Why is it that some nights you wake up starving in the middle of the night, and other times you sleep in and don’t feel hungry in the morning? What causes our bodies to be wholly satisfied on some nights, and famished on others? If your evening diet varies, it’s likely your variations in hunger are due to variations in digestive speeds. The digestive system is a very efficient burner of some foods we eat, but very poor with others. If you eat steak and loaded baked potatoes before bed, you will likely not wake up hungry at all. Beef, potatoes, and butter, are digested very slowly by the body. On the other hand, if you eat a lean chicken salad before dinner, or just a large protein shake of whey, you’ll likely find yourself hungry. Use this information to your benefit, based upon your bodybuilding goals.
Gaining muscle
Are you a bodybuilding looking to add muscle mass? If so, perhaps you’d like to eat a little more than your usual 6 meals per day. But where can you slip in a seventh meal? The middle of the night is a good time. In order to facilitate hunger at this late hour, you need to make your last meal a fast-burning protein. Additionally, this meal should allow no fat sources and only fast-digesting, net-zero carb sources. Two scoops of whey and a small lettuce-only salad with lemon would be perfect. Also, drink a lot of water before bed. Set your alarm for 4 hours after you lay down to sleep. When you awake, you’ll certainly feel the need to urinate. Sitting in the sink – so you see it before you turn on the water – should be your shaker cup, already filled with whey protein. If you have to open the container and scoop it yourself at 3 AM, there is a high likelihood you are going to skip it.
Losing fat
If your goals are to lose body fat while retaining muscle, then you should consume a small amount of fat, along with a casein whey protein supplement before bed. Casein protein is a slow-burning protein source, while whey is digested much faster by the body. This will allow you to maintain muscle, through the use of the slow-digesting casein. The fat that is present will stifle the hunger pangs. Your nightly meal could be a fish oil tablet and two scoops of casein. Or, it could be one tablespoon of natural peanut butter with some whey.
The key to success with bodybuilding nutrition is consistency. Select your goal – whether it be gaining muscle or losing fat – and plan your evening meal accordingly. If you eat the same thing each night, you’ll very quickly learn precisely what levels and types of protein and fats work best for your muscle gains and dietary goals. The most important thing is to write down your exact diet each night, and how you feel in the morning. Track this for a week until you stumble upon the best possible combination of foods to help your body work most efficiently.