night eating a big no no

[jaysleever 61]

I learned that we are not supposed to eat before bed at least 2 hours before bed anyway. I decided to not eat after dinner. why should i get in the habit of eating when im not hungry. If i eat after dinner than its head hunger not physical hunger. Night eating contributes to weight gain. after dinner around 8pm I have a glass of Metamucil and Water mixed. I always monitor for Constipation that seems to be a big one (no pun intended) among those who had weight loss surgery. To minimal amounts of food and the body cannot excrete correctly. So fruit plenty of water and veggies are the order of the day. The Metamucil helps with satiety. I am over one year out and reached goal but just as the surgeon warned I will gain 15 % back after one year to one and a half years and he was right. I am a comfortable 34 waist up from a 32 waist. So I am monitoring my weight gain very carefully. Basically for one year all I ate was meat and veggies no carbs except dairy carbs. and i was down to 140lbs and a comfortable 32 waist. But I guess that was too ambitious for my body so now i weigh 160lbs my surgery weight was 296lbs. I had my surgery on Nov 11 2013. I had surgery in NYC Manhattan at st lukes roosevelt hospital. So now i added carbs like rice potatoe, mac and cheese or a flavored egg noodles in sauce but small amounts just for flavor really but my meal consists mainly of meat and veggies. sometimes a piece of fruit immediately following the meal as a desert. I eat like a thin person eats. I bought a bicycle for when the weather gets warmer out. and i belong to a gym but havent been going, I really want to be a comfortable 30 waist but my body may not be the set point and it might be unrealistic of me. I see the surgeon every 6 months for 2 years then once a year after that to do routine blood work to check for Vitamin deficiencies.

[Babbs 14,680]

I have heard that is an old wives tale. Calories are calories no matter what time they are consumed. If eating in the evening or after dinner is putting you over your daily caloric allowance, then yes it could be an issue. If you're tracking your calories and are still within the daily allowance, then I don't think it it's a problem. *Shrug*

Congrats on your weight loss and maintenance by the way! If I'm half as diligent as you are about maintaining my weight when I hit goal as you are, then I'll be in good shape

[jaysleever 61]

I suppose you have a point that calories are calories and if you consume only a certain amount why should it matter when we eat. but everybody is different and i feel if im not active and i eat then im only going to store my calories as fat instead of burning them off during the active day time for me. after 6pm im sedentary so I am relaxing not burning calories from walking and working during the day. And i guess its good not to eat at night so we don't have nightmares from the food being processed in our stomachs while we sleep.

[LivingFree! 478]

Jaysleever, yep, we all have to do what works best for us (and what our bariatric team recommends, ESPECIALLY during the first year when we're establishing our new habits). I agree with Babbs though. Eating after 6pm is not going to cause weight gain (unless you have a specific metabollic medical condition). And if you're prone to nightmares, you are probably better off not eating after 6. Usually just a light snack wouldn't cause nightmares--more like a very heavy meal.

I personally enjoy my evening snack. I learned that by adjusting my eating times/caloric intake throughout the day, I can include that snack, guilt free. It's just another element of pleasure to my WLS adventure. I love not having to punish myself or feel guilty about anything related to my consumption of food. I think that's mainly because it's a lot easier now to make much healthier choices.

I also happen to personally believe that "set points" can be changed and are not necessarily what we are doomed to be stuck with. Also, some people are particularly sensitive to weight gain in their consumption of the starchy carbs (I unfortunately am one of them). But once you know that about yourself there are so many other choices that work just as well, if not better!

If you KNOW you have adjusted your eating habits and food choices the absolute BEST you can, maybe it is time to make the decision that your weight is where your body is comfortable. But if you KNOW there are some adjustments you can make to eat CLEANER maybe it's worth a try to see if you get get closer to that 30 waist.

Congrats on your progress as of now!

[jaysleever 61]

Why would somebody want to eat after dinner it's only head hunger and is a bad habit any doctor will recommend not eating at night.

[jaysleever 61]

Also food should not be equated with rewarding or pleasurable thin people eat to nourish not to feel full. Why us a late night snack important sounds like some of us don't want to completely let go of the old self

[jaysleever 61]

The whole point is food should not be something we turn to only eat to not feel hungry forget full.