Myth Buster: Why Eating After 8:00 Doesn’t Matter

It’s a long held belief among dieters that not eating after a certain time is a secret to losing weight. Alarm clocks are set, rules in place, and no matter what happens, these dieters will not touch a morsel, not a speck of food after... 8:00 PM.

Is that Standard Time? What happens with Daylight Savings? What happens if you’re traveling and have to take the red eye? Hmmmm.

Some people try this strategy and achieve great short-term success. They will swear by it. But it’s not the time of day they were eating that mattered – it’s what they were eating and how much.

Think about why this diet myth may work for some of us. We come home from work, change and sit down to dinner. Then we watch a little TV, have some ice cream. It tasted so good we go for a smidgen more. Later, a little salty something would be great to offset that sweet. A chip or two or half a bag later.... we find we’re snacking all night! We also get help from every other commercial reminding us to crave something else.

When we get fed up with our weight we adopt the diet myth - No eating after 8:00. And guess why this works–because all those calories we’re not eating after dinner don’t add up.

It goes great for a while, until the first time we break the rule. We come home late, are out with friends, or just get hungry. Then, we have some nachos here, a candy bar there... and we’re sliding down that familiar slippery slope. Eventually we go back to munching in front of the tube in our jammies. Then we start our diet over by skipping breakfast the next day – until we’re so hungry at lunch that we make some unhealthy choices. And so it goes… again.

The way to succeed long term is to change what you eat after 8:00 instead of making a rule about not eating after 8:00. Debunk the myth, make different food choices, and stop trying to willpower your way to a healthy lifestyle.

If you are a night-time snacker, try these foods tonight:

• HMR Shakes, Multigrain Hot Cereal, or Puddings
• Fruit with yogurt on top
• Homemade ice cream (made with HMR Shake mix and frozen fruit or low-calorie add-ins of your choice in a food processor)
• Warm cinnamon applesauce
• Sweet potato wedges (or other roasted veggies) hot out of the oven sprinkled with spices

Focus on changing your choices rather than on changing your nighttime habits. In fact, plan on having a snack and decide what it will be in advance! Eat breakfast every day. When you eat more fruits, vegetables, and meal replacements, you may find you don’t need as many snacks at night. But even when you do, having a long list of healthy options (that you have on hand) will help you manage your calories and your weight.

Debunk your diet myths. Do what is proven to work instead.
 

by luv2run on 01/16/2013 | Share Story With a Friend

tags: Weight-Loss, planning, strategies