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.
Think about it for a minute… Do yYou really think your body has a special enzyme that goes off at a specific time very day and tells you body, “It’s X o’clock. Convert everything eaten after now to body fat.”
Of course not!
All your body understands is how many calories you eat in a 24 hour period… not what time you ate the calories.
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.
Just think about what not eating does to muscle tissue.
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.
Now, you may be thinking “I don’t really care about muscle”, but believe me, you do.
When you lose muscle, metabolism slows, and weight-loss becomes all that much harder. Regardless of your physique goals, you want to maintain as much calorie-burning muscle as possible.
Always.
So, in order to curb late-night cravings and support muscle tissue maintenance, 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 food? Agree? Disagree?
Drop me a line and let me know your thoughts.
Rick
