In Q&A No. 3, we’re tackling a new round of topics based on:

• How late is “too late” to eat food for fat loss?
• Should you be taking creatine?
• Is it dangerous to squat in shoes?

As always, if you have any questions you’d like answered in a future Q&A feel free to contact me and I’ll add it to the mix!

On to the questions…

I assume part of the reason I’m not losing weight is due to eating too much late at night. What time of day is best to eat? When should I cut off my food intake each day?

I understand the level of worry here, and thinking about structuring the way you eat is definitely the right move. But let’s start with the first part of that question.

Nothing about time of day, being awake, or being asleep impacts how much weight you gain, or how much weight you’re able to lose.

Early on in my fitness journey, eating late at night was something I worried about and avoided, too. The logic seems sound.

“I’m eating before bed, so that food is just gonna sit in my system and become fat since I’m not moving around.”

That’s not how the human body operates, though.

It’s best to think about your diet in 24-hour and weekly intervals. How many calories are you eating each day? And how many calories are you taking in over the course of a week?

I’m a huge proponent of tracking your nutrition, even if it’s just for a short period of time, to get a solid idea of how much you’re eating on a daily basis. In most cases, people have no clue how much they’re actually eating.

Thinking about your diet across 24 hours and even seven days helps to get an idea of your average daily calorie intake. Once you can get an average, losing weight is as simple as reducing your total calories each day and increasing energy expenditure (exercise).

You go through a normal routine each day. If you’re trying to lose weight, part of that routine likely involves exercise. The food that you eat each day helps fuel your body and recover from the day’s activities.

Your body is constantly trying to get to a place called “homeostasis,” so whether you’re awake or asleep it’s on that mission.

That’s why timing isn’t all that important.

Now, it IS important to acknowledge that timing can be impactful from a quality-of-sleep perspective, as well as quality of choices.

Late at night is when we as humans tend to make poorer choices with our diets. This is the time of day when you might reach for the sweets or a dessert. That’s just a fact, and the reasoning for it goes beyond the scope and focus of this article.

In addition, eating right before bed can negatively impact your sleep. Research shows that poor sleep leads to poor nutrition, so you can see how the trickle-down effect can really spiral out of control here. Ideally, you should finish your final meal 2-3 hours before bedtime, but eating closer to bed than 2-3 hours is not going to impact fat gain or loss.

If you track your food, get an understanding of your average daily calorie intake, and reduce that intake for an extended period of time, you’re going to lose weight. It doesn’t matter if it’s early in the day, in the middle, or late at night.

Focus less on timing, and more on calories, and be consistent. That’s going to get you the best results.

I work out regularly but have never experimented with creatine. I do take a preworkout, but not every time. I switch on and off with coffee. What are your thoughts on creatine?

My thoughts on creatine are plain and simple.

Take it. Three-five grams a day, every day.

Creatine is the most studied supplement on the market, and it comes with unanimous evidence of improving performance. Generally, creatine can enhance performance when repeated bouts are occurring. It helps with muscle strength and power gains and also contributes to muscle hypertrophy. There’s also evidence that it can benefit endurance training.

I wrote an article back in 2018 about what supplements you should be taking, because I don’t actually recommend people rely on supplements at all. They’re exactly what the name suggests — they’re supplementary. If you can’t get enough of something in your diet alone, then a supplement can help. Otherwise, it’s normally unnecessary.

Creatine is one of the three I recommend because of it’s effectiveness and safety. If you’re regularly training hard in the gym, you should probably take creatine.

Someone told me I shouldn’t be squatting in my shoes. Why is that? Is that a problem?

Don’t you just love when people in the gym give you unsolicited advice?

This question has a lot of layers to it. Let’s start with the basics and dig deeper.

First off, we need to define what type of squat you’re doing. If we’re talking about anything light weight, you’re probably fine squatting in whatever footwear you prefer. Things like dumbbell squats, goblet squats, dumbbell split squats, etc. are fine.

I’m going to assume this question is about heavier squats, though. So we’re talking barbell squats with your body weight or heavier. In this instance, I do think the type of footwear you use becomes increasingly more important.

Many of us have imbalances or mobility issues in our lower body. I don’t want to dive into all of those here, because this Q&A would drag on for hours. Let’s just state up front that it’s important for you to understand what your body needs to move well, and provide it with the tools to do just that.

Generally speaking, squatting heavy in running shoes or something similar is a bad idea. You wouldn’t put pillows underneath your bare feet before squatting heavy, right? Well running shoes or other footwear designed for sports often has a padded sole to help with shock absorption, so you’re essentially squatting with two small pillows underneath you.

It makes for a dangerous atmosphere to perform the movement. Instead, I’d recommend a flat-soled shoe, or even squatting in just socks.

The other option would be squat shoes with an elevated heel. Squat shoes are designed to give you a solid base from which to perform the movement. I’ve written about this topic in depth in a previous article.

Squat shoes can be expensive, though, and most people don’t need them. If you have ankle mobility issues, that’s where squat shoes can really come in handy and prove their worth. Otherwise, a flat-soled pair of shoes like Converse All Stars is a cheap and effective alternative to keep you safe and also perform the squat efficiently.

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I hope you found this Q&A helpful! Like I said at the top, if you have a question you’d like answered, contact me and I’ll add it to the mix! And if you’re interested in taking your fitness or nutrition to the next level, check out my coaching page and let’s talk about how we can work together on your next program.

Thanks for reading!

CGF