Eating after 7pm
aspyn1622
Posts: 52 Member
Hi there everyone! I am having a problem with my work days and eating past 7. I work 3 days a week, I go in around 5am and don't get out most of the time until around 6:15pm. Then I have to go get my son from the sitter's house, drive home, make him dinner and get him ready for bed. I walk in the door around 6:45-7pm. My question to everyone is this....how would you keep from eating past 7 with this schedule? My last break is at 3:30pm so it is a bit early to have my dinner then. I have tried packing an extra sandwich when I go to work so I can eat it on the way home, but that has not been working for me. (I forget it at work or it just does not fill me). I have also tried just eating at last break then going to bed hungry, but I would want to gorge myself in the morning. I work in a warehouse environment so I am burning a lot of calories during my day, so I wonder if the 7pm rule is that big of a deal or not (I always heard it was). I was just wondering if anyone else has this problem and how they fixed it? Thanks!
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Replies
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Why is 7pm a magic number for you? What time do you get to bed those days? If you are not going to bed until 9 or 10 pm, I see nothing wrong with eating your meal at 7.0
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No, it is not true. Eat when you can. I work shiftwork, some days, all of my meals are after 7pm, I am losing just fine.
As a matter of fact, it is 8pm now and I still have two small meals left to eat.0 -
Nothing wrong with eating past 7. At all. Daily cumulative intake is all that matters. Meal timing/frequency has not much, if any, effect on weight loss.0
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Agree- as long as you don't eat and then climb in bed, you should be ok. I would stick to something that won't digest too fast - stay away from sugary items, bread, potatoes, pasta -- no white food -- but I think you can have a gigantic salad and go to bed 2-3 hours later.0
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everyone knows you'll turn into a gremlin...oh wait, that's midnight
carry on!0 -
I weigh 123 lbs and have been known to eat at 2 am, so I am guessing the 7pm rule is a load of guff. Just from my experience!
Edit to add, I never EVER eat my evening meal before 8pm, and often at 9.30.0 -
Agree- as long as you don't eat and then climb in bed, you should be ok. I would stick to something that won't digest too fast - stay away from sugary items, bread, potatoes, pasta -- no white food -- but I think you can have a gigantic salad and go to bed 2-3 hours later.
Why no white food?
As long as it doesn't bother a person to eat before bed, like someone who gets reflux if they go to bed on a full stomach, there is no reason to avoid eating before bed.0 -
Many nights I eat at 8 or after...0
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Hasn't done me any harm! I sometimes eat supper at 8:30pm and go to bed a couple of hours later - but every body is different!0
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Hi there everyone! I am having a problem with my work days and eating past 7. I work 3 days a week, I go in around 5am and don't get out most of the time until around 6:15pm. Then I have to go get my son from the sitter's house, drive home, make him dinner and get him ready for bed. I walk in the door around 6:45-7pm. My question to everyone is this....how would you keep from eating past 7 with this schedule? My last break is at 3:30pm so it is a bit early to have my dinner then. I have tried packing an extra sandwich when I go to work so I can eat it on the way home, but that has not been working for me. (I forget it at work or it just does not fill me). I have also tried just eating at last break then going to bed hungry, but I would want to gorge myself in the morning. I work in a warehouse environment so I am burning a lot of calories during my day, so I wonder if the 7pm rule is that big of a deal or not (I always heard it was). I was just wondering if anyone else has this problem and how they fixed it? Thanks!
Meal timing is irrelevant. You could eat your entirely daily caloric allowance at 7:01pm and still lose weight, all that matters it the overall caloric deficit.0 -
This ^^^^^ daily macrosNothing wrong with eating past 7. At all. Daily cumulative intake is all that matters. Meal timing/frequency has not much, if any, effect on weight loss.0 -
I asked a similar question about eating too late. The way it was explained to me was that your body doesn't change as far as BMR during sleep, so it really doesn't matter what time you eat. Granted foods and beverages high in sugar and caffeine may keep you up, and some food may not sit well while you sleep.
I hope this helps.
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most nights we eat dinner between 7 and 8... then after the kids go to bed, we exercise and have our post-workout snacks or shakes.. its usually 11 or 12 when we have those, and then go to bed almost immediately after.. no problems here.
like was mentioned, unless you have reflux issues, or problems getting comfortable and getting to sleep on a full/semi full tummy, theres no reason not to eat right up until bedtime 0 -
I work from 9-7:00 four days/week so I eat around 7:30 and it hasn't affected me. If you get GERD (gastric reflux) then you should eat around 3 hours before you go to bed. Otherwise, eat when you can and keep it within your calorie goals.0
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Have your big meal at noon. That is what the French and the Italians do. That gives you the rest of the day to work off your calories. And then have something light for supper: soup and a salad. Something light that digests quickly so you don't get reflux when you go to bed.
Gorging yourself in the morning also sounds like a good idea to me. You would be stronger throughout the day.0 -
I budget several hundred calories each day for snacks after dinner. I snack right up until bedtime with no problems at all. I can't go to bed hungry, if I do I will ever not be able to go to sleep or if I do go to sleep ill wake up hungry at 2 am and grab snacks at a time where I'm not in the frame of mind to control portions. I'm much better off just budgeting in some eveni snacks so I feel satisfied when I hit the sheets. Your body burns calories 24/7 keeping you alive and your organs functioning, eating a snack at night is not going to hurt your weightloss efforts unless it messes with your daily calorie goals. As long as your snacks work into your calorie goal for the day and won't give you any personal issues with being able to get to sleep, go for it.0
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I eat right up until bedtime and I've had no problems losing weight. Eat when it works with your schedule.0
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Thanks for all the advice, I don't remember where I heard the 7pm rule, but I know it was more than once. Your posts were very helpful and I will no longer fear eating after work. Thanks again!0
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Thanks for all the advice, I don't remember where I heard the 7pm rule, but I know it was more than once. Your posts were very helpful and I will no longer fear eating after work. Thanks again!
Its pretty common "advice". Many still follow it, but it is not necessary.0 -
The don't eat after 7PM thing is as common as the eat 6 small meals a day. Both have no ground to stand on. Eat when it is convenient and maintain a calorie deficit. You will lose weight whether you eat one meal a day of 12.0
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I think some of us avoid late night eating, but it is based on individual preference or need not fundamental biology. Some examples:,
I take various medicines with various rules about when to take them, after working it out with the pharmacist, I try to routinely stop eating by 8 so in order to take my evening medicine two hours after eating and before I go to sleep.
Another person may suffer from acid reflux.
Someone else may find that eating after dinner triggers binge eating.0 -
Hi there everyone! I am having a problem with my work days and eating past 7. I work 3 days a week, I go in around 5am and don't get out most of the time until around 6:15pm. Then I have to go get my son from the sitter's house, drive home, make him dinner and get him ready for bed. I walk in the door around 6:45-7pm. My question to everyone is this....how would you keep from eating past 7 with this schedule? My last break is at 3:30pm so it is a bit early to have my dinner then. I have tried packing an extra sandwich when I go to work so I can eat it on the way home, but that has not been working for me. (I forget it at work or it just does not fill me). I have also tried just eating at last break then going to bed hungry, but I would want to gorge myself in the morning. I work in a warehouse environment so I am burning a lot of calories during my day, so I wonder if the 7pm rule is that big of a deal or not (I always heard it was). I was just wondering if anyone else has this problem and how they fixed it? Thanks!
Hell, if I was not allowed to eat past 7pm, I would surely starve, I am in a very similar boat to you in this respect.
I look at it like this, providing I do not go past my daily allotted calorie amount, my in-v-out calorie amount should all be correct.
Tonight, for instance, I had to have something to eat at gone 9pm, simply because of the shifts I work and how the day panned out.
Eat at spaced out, regular intervals, you will be fine. It is difficult enough keeping to the calories, healthy eating and cutting out the crappy stuff, let alone living by the clock too! :laugh:0 -
Thanks for all the advice, I don't remember where I heard the 7pm rule, but I know it was more than once. Your posts were very helpful and I will no longer fear eating after work. Thanks again!
Youll hear a lot of regurgitated myths and false rumours here. Try to notice those that actually speak the truth
Meal timing is totally irrelevant. You could eat all your calories for the day right before bed, and as long as you still have your calorie deficit, its all good. The reason why late night eating gets a bad rap is because people eat their allowed calories throughout the day, and THEN eat more at night, gain weight, and blame the late night eating, when all it is is they have eaten a calorie surplus.
90% of my daily calories are eaten after around 10pm, and its never hurt me!
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I do suffer from acid reflux and so I need to stop eating about three hours before I go to bed. This was a HUGE change for me. I loved eating in front of the tv at night. Since I get up early, I try not to eat past about 7:30 at night; again, it's due to reflux, not any other reason.0
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I do suffer from acid reflux and so I need to stop eating about three hours before I go to bed. This was a HUGE change for me. I loved eating in front of the tv at night. Since I get up early, I try not to eat past about 7:30 at night; again, it's due to reflux, not any other reason.
Exactly. So many people confuse personal preference with biological fact.0 -
everyone knows you'll turn into a gremlin...oh wait, that's midnight
carry on!
haha...that was awesome0 -
I do suffer from acid reflux and so I need to stop eating about three hours before I go to bed. This was a HUGE change for me. I loved eating in front of the tv at night. Since I get up early, I try not to eat past about 7:30 at night; again, it's due to reflux, not any other reason.
Exactly. So many people confuse personal preference with biological fact.
The sentence, "So many people confuse personal preference with biological fact" will serve as my filter as I approach the MFP forums. I find the forums very useful, but I need to have filters as I determine take aways.0 -
My husband works until 11 pm and doesn't get home until 11:30. He's found that if he doesn't eat something, even that late at night, he's starving all the next day. He usually has a salad with craisins and walnuts, but sometimes has a panini. The lesson is, if you're hungry, eat. It doesn't matter the time of day or night. Make sure it's healthy and try to never eat so much that you feel stuffed - just that you feel sated.
One more comment that I think a lot of folks can benefit from. My husband used to have extreme reflux - took Prilosec every day along with countless tums. Since he's changed his eating habits to 4 reasonable meals per day, laid off the junk food (he's a recent diabetic) and lost 20 lbs, the reflux has entirely gone away. Now, I know that reflux can be caused by many different reasons, but I'm guessing many people could benefit with simple diet changes.0
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