Is it okay to save my calories for dinner everyday?

summer92008
summer92008 Posts: 202
in Health and Weight Loss
So, I'm home during the day and go to my boyfriend's every evening. If I don't eat a larger dinner, I'm starved by the end of the day and extremely hungry by the next morning. So a lot of the time I will save the majority of my calories for the evening. For instance, I will have something with 100-150 calories for breakfast, skip lunch (unless I'm really hungry, and then I will have soup or something low in calories), and a snack (100-200 calories). This way, the majority of my calories are left for dinner. Is this okay to do? I just want to make sure that it isn't somehow hurting my body by saving my calories for later in the day instead of evenly spacing them throughout the day.

For reference, I'm a 20 year old female, 5'6'' tall, 146.2 lbs., and am eating around 1,200 calories a day.
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Replies

  • maidentl
    maidentl Posts: 3,203 Member
    It's fine. The deficit is what's important, not when you eat the calories. :smile:
  • I_Will_End_You
    I_Will_End_You Posts: 4,397 Member
    Yes, it's fine.
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
    You're fine. You could probably be eating a little more calories, too.


    I generally skip breakfast, have coffee only.

    I start work between 1-2 every day, I generally eat something standing right before service starts (work in a kitchen) around 5:30ish, and if I'm hungry after work (10pm), I'll eat again.

    I usually like to have 1-2 larger meals, rather than a bunch of small ones.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    So, I'm home during the day and go to my boyfriend's every evening. If I don't eat a larger dinner, I'm starved by the end of the day and extremely hungry by the next morning. So a lot of the time I will save the majority of my calories for the evening. For instance, I will have something with 100-150 calories for breakfast, skip lunch (unless I'm really hungry, and then I will have soup or something low in calories), and a snack (100-200 calories). This way, the majority of my calories are left for dinner. Is this okay to do? I just want to make sure that it isn't somehow hurting my body by saving my calories for later in the day instead of evenly spacing them throughout the day.

    For reference, I'm a 20 year old female, 5'6'' tall, 146.2 lbs., and am eating around 1,200 calories a day.
    Absolutely. When to eat is personal preference. I eat the bulk of my calories at breakfast and lunch then have a smaller dinner. Just do what works for you.
  • mabug01
    mabug01 Posts: 1,273 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.
  • Sobus76
    Sobus76 Posts: 242 Member
    NO!!! you cant save them for dinner.






    Oh wait, yes you can, like the above poster said, its about the deficit. I've saved mine for dinner plenty of times like when i know i'm going out to eat etc.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    With those stats, why are you only eating 1200 cals
  • Sobus76
    Sobus76 Posts: 242 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Weird, I talked to my Dr. about this and he told me that it doesnt matter when you eat calories, and it will have no effect on my metabolism. where did you get this info?
  • DeadliftAddict
    DeadliftAddict Posts: 746 Member
    It is completely fine. You just need to hit your goal calories. You can space them however you like.
  • Laurenloveswaffles
    Laurenloveswaffles Posts: 535 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Urm, no.

    If it works for you, then save your calories for dinner. Unless you are training for a competition, meal timing is not very important.
  • DeadliftAddict
    DeadliftAddict Posts: 746 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    I'm not sure about this. I have been doing IF for a while now. My blood work is just fine.
  • ZBuffBod
    ZBuffBod Posts: 297 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Can you share supporting information to back this up? Would really love to see that as I start this weight loss journey of trial and error. Thanks.
  • KameHameHaaaa
    KameHameHaaaa Posts: 837 Member
    I'm 5'8, 340 lbs and eat between 1600 and 2300 cals a day. I always save the majority of them for the evening because I tend to binge eat at night. My biggest meal is always ALWAYS dinner. Right now I have 1621 left for dinner can't wait :D:D:D
  • aedreana
    aedreana Posts: 979 Member
    Absolutely fine to save the calories for late in the day! That is exactly how I am dieting. That's why my food diet is one day ahead-- I am logging (and sometimes, eating) my dinner after midnight!
  • allieO3390
    allieO3390 Posts: 24 Member
    This is exactly what I do and I have lost 30 pounds doing it. It helps me feel like I am not "dieting" because I can still eat the same meals for dinner as I did before just with smaller portions and more fruits and veggies. And I know that once I hit maintenance it will be easier to add a few calories in the mornings and sustain that way of eating for the rest of my life. If that's how you eat normally and feels comfortable, don't change it just to lose weight. It will be harder to maintain in the future.
  • mabug01
    mabug01 Posts: 1,273 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Weird, I talked to my Dr. about this and he told me that it doesnt matter when you eat calories, and it will have no effect on my metabolism. where did you get this info?

    I got this information from my doctor. But, you see, I have insulin resistance/prediabetes and high triglycerides. If you don't have those things, you're doctor would likely be OK with your program.
  • gelar93
    gelar93 Posts: 160
    That's what I've been doing and have never encountered a problem
  • TKhamvongsa
    TKhamvongsa Posts: 287
    I do it - I prefer heavier dinners =) As long as it's within your calorie/macro goal
  • Sobus76
    Sobus76 Posts: 242 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Weird, I talked to my Dr. about this and he told me that it doesnt matter when you eat calories, and it will have no effect on my metabolism. where did you get this info?

    I got this information from my doctor. But, you see, I have insulin resistance/prediabetes and high triglycerides. If you don't have those things, you're doctor would likely be OK with your program.

    That would make more since if you have sugar issues. I had high triglycerides 10 months ago when i started MFP, now mine are well within normal range.
  • mabug01
    mabug01 Posts: 1,273 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Can you share supporting information to back this up? Would really love to see that as I start this weight loss journey of trial and error. Thanks.

    I didn't personally research this; I'm just sharing what my own doctor has told me. I'm sure it doesn't apply to younger or simply healthier people. What I want to say is that, if I could do it all over again (I'm 60 years old), then I would have made some more informed choices when I was younger so that I did not end up with insulin resistance and high triglycerides. One of those choices would be to space my meals out more uniformly during the day and, of course, to eat fewer calories than I did.
  • shadow2soul
    shadow2soul Posts: 7,692 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Weird, I talked to my Dr. about this and he told me that it doesnt matter when you eat calories, and it will have no effect on my metabolism. where did you get this info?

    I got this information from my doctor. But, you see, I have insulin resistance/prediabetes and high triglycerides. If you don't have those things, you're doctor would likely be OK with your program.

    I think for most healthy people, meal timing is irrelevant. I can honestly see where certain health issues (like diabetes) would require more frequent smaller meals.
  • Berkables
    Berkables Posts: 35
    I used to do this! I was on weight watchers and would save about 75% of my points for dinner.

    I agree with everyone that it's about what works for you, but you might want to ask yourself a bit more about why you do that. For me, at least, it was because I would get panicky if I had what I thought were too few points/calories left for the day, so I would save them for dinner. I liked being full at night. That worked fine for me for a while, but then I fell off the wagon because I couldn't sustain being so hungry all afternoon. Also because a mid-day BBQ or lunch event would totally mess with me and I had trained myself to have a huge dinner, so I couldn't adjust for it.

    I'm doing much better this time around spending a few cals on breakfast and much more on lunch than I used to. So, again, whatever works for you and if you're not hungry during the day, then bless you and continue. But sometimes it's easier to sustain a diet plan when it more closely resembles what non-dieters do and how they eat (so that social functions don't completely throw you off track) and trains you psychologically for flexibility. Again, entirely just my own opinion!
  • mabug01
    mabug01 Posts: 1,273 Member
    That would make more since if you have sugar issues. I had high triglycerides 10 months ago when i started MFP, now mine are well within normal range.

    That's terrific. Do you attribute that to something specific you are doing or eating, or to weight loss in general. Mine are pretty stubborn so I'd like some advice.
  • Charlotta1997
    Charlotta1997 Posts: 10 Member
    It's fine, I'm bulking and I do it all the time. And I save lots of carbs as well cuz they help me sleep.
  • tarcotti
    tarcotti Posts: 205 Member
    I do this, but sometimes I don't like how it makes me feel during the day, even after eating lots of low cal protein and healthy vegetables totaling around 100-200 calories for lunch, I still feel super hungry between 2 and 4pm. But then again, I'm doing 1200 so its pretty low already. I'm going to up the whole calorie count soon anyway.

    I do want to say that its possible that mabug01 may be right, I know a lot of you were in disagreement, but what she described could possibly be true for SOME people, like her. Not everyone. And since mostly everyone on this forum is still young and probably haven't been doing this long term then its possible that it could have long term effects years from now if you eat like that continually for years. Its possible. I'd want to get a second opinion on this from several doctors and nutritionists before disagreeing completely.
  • Lyndonbearsmommy
    Lyndonbearsmommy Posts: 1,083 Member
    The fitness gurus always recommend eating small portions more frequently and to never skip breakfast. This is what gets your metabolism going and keeps your blood sugar at a regular level.
  • rachelslaytontucker
    rachelslaytontucker Posts: 2 Member
    fyi…..Doctor's spend a total of about 3 hours studying nutrition.
  • Charlotta1997
    Charlotta1997 Posts: 10 Member
    Broscience :)
  • rachelslaytontucker
    rachelslaytontucker Posts: 2 Member
    but many of these fitness experts, are not experts in nutrition. Ask them where they received their nutrition degree. Believe me, i used to be one of those "fitness experts".
  • lindsey1979
    lindsey1979 Posts: 2,395 Member
    You can get away with a lot when you are young. But when the body begins to age, it does get hurt by this eating regime you are describing. That is, eating this way does not keep blood sugars stable and also it can lead to higher triglycerides; and probably other negative metabolic consequences that I'm not aware of. So, if you are looking for a sustainable healthy eating plan for life, you should consider something different.

    Weird, I talked to my Dr. about this and he told me that it doesnt matter when you eat calories, and it will have no effect on my metabolism. where did you get this info?

    I got this information from my doctor. But, you see, I have insulin resistance/prediabetes and high triglycerides. If you don't have those things, you're doctor would likely be OK with your program.

    You may want to look into IFing. I don't know how it affects the triglycerides, but certain types of IFing (like 5:2) have been shown to actually increase insulin sensitivity. I too have insulin resistance and it's one of the reasons I gave IFing a try. I personally found it much more manageable and my 6-7 week stall, despite consistent weekly calorie deficits, finally started moving again. I personally found it to be a much easier way of eating than a daily deficit -- and on fast days, I save all my calories for dinner and on non-fast days, my biggest meal is still dinner.

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