3 Meals A day &i No Snacks!? Insulin Resisting!

Toshberry25M

so I have been doing the same ol same ol 3 meals and 2 sometimes 3 snacks a day all under the 1610 cals MFP figured for me, i've been doing it for months but I have been stopping on the scale for months at a time and then it will finally budge a pound or two but always goes back. I average 158-162 pounds almost every week flunctuates back and forth... i go to the gym 4 days a week for a little over an hr and days i don't i still do cardio at home, i'm wanting to get to "138 GOAL" but this stalling is endless ... so the Moral of the story i'm trying to get at is i hear i could be insulin resistant where i spike too much insulin by eating frequently thru the day ... someone was tellin me how they don't count calories and only eat 3 times a day! (healthy foods btw) like instance Breakfast:7:30am eat until full (no counting cals) and the lunch 1:00 (until full, no cal count) and dinner 7:00(no cal count) and then repeat cycle everyday.. with normal exercise thru the week and said they shed the weight normally.. i'm so tempted but so scared to take this attempt because i have been so strict and to the point with this cal counting stuff that i'm scared if i just eat the 3 meals with no snacking in between and no counting cals that i will always maintain or even gain!? anybody do this !? any experience on if it's a good lifestyle journey to follow?! i need some tips. i've been losing weight since june 10th 2017 with no diet breaks or no eating at a maintenance cause i wanna reach my goal but keep getting stuck!!!!

andreaen

As you are active and not obese you probably do not have insulin resistance, but if you are scared that might be the case you should go get it checked by your doctor because it's a sign of prediabetes.

The reason you aren't losing fat is more likely to be that your metabolism has adapted to your calories and exercise. The only way to lose more weight is to eat less or move more. Meal timing has shown no correlation to weight loss, so this is not a factor. It might work for that person because they prefer to eat their calories in 3 meals, but if you prefer 6 there is nothing wrong with any method.

kommodevaran

If you aren't losing weight, you're not in a calorie deficit; either 1610 is your maintenance level (not likely) or you're not eating 1610 calories on average (likely). It's tempting, I know, but do NOT just assume that you're "insulin resistant". You can eat how often you like. No foods are in themselves healthy or unhealthy, either. A healthy diet is balanced and varied.

Number of meals, meal timing, and counting calories are three separate entities. Any benefit of, for instance, eating three meals per day, will not be invalidated by counting calories. You can also lose weight without counting calories. Counting calories is just a tool meant to help you eat less, consistently, and for long enough to get the desired result. To get that result, you have to use the tool(s) properly.

I eat three meals per day (and no snacks, but an occasional treat), without counting calories, and it works great for me; I'm in maintenance, but I could have lost weight this way too - in fact, I let my weight bounce around a little, but it's easy to gain weight, so to lose again, I have to be more strict on the treats.

You can be sure that you haven't been strict and to the point with calorie counting, or else, you'd have still lost weight. Unless you're strict and to the point throughout the whole process (weighing, picking genuine database entries, logging the amount you actually ingest, and hit your calorie target every day), and all the time (no cheating, no rewarding losses or gym sessions, or drowning disappointments over stalls, in food), you're not using the tools correctly.

Three meals a day was the norm when normal weight was the norm, it's not dangerous, but healthy, for healthy adults. If you want to "formalize" three meals a day, look into "The No S Diet".

psychod787

I seriously doubt you are insulin resistant that bad. We all have some insulin resistance, as we age so does the pancreas. I am guessing you have lost weight? well thats the first step to slow resistance down, Second, control calories. Third, resistance train! Insulin rises in response to eating, yes, but only to the size of the meal. Bigger meal, stays up longer. Smaller meal, less. If you are worried about diabetes, go to CVS, Walgreens... ect, buy a cheap glucometer and check fasted in the AM. If you are getting fasted readings above 110 multiple times. Then go to md for better testing.

nvmomketo

My guess is that you are just eating too much, either you need to eat less than 1600 C or you are actually eating more than that (if you aren't weighing your food).

I have IR. To lower insulin, the main way to reduce insulin is to eat fewer carbs, and protein to a much lesser degree.

To know if you have IR, use a glucometre. Test your fasting BG, then test it 30, 60, 90, and 120 minutes after eating. If it ever goes too high (rising more than 30-40) you may have some IR.

You can also request blood insulin tests. Best yet, get insulin tested along with an OGTT.

bfanny

Lower your cals say by 100 IF you are sure that your tracking is 100% accurate and see what happens...Eat as many meals as you want/need, I honestly don’t think that’ll make a difference except it could be a bad idea if you let yourself get too hungry

psychod787

nvmomketo wrote: »

My guess is that you are just eating too much, either you need to eat less than 1600 C or you are actually eating more than that (if you aren't weighing your food).

I have IR. To lower insulin, the main way to reduce insulin is to eat fewer carbs, and protein to a much lesser degree.

To know if you have IR, use a glucometre. Test your fasting BG, then test it 30, 60, 90, and 120 minutes after eating. If it ever goes too high (rising more than 30-40) you may have some IR.

You can also request blood insulin tests. Best yet, get insulin tested along with an OGTT.

https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/diabetes/overview/what-is-diabetes/prediabetes-insulin-resistance

https://www.healthline.com/health/diabetes/insulin-resistance-diet

sschauer513

I am insulin resistant and the number of meals per day doesn't matter, the type of meal matters a lot, heavy carbs spike sugar very fast but drop off just as fast leading to hunger and then the cycle repeats. And if you are basically diabetic get to the doctor ASAP medicine controls it rather well. But even if I spike sugar if I'm in calorie deficit I lose weight.

psychod787

sschauer513 wrote: »

I am insulin resistant and the number of meals per day doesn't matter, the type of meal matters a lot, heavy carbs spike sugar very fast but drop off just as fast leading to hunger and then the cycle repeats. And if you are basically diabetic get to the doctor ASAP medicine controls it rather well. But even if I spike sugar if I'm in calorie deficit I lose weight.

I at one time had an A!C of 6.3 and FBG of 339. I can barely get my bs to spike over 116 these days after a "heavier" carb meal. At 45 mins post meal. 50g carbs, 25g pro,10g fat, bs at 94. 45mins is susposed to be peak glucose time, correct?

nvmomketo

psychod787 wrote: »

sschauer513 wrote: »

I am insulin resistant and the number of meals per day doesn't matter, the type of meal matters a lot, heavy carbs spike sugar very fast but drop off just as fast leading to hunger and then the cycle repeats. And if you are basically diabetic get to the doctor ASAP medicine controls it rather well. But even if I spike sugar if I'm in calorie deficit I lose weight.

I at one time had an A!C of 6.3 and FBG of 339. I can barely get my bs to spike over 116 these days after a "heavier" carb meal. At 45 mins post meal. 50g carbs, 25g pro,10g fat, bs at 94. 45mins is susposed to be peak glucose time, correct?

Congratulations on your success. Your approach worked well for you. There will be a lot of variation between people though. My IR came about when I was a normal BMI, following a high carb low fat approach, and fairly active without a strong family history of diabetes. For me, low carb, with slightly less snacking, was the way to go... It was all I really had to work with. LOL