Written by Garett Reid | NSCA, CSCS, CISSN, M.S.E.S.S
Fact checked by Andrew Lenau, ISSA CPT & Sports Nutritionist
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Since you're not doing anything else while sleeping, you might as well try to lose weight while catching some z's, right?
Traditionally, weight loss is thought of as a waking man's game, as most factors for weight loss involve things like eating healthy food and exercising. However, nighttime fat burners are designed to help you lose weight while sleeping, often containing non-stimulant ingredients and even those that support a better night's sleep.
So, this leads to the question: Do nighttime fat burners actually work?
That's exactly what we're going to answer in this article, as we explore what they are, how they work, whether they actually work, and the best nighttime fat burning ingredients and products.
What Are Nighttime Fat Burners?
Nighttime fat burners are formulated to increase your metabolism, stimulate lipolysis, elevate thermogenesis, and help burn fat as you sleep.
A nighttime fat burner does this by working with your body's natural sleep rhythms so as not to disrupt your sleep as you burn fat. In fact, many nighttime fat burners include compounds that help induce sleep.
Do Night Time Fat Burners Work?
There haven't been many (or any) studies done on the efficacy of nighttime fat burners, to our knowledge. While we could just look at the daytime fat burner supplements, these aren't the same, and in general, there are limited studies on non-stimulant fat burner pills. This means the best thing we can do is look at individual ingredients.
Carnitine is a popular ingredient used in stimulant-free fat burner pills, as well as nighttime fat burners. A meta-analysis from 2020 found that L-carnitine does help decrease body weight, but this resulted in no change to their BMI or body fat percentage¹.
One thing to keep in mind when considering a nighttime fat burner is one of the primary mechanisms of a fat burner is appetite suppression. During the day, a fat burner works as an appetite suppressant, and various compounds will effectively reduce a person's appetite, decreasing the total amount of calories you consume.
This is actually a major mechanism in which daytime fat burners work, as fewer calories eaten, result in more weight loss. You don't get this benefit with a nighttime fat burner, as most of us don't eat when sleeping.
However, if the evening is the time of day in which you over-eat, taking a nighttime fat burner can be beneficial in suppressing your appetite, and helping you resist the urge to reach for that late-night snack. It's also on our list of easiest ways to burn fat while you sleep!
How Do Nighttime Fat Burners Work?
It's impossible to answer this question with a blanket statement, as different fat-burning supplements use distinct compounds with various mechanisms.
That said, there are some general goals that nighttime fat burners have. Nighttime fat burners work by:
- Increasing metabolism & improving metabolic health
- Burning fat
- Helping induce sleep
- Increasing relaxation
- Improving the body's ability to breakdown fats and carbs
- Decreasing appetite, which prevents weight gain
Why Take Nighttime Fat Burners?
A nighttime fat burner is a good option for anyone looking to lose weight who either doesn't respond well to stimulants or wants a supplement that supports better sleep.
It could also be great for someone who doesn't like stimulants and wants to sleep better at night, all while supporting their weight loss goals.
Take Mav Nutrition Nighttime Fat Burner, for example. Containing ingredients such as l-theanine, l-tryptophan, melatonin, green coffee bean extract, and white kidney bean extract, it's designed to support fat burning while including ingredients that support a good night's sleep.
How To Tell It's a Nighttime Fat Burner
There are two main variables that are likely present if it's a nighttime fat burner. Factors to look for include:
- It Is Stimulant Free: The first variable that must be present, or what must not be present, is stimulants. Nighttime fat burner supplements should be stimulant free as if it contains stimulants, it's going to be difficult to encourage a restful night's sleep. Even if it advertises itself as a nighttime fat burner, make sure it's void of ingredients like caffeine and green tea extract.
- It Contains Sleep Aids: A big giveaway is going to be the inclusion of sleep aids. Look for ingredients like melatonin and 5-HTP, which support healthy sleep cycles.
Best Nighttime Fat Burning Ingredients
There are a ton of ingredients in nighttime fat burners. Therefore, it's impossible (well, not impossible, but we're not going to do it here) to list all of them. However, we will list some that you may be interested in when looking for an effective nighttime fat burner.
- Choline: Choline is a popular ingredient for fat loss and is included in many nighttime fat burners. A study from 2014 found choline was effective in helping fat loss in female athletes. It has other benefits as well, such as it supports heart health and improved cognition².
- B Vitamins: Multiple B vitamins are used in numerous nighttime fat burner supplements. They support metabolism and energy conversion, contain antioxidants, and improve carbohydrate and fat metabolism. B vitamins are always a plus and bring a ton of benefits.
- Garcinia Cambogia: Garcinia cambogia is a popular compound used for weight loss. Multiple studies have shown that it is effective in supporting weight loss, appetite reduction, and lowering body fat percentage 3,4. Further, garcinia cambogia has also been shown to improve triglycerides, glucose metabolism, and increased lipogenesis, which is the breakdown of fat.
- 5-HTP: 5-HTP is a derivative of tryptophan that's used to help promote sleep and reduce cravings. There are several positive studies for 5-HTP that back up this claim. For example, one study looked at the effect that 100mg of 5-HTP had on the sleep quality of older adults⁴. Results showed the participants who took 5-HTP fell asleep faster and had a better quality of sleep.
- GABA: GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is a fairly popular compound that's used to help alleviate stress and improve sleep. While GABA has decent reviews anecdotally, studies are unclear about its true efficacy⁵. That said, it's very popular, and many people claim to get a good night's sleep.
Benefits of Nighttime Fat Burners
Why take a nighttime fat burner? Here are some of the top reasons to consider taking one.
1) Burn Calories As You Sleep:
The most obvious reason someone may take a nighttime fat burner is to burn additional calories when sleeping.
Who wouldn't want to do that? Interestingly, fat burners made for nighttime are specifically formulated to maximize fat loss and fat burn as you sleep by working with your sleep cycle.
Obviously, if a night time fat burner can help your body burn fat as you rest, that would be a huuuuuge benefit.
2) Decreases Nighttime Cravings:
Many nighttime fat burning supplements advertise that they can suppress appetite and decrease cravings.
This could be beneficial if nighttime cravings and hunger are an issue for you. Remember, mitigating appetite is a huge factor that leads to the success of fat burners.
3) Improves The Quality Of Your Sleep:
This benefit is largely due to the inclusion of sleep aids rather than any of the fat-loss ingredients.
But fat burners including sleep aids are a huge benefit as sleep deprivation is a major contributor to unwanted fat gain. In addition, more sleep is great for workout recovery.
Numerous studies have found that lack of sleep, or poor quality sleep, is associated with unwanted fat gain, more calories consumed, less activity, and poor nutrition choices.
In other words, getting better sleep is likely the fix you need if you have bad sleep habits and recently gained weight.
Drawbacks of Night Time Fat Burners
As you could have guessed, there are some general drawbacks to using nighttime fat burners and fat burners. Here are two things to consider when determining if you should use a nighttime fat burner.
1) It May Interfere With A Good Night's Sleep:
Just as some nighttime fat burners help promote sleep, others may worsen your sleep. It's important to always read the ingredients list, as some nighttime supplements may still contain caffeine to aid in weight loss.
Even if it's a small amount, we can't imagine why you would want to take a psychoactive stimulant before you try to sleep. Quality sleep will always outweigh a slight metabolism boost, and it's known that sleep deprivation is directly related to obesity and overeating.
The best idea is to confirm your nighttime fat burner does not have stimulants before taking it.
2) It Doesn't Suppress Your Daytime Appetite:
The primary problem with relying on your metabolism for weight loss is that its impact is minimal compared to the total amount of calories you eat during the day.
The main component of weight loss doesn't necessarily come from burning calories; rather, it's not eating calories.
This means that unless you're a chronic sleep eater, this isn't really going to make any major changes to your lifestyle that support sustained long-term weight loss. On the other hand, if you're major vice is late-night snacking, they could be a huge help.
Who Should & Shouldn't Take Nighttime Fat Burners?
Those who already have good fitness and dietary habits in place are the best candidates for a nighttime fat burner supplement.
While nighttime fat burners offer benefits, it's important to remember that if you aren't exercising and following a healthy diet, it's going to be difficult to maintain your weight loss in the long term. This means that overweight and obese women and men should first prioritize losing weight through exercise and diet, and then use a nighttime fat burner as icing on their weight loss cake.
If you don't have a healthy lifestyle in check, you likely won't see as many benefits (and certainly none in the long term) from a nighttime fat burner. Concentrate on fixing your diet, exercising, and prioritizing sleep first.
Nighttime fat-burning supplements will have no effect on those running on 4 hours of sleep and processed foods.
What Are The Best Nighttime Fat Burners?
Our top nighttime fat-burning supplement recommendation is PhenQ PM, which is the nighttime version of one of the more popular daytime fat burner pills, PhenQ.
What makes PhenQ PM unique is that it, along with two other versions, is the company's sole product. In other words, the company is solely concerned with making the best nighttime fat burner they can.
There are a dozen research-backed ingredients in every PhenQ PM capsule, many of which we included in our discussion of the best nighttime fat burner ingredients.
PhenQ PM is a natural weight regulating formula that optimizes all 3 stages of night-time fat-burning — so you can melt excess pounds, crush hunger cravings, and reboot your metabolism — all while you sleep...
Another great option is T6 STAR6URN-PM, as it helps relax you, leading to better quality sleep with ingredients like ashwagandha and melatonin. In addition, it has some proven fat-burning ingredients such as garcinia cambogia.
For some other great picks, check out our article on the 9 Best Nighttime Fat Burners!
Nighttime Fat Burners: Final Takeaways
On a regular basis, you can expect to see a new dietary supplement enter the market that promises to burn fat easily. It's important that you don't get caught up in the marketing that most nighttime fat burners promote, as it's just that: marketing.
This means that while fat burners do support weight loss, they won't help if you aren't correcting your diet and exercise habits.
Alternatively, if you've got those in check and want a fat burner to boost your results while helping you sleep, a nighttime fat burner may just what you're looking for.
If after reading this, nighttime fat burners are right for you, check out our article on the 9 Best Nighttime Fat Burners! Or, if you'd prefer a daytime version that includes stimulants, take a look at the Best Fat Burners For Men and the Best Fat Burning Supplements For Women.
References:
- Talenezhad, N., Mohammadi, M., Ramezani-Jolfaie, N., Mozaffari-Khosravi, H., & Salehi-Abargouei, A. (2020). Effects of l-carnitine supplementation on weight loss and body composition: A systematic review and meta-analysis of 37 randomized controlled clinical trials with dose-response analysis. Clinical nutrition ESPEN. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2020.03.008
- Elsawy G, Abdelrahman O, Hamza A. Effect of choline supplementation on rapid weight loss and biochemical variables among female taekwondo and judo athletes. J Hum Kinet. 2014;40:77-82. Published 2014 Apr 9. doi:10.2478/hukin-2014-0009
- Fassina P, Scherer Adami F, Zani V, et al. The effect of Garcinia Cambogia as coadjuvant in the weight loss process. Nutr Hosp. 2015;32(6):2400-2408. doi:https://doi.org/10.3305/nh.2015.32.6.9587
- Sutanto C, Heng CW, Gan AX, Wang X, Fam J, Kim JE. The Impact of 5-Hydroxytryptophan Supplementation on Sleep Quality of Older Adults in Singapore: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Curr Dev Nutr. 2021;5(Suppl 2):372. Published 2021 Jun 7. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzab037_082
- Hepsomali, P., Groeger, J. A., Nishihira, J., & Scholey, A. (2020). Effects of Oral Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) Administration on Stress and Sleep in Humans: A Systematic Review. Frontiers in neuroscience, 14, 923. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.00923
Garett Reid
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