Snacking Question

k2d4p

I have almost always had issues with snacking. When I am doing well with my diet, I eat mostly healthy snacks. But that almost always leads to eating excess snacks. I have this mental thing where, if it is healthy, I think I can eat as much of it as I want. I have been doing pretty good this diet with my weight loss. But now I don't snack at all. I mean absolutely nothing in between meals except water or juice. Is that healthy?

I am sort of use to it now and do not really want to eat in between meals anymore. I have heard, however, that is is good to eat several light meals through out the day. So my queation: Is it ok to eat 3 small meals a day with no snacks in between?

meggonkgonk

It's perfectly fine because it all comes down to what will help you stick within your calorie range. That "better for you" phrase- its really subjective. There are studies that say its "better" (which is really an imprecise word), but just because people lose more consistent weight doesnt make it better by default- it just means that it was more sustainable for people participating in the study. If you will stay in your calorie range with 3 squares, then stick with that.

WTFitness

I believe it is okay to eat 3 square meals a day, however it is ideal to spread your food intake out to 5 meals per day to make your metabolism work.

However, if what you're currently doing works for you, then by all means, keep up the good work!

pkgirrl

That 5-6 meals a day rule is more a means to help people not feel hungry by keeping their blood sugar levels more stable. It also leads to overeating for a lot of people (like me =p ) If you're eating a well rounded diet, and you don't feel hungry or grouchy between meals, then what you're doing is great, and I'm glad it works for you!

NoAdditives

Whatever works for you is what's best for you. Some people do better eating many small meals, others eat three meals plus small snacks, others just eat three meals. If you find that snacking leads to bad habits for you, don't snack. There are lots of studies that all have different findings and therefore recommend different things. But everyone is different, so no one study has results that work for every person.

From my own research I feel that three meals a day is best, and here's why: when you eat food (most of which has some amount of sugar) the hormone insulin is released. This hormone tells the liver and kidneys to take sugar from the blood for energy, which makes them stop burning fat for energy. So, the more time you eat during the day the less your body will burn fat. Of course, on the flip side, not eating enough times will slow your metabolism. I think three meals is a happy medium.

countjackula

I have almost always had issues with snacking. When I am doing well with my diet, I eat mostly healthy snacks. But that almost always leads to eating excess snacks. I have this mental thing where, if it is healthy, I think I can eat as much of it as I want. I have been doing pretty good this diet with my weight loss. But now I don't snack at all. I mean absolutely nothing in between meals except water or juice. Is that healthy?

I am sort of use to it now and do not really want to eat in between meals anymore. I have heard, however, that is is good to eat several light meals through out the day. So my queation: Is it ok to eat 3 small meals a day with no snacks in between?

There is no health reason to "snack" and the timing of your meals is irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. The only real effect is a personal one... if you find yourself hungry all the time it might make the most sense for you to have multiple small meals spread throughout the day. On the other hand, if you're constantly on the go or busy and don't have time to eat you can get away with 1-3 meals.

If eating 3 small meals without snacks get you into your target caloric intake range and is a meal plan that you can stick with, I wouldn't worry about it at all!