I've heard that you shouldn't eat carbs after 4:00 p.m. if you want to lose weight. Is this true?

ANSWER:

First of all, carbohydrates do not make you fat; excess calories make you fat.Carbohydrates are often associated with weight gain since a lot of them are processed. Unlike unprocessed carbs, the processed kind don’t make you feel full, which consequently makes you more likely to overeat. For example, whole-grain bread and white bread have the same amount of calories, but whole-grain bread is more filling -- and it makes you feel satisfied longer. What you want to do is eat in moderation overall, regardless of what part of the day it is.

So, trendy low-carb diets aside, not eating carbs after 4:00 p.m. really isn’t effective weight loss advice. Weight loss and weight gain basically come down to calories in versus calories out; if you eat more calories than your body burns in a given day, you will gain weight -- and if your body burns more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. With this in mind, a well-balanced diet that includes vegetables, fruit, lean meats, whole grains and healthy fats can generally be eaten well past 4:00 p.m. without it sinking your weight loss goals. As long as you’re consuming fewer calories than you’re burning, you will still lose weight.