What / when to eat when having to train late in evening?

[numbersix]

Hi guys,

I've been training for just over a year now. I'm reasonably happy with the way I've put on muscle but I'm becoming a little bit concerned about the excess fat that I'm putting on around my middle.

I think that the main problem is when I eat: it's often late at night because I can only train after work (8-8:30pm), so by the time I'm getting home and eating a post-workout meal it can be 10:30 or even 11 pm.

I had been thinking of having my evening meal before going to the gym and then having maybe just a protein shake and a sandwich after working out but I'm not sure if this will be enough after a hard couple of hours in the gym.

Do you have any suggestions about how I can make sure that I'm feeding my muscles enough to grow without having too much of what I eat just before bed ending up around my waist?

Thanks in advance!

[VikingWarlord]

A hard couple of hours in the gym? How long are your training sessions?

Get something with a high bioavailability (think whey) immediately after you're done training. Add some dextrose to it to assist in delivery. When I say immediately, I mean like within a half hour after your last rep. Shower, change, have some more food.

Fat gain is more about how much you eat than when you eat. If you're gaining more fat than you'd like, decrease your total daily intake. It's that simple.

[Trainwreck]

I had been thinking of having my evening meal before going to the gym and then having maybe just a protein shake and a sandwich after working out but I'm not sure if this will be enough after a hard couple of hours in the gym.


As long as you get good amount of quality protein after your workout it'll be fine, if you think that having a shake will be enough then problem solved.
Eating shortly before bed is good though, keeps your body in an anabolic state for a good part of your sleep.

[VikingWarlord]

Eating shortly before bed is good though, keeps your body in an anabolic state for a good part of your sleep.

Depends what you eat. Avoid a lot of sugars since they'll raise your insulin while you sleep. This can promote fat storage.

[Sensei]

I usually eat dinner around 7pm, train at 9pm, and have whey+milk before I get ready for the sack.

If I was trying to gain weight, I'd probably have another full-blown meal and/or a big shake (whey, milk + yummies) after training.

[Unreal]

Overall daily calories is what is going to lead to gain. I normally eat about 500-600 cals before I train and about 2000-2500 after, most of which is right before bed. As long as the daily calories is less then what I burn I lose weight. If your packing on too much fat then reduce your overall calories.