Anyone not do small frequent meals??

[annemiekeclark]

Hi,

I am feeling so burnt out on eating little and often. Can't do it anymore, for a while at least. Does anyone have success eating 3-4 well balanced meals a day? If so do you have to eat less calories/day to compensate for a lower thermogenic effect of food?

All week I have been eating when I am hungry and stopping when I am full and I eat less calories this way. I was a stuffer before I started eating frequently and often so I feel that I have learned some valuable lessons but wonder if it is better to eat a more natural way for my body/personality.

Interested to hear your feedback.

Mieke

[annemiekeclark]

I should add that my goal is to lose BF while maintaining LBM.

thanks

mieke

[Im Your Man]

Hi,

I am feeling so burnt out on eating little and often. Can't do it anymore, for a while at least. Does anyone have success eating 3-4 well balanced meals a day? If so do you have to eat less calories/day to compensate for a lower thermogenic effect of food?

All week I have been eating when I am hungry and stopping when I am full and I eat less calories this way. I was a stuffer before I started eating frequently and often so I feel that I have learned some valuable lessons but wonder if it is better to eat a more natural way for my body/personality.

Interested to hear your feedback.

Mieke

Yes you should "eat a more natural way for (your) body/personality." That's what I do, but we're always kind of changing too so for a certain period of time I might eat frequently; these days I'm eating 3-4 big meals/day. I have lots of energy except right after eating a huge meal, kidney monopolizes all the blood, draining the nervous system and the rest of the body, sometimes I fall asleep after this. -

-

-To lose weight, most people will tell you frequent small meals are better. But of course you can still lose weight with 3 big meals instead, it's the total daily/weekly calories that counts and activity level.

[Zack]

I can't stand the 5/6 meal a day stuff.

[offense74]

I love eating loads of food so I fewer, bigger meals is more appealing to me. The reason why you should eat often is that it boosts metabolism somewhat. However, I'm not sure it's healthy to do that.

[cubby2112]

I used to do the 5-6 meals a day thing until very recently. I got tired of it and prefer to eat larger meals with more variety. I do 3-4 now. I feel satisfied on fewer calories.

 

@ what Offense74 said: I am sure this is what you are talking about with more meals possibly not being as healthy. There is evidence that a few meals a day without snacking (intermittent fasting) may give almost as much benefit to longevity and disease fighting as caloric restriction.

[Karmacharger]

I'm also trying to lose body fat and have been successful in slowly dropping weight by eating three meals a day. They are usually very balanced and well-planned. If I feel hungry in between, I will have a small snack.

 

My acupuncturist once told me that eating 5 to 6 small meals a day doesn't give your organs a chance to rest (which is also why some people suggest not eating within three hours of bed time).

 

I actually feel like I have more energy since I stopped eating frequently. It felt counter-intuitive and annoying to always have to think about food. I also wasn't hungry for all that I was trying to eat...

 

The only way you'll know is by trying it out and seeing what works best for you.

 

Good luck!

[GRardB]

It's hard for me to eat 5-6 small meals a day, AND to eat 3 large meals a day. I feel like I do better on 5-6 large meals a day lmao. Then again, I'm 17. Although I'm not very good at keeping fat off me, so I try not to eat too much.

 

I say do what makes your body feel the best.

[xjohanx]

i can't stand being without 5-6 meals per day. i started studying just recently and things is stressed out.

now i eat three big meals and eat snacks (fruits, nuts n veggies) inbetween but i'm still starving.

[sophierhymes]

It's been a while since I posted on here, but I couldn't resist this one. I tried the 5-6 meal/day thing for a few months and it just didn't work for me. I actually found myself hungrier and less satisfied than I am with 3 substantial meals and a snack. There was also a psychological side to it for me. I felt so much pressure to make sure I had all my meals packed and planned for the day and became quite stressful. Because I was eating so often, I felt like a pig even though I really wasn't eating any more than I do now. I'm sure there are plenty of benefits to eating 5-6 times per day for people that are looking to gain lean mass, and while that is a goal for me, I'm not going to sacrifice my mental well-being to reach that goal.

[nobita]

i love to do small frequent meals, I feel healthier.

 

I dont want to go back to 2-3 meals per day...

eating is healthy

 

Doing frequent meals is like taking care of your beloved tamagotchi