Carbs at night: Does it cause fat gain?

The role carbs play are often misunderstood in regards to how it changes our body composition. I shake my head every time I hear a personal trainer give misinformed advice about the significance of eating carbohydrates at night. The reduction of your overall calories by eating less carbs is the main contributing factor to your physique changing. The timing of your carb consumption plays a much smaller role in fat-loss/gain than you might think.
Myth – Eating carbs at night makes you fat
The myth suggests that it’s harder to use carbs as fuel at night because your metabolism slows down when you sleep. So any carbs that you do eat late in the evening will simply be converted to body fat.
The science
Our body uses energy in a variety of ways. Our resting metabolic rate (RMR) is the energy needed to make sure everything functions properly internally. About half of all daily energy expenditure is for our RMR. Our RMR still uses up a lot of calories whether or not we are active.
The energy we use for exercise is called the exercise activity thermogenesis (EAT). The energy we expend for all other physical activity is called our non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). Energy is also expended on the thermic effect of food (TEF) but in smaller quantities than the other processes. Protein has the highest TEF so that’s one of the reasons why higher protein diets are great during a fat-loss phase.
Dispelling the myth
The myth suggests that our RMR would decrease when we sleep because our expenditure is lower than during the day. We won’t be exercising or doing any other activity when we’re sleeping (unless you sleepwalk!) so our EAT and NEAT do not need to be considered in depth here. Studies have found that our RMR is not significantly different when we sleep than during the day. This would mean that eating carbs at night will not cause an increase of fat gain compared to if you eat those same carbs throughout the day. The main cause of body composition changes is the total daily caloric intake. Staying in a daily calorie deficit (eating less than your maintenance calories) will result in fat-loss over time regardless of the timing of your carb consumption. On the flip side, if you eat in a calorie surplus you will still gain weight even if you refrain from eating carbs at night.
This may surprise you but dietary carbs are not easily converted to body fat. They are used as glycogen in our muscles, liver, and are our primary source of energy. Carbs can contribute to fat gain by suppressing fat oxidation when we eat in a surplus. We are then less likely to use our existing fat stores as energy and we then store the dietary fat we consume as body fat. This only becomes an issue if we overeat.
When it comes to fat-loss and meal timings you want to choose a method that helps you stick to your calorie and macro nutrient targets the most. I personally like to eat 5 smaller meals a day amounting to my total caloric needs. I find this suppresses my appetite the most effectively. If you don’t feel hungry in the morning but usually get hungrier as the day wears on, you might want to consider fasting in the AM and then saving your calories for later in the day. This way you can eat larger meals without exceeding your daily food target. Your body is not a fat storage machine at night so there’s no need to treat it like one!
Read up on our previous blogs here
Written by Coach Rishi Haria
Share it!
More from the blog

How To Find The Right Group Fitness or Personal Training Class For You
How To Find The Right Group Fitness or Personal Training Class For You Group fitness and small group personal training classes are becoming ever more popular amongst boutique fitness studios and commercial gyms. If you are enthusiastic to join a studio, it can often feel a little overwhelming to know which type of workout will…

Black Friday Special Offers – Save Up to 50%
One Day Only! 26 November 2021. BLACK FRIDAY SPECIAL OFFERS – SAVE UP TO 50%.

Gyms Re-opening in Bangkok
Gyms are re-opening in Bangkok and The LAB is back! The LAB will re-open this Friday! PT & Small Group Private Training can be booked NOW with your trainer or contact us to purchase a new package. To celebrate our re-opening, we will be offering 3 massive promotions on our most popular services with HUGE…

What to look for when considering personal training in Bangkok.
What to look for when considering personal training in Bangkok. The fitness industry is a rapidly growing market, and it’s no surprise that more people are looking for the right personal trainer to help them reach their fitness goals. Whether you’re looking for a personal trainer in Bangkok or elsewhere, it can be difficult to…

Best gyms in Bangkok
Best gyms in Bangkok from 24 hour fitness facilities to high end boutique studios, these are the top 10 best gyms in Bangkok to get your sweat on! There are a number of factors that people consider when looking for the best gyms in Bangkok. Some considerations are proximity to work, cost, and location. There…

How much rest should I be taking between my workouts?
Yo Coach Rich! ????????♀️ How much rest should I be taking between my workouts? First of all; I’m stoked with the fact that you are training so frequently and consistently that you are thinking about the next workout, so good for you! Along with regular exercise and eating nutrient rich food, recovery plays just as…