Skipping Dinner? Accelerate weight loss

Nony_Mouse

abel_teklai wrote: »

i feel like when I eat 3 meals a day I am so close to going over my calorie goal...And many times I have. I heard skipping dinner is a good way to put your body in fat burning mode, since our ancestors where constantly in either periods of feast or famine. I feel like I can afford to skip dinner and get most of my nutritional needs from breakfast lunch and protein powder + a couple snacks. Thoughts?

Um, no.

Whitezombiegirl wrote: »

jgnatca wrote: »

Our ancestors also didn't live very long.

There will have been an increased mortality rate from infections and accidents, childbirth etc. compared to survival rates with modern medicines- not sure what that's got to do with nutrition though.

Even accounting for that, life expectancy was pretty abysmal. And yes, some of that would have been because of nutrition.

Signed, Archaeologist

(but, get your calorie intake however and whenever you want )

abel_teklai

Ok good info, thanks guys!!

slideaway1

abel_teklai wrote: »

Thanks for all the input. Sometimes for me it is inconvenient to have dinner on weekdays since I workout after work and don't get a chance to eat till 9 or 10...And also I have big lunches and maybe need to budget my calories better so it'll make sense to have dinner. But like today for example, I was already 50 calls under my goal after having an afternoon snack of nuts and my protein powder..So I'm skipping dinner tonight so I don't go over. On the weekends when having dinner is more reasonable I'll most likely have it. Also, does eating late at night contribute to weight gain or is that a myth??

That's pretty much how it works for weight gain. If you are close to you daily calorie budget early on in the day (Had a big breakfast/lunch etc) then you have to limit yourself in the evening so as not to go over, unless you exercise to gain a few more calories back. The odd day here and there will not hurt, but if it becomes a habit, slowly weight will creep on. For this reason, I do not really eat that much in the day (prob 500 cals) and eat a huge dinner of an evening (about 2000 cals) that I really look forward too .

clipartghost

sijomial wrote: »

Eat in whatever pattern suits your lifestyle and makes it easier to adhere to your calorie and other goals.

You don't have to do anything special to put yourself in "fat burning mode". It's happening several times a day without any intervention required - as soon as you have finished digesting your last meal you are using your energy reserves.

Well worth experimenting with different eating styles. Have a look at the Leangains site if you feel the eating window style of IF may work for you.
I do a different version of IF (5:2) and it made weight loss much easier for me compared to more regular ways of eating at a daily or weekly deficit.

Obviously calorie deficit is the crucial thing for weight loss but the way you eat can make a big difference in terms of ease of adherence for some people.

Great advice. I do currently eat 2 meals per day (and I'm gaining, not losing) but that's just because it's more convenient for my lifestyle and I enjoy it more.

ahoy_m8

Know what you mean, OP. I used to get so uptight on Mondays because I didn't get home until 9-ish, and I dislike eating that late. Plus I was often ravenous by then and would get overly worked up about traffic. Then I decided dinners on Mondays were maybe overrated for me, and I went to an IF plan. I was so much happier and relaxed. That's not my schedule now, but it really worked for me then.