How To Stick To Your Weight Loss Goals Working The Night Shift

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How to stick to your weight loss goals working the night shift, in a nutshell, means keeping an open mind and then rearranging all that you do around your work schedule. Your sleep schedule is the opposite of the world’s and you’ll need to structure your days differently when it comes to your meals and when you exercise.

If you want to know how you can stick to your weight loss goals working the night shift and it feels like an uphill battle, don’t lose heart. Working overnight is challenging for anyone, and on the surface, it may seem almost impossible to lose weight. However, you can lose weight successfully while working nights when you prepare for it. 

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Take it from someone who’s been there and done that. You can reach your weight loss goals and keep the weight off!

Consider When You Need To Eat

As a nurse I have worked all shifts, from days, to strictly nights and rotating shifts (my least favorite). From my experience, how to stick to your weight loss goals working the night shift poses the same challenges that you face working during the day. For instance, overnight you still have to assess whether or not you really need to eat or if you are just reaching for food out of habit.

Fortunately, I found a way to work nights and lose weight successfully. No matter what shift you work, preparation is the key to weight loss success.

It may help to ask yourself a few questions so that you can understand where you get thrown off track with your weight loss plan.

When are you most likely to overnight during your work schedule? Is it before work, or during the wee hours of the morning? Could it be that after work you come in the door and immediately make a big breakfast?

The answer to any one of these questions could be the reason. However, knowing the simple science behind what makes you reach for food as a night shift worker can help you prepare properly so that you are ready for the pitfalls. I know you can do this!

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Working The Night Shift Can Stall Weight Loss

The reason why working the night shift can throw you off track with your weight loss goals is because of the hunger hormones leptin and ghrelin. Leptin is responsible for making you feel full, and ghrelin gives you the signal that you are hungry. Insulin is also produced while we’re producing the much talked about stress hormone called cortisol, which can drive you to eat. 

We produce these hormones when we’re tired and stressed. So, when you work overnight you produce more ghrelin and less leptin, as well as more insulin and cortisol. Night shift workers will say they are eating to stay awake and that’s partially true, but the underlying reason is because of the hunger hormones they are producing. 

When you are sleep deprived, you tend to reach for carb-laden fatty foods which do not help your weight-loss efforts at all. Why? These kinds of foods spike your insulin, stimulating your appetite. If there is candy or cookies around, you have a tough time resisting the temptation to indulge.

If you do indulge you will have a temporary energy spike, but it will plummet, and again, you’ll be on the hunt for something else to keep you going. Altogether, these factors stall your weight loss and even cause you to gain weight. Yikes!

Sleeping During The Day 

Sleeping during the day is completely against your body’s circadian rhythm. After a night shift, your body can feel both tired, awake, and in a fog. The first thing I reach for is coffee to lift the brain fog. But, coffee is said to be both an appetite stimulant and a suppressant but only for so long. 

Too much caffeine can cause an inevitable energy crash so you end up back to square one, tired and feeling wiped out. Eventually, you’ll be craving and reaching for sugary, fatty comfort foods.

Night shift workers justify eating overnight because they think it keeps them awake. I remember doing this not realizing how wrong I was! What I found is eating overnight (when you would normally be sleeping) puts your digestive system to work when it should be resting. 

In my opinion, if you’re giving yourself a fasting window at night (between 6 and 8 hours) you are mimicking what is normal for your body. So, including fasting can help stick to your weight loss goals while working the night shift.

If you want to stick to your weight loss goals while working the night shift preparation is everything, my friends. I worked nights for 6 years before I realized the importance of planning meals and prepping food to bring to work. 

How To Stick To Your Weight Loss Goals Working Night Shift

1. Develop a schedule for eating. 

Starting with creating a schedule for eating is really how to stick to your weight loss goals working the night shift. Just because you may have to work the night shift, doesn’t mean you have to eat all night long.

If you didn’t have to work overnight, you would be asleep and actually fasting. Assuming you don’t eat in your sleep, you should be able to get through at least 6 hours overnight without eating.

Hydrating is necessary because we lose water through perspiring and talking. Water is calorie-free, keeps hunger at bay, and keeps you functioning at your best on every level. There are many people that I’m sure would disagree with this, but eating just isn’t necessary overnight.

Staying hydrated is a priority in my opinion if you want to stick to your weight loss goals. I’ve lived this, and done it, and was successful and losing 100lbs in 2017 working from 7 pm-7 am. 

2.  Meal planning and preparation are key to sticking to your weight loss goals. 

Plan your biggest meal before you leave for work. The first meal you have after getting up in the afternoon is essentially breakfast. This first meal before your night shift starts is what I like to call your foundational meal.

The best way to ensure that you keep cravings at bay is to load up on nutrient-dense foods so add plenty of vegetables. One dish meals such as casseroles and soups or stews with a side salad can fill you up and fuel you for your work night.

3. Pack nutritious meals for your night shift.

After your foundational meal, you can and should pack a bag for work. Eating at night isn’t forbidden, but you should be careful about what you choose to eat.

Don’t fall for the free food in the breakroom trick. If you want to stick to your weight loss goals working the night shift, try to remember, free food isn’t really free. You’ll pay the price for eating junk one way or the other.

4.  Eat your last meal before midnight.

I remember making it a rule to eat something light before midnight. In some occupations, it’s difficult to gauge when you may be able to take a break and eat, and none more so than that of nursing, IMO. 

Sometimes I wouldn’t get to take a break or eat when I had planned. If that happens it’s not the end of the world. You will have to decide what makes sense for you to bring with you based on what time you have your break and how much time you’re allotted. See #7 for a few of my favorite snack ideas.

5.  Stick to nutrient-dense foods.

My go-to choices were are an 8oz container of chopped fresh veggies like cucumbers, tomato, onion, and peppers with a drizzle of Italian dressing and a chopped up hard-boiled egg. Plain Greek yogurt mixed with fruit and walnuts is also a favorite. 

The nutrient-dense choices are super important for this light meal because it’s essentially the only thing you’ll eat before your shift ends. It should be small but pack a dense nutritious punch.

6.  Stay hydrated throughout the night shift. 

Bring a bottle of water to work (at least 24oz), and add lemon slices if you prefer some flavor. Hopefully, there is a place you can refill your water bottle, but if there isn’t, you may want to bring 2 bottles. You can’t talk about the night shift without mentioning caffeine. 

Having coffee is a part of my meal plan, but I try to stop having caffeine before midnight as well. It’s best to stick to water, and decaf calorie-free beverages overnight. Occasionally I would have fruit around 4 am if needed, but that isn’t something I always feel compelled to add.

7.  Have a light snack after your shift ends. 

I think there’s nothing worse than waking up too early from being hungry after working the night shift. When you get home from work, having a snack high in protein is perfect while you decompress.

Along with a cup of my favorite organic decaf tea blend, here is an example of a few snacks that I would have on hand:

• One Hard boiled egg
• 1 cup of bone broth
• 1oz Hard cheese 1oz
• 2oz Chicken or turkey breast 
• 6-8oz Greek Yogurt
• 1 slice Ezekiel bread toasted with 1tsp natural peanut butter

8.  How to promote sleep.

There are several different strategies you can try using to help get you ready for bed after working the night shift. Some sleep-promoting activities that I have tried are:

• Do some light stretching. Tight muscles are par for the course if you’re a nurse. I find it helpful to immediately change my clothes and get my yoga mat out for some light stretching. I usually do some basic stretches that I learned to do after injuring my back several years ago. You can download an app on your phone or laptop that will guide you through some light stretching or yoga exercises. 

• Take a hot shower or bath with Epsom salts. It’s not easy to sleep during the day, period. A shower washes the night shift away and preps you for sleep after stretching like nothing else. A hot bath with magnesium-rich Epsom salts will relax your muscles so that making yourself comfortable is easy before you fall asleep. 

• Diffuse lavender essential oils. I usually turn my essential oils diffuser on as soon as I come in the house. So, while I’m having a snack, stretching and showering, the smell of lavender is permeating in the air well before I’m actually ready for bed. 

• Lower the bedroom temperature. Sleeping in a hot room is uncomfortable. A cold room isn’t necessary, but a room temperature of about 66 degrees is just right.

• Keep the room dark. Use darkening curtains/blinds and a sleep mask if you have to. The goal is to mimic what it’s like when you sleep at night. If I so much as see a glimmer of light during the day, I’m awake and unable to fall back into a deep enough sleep to feel rested.

• Add ambient noise. Otherwise known as white noise, this is extremely helpful after working the night shift. When the rest of the world is awake and the sounds of the day are in full swing, your ability to sleep will be disrupted if you don’t have a way to muffle those sounds. Ambient noise machines are great for drowning out day noises to help you relax and sleep.

• Reading. A physical book, not a tablet is better for inducing sleep. The blue light from your phone is a known sleep disrupter and will keep you wired and awake even if you feel exhausted. As tempting as it is to see what’s happening on social media, do yourself a favor and put your phone down. Also, make sure the ringer is on vibrate. Audiobooks work well also and can function as ambient noise if you don’t mind a narrator’s voice lulling you to sleep. 

9.  Exercise before returning work. 

Exercise before returning for your next night shift will energize you and it’s the best thing to do after waking up. Then, have a substantial meal before you leave for work, and you’ll be at your best and ready to get through your shift. 

The only thing that is different about sticking to a weight loss plan when working nights is the fact that you’re awake at different times. You’re doing the exact same thing to stick to your weight loss plan that you would be doing if you worked during the day.

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How To Handle Nights Off From Work

Your night shift schedule will determine how to structure your meals and activities when you aren’t working at night. Everyone who works at night varies on this point. How to stick to your weight loss goals working the night shift means keeping the meal planning and eating windows the same for the most part. Not eating overnight (whether at work or not)  is one of the things that helps to keep my weight in check. 

Conclusion

There are dozens of occupations that require shift work, and there are just as many studies that show working overnight isn’t ideal for our health or weight loss goals. You can stick to your weight loss goals and stay healthy working the night shift by simply taking care of yourself in every way possible. 

It is true that working the night shift puts demands on your physical, mental, and emotional health that can contribute to some major chronic health conditions over time. ow to stick to your weight loss goals working the night shift involves making time for meticulous self-care. Therefore, when you aren’t at work, rest.

So now you have a great excuse to invest in your health and wellbeing! 

Are you working the night shift while trying to stick to your weight loss goals? 

Leave a comment below and let me know what has (or hasn’t) worked for you!

Sources:

https://www.sleep.org/articles/temperature-for-sleep/

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/sleep-and-weight-loss

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