No Eating After Dark
We have all heard our parents say it, "Don't eat after 6:30pm" or "Don't eat after 5:00 pm." Whichever time they told you, the point they were striving for was to get you to not eat during the night hours (whether they knew it or not!)
I did this for the better part of my life. Then about 5 years into my marriage I discovered I would feel a little better if I ate something before bedtime and could sleep better. At the time, it was true because I was only eating one meal a day and swallowing down over a pot of coffee and a twelve pack of Diet Coke a day. Skinny and athletic most of my life, my body revolted with weight gain and migraines-sometimes daily for weeks at a time- when I punished my body this way. I would have been better off starving than to eat so many carbs and junk food at night. Because really, who cooks a healthy dinner at 11pm ? Not me. Not when I have already cleaned up my kitchen from my dinner for four and put the kiddies to bed. Needless to say, I put on weight. A lot of weight.
Research to back it up:
After reading about some new research done by Ohio State, where they fed mice the same thing for eight weeks but exposed one control group to a dim light during sleep hours., I decided to try not eating after dark. I loved that this study thought it out enough to put a control group that was restricted to eating only during normal hours yet still only eating the same amount of food the others were eating, showing us that we can do this to not gain any weight. I also love that they proved the dim light was causing the mice to eat at an inappropriate time for their metabolism. The weight gain came regardless of the fact that all the mice ate the same amount of food and kept the same activity level. And the weight gain began in week one of the study!!!! Read that again...The weight gain began in week one of the study!!!! Those are pretty positive results in my book. Read the research from the link above. It is an awesome find, IMO. And I am certainly glad the researchers published their findings for us to know about it.
The Challenge:
I decided to begin this challenge to see if it would work on me. I am a 40 year old mother of two who has been exercising, dieting and starving to try to lose weight. I have tried gym memberships, weight loss shakes ( which did work, btw, but I have a bad reaction to them, regardless of which ones I chose,) green tea ( again, works, but caused headaches and absolutely not for those who have panic attacks,) and maintaining an hour or more of steady activity daily while counting calories (didn't work at all!) I have tried portion control, low carb diets, fasting diets ( only one that worked was the one where I skipped dinner altogether---which included not eating after dark.) I have tried going solely nutritious and working out such as is advocated by the famed Jillian Michaels. The scale hasn't budged. I have tried the Belly Fat Cure by Jorge Cruise where sugar and carbs are eaten but restricted along with portion control and exercises. Again, the scale didn't budge. Don't worry, I will be doing reviews for all of these programs soon. Now, why not try this?
What you should know about me? I don't drink coffee, tea or soda pops. No, not even the diet ones. I generally only drink bottled water, Gatorade (if I am exercising regularly and only if I start to feel dehydrated,) and the occasional milkshake (which, because of the milk, I limit too.) I am wheat gluten intolerant so I try to limit my intake of that. Too much sugar makes me hyper anyway so if I do eat it, I have to exercise or panic out.... I do not eat pork or shell fish in any form. I try to eat kosher but sometimes have to settle with what my budget will allow. I favor fresh fruits, vegetables and meat if I can afford it.
My strategy:
Now, that all said, I will not be watching my calories on this diet test. But I will not be gorging out on every meal either. I will try to stop eating when I start to feel full or satiated. I will be eating some junk foods during this test. I feel this will not be a proper test if I try to alter my lifestyle any way at all. And, normally, I do enjoy a treat here and there but generally not every day. (Although I have for the past two weeks, for which I will be going back to "here and there" mode. And that alone, could cause a drop in weight.) I will be doing 30 minutes on my treadmill or walking outdoors when I can. Regardless of what I do, if stopping eating after dark and keeping the lights away from me at night do what the research says it will, I should shed some pounds. Right? Notice that an important part of this study was the dim light at night on the group that gained the weight. So, no lights on for a solid 8 hours a night. Very important !!!! For me, that means lights out 10 pm, regardless of whether I am sleepy or not, which will require help from my family.
Beginning date for the test : October 17th, 2010.
End date for the test : October 24th, 2010 where normal eating will begin on the following day.
I will update this post when I am finished, hopefully with pictures.
Why not try it with me and share your experience here?
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The Journal:
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Day one:
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My husband and family agreed to help me out with this. So here is how day one went and what I had to eat. I ate:
- for breakfast at 6 am:
- 20 oz glass of orange juice with pulp
- 1 Grande's biscuit
- snack:
- 2 bars of a Kit Kat
- for lunch at 11am:
- Half of a bowl ( about an 8 oz cup) of potato, broccoli and cheese chowder
- 20 oz bottle of water
- for dinner at 5 pm:
- Half of a bowl of Hamburger Helper's Cheeseburger Mac
- 1/2 cup of spinach
- 20 oz bottle of water
- snack:
- 1 Nutty Buddy Ice Cream Cone
- no category
- 2 20 oz bottles of water
I walked on my treadmill for 30 minutes around 8pm. Then promptly at 10pm me and my hubby were in our bed with all the lights and electronics cut off. With the exception of a midnight trip to the bathroom, I saw no light for a solid 8 hours. My husband slept great! I couldn't sleep. I don't know what time it was when I went to sleep, but I know it had to be getting close to time to get up because I heard the morning rush beginning on the road right outside my window.
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Day two:
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Due to the lack of sleep from last night, I took a very short (maybe one hour) nap after I ate breakfast this morning.
- for breakfast at 6 am:
- 8 oz glass of orange juice with pulp
- 1 large scrambled egg
- 1 cup breakfast pepper gravy
- 1 cup hashed browned potatoes
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- for lunch at 1 pm:
- 1 can Progresso Chicken and Wild Rice Soup (low sodium)
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- Snack:
- 1 tblsp of peanut butter
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- Dinner at 5pm:
- 1 homemade 4oz cheeseburger on 2 slices of white bread w/ lett, tom, cucumber
- 10 homemade deep fried fries w/ cheese
- 2 tsp of ranch dipping dressing
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
I know this dinner sounds awful. It really is as bad and greasy as it gets in my house. We NEVER deep fry our fries. We usually bake them ourselves or buy store bought ones and bake them. I didn't even eat all of what was on my plate. I was too sleepy. I just couldn't wait to get to bed. Once there though, I didn't sleep well again. I don't know what time it was when I finally drifted off (more like passed out from exhaustion ) but I know it was 4 a.m. when I woke back up.
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Day three
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Update: I weighed myself again this morning: I have gained weight again. Almost a whole pound. While better than yesterday, if this keeps up, I will have to abandon this test and go back to diet mode to lose the weight I have gained from this experiment. My aim was to stop the weight gain or actually lose weight. But I am really not surprised when I look back and see what all I had to eat. Should have slipped in a salad somewhere there. But the whole point of this experiment is to see the effects with NORMAL eating. That means no dieting and watching calories. You know, this is also giving me a great chance to document how some foods will affect weight gain and loss on a day to day basis. I am a typical 40 year old mother. I am the majority of the people who are overweight in this country. Uh mmmm...... aside from the growing population of obese children. I really picked a bad week for this experiment. I am living off a very limited budget this week and have to resort to eating just what is available to me here in the house. These are foods that are usually here just for exotic snacking and considered a treat more than a meal. I usually eat much more fruit and veggies.
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Day Four
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- Breakfast at 7am (after the sun was up):
- 1 boiled egg
- 1 20 oz bottled water
- lunch at 12 pm:
- 1/2 of a chicken w/ cheese and mayo sandwich on two slices of white bread
- 1 teaspoon of peanut butter
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
Update: I weighed myself again this morning: I have gained weight again. Almost a whole pound. While better than yesterday, if this keeps up, I will have to abandon this test and go back to diet mode to lose the weight I have gained from this experiment. My aim was to stop the weight gain or actually lose weight. But I am really not surprised when I look back and see what all I had to eat. Should have slipped in a salad somewhere there. But the whole point of this experiment is to see the effects with NORMAL eating. That means no dieting and watching calories. You know, this is also giving me a great chance to document how some foods will affect weight gain and loss on a day to day basis. I am a typical 40 year old mother. I am the majority of the people who are overweight in this country. Uh mmmm...... aside from the growing population of obese children. I really picked a bad week for this experiment. I am living off a very limited budget this week and have to resort to eating just what is available to me here in the house. These are foods that are usually here just for exotic snacking and considered a treat more than a meal. I usually eat much more fruit and veggies.
- Dinner at 6pm
- 2 cups pinto beans
- 1 cup mustard greens
- 1 cup sourkraut
- 2 dinner rolls
- 5 cheesy fries with ranch dressing
- 1/2 cup 7 layer cake
- 1 1/2 20 oz bottle of water
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Day Four
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- Breakfast at 7 am
- 1 small McDonald's wild berry smoothie
- 1 boiled egg
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- Lunch at 1 pm
- 5 cheesy fries with ranch dressing
- 1 string 2% milk mozzarella cheese
- Snack
- 1 small McDonald's wild berry smoothie
- 2 McDonald's chicken nuggets
- Dinner at 5 pm
- 1 4 oz lightly breaded chicken breast
- 1 cup mixed vegetables
- 1 cup mashed potatoes
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- Desert
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free rice pudding
Day Five
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- Breakfast at 6 am
- 1 20 oz glass of orange juice with pulp
- 1 cup low fat egg beaters
- 1 10" flour tortilla
- 1 string 2% milk mozzarella cheese
- 2 slices tomato
- Lunch at 12 pm
- 1 can Progresso low sodium chicken noodle soup
- Snacks
- 11 oz gluten free rice pudding
- 1 small McDonald's wild berry smoothie
- 1 McDonald's grilled chicken snack wrap with ranch
- 1 string 2% milk mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 cup grape juice
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Day Six
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- Breakfast at 7 am
- 1 small McDonald's wild berry smoothie
- Brunch at 12 pm
- 3 chicken Vienna sausages
- 2 slices turkey bacon
- 3/4 cup low fat eggbeaters
- 1/2 cup mushrooms
- 1/2 cup tomatoes
- 1 cup orange juice
- Dinner at 7pm
- 1/2 cup boiled cabbage
- 1/2 cup turkey smoked sausage
- 1/2 cup butter beans
- 1 slice white bread
- w/ 1 pat I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spread
- Snacks (throughout the day)
- 8 roasted almonds
- 1 string 2% milk mozzarella cheese
- 2 20 oz bottles of water
Activity: 1 mile outdoors fast pace walking
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Day Seven
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- Breakfast at 10 am
- 1/2 cup low fat Egg beaters
- 1/2 cup grilled tomatoes
- 1 slice white bread toast
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- Snack
- 1 string 2% mozzarella cheese
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- Dinner at 3:30 pm
- 1 20 oz bottle of water
- 3 6" home made tacos each with:
- 1 tsp sour cream
- 1/4 cup nacho shredded cheese
- t tbsp tomatoes
- 1 6" flour tortilla
- 1/4 cup cooked ground beef
You will have to forgive the layout on this blog post. For some reason, the spacing isn't cooperating.
End Result: I gained three pounds!!!!
What a mess! Because it was such a mess, there are no pictures either. Sorry. But looking back on what all was eaten......Well, no wonder! And my activity was less than usual too. (Could explain the gaining part!) So now I have to rule this experiment "inconclusive," because I ate like a pig. Or you might consider it contrary to their findings, although, there were no people to compare myself with. My husband and children who agreed to cooperate with me failed miserably. They ate after dark routinely. (Making me miserable. I could smell the food from my room. ) If I tried to exercise, I was considered to be ignoring them. And we were all battling the flu on top of it all. I'm not making excuses. That is really what happened.
In short, I have to start counting calories to try to ditch some of the weight I gained during all of this experimenting. Notice I said "to try" to ditch some weight. Everywhere on the internet, people swear by counting calories. That is my next home tested review. Until then, I hope I have shed some light on the subject. (Pun intended. :-))
Cheers all!
In short, I have to start counting calories to try to ditch some of the weight I gained during all of this experimenting. Notice I said "to try" to ditch some weight. Everywhere on the internet, people swear by counting calories. That is my next home tested review. Until then, I hope I have shed some light on the subject. (Pun intended. :-))
Cheers all!
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