Jill and I met last week and one of the topics we discussed was the importance of eating every 3 – 4 hours to stabilize blood sugar. To my surprise, the Venice Nutrition program advocated eating a small meal about an hour before going to bed.
When I heard this my skeptical antennas went up!
Jill explained that “meal” means a small amount of carbohydrate, fat and protein. She later sent me something written by Mark MacDonald, the creator of Venice Nutrition which made a lot of sense to me.
According to Mark,
To increase your metabolism, keep your energy high and blood sugar levels stable, you should aim to eat every 3 to 4 hours until you go to sleep at night. That said, your first meal should be one hour within waking and your last meal of the day should be eaten one hour or so within going to sleep.
If you eat dinner around 6 to 7 pm, and bed time is not until 10 or 11 pm, then we would recommend to eat again before going to sleep. The goal is to fuel your body to keep your metabolism high.
That said, if you are not hungry for the last meal before bed, please do not eat a full meal. You should aim to eat a small amount of protein, carbohydrate and fat. An easy solution is to chose any meal in your plan and cut it in ½ or in 1/3 if not hungry enough for a full meal. Please listen to your body, and eat accordingly.
Many of our clients will have a few bites of a protein bar, or a “mini” Protein Smoothie (all ingredients in the smoothie cut in ½ or 1/3 depending on your hunger levels) before bed. Another fast option would be to eat a few bites of cottage cheese, fruit and nuts, or even a few bites left over from your dinner meal.
If dinner is not until 7 or 8 pm and you go to bed one to two hours within dinner, it is not necessary to eat again before going to sleep.
My current “late night” favorite is to have some Chobani Yogurt. It contains a great balance of protein,carb and fat. I eat about half the carton, which amounts to less than 100 calories.
Sweet and Nutritious Dreams,
Mary Jo