Should I eat breakfast?

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Replies

  • whitpauly
    whitpauly Posts: 1,483 Member
    poisonesse wrote: »
    I think it's a personal option. Me? I have to eat within an hour of waking or I get nauseous. I'm one of those " fill the tank before you take a trip" kind of people. But for those that don't feel hungry, I'd say eat when you DO feel hunger creeping up on you. However, I wouldn't suggest not eating just to save calories for the rest of the day... as others have said, listen to your body! Whatever time you eat, your first meal of the day is "breakfast" because you're breaking your overnight fast. ;)

    I'm the same🙋
  • RCPV
    RCPV Posts: 342 Member
    I've never been able to eat breakfast. As a child, it made me physically sick. As an adult, I'd have to force myself. I just have coffee or tea and I'm fine until around 12 noon. I make up my calories at lunch and dinner. I exercise in the morning and have never had a problem. I think each person has to determine for themselves what is best for them and then just take what everyone else as to say about it with a grain of salt. People mean to be kind - they think if it works for them, it should work for everyone else.
  • yelliezx
    yelliezx Posts: 633 Member
    I only eat breakfast sometimes on the weekends - never during the week. I used to get a lot of flack for it because "breakfast is the most important meal of the day" and "omgz it'll slow down your metabolism if you don't eat breakfast" but I'd rather save my calories for a good snack after dinner. And I've lost over 31lbs so far so it works for me!
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,002 Member
    Personal preference...
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    kcmcbee wrote: »
    Almost everything I have read for the past several months encourage eating breakfast. For weight loss related or for other reasons. So I’m stumped somewhat about the overwhelming votes for no need for breakfast comments here.

    @kcmcbee
    And were these articles aimed at calorie counters / calorie aware people?
    Or were they aimed at the general population who might, just might, eat less over the course of a day if they eat at a traditional breakfast time?
    Context matters.

    As does personal experience and choices made based on that experience.
    If I wish to gain weight I know that eating breakfast is likely to help me achieve that.
    Conversely if I wish to lose weight I know skipping breakfast personally is an easy way for me to achieve that with no negative consequences.
    I also know if I'm cycling for many hours then a breakfast is useful.
  • kcmcbee
    kcmcbee Posts: 179 Member
    @sijomial
    Here’s a light one from mfp blog just yesterday.
    https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/10-most-popular-breakfast-recipes-of-2019/

    Other ones on webmd etc. mostly all seem along the same line as this one.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    kcmcbee wrote: »
    Here’s a light one from mfp blog just yesterday.
    https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/10-most-popular-breakfast-recipes-of-2019/

    Other ones on webmd etc. mostly all seem along the same line as this one.

    What an awful article!
    Sadly typical of MFP blogs.....

    Yes eating boosts your metabolism - but of course eating means calories.
    Gaining weight is a sure fire way to boost your metabolism!

    Serious advice - whenever "metabolism boost" is mentioned in blogs or magazine articles but not explained or quantified put on your cynical reading glasses and raise one eyebrow!
    What eating at "breakfast time" as opposed to other times of day doesn't do is boost your metabolism more if overall food intake is the same - it's the quantity of food, not the timing.

    How does eating fibre or protein first thing in the morning boost your daily intake unless you eat more food over the course of a day?

    Some of those recipes sound tasty and nutritious but that's from the food and not when it's eaten. Those calories count just the same whether you eat on waking or later in the day.
    Eat this "special food" to help weight loss is missing the point entirely.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,204 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    kcmcbee wrote: »
    Here’s a light one from mfp blog just yesterday.
    https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/10-most-popular-breakfast-recipes-of-2019/

    Other ones on webmd etc. mostly all seem along the same line as this one.

    What an awful article!
    Sadly typical of MFP blogs.....

    Yes eating boosts your metabolism - but of course eating means calories.
    Gaining weight is a sure fire way to boost your metabolism!

    Serious advice - whenever "metabolism boost" is mentioned in blogs or magazine articles but not explained or quantified put on your cynical reading glasses and raise one eyebrow!
    What eating at "breakfast time" as opposed to other times of day doesn't do is boost your metabolism more if overall food intake is the same - it's the quantity of food, not the timing.

    How does eating fibre or protein first thing in the morning boost your daily intake unless you eat more food over the course of a day?

    Some of those recipes sound tasty and nutritious but that's from the food and not when it's eaten. Those calories count just the same whether you eat on waking or later in the day.
    Eat this "special food" to help weight loss is missing the point entirely.

    Since the statement was this:
    Starting your morning with a well-balanced breakfast helps increase your fiber and protein intake, which can help boost metabolism and aid weight loss.

    I suspect this is an example of over-exaggerating the impact of TEF, just as we often see sources dramatically overplay the effect of EPOC. 🙄

    OP, carefully note the structure of the sentence I just quoted. It's not actually saying that breakfast boosts metabolism. It's saying that breakfast can help increase your fiber and protein intake, and that increasing fiber and protein intake can "boost metabolism and aid weight loss".

    Protein requires slightly more energy to digest than other macros. There's some limited evidence that high fiber foods do the same. This is called "thermic effect of food", or TEF. Compared to your all-day calorie burn, or even to the inevitable errors we all make in estimating intake and activity, this is a very small effect. Chasing it for weight loss reasons is seriously majoring in the minors (though eating enough protein and fiber is worth doing for other reasons, of course).

    The quoted statement (and the concept of TEF) are not counter to what people are saying in this thread: That eating breakfast is good if it helps your energy level, or helps avoid over-consuming calories later in the day; that breakfast is optional if it doesn't affect your energy level or appetite; and that breakfast may be a hindrance if it hampers your morning workout intensity or leads you to consume more all-day calories.

    Moreover, it's just a casual statement as an intro to some breakfast recipes, not the well-considered thesis of that blog post.

    I have no doubt that there are sources that will tell you straight out that eating breakfast is a vital metabolism-booster. There are sources that will tell you that the earth is flat, and that humans never landed on the moon.

    Even if it were true that breakfast boosted metabolism (and there's poor evidence for it), the thing is, if eating breakfast somehow either causes you to eat more, or to burn fewer activity calories, that advantage could easily be wiped out as a practical matter.

    For people like me, who stay semi-comatose until some nutrient intake happens, and who tend to snack more at night without a solid breakfast, breakfast definitely is an aid to weight loss, because we do more and eat less (fewer calories) with breakfast in the picture.
  • kcmcbee
    kcmcbee Posts: 179 Member
    @sijomial
    Here’s another with slightly more info just today. I’m no expert but timing does seem to matter at least in practical application as well as how our bodies process food. At least from what I’ve been reading and listening to. I’ve become a fan of Dr. Greger on nutritionfacts.org. Lots of really interesting and factual stuff there including these topics.
  • kcmcbee
    kcmcbee Posts: 179 Member
    Here’s an intro:
    https://nutritionfacts.org/video/time-restricted-eating-put-to-the-test/
    And yes it may be that eating bfast may help with eating less during the rest of the day reducing overall calorie intake, so what’s wrong with that as a strategy? Just something to use if one wants. Not pushing bfast on anyone just adding some info I’ve come across on this.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    jessicakogle wrote: »
    Can someone settle the long question of the importance of breakfast? I’m not a huge breakfast fan so I normally skip it and eat around 11am each day.

    I used to know someone who would never eat breakfast because eating that soon after getting up would make him ill. He seemed perfectly fine with it. We just never met up until lunch time so we could go out and eat together (because I am very much a breakfast person).

    Do what makes you happy, yo.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,204 Member
    kcmcbee wrote: »
    Here’s an intro:
    https://nutritionfacts.org/video/time-restricted-eating-put-to-the-test/
    And yes it may be that eating bfast may help with eating less during the rest of the day reducing overall calorie intake, so what’s wrong with that as a strategy? Just something to use if one wants. Not pushing bfast on anyone just adding some info I’ve come across on this.

    Nothing is wrong with that as a strategy, if that's what works for an individual. And nothing is wrong with the opposite, if that's what works for an individual.

    I think that's what many of us are trying to say . . . I know I am.

    OP has been waiting to eat until 11AM, because breakfast isn't her jam. What's wrong with that as a strategy?

    It totally wouldn't work for me, not one tiny little bit (except on days I don't get up until 11AM :lol:), but it sounds like it's working OK for her, unless she's hiding the fact that it causes binges later in the day, or something. (Somehow, I'm guessing she might have mentioned that, if it did.)

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