Are we keeping this group going? Calories consumed/time of day question!

WicklowWanderer

Hey folks, just wondering if anyone has experimented with the time of day in which they consume the bulk of their calories? I was having moderately good success spreading out my intake throughout the day but I recently came across research in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition where the data indicate that consuming the bulk of your calories in the morning will yield much better weight loss results. I've been managing just fine with my 1200 a day, consuming around 250 of that for breakfast currently. According to this research, I should be aiming closer to 70% of my daily total breakfast! Not sure I could actually manage that first thing myself (supplementing my protein Nutribullet with some almond butter wholegrain toast maybe?)but would be curious to see if anyone is doing something similar and the results they've seen.

The research is summarised nicely here

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/weight-loss/best-times-to-eat

aamundsoncpa

That article rings true for me most of the time. The days I eat/graze throughout the morning, then have a 400-450 calorie lunch, I don't seem as hungry in the afternoon. If I can just eat a healthy salad for dinner (and skip the ice cream for dessert), the scale is my friend.

ewoksrule3

My guess is that it probably depends on whether you're able to keep your calories lower in the evening or not....if you can successfully do so, then this is probably true. But I know me, and evenings are when I'm hungry and want to snack! If I eat a lot for breakfast or lunch and don't leave enough calories to eat what I consider a "comfortable" amount in the evening, I tend to end up binging in the evening and going WAY over, because "I can't make the goal anyway". I'm sure a lot depends on people's natural tendency to be hungry at different times of day, and if they have other problems like binging, etc. I know I personally don't do well if I use up a lot of my calories too early in the day! Likely that is a mental thing, and not proof or disproof of this study, I just know it wouldn't be a good idea for me to try, knowing how I tend to go way overboard if I have too few calories left by dinner/evening.

MicheleStitches

Actually, I (and many others) have found success doing EXACTLY the opposite! I am practicing intermittent fasting and I don't eat anything in the morning. In fact, most days I don't eat until around 1:00 p.m. I workout fasted and have found that to work really well for me.

That being said, I think you should use whatever tool helps you to stick to your plan!

WicklowWanderer

I started off with the intermittent fasting but found it wasn't working for me. I had no problem going long periods with nothing and then going very low calorie but I wasn't seeing any loss despite the huge deficits. Once I stuck to the 1200 daily, with a 200 cal breakfast protein shake, the weight started to shift and I was on my way. I may experiment with boosting breakfast to 400 and see how I feel mid morning.

Alex_or_Ben

Interesting note about eating 70% of your daily meals in the morning. I've been trying to have a more hearty breakfast in the morning and it worked very well for me today.