Hey Joel, Great tip! I get some many contradictions on this “dont eat after a certain time.” The dietician i see say’s that is false, eating carbs are okay. Around what time would you cut the carbs off?
As I sit here and type this, the time reads 11:06 PM. And you know what? I’m eating.
*Gasp*
What?? Eating after 7 PM?! Yes, I know, I’m breaking the rules.
But frankly, that’s what I do.
When rules don’t make sense to me, I simply choose not to follow them (unless, of course, those “rules” are “laws”…not really into the whole illegal activity thing).
But as far as the whole “no eating after 7” nonsense goes, I break that one just about every day.
And so should you.
Here’s why:
Well, first, let me just say that most general rules of thumb in the fitness world are oversimplifications, and the whole “Don’t eat after X o’clock” is no exception.
The recommendation is based on the idea that metabolism slows in the evening hours as you prepare for bed, and eating during this time should be avoided so as not to have those calories stored as fat.
A good premise, but again, oversimplified.
What we really want to avoid in the evening are foods that give rise to insulin, specifically carbohydrates, and for several reasons.
First, when blood insulin levels rise, fat burning takes a dive and a “storage” environment is created within the body. This is a good thing after exercise or after an overnight fast to allow the body to “refuel”, but not so good when metabolism is falling off in the evening hours.
Secondly, something called insulin sensitivity drops drastically in the evening, which simply means that your body is not as responsive to insulin at night as it is during the day. When insulin sensitivity is low, carbohydrates are easily stored as fat.
Needless to say, we can see why eating carbohydrates late at night isn’t a smart move, but that doesn’t mean we can’t or shouldn’t eat anything.
So, what should you eat to curb late-night cravings and support muscle tissue maintenance as you sleep? Simple: a small meal consisting of mostly slow digesting protein and fibrous green veggies within a couple hours of bed works best.
Animal protein (chicken, fish, beef, etc) are great choices for a late night meal, as is something like cottage cheese. Both digest slowly over time, providing a mild, but steady influx of nutrients to muscle throughout the night, all while not interfering with your insulin levels.
Or maybe I’m just a rebel who doesn’t know what the heck he’s talking about? ;-)
Got a favorite late night meal or snack? Agree? Disagree?
Drop the comments below!
Joel
P.S. Want to up your nutrition IQ even more? Watch this video from my good friend Isabel where she reveals 4 other “healthly” foods that you should NEVER eat, along with her TOP 5 foods for a flat belly:
Related Posts
404 comments - add yours
Sorry, for off top, i wanna tell one joke) What do you call a drunk who works in an upholstery shop? A recovering alcoholic.
___________________________
–/ viaga Utah /–
This opened my eyes, good one Joel!
A half hour before bed…all-natural no sodium peanut butter with a scoop and a half of CASEIN…I gradually taper my carbs after lunch time until it is zero before bed.
Thanks a ton for this tip, Joel. I’m a before-bed snacker from way back but I’m trying to lose all my “bad ways.” Over the last month or so I’ve purchased your XtremeFatLoss Diet, Isabel De Los Rios’ DSP & Rob Poulos’ Fat Burning Furnace program. I’m having to start out slowly cos I don’t have the needed cash at the moment to implement everything (I’m DYING to give your XFLD a go) so every little bit will help. I was worrying about what would happen if I couldn’t snack before bed & end up starving in the morning. Another of my bad habits is going too long without eating cos I’m trying to cut back then ending up over-stuffing myself. This tip will help a ton. Thanks again.
I’ll mix some whey protein powder and some yoghurt for a late night snack
favourite late night snack (have it almost every night directly before bed):
cottage cheese oatmeal pancakes (eggs are the only other ingredient). with walnuts cooked in. and allfruit spread (aka fruit juice sweetened jam) on top.
filling, fulla protein and let’s me get to sleep fast without a case of the growlies.
maybe a bit more carb-y than you reco, Joel, but ultimately calories in vs. calories out works for me and I’m lean and cut and strong, so its workin’ for me.
cheers… thanks for that post. this late night eating paranoia really does have to stop.
J
Thanks for the info Joel. Late night eating habits are my biggest vice… and I crave carbs. I do my best to avoid bread but I often give in to youghurt & fruit…. I’m guessing the fruit is also not good given sugar/carb rises. I’ll try the cottage cheese with choc protein mixed with some stronger will power!! ;)
As an insulin dependent type-1 diabetic I am questioning the science behind the statement that the body becomes more insulin resistant in the evening. Diabetics know that the body needs almost 50% more insulin in the morning hours to digest the same amount of carbohydrates compared to the evening hours. And in this respect diabetics are no different to healthy humans.
Hoooold on a second buddy!
What about if you fast twice a week (ESE style), and you begin your fast at 1PM and finish at 1PM the next day?
Are you saying you DEFINATELY lose muscle during this time….?
Brad Pilon would disagree methinks! :-)
Food for thought (excuse the pun)
Cheers,
matt
I feel vindicated!
In high school, I always ate “late” b/c eating early meant waking up at 2am absolutely famished and unable to sleep.
After practice I would eat some “steak” (usually london broil) with mashed potatoes and a heaping bowl of baby leaf spinach salad before going to bed. Bedtime was never later than 2hrs after this otherwise…yep. I’d wake up hungry.
I heard the whole “don’t eat right before going to bed” thing for years. But since it never worked for me I had to disregard it and go with what my body apparently liked.
It’s awesome to hear the science behind it, even though it’s almost a decade later! Thanks for posting!
I’m up late finishing my therapy notes for work and just had a small portion of leftover chicken and baked sweet potato from dinner. I snack late night all the time. Holler back. And good for you, Joel, rules are lame.
this is good im on the good step here i knew why not to eat carbs after 7 but i do wen im done working out but on off days i eat no carbs after 7 but protein like cottage cheese, salmon, tree nuts, left over meat, peanut butter shake, protein shake regular with no peanut butter or anything of that sort,
Organic Ricotta cheese with cinnamon, a tiny bit of vanilla extract and a bit of stevia for a sweeter protein snack. You can throw in a few sliced almonds and have a nice treat! Hmmm..I’m hungry now, I think I’ll go get me some.
Now I know that my before bed trip to the nut container is not a bad thing. I usually find that if I’m looking for something then my body is needing it. Nuts are my number one stop followed by a small piece of dark chocolate (85% or higher) if they haven’t done the trick.
I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I didn’t have that late night snack. Banana, ricotta and cinnamon (and I’ve lost 10kgs) : )
Ok this is good but can i eat some vegetables with the protein or fruit???
You’re right joel.
The least you could take is a glass of milk before bed. and much fruits.
Rudy
Nice
post, been wondering when people
were going to stop mindlessly following old regurgitated oversimplified nutrition info. Glad you’re helping to get this measge out Joel! Just remember people if you are counting calories plan for something in the evening and factor it in.
Great post as usual Joel. By the way I dropped over 22 lbs doing your xtreme fat loss diet and now my parents are doing it too! thanks!
I don’t know Joel. I’m not sure Brad Pilon or John Barban would agree with you when you say:
“If you finished dinner at 7 P.M. and then ate nothing until you woke up the next morning at 7 A.M., you just went a full 12-hours without feeding your muscles whatsoever.
This is a sure recipe for muscle loss, especially when dieting and already restricting calories.”
Either way…I routinely eat between 7:00 PM and 11:00 PM. I like to have a small piece of dark chocolate (88%) with a cup of herbal tea. When I’m hungry and feel like having dessert, I mix a scoop of Prograde Protein Powder (chocolate) with organic, low-fat plain yogurt. It’s just like eating chocolate pudding!
Hope you have a great weekend!
~ Pete
Great advice again Joel! I break the after 7 rule almost every day, we normally eat dinner just after then. I guess it’s important to feed the muscles, not the fat.
Tuna and pickles… yum… sometimes a sandwich. Will keep in mind this is a good reason not to indulge in something sweet right before bed ;-)
I like protein powder with natural peanut butter, a little flax seed and cottage cheese mixed together.
My fav late night snack is vegan & raw. It’s SunWarrior protein powder plus maca & spirulina with stevia. It’s light enough not to interfere with sleeping, slow-burning & very healthy. I can’t do whey protein because I’m allergic to dairy.
Ok, raisins are just dried concentrated carbs so nuts & raisins not so good. Toast is complex carbs – a sure way to kick in insulin production. Fat makes the appetite sensor kick off & makes us feel full so, when feeling especially hungry, nuts or cheese in a moderate amount ( 1-2 grams: a one-inch cube of cheese or 3 nuts) along with about 9 grams of protein and less than 7 grams of carbs (that’s about half an apple or orange, a tangerine, five grapes. If you are eating dried fruit you should eat the same number as if it were fresh so only 5 raisins) will dull the cravings. Keeping almonds or hazelnuts in bag or pocket does wonders for sudden cravings (3 nuts is the right amount for a snack). What you eat between meals is vital to keeping on track.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Hey, it’s Joel! So you want to know a little more about me, huh? Well, I’d be happy to oblige :-)
I guess it all started back in 2001 (my freshman year of college) when I was just a “skinny fat” 19-year old kid. At the time, I was spending close to 2 hours a day in the gym (now my workouts last about 30 minutes), and despite my efforts, you’d probably never guess I worked out a day in my life by looking at me...