Thread: Eating before bedtime

I was wondering if i should stop eating a couple of hours before bedtime. I tend to eat at around 6 and then at around 10, right before bed, i'll eat something else (for example I had a piece of chicken last night). Will this hinder my weight loss? What's a good time to have a last meal or snack?

I don't think eating a good protein snack at bedtime will affect your weight loss; however, it might affect your sleep.

Years ago there was a pediatrician, Dr. Lendon Smith, who did a lot of talk shows, who recommended that if you have a bedtime snack, that it be protein. He told how he always had a handful of nuts at bedtime, and his wife had ice cream. He woke up bright and refreshed, and she woke up grumpy. So one night they experimented, and switched snacks. She woke up bright and refreshed, and he woke up grumpy. I always thought that was interesting.

DM,
I think eating before bedtime is a YMMV(your mileage may vary) type thing. Some folks swear by nothing past 7 PM, while others often do have a small snack before bedtime.
Personally, for me, I find if I have a small *treat*, an ounce of cheese and a bit of fruit around 7PM, then I'm good for the rest of the evening, until morning(we usually have our evening meal around 5-5:30).

I say, just play around with it and see what works for you.
hth

Shelley

I find for me fats or proteins don't affect my sleep. Buuut, if I indulge in some carbs, even those pesky "net carbs" before bedtime, I'm restless. Last night was a case in point. I ate some "bad" dessert less than an hour before bed. I woke up 4 hours later all hot and sweating. It took me an hour to get back to sleep. My body was burning off those carb calories.
Like Shelley noted above YMMV.

That's interesting. I dont recall having any sleeping problems (out of the ordinary) and I'm definitely not having ice cream before i go to bed! That is an interesting experiment though, maybe I'll try it on someone else... I do wake up tired in the morning, but I've always attributed that to lack of sleep.

I think I'll try and stop eating by 7-7:30 pm for a couple of days and see how it works for me. I can live without eating at night! Especially since I'm not really hungry, just greedy...

Thanks for the help!

I have to say, I am one of those people who has done EXTREMELY WELL by cutting off all food at least 2 hours before bed... and it defies logic for me, because I am a type II diabetic!
Everything I have read -- and common logic -- dictates that I should eat a small snack consisting of a small amount of protein and a small amount of carb, shortly before bed, to stabilize my blood sugar during the night.
What's interesting is that I actually sleep better when I DON'T do the snack AND I tend to lose more weight. And I don't seem to suffer any negative effects on my blood glucose levels.
Even when I ate the snack, I kept the carb-part, LC-friendly (like a Ryvita cracker), but I still lost more slowly.
It definitely IS a YMMV thing, but it's worth a shot -- especially if you ever stall in your weight-loss!
Good luck & Hope that helps,

I'm like Summer on this one. I have my very best success if I don't eat 2 - 3 hours before bed. It's like I'm telling my body that now's the time to start using up those "fat reserves" that I've accumulated. It also helps remind me what it truly feels like to be hungry (and not just craving something).

Good luck with your experimenting!

I agree it's a YMMV thing. As for me, though, I not only feel deprived if I don't have a little snack before bed, but I'll also wake up hungry about 2:30 am. Sleep is when the body repairs and rebuilds and that process requires amino acids, so IMO, a little protein to help the process along doesn't hurt.

you know, with the nightime eating, what i've found is that 90% of the time, my drive to eat isn't about hunger, but looking for some kind of emotional gratification in the ol' fridge. obviously, not the best plan there. THAT, of course, will slow down one's losses.

something good to think about!