~~Midnight Shift Workers~~

I rotate I work one 12 over night a week 6-6. I just try to eat close to 1200 today I am under. But I know I will eat again in a couple hours. I just try not to be way under.

I work the 12-8am shift.

I normally wake up around 4pm and have about a 250 calories snack. Eat dinner with my family a couple hours later. I will pack food for work. I normally eat oatmeal, an apple, orange or banana, greek yogurt, 8 ozs of skim milk with a serving of carnation instant bfast no sugar added powder. Then when I get home I will eat breakfast with the family and in bed by 10am.

I usually eat 1200-1500 calories a day depending on if I can get my walk in or ride.

Edited to add I have worked this shift for almost 11 years. I drink water and coffee inbetween my small meals and space everything out, so I am eating or drinking something every hour.

Uggggh...12 hour night shifts. I used to work that and it about killed me. I work full time nights but only 8 hour shifts. I'm able to manage my personal life and work life better that way. I don't feel so sleep deprived.
I'm on a 1200 calorie diet. The way I work it is to split my calories up into "shifts". I have "breakfast" at work. Usually try to keep it at around 300 calories or less. Cereal, yogurt, fruit etc. I have a very slow shift unless my patients wake up so I always want to eat to keep from getting bored. If I drink a lot of water and spread my snacks out over the night, I find I'm most successful that way.
I sleep from 8:30am-3:30pm. When I get up in the afternoon I have a light snack when my son gets home from school. Fruit or yogurt or something to tide me over to dinner (around 200 calories or less). Then I eat dinner with my family. I'm trying to make more healthy dinners for all our sakes so the calorie count is usually under 500 for a meal. Then I have a few calories left (200-250) for an after dinner snack before I go to work. I find I have trouble resisting temptation more in the evening so I always try to plan an indulgent snack then.
I usually do pretty well on the nights I work. It's when I try to convert to a day person that I go off the rails. My schedule is not so structured then so I have trouble staying on the "plan". Hope this helps.

I'm also a nurse working 11p - 730a. Very different eating pattern than most people. Biggest downfall: all the high fat, high carb, high sugar stuff sitting in the break room. I'm a carb junky and havent found a satisfying replacement yet. Lunch overnight is usually yogurt, salad, fruit, or sometimes coworkers bring in "stuff". Dinner is late afternoon and then a snack before bed. I sleep 4 hours in the morning , then 3 or 4 before work. I think my metabolism has slowed down bigtime because I have only lost one pound in 2 weeks. Any suggestions?

I LOG MY CALORIES FROM MIDNIGHT TO MIDNIGHT>>>>> I work 7pm to 730 am. On the days that I am off, I eat normally. My first night back, I eat a normal breakfast at home, a light lunch with a snack or two, then I come in at 7. I eat my dinner around 10pm or 11pm (as long as it is before midnight). I log my calories from midnight to midnight.. MFP starts a new day over at midnight anyways. This has been the easiest for me to do......

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i work nights 7p-7a 3 nights in a row a week -- so the switching back and forth messes me up. but i tend to eat more on the days i work, because i tend to eat breakfast with my dtr when i get home and dinner with the family before work. then i end up snacking all night because i am tired -- so if anyone has ways of preventing the grazing of night shift then that would be helpful. -- i try to skip lunch and spread it out over the night (doesn't always work) and i have to try real hard to resist all the snacks and sweets that all the other nurses bring in
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Try NOT skipping lunch... just eat a reasonable lunch and have fruit or somehting over the night... That may be why you are hungry because you were never satisfied in the first place.

I also am a nurse who works 7p - 7a six nights in a row, then have eight off. I always log from midnight to midnight. Often my "lunch" at work (after midnight) is leftovers from dinner at home. Breakfast is either right before or right after I get home in the morning. When I wake up in the afternoon I eat dinner with the family and workout in whichever order works best for everyone. When I go to work at 7p sometimes I snack alittle before midnight, some nights I don't get the time. My problem is that I usually can't stay under my calories. I must be eating the wrong foods, still working on that. My days off are a regular schedule with the family, but I still log midnight to midnight.

I'm looking for those who work the crazy night shift that can share their ideas/success/struggles with weight loss . I have trouble getting in all my calories on the nights I work. My shift consists of 12 hrs (6pm-6am). I have tried eating "breakfast" when i wake up in the afternoon then "lunch" when normal shift workers have dinner, then dinner around midnight , but because my job can be demanding, doesnt always work out to that type of eating schedule and I dont eat all the calories for the day. I'd like to hear from others who work midnight shifts and how they work with eating meals and getting everything in..... Thanks in advance guys :happy:

I work from 10pm-8am 4 days out of the week. The change of shift has had no effects on my weight gain and weight loss efforts. The body doesn't recognize breakfast, lunch or dinner.

I work from 10pm to 6am and have the same eating schedule as you, but because I dont come into work until 10 I can get my exercise in at 730 or 8.

I have ALWAYS been a procrastinator which has driven me to poor food choices. I completely understand not being able to eat on some nights working 7p-7a. Hope this helps you with some food/preparation ideas:

I usually plan to eat right before work (ex. grilled chicken, turkey burger (no bun) b/c we hit the ground running. Then I try to have a QUICK snack around 11-1130pm (ex 10-15 medium frozen shrimp that takes less than a min to defrost with a string cheese or 2 deviled eggs, etc.). I try to eat again around 230-3am (ex. gortens frozen blackened tilapia, salad). Also, peanuts/cashews/yogurt/banana, etc. are quick and convienent in-between snacks. I allow myself to have diet soda or monster zero for caffeine/energy.

It takes a lot of planning and self-discipline on my part. Our cafeteria is closed on nights which is helpful. I try to avoid the snack machines at all costs. If other employees are ordering pizza and such, I just say no thank you. It is hard, but I already feel so much better. (p.s. - I'm not a big veggie eater so if you like veggies: carrots, celery, etc are also great snacks)

I also consider the start of my day as when I wake up (usually around 3-4pm) and the end of my day at 8am when I go to sleep as far as logging in my food diary. I don't consider midnight the end of my day if that helps.

I'm a Nurse and I flip between 7a-7p and 7p-7a. I start "charting my food at midnight and go till 1159 that night. This way no matter what all my food is there. So sometimes like yesterday my breakfast is at 1am and my lunch was at 10a at mcdonalds w/ a coworker (bad choice) but moving past it. I've fallen off the wagon but hopped back on and am down 46lbs. The midnight to midnight is what works best for me.

This is what I do....My breakfast may be 2am one morning or 10am the next. I just log mine from midnight to midnight.

I work the overnight shift at FedEx and its tough when trying to diet and excercise regularly!

I'm a 3rd shifter, too. My breakfast is sometimes dinner foods. It's a crazy life.