Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Late Night Cravings

I’d like to share with you another one of these ridiculous weight loss articles that steers people in the wrong direction.  According to this article, eating after 8:00pm will make you fat, based on a study indicating that people who eat after 8:00pm consume 754 calories vs. 376 calories.  Well duh!!!  What do most people reach for when they eat at this late hour?  Chips, pretzels, ice cream, pizza, fast food, and cookie usually top the list.    

Let’s back up for a minute though, when not so long ago I also got sucked in by these kinds of articles, and I tried this diet of “no food after 8:00pm.”  I remember going to a restaurant and eating as much as I could before the clock struck 8:00.  I even rushed to finish the last bite of dessert at 7:59.  Surprise, surprise, I still gained weight!

So, think about it this way.  Is there a difference in the calories of a pizza if you eat it at 7:00pm instead of 8:00pm?  What about the calories of an apple or a carrot stick?  Trust me, the reason you are overweight or out of shape is not because you eat after 8:00pm.  Rather it is because of all of the choices you make from the moment you wake up in the morning until bedtime.   So if it is after 8:00 and you find that you are hungry, reach for a piece of fruit or a crunchy vegetable.  Remember, the simple secret to weight loss is calories in vs. calories out; it does not matter when you eat, but what you eat.

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