Late Night Eating - To Do Or Not to Do - That is the Question!
There are conflicting reports about the subject of late night eating.
Some advocate it as necessary to feed your body and others focus on it being a key factor in increased fat storage.
From my experience I would side towards the latter.
See my explanation below: Throughout the day your body is using the fuel from the food you eat to repair muscle and create energy.
However when it comes to the late afternoon and evening everyone is always winding down and your calorie expenditure is much less.
Therefore we don't have a need for as much calories in the evening versus the morning.
This is why it is very important not to take in too much calories(in particular carbs sources) during the day as at the end of the day the body does like a stocktake of what is remaining re carbs, protein etc.
If there are surplus carbs they are temporarily stored in the liver and if not used up within a few days they will store as fat.
Excess protein will typically be mostly excreted and some will store.
So if you finish your last meal around 7pm and go to bed at 11pm the food you ate will be burned up so there will be no excess whereas if you eat at 10pm and go to bed the opposite will be true.
Also eating late has an effect on your quality of sleep which will have an effect on recovery etc So I would advise you to eat regular meals but start decreasing the quantity, in particular carbohydrates, in the late afternoon and evening.
Some advocate it as necessary to feed your body and others focus on it being a key factor in increased fat storage.
From my experience I would side towards the latter.
See my explanation below: Throughout the day your body is using the fuel from the food you eat to repair muscle and create energy.
However when it comes to the late afternoon and evening everyone is always winding down and your calorie expenditure is much less.
Therefore we don't have a need for as much calories in the evening versus the morning.
This is why it is very important not to take in too much calories(in particular carbs sources) during the day as at the end of the day the body does like a stocktake of what is remaining re carbs, protein etc.
If there are surplus carbs they are temporarily stored in the liver and if not used up within a few days they will store as fat.
Excess protein will typically be mostly excreted and some will store.
So if you finish your last meal around 7pm and go to bed at 11pm the food you ate will be burned up so there will be no excess whereas if you eat at 10pm and go to bed the opposite will be true.
Also eating late has an effect on your quality of sleep which will have an effect on recovery etc So I would advise you to eat regular meals but start decreasing the quantity, in particular carbohydrates, in the late afternoon and evening.
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