Does eating late at night encourage weight gain?

[Mani]

I read somewhere that eating late night isn't as bad as people say it is - that it's not really much worse than eating during the day. It's just that typically people eat crap late at night like chips, cookies, butter popcorn, pizza, etc. If you ate fruit or a low-cal snack late at night I doubt it would do any more damage than it would have a few hours earlier.

 

[datalink7]

Nope, it is a myth. Your body burns a certain ammount of calories in a day. You just have to worry about your day intake, not when you eat stuff.

 

[hollowman]

It's true. I gained 15-20 lbs in 2 weeks by doing that.

I used to be a skinny geek. Now I am a fat-ass geek.

I miss good old skinny geek days.

 

[NuclearFusi0n]

it's a bunch of bull

 

[djheater]

Here's some info from people who actually know what the fvck they're talking about and are not just making sh!t up.

Does Late-Night Eating Cause Weight Gain?

If your before-bed snack habit has you worried that you'll gain weight, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) says to put your mind at ease. According to the NIDDK, it doesn't matter what time of day you eat - it's how much you eat during the whole day and how much exercise you get that make you gain or lose weight.

However, some research has shown that those people who regularly eat breakfast are more likely to lose weight and keep it off long-term, so there's evidence that eating earlier in the day - as opposed to later - may help you make better food choices and eat fewer calories.

Here are a few tips from the NIDDK for controlling calories in the evening:

Avoid snacking while doing other tasks, such as watching television or using the computer. Instead, eat at the dining room or kitchen table so you are less likely to be distracted and more likely to be aware of what and how much you are eating.
If you want a snack before bedtime, consider how many calories you've had overall that day. If you've eaten lightly, your desire for a snack may be your body?s way of telling you it needs more calories.
Add exercise to your evening by doing squats or crunches while watching television or by taking an evening walk or bike ride.

 

[SoylentGreen]

Originally posted by: hollowman
It's true. I gained 15-20 lbs in 2 weeks by doing that.

I used to be a skinny geek. Now I am a fat-ass geek.

I miss good old skinny geek days.

15-20 lbs in 2 weeks?

Read my above post. 3500 calories is about a lb.

So,

You had a surplus of 49,000 calories over those two weeks.

cough*bullsh!t* cough

 

[SludgeFactory]

Originally posted by: dolph

Originally posted by: Kiyup
Let's say, every day you consume 2000 calories.

Let's say every day, between your metabolism and physical activity you burn 2000 calories.

No matter when you consumed the calories, you shoud stay the same weight.

Besides, you body takes several hours before it starts absorbing your food.

I have always heard this tale and think it's a bunch of bunk.

why is this so hard to believe? you don't burn calories at the same rate when you sleep, so the calories you consume turn into fat because they're not used. what don't you understand?

I think the point is that you take in a certain number of calories in a day and burn a certain number, and at the end of the day (or week or month or year), your net weight gain comes down to calories in - calories out. Yes, the calories in your full belly get dumped into fat storage a little quicker if you jump into bed, but they would get dumped into fat storage anyway if your total calories in exceeds your calories burned over a given period of time.

No point in obsessing over how many hrs before bed you have to stop eating. People that gain weight from late eating were already getting enough during the day, the late eating just put them over the top.

That being said, I prefer to go to bed with as empty a stomach as possible -- it's better to me to be hungry while I'm asleep and can't feel it. That way I can be satiated during most of my waking hours.

 

[LAUST]

Lets see.... Sumo wrestlers eat and then sleep for some purpose I'm trying to think it's for their profession .... I'm trying to think are they large guys

 

[hollowman]

Originally posted by: Kiyup

Originally posted by: hollowman
It's true. I gained 15-20 lbs in 2 weeks by doing that.

I used to be a skinny geek. Now I am a fat-ass geek.

I miss good old skinny geek days.

15-20 lbs in 2 weeks?

Read my above post. 3500 calories is about a lb.

So,

You had a surplus of 49,000 calories over those two weeks.

cough*bullsh!t* cough

Hey man, don't say that.

My fat-ass body already hurts my feeling.

 

[dolph]

Originally posted by: Kiyup

Originally posted by: dolph

Originally posted by: Kiyup
Let's say, every day you consume 2000 calories.

Let's say every day, between your metabolism and physical activity you burn 2000 calories.

No matter when you consumed the calories, you shoud stay the same weight.

Besides, you body takes several hours before it starts absorbing your food.

I have always heard this tale and think it's a bunch of bunk.

why is this so hard to believe? you don't burn calories at the same rate when you sleep, so the calories you consume turn into fat because they're not used. what don't you understand?

What don't I understand? What don't you understand.

If my average daily caloric intake averaged over a year is 3000 calories a day and my average burning of caloris is 2500 I have a surplus of 500 calories a day.

500 X 365 = 182,500 more calories consumed that year than expended.

Each 3500 calories consumed roughly equals 1 lb of weight on a person. So over that year I'd gain approximately 52 pounds.

You can do the averages of minus as well, so I'd lose 52 lbs if my average caloric intake is 500 calories less than I expend.

So what is the difference whether I consume the calories at whatever time of day? If I consume them anytime those days why would it make a difference if it leaned towards the night? Now that doesn't make sense.

this is how it is: you eat a certain amount of calories a day, you burn a certain amount of calories a day. what you don't eat turns to fat. this much you understand.

you burn about 1 calorie/minute when you sleep. let's say you sleep for 8 hours. 8 hours = 480 calories. if you eat more than that before you go to sleep, you have no opportunity to burn those calories. so they turn to fat. hence, eating just before you go to bed (for most people, late at night) makes it easier to gain weight. hopefully you will understand this too.

 

[beer]

so much misinformation!

Eating before you go to bed is not necessarily a BAD THING! If you don't eat before you go to bed, realize that your muscles will go catabolic from lack of fuel when you sleep; that means that while you sleep, you can lose muscle. However, carbohydrates taken before bed cause a blood sugar spike which can lead to weight gain - regardless of it being in the afternoon or the evening, the difference is your body goes inactive,so it's amplified.

A good artcle on this that I came across last week:Stop the Catabolic Insanity!

 

[Amused]

I eat a turkey samich on whole wheat and an apple or banana almost every night before bed.

Oh, BTW I've lost more than 25 pounds in the last five months or so and have gone from a 35 inch waist to a 31.

It doesn't really matter when you eat, but what you eat and how much you exercise. I run 4 miles and lift weights four days a week. If I didn't eat like I do I'd have a Mick Jagger body :::shudder:::

 

[dolph]

i eat nothing a few hours before i go to bed. in the past 4 months, i've lost about 20 lbs and have also gone from a 35 inch waist to a 31, in the past 4 months. i run 3 miles, do 50 push ups and 150 sit ups a day. i guess your body burns more calories than mine, so you're doing what's right for you. but that doesn't mean it doesn't matter when you eat in relation to when you go to bed.

 

[SludgeFactory]

Originally posted by: dolph
if you eat more than that before you go to sleep, you have no opportunity to burn those calories.

Sure you do, get up and move around tomorrow when you wake up. That'll start using more energy. Fat is nothing more than an efficient energy storage mechanism. It's not permanent.

Yeah, gorging before you go to bed is a bad idea for most people, because they have already eaten during the day in response to hunger and fulfilled their caloric requirements. Extra calories will result in a net gain of fat (or muscle, if you're doing the right things).

Originally posted by: dolph
i eat nothing a few hours before i go to bed.

that's what I do too. I suspect most people trying to lose or maintain their weight would do better to spread meals throughout the day and taper off before bedtime. But that's more for behavioral than physiological reasons.

Ultimately, you have to do whatever works for you.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: dolph
i eat nothing a few hours before i go to bed. in the past 4 months, i've lost about 20 lbs and have also gone from a 35 inch waist to a 31, in the past 4 months. i run 3 miles, do 50 push ups and 150 sit ups a day. i guess your body burns more calories than mine, so you're doing what's right for you. but that doesn't mean it doesn't matter when you eat in relation to when you go to bed.

Well, I do do far more intensive weight training than you do, and my body NEEDS calories to build the muscle I tear apart four times a week. You are only working your legs (minimum) chest and abs with your arms getting a little too. I do my chest (upper and lower), shoulders, quads, abs, triceps and back of forearms two days a week, and my back (upper and lower), lats, hams, calves, biceps and front of forearms the other two days. My schedule is intensive, and aggressive. Frankly, I'm amazed at how fast the fat has come off. I'm also aware that soon I'll have to dramatically raise my calorie intake if I want to gain more muscle.

As a matter of fact, when I had to take three weeks off of weight training recently because of a pulled muscle in my neck, but kept running, I lost nearly 10 pounds. So even though I had stopped lifting, the muscle I had gained needed a lot of calories to maintain their size.

Also, of all the body builders I talk to at the Gold's gym I work out at, nearly all of them have a protein shake and a fruit within a couple hours of their bedtime so their muscles can repair while they sleep.

But you're right. Do what's right for you. But just remember, you don't need to starve yourself needlessly. If you're hungry in the hours between dinner and bed, have a sensible high protein snack. If you start gaining weight (or your weight loss stops if you're on a plan), stop it. If not, don't worry about it.

I responded the way I did because people made blanket statements that eating between dinner and bed was bad. I say it's probably not so long as you get good exercise.

 

[beer]

Originally posted by: Amused

Originally posted by: dolph
i eat nothing a few hours before i go to bed. in the past 4 months, i've lost about 20 lbs and have also gone from a 35 inch waist to a 31, in the past 4 months. i run 3 miles, do 50 push ups and 150 sit ups a day. i guess your body burns more calories than mine, so you're doing what's right for you. but that doesn't mean it doesn't matter when you eat in relation to when you go to bed.

Well, I do do far more intensive weight training than you do, and my body NEEDS calories to build the muscle I tear apart four times a week. You are only working your legs (minimum) chest and abs with your arms getting a little too. I do my chest (upper and lower), shoulders, quads, abs, triceps and back of forearms two days a week, and my back (upper and lower), lats, hams, calves, biceps and front of forearms the other two days. My schedule is intensive, and aggressive. Frankly, I'm amazed at how fast the fat has come off. I'm also aware that soon I'll have to dramatically raise my calorie intake if I want to gain more muscle.

As a matter of fact, when I had to take three weeks off of weight training recently because of a pulled muscle in my neck, but kept running, I lost nearly 10 pounds. So even though I had stopped lifting, the muscle I had gained needed a lot of calories to maintain their size.

Also, of all the body builders I talk to at the Gold's gym I work out at, nearly all of them have a protein shake and a fruit within a couple hours if their bedtime so their muscles can repair while they sleep.

But you're right. Do what's right for you. But just remember, you don't need to starve yourself needlessly. If you're hungry in the hours between dinner and bed, have a sensible high protein snack. If you start gaining weight (or your weight loss stops if you're on a plan), stop it. If not, don't worry about it.

I responded the way I did because people made blanket statements that eating between dinner and bed was bad. I say it's probably not so long as you get good exercise.

Really, are we trying to compare dick sizes here on AT or something?

Really. I burn more calories in a single 400lb below-parallel squat than you do in a whole set of frickin forearm curls. So there.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Elemental007


Really, are we trying to compare dick sizes here on AT or something?

Really. I burn more calories in a single 400lb below-parallel squat than you do in a whole set of frickin forearm curls. So there.

LOL!! No, I was just making a point.

And I do forearm curls because I have small wrists. It's a curse I inherited from my Mom.

 

[Jfur]

Originally posted by: Kiyup
You eat 2000 calories a day.

You eat 500 in the morning, 500 in the afternoon 1000 at night.

You eat 1000 in the morning, 700 in the afternoon 300 at night.

What's the difference?

there's no difference. other than most people who are gorging late at night eat more than they should.

 

[beer]

Originally posted by: Jfur

Originally posted by: Kiyup
You eat 2000 calories a day.

You eat 500 in the morning, 500 in the afternoon 1000 at night.

You eat 1000 in the morning, 700 in the afternoon 300 at night.

What's the difference?

there's no difference. other than most people who are gorging late at night eat more than they should.

WRONG!!!!!

Argh

Some people!

Your insuln sensitivity decreases throughout the day.

See my previous post for an explanation.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Elemental007

Originally posted by: Jfur

Originally posted by: Kiyup
You eat 2000 calories a day.

You eat 500 in the morning, 500 in the afternoon 1000 at night.

You eat 1000 in the morning, 700 in the afternoon 300 at night.

What's the difference?

there's no difference. other than most people who are gorging late at night eat more than they should.

WRONG!!!!!

Argh

Some people!

Your insuln sensitivity decreases throughout the day.

See my previous post for an explanation.

LOL. Hey, Elemental007 you need a stress pill

This is why your meals should be more carbs/less protein in the morning, and more protein/less carbs in the evening.

 

[Jfur]

Originally posted by: Elemental007

Originally posted by: Jfur

Originally posted by: Kiyup
You eat 2000 calories a day.

You eat 500 in the morning, 500 in the afternoon 1000 at night.

You eat 1000 in the morning, 700 in the afternoon 300 at night.

What's the difference?

there's no difference. other than most people who are gorging late at night eat more than they should.

WRONG!!!!!

Argh

Some people!

Your insuln sensitivity decreases throughout the day.

See my previous post for an explanation.

I don't buy it. And yes, I saw the article.

 

[beer]

Originally posted by: Jfur

Originally posted by: Elemental007

Originally posted by: Jfur

Originally posted by: Kiyup
You eat 2000 calories a day.

You eat 500 in the morning, 500 in the afternoon 1000 at night.

You eat 1000 in the morning, 700 in the afternoon 300 at night.

What's the difference?

there's no difference. other than most people who are gorging late at night eat more than they should.

WRONG!!!!!

Argh

Some people!

Your insuln sensitivity decreases throughout the day.

See my previous post for an explanation.

I don't buy it. And yes, I saw the article.

And I suppose you have a ph.D in kinesiology and hae your own theory as to insulin response?

Or are you one of the 'eat bagels and soybeans and rice cakes to lose weight' type of people?

 

[AlienCraft]

Eating a bag of unbuttered popcorn is good for you..... It's the fiber.... peristalsis (sp?)
50 grams of fiber a day is easy when you do that....

 

[Jfur]

Originally posted by: Elemental007

Originally posted by: Jfur

Originally posted by: Elemental007

Originally posted by: Jfur

Originally posted by: Kiyup
You eat 2000 calories a day.

You eat 500 in the morning, 500 in the afternoon 1000 at night.

You eat 1000 in the morning, 700 in the afternoon 300 at night.

What's the difference?

there's no difference. other than most people who are gorging late at night eat more than they should.

WRONG!!!!!

Argh

Some people!

Your insuln sensitivity decreases throughout the day.

See my previous post for an explanation.

I don't buy it. And yes, I saw the article.

And I suppose you have a ph.D in kinesiology and hae your own theory as to insulin response?

Or are you one of the 'eat bagels and soybeans and rice cakes to lose weight' type of people?

I don't need a Ph.D. in that field to have common sense (and cerrtainly someone pursuing their M.Sc. and posting on a bodybuilding site is hardly expert). Unless you are metabolically impaired the changes in insulin sensitivity are minimal. If you are a bodybuilder, you probably WANT to consume a protein snack before going to bed. Let's be honest -- the average geek lifestyle entails not eating for large periods of time (bad), then gorging on whatever is around. It also typically involves a LOT of sitting (thus little exercise). That's why MOST people get fat. If you eat well-balanced, reasonably-sized meals 4-6 times a day and **do not exceed the calories that you expend**, the time of day makes little difference.

 

[Zebo]

Originally posted by: NuclearFusi0n
it's a bunch of bull

That's right. Cals-excersise-metabolism=weight loss or gain for that day.

Nothing else in this eqaution, no magic pills, not the type of food and not the time which you eat it. Old wives tale.