Eating before you sleep

[bushido39]

Eating before you sleep..

Is this really bad? Eating right before you go to bed? What about a protein shake right before you hit the sack.. I've heard mixed things.. I have a really hard time dealing with this because i work nights.. when i get home, i eat a shitload.. then i just go to bed..

 

[IncredibleHoss]

Eating before you sleep..

Is this really bad? Eating right before you go to bed? What about a protein shake right before you hit the sack.. I've heard mixed things.. I have a really hard time dealing with this because i work nights.. when i get home, i eat a shitload.. then i just go to bed..

To my knowledge Casein shakes that last up to 8 hrs are great to have right before bed. Especially if your bulking or trying to maintain a weight.

 

[SgtSlaughter]

I have fats and proteins before bed. Minimal carbs because they'll keep me awake.

... it's fine to eat before bed.

 

[Assertive Guy]

Eating before you sleep..

Is this really bad? Eating right before you go to bed? What about a protein shake right before you hit the sack.. I've heard mixed things.. I have a really hard time dealing with this because i work nights.. when i get home, i eat a shitload.. then i just go to bed..

I heard most of it just sits in the gut undigested, then out the other end in the morning! In practice tho, I found I gain weight faster if I eat before bed (if your bulking). I also found I dont get any stomach/bowel problems if I sleep on a reclined chair instead of a bed (not horizontal).

 

[bushido39]

I'm trying to cut weight while maintaining muscle.. It's probably best for me to just have one shake after work, before i sleep.. it's just so hard to eat such a small meal when i'm so hungry

 

[alex2678]

Makes no difference at all for fat burning purposes. If you're hungry at night then have something to eat. I've always said this in the past. You're body can't tell time. It doesn't know the difference between 2 in the afternoon or 4 in the morning. It's sole funtion is to survive. Eat ever few hours while you're awake, don't starve, train heavy and burn more calories than you take in and you'll lose fat and hold on to as much muscle as possible.

 

[gjohnson5]

Micellar Casein isolate protein and Oats for a slow digesting carbohydrate. There is nothing wrong with carbs at this time as long as they are complex!

 

[calitrainman]

I too work nights and have wondered if it mattered eating before sleep. I noticed that If I eat a relatively high-cal/high-protein meal, I'm out for 6hours easy and feel less lethargic upon waking. As for any change in muscle loss...i've noticed none (and fat gain is minimal as long as I keep cardio in my routine). Seeing as how sleep is an integral part of the recovery phase and there doesn't seem to be negative affects by eating, I just eat so that I sleep better.

 

[JKurz1]

I wouldn't go the carb route, but that's my opinion....you don't need them for that next 8 hours while you do nothing but sleep. I eat all the way up to bed, and even in bed sometimes if I'm running late on schedule. It's a nice sized meal.....20g of fat, 50g of protein...casein, cottage cheese and nuts.

 

[carcass]

To my knowledge Casein shakes that last up to 8 hrs are great to have right before bed. Especially if your bulking or trying to maintain a weight.

how about muscle milk protein?

 

[Jobe2004]

how about muscle milk protein?

sometimes I'll have 2 Muscle Milk Light RTD's with Some almonds, flax oil and fish oil

 

[dabuffguy]

old thread! lol, it's cool though.

IMO, you always need to eat before bed. If you are bulking, use some complex carbs with casein proetin mixed with 1% milk. If you are cutting, casein protein mixed with water. I use 50 grams casein and 15 grams of whey isolate. Keep the amino levels in your blood up to prevent and catabolism.

Whey only is better than nothing, but hardly ideal.

6 ounces of a light fish (tilapia, halibut, orange roughy) also works fantastic if you don't mind having nasty farts in the morning, lol.

 

[Jobe2004]

old thread! lol, it's cool though.

IMO, you always need to eat before bed. If you are bulking, use some complex carbs with casein proetin mixed with 1% milk. If you are cutting, casein protein mixed with water. I use 50 grams casein and 15 grams of whey isolate. Keep the amino levels in your blood up to prevent and catabolism.

Whey only is better than nothing, but hardly ideal.

6 ounces of a light fish (tilapia, halibut, orange roughy) also works fantastic if you don't mind having nasty farts in the morning, lol.

lol, yah..i was looking back

most of the time I'll have about 1/2 cottage cheese with some muscle milk light...plues about 3 caps flax & 5 caps Fish Oil w/ Omega 3 Concentrate

I usually eat orange roughy or chicken dor dinner at 9 with some WW pasta mixed with veggies....ill throw in an Atlantic salmon every 2 weeks

 

[dabuffguy]

lol, yah..i was looking back

most of the time I'll have about 1/2 cottage cheese with some muscle milk light...plues about 3 caps flax & 5 caps Fish Oil w/ Omega 3 Concentrate

I usually eat orange roughy or chicken dor dinner at 9 with some WW pasta mixed with veggies....ill throw in an Atlantic salmon every 2 weeks

i'd take the fish oils, vitamins and stuff during the day, or in the morning.

 

[SouthernLord]

I used to pound the cottage cheese at night before bed. not so much now. i have really limited my dairy intake and digestion for me has been better.

Before bed I do something similar to Dabuff. 50g Micellar Casein, 25g Whey Iso, 10g Psyllium Husk, and 2g fish oil. I never wake up hungry in the middle of the night when I drink this before bed.

 

[desmond]

Something like SL's formulation would be about perfect IMO for most people (although I already consume like 50-60 g of fibre per day so no Psyllium Husk for me unless I want to spend more time in the toilet).

Currently, I'm being stingy however and to comply with Omega's fat recommendations for me, I'm having scrambled eggs normally, or sometimes steak and good fats (fish oil or avocado). I know from experience that these scrambled eggs are slow digesting protein - I've eaten them for dinner a few times at 6pm on nights on the piss, only to throw some of it up at about 3am lol.

 

[access]

There's so many variables on this and differing opinions and I think it's because we all have very different metabolisms. When we sleep we typically burn around 5-600 calories. The body is undergoing repair and maintenence at this time. So many believe we should have some complex carbs right before bed to assist in this as the body will require carbs as an energy source. Then there's the more traditional school of thought that consuming carbs will result in adding fat when those carbs are consumed before sleep as we are not expending any energy at this time.

I think a combination of both is probably the correct answer. Certainly don't consume any simple carbs and if you have room in your diet macro's for a few calories before bed then utilise them at this time. Take in a small meal with maybe 250 calories that contains some complex carbs and protein. 1-2% Cottage Cheese or the like which also contains some fats which slow absorption would be a suggestion.

Either way you have to find what works for you and it might be wildly different from the next person. Some people sleep much better when consuming carbs before bed as an example so these type of variables also need to be considered. One important thing though is to make this meal small. I see no reason going in excess of around 250 calories total.

 

[cobracock1979]

+1 Johnson - casien protein is the way to go. Add fats such as PB/ flax oil/ flax powder to further slow digestion. This is DEFINATELY the way to go. Add carbs if you like, upto u