Post: #1

I was told a long time ago that I have mild gastroparesis, and that I should wait at least 3 hours after my last meal before going to sleep. The thing is gastroparesis is mostly a fat person's disease and I'm skinny as hell (almost sickly-looking). I need to put on some weight, specifically in the form of muscle mass, but for now any weight will do.

I'm thinking of trying to eat before bed, so that I don't burn off those extra calories as easily. Will too much food ingested make it difficult to sleep though? Assuming you're not banging some chick, how do you guys manage your last 3 hours of your day food/workout/sleep-wise?

Post: #2

Some strength athletes swear by a protein shake before bed. I eat dinner like an hour or 2 max before bed, i dont go the protein shake route due to small blader syndrome, hate waking up early to take a slash.

Just try not to load up on sugars or simple carbs cause the insulin spike might keep you from sleeping for awhile.

Post: #3

(03-24-2016 07:41 AM)NewMeta Wrote:  Just try not to load up on sugars or simple carbs cause the insulin spike might keep you from sleeping for awhile.

Really? How's that?

Post: #4

I usually avoid having a meal right before going to bed because I have trouble falling asleep when my stomach is full. If I'm hungry late at evening (for example when I get back home at 10PM after my dance class), I sometimes eat some cottage cheese with almonds to get some protein into my digestion during the night.

As far as weight loss is concerned, the timing of your meals has a negligible effect. Total energy balance is what counts.

Post: #5

I've been drinking casein protein shakes filled with psyllium husk before bed for a few years.

I like it, I never wake up really hungry. I do wake up to pee at least once at night, though I attribute this to me drinking a gallon of water a day.

I do it more for a macros thing. It is my last "meal" before bed. The fiber in the psyllium exceeds my fiber allowance for the day and helps me have the most glorious of number twos in the morning. Lets just say i'm a regular guy.

Do you have any noticeable symptoms of Gastroparesis?

Post: #6

Try it out, see if it helps you sleep or not. Your mileage may vary for all of these health issues. Everyone's bodies, diets, goals, lifestyle are different and play huge roles in effectiveness of changes.

Lizard of Oz recommended not eating a few hours before bed in order to improve sleep quality. At first I thought it was BS. As an Intermittent Fasting advocate, I was eating a huge meal right before going to sleep. I felt fine, right? No need to change. Well I decided to experiment and sleep quality has improved.

Now I normally eat my post workout meal around 8 PM and go to sleep around 10 PM. Although possibly unrelated I've been doing some yoga for 10-15 minutes before lying down and it has helped my sleep. Instead of lying down with my body firing at full capacity, I am relaxed, steady digesting, and ready to sleep.

Post: #7

I work long hours so i usually come home from work at the end of the night burnt and ready for bed. I usually eat dinner like an hr before i goto bed. If anything being full is what knocks me out. Or maybe its the joint i smoke every night before bed ?
And im skinny as well.

Post: #8

(03-24-2016 08:41 AM)Requiem Wrote:  

(03-24-2016 07:41 AM)NewMeta Wrote:  Just try not to load up on sugars or simple carbs cause the insulin spike might keep you from sleeping for awhile.

Really? How's that?

Just uneeded energy boost before bed, same as I wouldnt have caffeine or start working out.

Post: #9

I eat closer to when I sleep than when I wake. If putting on weight is your goal than eat close to both times.

Post: #10

If you aren't eating enough calories throughout the day, try adding a mass gainer.



I don't know anything about gastroparesis, but I've gotten heartburn from eating too much acidic or spicy food before bed. I usually eat dinner within a few hours of bedtime and haven't noticed much difference from an early dinner. I think I sleep better going to bed on a fuller stomach vs. an emptier one. Experiment and see how your body reacts.

You don't need to worry about how late you eat, that's what fat people need to worry about. You need to get as many calories into your body as possible until you learn your limits.

Some guys I know can't gain weight no matter what they do. I know an alcoholic who weighs 120 lbs soaking wet even though he lives on Old Thompson, Twinkies, and Flaming Hot Cheetos. I'd weigh 300 pounds if I ate half of what he did.

If that's you, eat as many calories as possible after getting your protein. Go on a "Dirty Bulk". Consume 5000-6000 calories a day if you have to. That's the only way your going to gain weight.

I wish I had your problem. I'd be living on fatty cuts of steak, ice cream, and dark beer. I learned the importance of calories in vs. out this year in my cut. My body builds muscle fast but gains fat just as easily. The BB.com quiz says I'm an mesomorph.

Learn how your body reacts and take advantage of it.

Post: #11

No.

If I eat within a couple hours of sleep, I usually sleep like crap. I also get acid reflux, which I know that over time will eat through all of the non-regenerative tissues in your esophagus. Or, at least that's what I remember reading. But, I wake up with a sore throat and acidic feeling.

Another point is that I take ZMA, which usually knocks me out within 30 minutes. However, I have to have an empty stomach for it to take hold. If there's still food in there, I don't sleep well.

Post: #12

I eat as late as an hour before sleep, doesn't have any effect on my sleep versus when I didn't. It's difficult for me to get to sleep when I'm hungry, so this works better for me.

As a consequence of eating late I'm not hungry at all when I get up and either skip breakfast or just have oatmeal, that I don't even finish.

Post: #13

If you're a man who eats dinner at 5-6 and then goes to sleep at 10-11, I've found that you'll almost certainly need something else to eat an hour or two before bed, especially if you're lifting (Because your body generally needs more food). If not, you'll go to sleep hungry, which is something you want to avoid as somebody who is trying to gain weight. (Something I learned from ROK - If you're wanting to make gains, try to never be in a situation where you are legitimately hungry.)

I always eat a peanut butter sandwich and a banana at about 9-10 and then sleep at about 10-11. Make it a light meal similar to this, nothing big. If I skip that fourth meal, I hop in bed hungry and it fucks with trying to fall asleep.

Post: #14

Thanks for the varied answers, it really lets me know that I gotta fine tune things to see what works for me.

I guess if I am trying to gain weight (which I def. am, eating before bed is fine)

I had acid reflux in the past though, so I gotta try to avoid eating crap before bed.

Then again if I plan to take anypre-bed supplements on an empty stomach, I gotta time it right so that I can get the supplements and a meal in.

BeastMode, as far as the gastroparesis, I never went as far as vomiting the food back up. There were times years ago when it almost reached that level though. I just got the whole full after a few bites feeling, and lots of bloating, along with a skinny fat, distended-looking belly.

Post: #15

If you want to put on weight make a protein shake a couple hours before bed.

Couple scoops of protein, banana or two, milk, maybe some frozen fruit. Easy 500+ calories that you should be able to gulp down in two glasses.

Post: #16

Always. My biggest meal is always in the end of the day after a workout.
It makes me tired and ready to go to sleep within an hour.

Going to bed with a full belly knocks me down to a heavy deep sleep quickly.
No need of any booze,weed,pills or any strange rituals.

Post: #17

Goodthread, are you in college by chance?

I had this problem eating shitty dining hall food. Generally I would eat to sated and not stuffed. So eating dining hall food, i found i would eat four or five bites of something and end up full.

My weight which was a normal 150 lbs for so long went to 146 which scared the hell out of me. I ended up going to a dining hall father away which for whatever reason was noticeably better.

Once I started cooking my own food things improved. That industrial stuff is brutal in college dining halls.

The things that helped me were to eat meals like a pyramid. Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, dinner like a pauper, and finished with a protein shake. Breakfast would normally be a large meal with eggs, oatmeal, bacon, sausage, toast and whole milk. That got me bulking up very quickly and my body began to handle heavy fats better (no acid reflex).

Post: #18

I'm personally of the opinion that eating before bed, next to simply not going to bed until mid morning, is the worst thing that you can do for your physical health in a normal human (drug free, etc) routine.

My suspicion is that it effects mitochondrial health and thus cardiac health in a manner that leads to disease.

If you need to gain weight, my suggestion is a higher calorie count earlier in the day. Personally, I try to finish my eating by 6 pm at the latest. Going a little over on occasion isn't terrible and finishing before this time is better, but eating much after 8 pm on a regular basis, in my opinion, is a somewhat dangerous habit. If you think you will be too hungry after an early meal, simply eat more at the early meal. No limits as long as you can make it to the next day without eating again. This "no limit" rule is less valid the later that you eat.

Post: #19

I eat before bed, but that's because I work out late after work, no other time to squeeze in a meal. What's the general consensus on folks that work out late?

Post: #20

I DO NOT eat before bed. You're just making your whole G.I. system work for no reason. Instead, I avoid liquids and food at least three hours before bed, that way I don't have a full bladder or stomach right before I'm trying to wind down for the night. Likewise, I avoid stimulation like TV, computer, cell phone and so forth before bed. A half an hour before bed time, I take a melatonin and some magnesium, which puts me in a deep sleep.

Post: #21

A Casein shake or two glasses of milk right before bed for some slow digesting protein.

No carbs at all however.

People say meal timing is just broscience but I've noticed a slight difference in bodyfat percentage when I quit carbs 4-5 hours before going to bed and consumed all my carb heavy meals earlier during the day.

Post: #22

I do, because I'm trying to gain weight. 5'10", 150 pound soaking wet, I have no choice but to eat AMAP. I NEED those calories

Post: #23

(03-24-2016 06:46 AM)Mr.GoodThread Wrote:  I was told a long time ago that I have mild gastroparesis, and that I should wait at least 3 hours after my last meal before going to sleep. The thing is gastroparesis is mostly a fat person's disease and I'm skinny as hell (almost sickly-looking). I need to put on some weight, specifically in the form of muscle mass, but for now any weight will do.

I'm thinking of trying to eat before bed, so that I don't burn off those extra calories as easily. Will too much food ingested make it difficult to sleep though? Assuming you're not banging some chick, how do you guys manage your last 3 hours of your day food/workout/sleep-wise?

I can only speak for myself and what I've been doing that's worked for me to gain weight/muscle and keep it on. I'm a skinny guy as well and been lifting for the past month and a half, I burn through calories really quickly and I've gained 5 lbs so far. I would suggest a solid weightlifting routine, with absolutely no cardio, except maybe a 5 minute walk on the treadmill to warm you up, atleast 2 days a week to start, then move to 3 or 4 if that works for you. I drink a whey protein shake in the morning for about 40-50 grams of protein and the same at night, either right after I work out or before bed ( but with your condition, a couple hours before you go to sleep) for another 40-50, bringing me up to almost 100 grams for the day, the rest I get from food. 1 gram of protein per pound of weight is suggested to build muscle and it's working for me so far and I can see changes already. I also take 5 grams of BCAA's (branch chain amino acids) everyday and fish oil omega tablets, to aid in recovery but also BCAA's help in maintaining muscle tissue. So far it's worked, I also force myself to eat more, because I'm what they call a hard gainer. So ideally for me to amass more than I burn I'd have to be up around the 5,000 calories a day mark to really see large weight gains. I don't eat that much, but you get my point. You need to get in the gym and start lifting heavy, whatever that is for you. Start light, get your form right and then increase your weight. You'll see changes and start building mass and keeping it on.

Post: #24

I find eating close to bedtime helps me sleep.

Post: #25

I have a diet I keep to 6 days week, the 7th day being cheat day where I still eat the minimum calories however I can eat what ever I want. If I'm busy and didn't get my meal in earlier, I'll eat all my required daily calories before I go to bed to make sure I get it in me. This is for a bulk. Vise versa for cut except there is a calorie limit and I make sure to be under that limit