Don't Eat Carbs Before Bed
Once again, this is a misinterpretation of studying improper dieting practices of regular people and then applying it to athletes and active people. The original premise was based on the fact that many North Americans skip breakfast, eat a sparse lunch, and then get home and eat ravenously till bedtime.
Athletes do not eat this way. Also, there was some research that suggests that the overnight GH output was thwarted by carb intake before bed.
Much is missed with such assumptions. For one thing, once again there is no predisposition to store fat from any energy source in a calorie-controlled situation. Once fat burning metabolism has been established and calories are balanced throughout the day, then carbs before bed or at night can be a good thing.
I've followed this eating pattern for 20 years now. Ask any pre-contest athletes what one of the worst parts of prep is and they'll surely tell you it's the insomnia related to a low-calorie biological needs state. Understanding neurotransmitters goes a long way to a remedy for this situation. Many low carb dieters get weak willed and binge eat at night simply because of a lack of understanding of the above information and body processes. Or they could just be getting bad diet strategy advice.
The neurotransmitters in the brain central to this concern are from the catecholamine family such as dopamine, and more importantly serotonin. Serotonin in particular plays a crucial role in eating, sleeping and abiding natural circadian rhythms.
Having some carbohydrates at the last meal of the day will go a long way to regulating serotonin output to induce sleep, especially in a fatigued state.