8:30, which is why I eat late). I really dislike snacking, as for me it's not as satisfying and just takes calories away from when I want to eat.

    But this has been my lifestyle/preference for a long time. Might not work for you.
  • aeloine
    aeloine Posts: 2,163 Member
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    I literally have no idea. I eat every two hours, like clock work. 9, 11, then 2, 4, and 6. I can last 11-2 because my lunch typically takes me longer to eat.
  • Lizakabibbis
    Lizakabibbis Posts: 370 Member
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    We tend to eat dinner before 6:30. I'm up at 4am so my eating schedule is way off and by 9:30 I only have one eye open and I can't sleep on a full stomach. If my day started later I'm pretty sure everything else would as well.
  • maybe1pe
    maybe1pe Posts: 529 Member
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    I stay busy. I don't eat until lunch between 1-2 pm. I get out of work at 5 go home walk my dogs and/or workout, take a shower. By the time I've done all of that and am redressed I'm ready to prepare dinner or heat up leftovers it's usually around 7:30-8 sometimes a bit later.

    I'm just not all that hungry until then. and days that I am hungry before then I have all these other things I need to do. My dogs can't wait to be walked, they've been waiting for 10 hours by then. If I eat I won't work out so I have to do that first. I obviously shower at night and my hair takes forever to dry so I have to do that ASAP after working out.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    cee134 wrote: »
    I am trying to figure out how people eat dinners so late.

    I see people eating dinner at 8 PM or 9 PM and don't know how they wait that long.

    2000 isn't late to eat dinner, it's civilised ;)

    In any case, if it doesn't fit into your lifestyle, why do you want to?

    fwiw it's currently 2115 and I'm about to eat.

    I'm normally at work by 0830, get lunch about 1200 and I get back from work at about 1900. If I then train for 60-90 minutes it's reasonably easy to be eating at 2100.

    If I feel the need I may have a snack at about 1700.

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