6 meals a day?

Options
bhelmreich
bhelmreich Posts: 254 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have a tendency to overeat when I only eat 3 meals a day. In between meals, I get hungry or bored and end up eating bad foods or just A LOT of food. I've heard that people find it way easier when they eat small meals 6x a day. I was wondering people's thoughts on it and when during the day did people eat?

Replies

  • Edestiny7
    Edestiny7 Posts: 730 Member
    Options
    I have been eating when I am hungry. It is usually every 2-3 hours when at work, but not as often on weekends. So around 8 AM, 10:30 AM, 1 PM, 4:30 PM, 8 PM.
  • Moneygrow3
    Moneygrow3 Posts: 51
    Options
    For me personally, I do eat 3 meals... smaller breakfast, lunch, dinner. However, I do have a small snack in between meals. In the morning it is usually yogurt or granola. In the afternoon I usually have an apple right before my workout and a 100 calorie granola bar or coffee after my workout. I believe if you are hungry, then eat! Just make sure you are surrounded with healthy snacks! (one hint too... plan out your whole day... plan what you will eat and log it! It seems to keep me focused!) Good Luck!
  • pilotgirl2007
    pilotgirl2007 Posts: 368 Member
    Options
    Thats what I do... I can't go without food in between meals. I eat a snack in between breakfast and lunch and another one in between lunch and dinner. They are not quite meals though... they tend to be around 200ish calories.
  • jamie1888
    jamie1888 Posts: 1,704 Member
    Options
    Everyone is different. But, most people find great success in maintaining their hunger when they eat 3 meals and 2 snack in between... basically, you are eating something every 2 - 3 hours. I love eating all day long!
  • 1FitMomof4Girls
    1FitMomof4Girls Posts: 202 Member
    Options
    I feel it's absolutely necessary...especially if your are working out. Need to keep your body fueled
  • chelseap891
    chelseap891 Posts: 62
    Options
    This is a huge problem with me. I'm 120 so I'm not really losing, I'm trying to tone...but I get hungry like you do, and overeat, and that's not helping my situation at ALL. Right now, I'm attempting to eat a big breakfast, medium lunch, small dinner. Today was my first day doing so....so far, so good. If it doesn't work, I'll have to end up doing 6 smaller meals..which interferes with my every day life...but we'll see!
  • AdamATGATT
    AdamATGATT Posts: 573 Member
    Options
    Schedule 6 days a week:

    6:00 AM - Breakfast
    9:00 - 9:30 AM - Granola bar, banana, orange or oatmeal (or some combination of them)
    12:00 PM - Lunch
    2:30 - 3:00 PM - Granola bar, banana, orange or oatmeal (or some combination of them)
    7:00 PM - Dinner
    8:00 PM or so - Workout
    9:00 PM - Protein shake

    I keep my snacks in the drawer at my desk. Whenever I am free around snack time, I pull it open and grab whatever I want. Been working for me, though I've been eating two snacks each time instead of one. I wasn't getting enough calories doing this before. I'll also modify my protein shake in the evening to keep within, or add in some calories, depending on how I'm doing for the day.
  • Shawnalee0703
    Shawnalee0703 Posts: 1,093
    Options
    I eat 3 main meals (between 300-600 ish calories) and then have 2 snacks during the day which are usually a veggie or fruit with a protein or a grain and a protein. I mix it up so i don't get bored. I have read in many books that you should not go more than 4 hrs without eating. So inbetween meals you could have a string cheese and an apple or zuccini and hummus. Have fun with it and keep it quality. :)
  • SkierElle
    SkierElle Posts: 335
    Options
    I REALLY don't understand the 6 meals a day thing and I think it creates obsession with food. I like to have 2 meals per day and one snack. Then my meals can be a good size and they usually have a lot of protein and fiber to keep me full really long. Is it realistic to go your whole life eating 6 meals per day?! Humans weren't designed to eat that often!!
  • kuteinfaync
    kuteinfaync Posts: 33
    Options
    I REALLY don't understand the 6 meals a day thing and I think it creates obsession with food. I like to have 2 meals per day and one snack. Then my meals can be a good size and they usually have a lot of protein and fiber to keep me full really long. Is it realistic to go your whole life eating 6 meals per day?! Humans weren't designed to eat that often!!

    I'm the same! 2 meals a day is good! sometimes I have a snack sometimes I don't! even if the 6 meals are smaller is portions it seems a bit much
  • caprica
    caprica Posts: 80 Member
    Options
    At its core 6 meals a day is generally just: breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner and supper

    It is really nothing special. Your grandma probably ate this way, eating only modest portion sizes at each meal, kept her blood sugars constant throughout the day, and she was probably much skinnier than all of us.

    You can set up MFP to have six meals in it and give it a try. It is worth a shot because it is much better than default MFP comes with as you can see where you get your munchies better rather than just have a category called "snacks".

    In my case once I did the 6 meal a day split in my MFP meals I found my biggest snack was at morning tea. It was happening because I was having a high carb breakfast (toast and coffee or cereal and coffee). Once I added a big serve of protein to breakfast my desire for snacking in the morning tea reduced down to just wanting a coffee and maybe a small snack.

    My grandma used to berate me for having that new fad called cereal for breakfast and always told me we needed a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs. After playing with 6 meals a day and seeing when my calories were being taken in, I think she was right.

    Similarly with supper. I used to never eat supper. Now I have something sweet before bed (a square or two of 70% dark chocolate) and sleep so much better and feel better for it. If you read a book called potatoes not prozac, you will see that what you should do is eat protein during the day and build up amino acids in the blood. Then at supper before bed you eat something sweet, and the insulin will drag the serotonin across the blood brain barrier while you sleep. It gives you wild dreams and you feel so much better the next day. My grandma always had a cuppa and a cookie before bed and she was always happy.

    Funny how everything old is new again. 6 meals a day is just a new word for what grandma did.
  • Shawnalee0703
    Shawnalee0703 Posts: 1,093
    Options
    I think it also depends on how you spend your day and how active you are as well as what time it is when you eat that second big meal. Since you don't need excess calories/energy while you sleep.... dinner should be smaller or earlier in order for you body to USE the calories instead of store them since it is such a heavy load of calories all at once. Also, I feel that the most important thing is that you are eating healthy high nutrient foods- whether you spread them out or pack them in 2 big meals... it needs to be quality food that will actually fuel your body. :-D
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    Options
    I personally eat 5 meals a day and have had success with that. I ALWAYS overeat when I only have 3 meals a day because by the time I get to dinner, I am starving even if my other 2 meals were decently portioned. By eating every 3 hours or so, I keep my hunger pains away and I am able to resist temptations better. Also, it keeps my blood sugar at a more even level throughout the day which affects things like mood as well as weight loss.

Categories