Eating 6 "meals" a day

Carrie6o6

Do any of you do this? I cant grasp how it can be done.. Can you please share with me what your food diary looks like for the day? What kind of "meals" you eat, and at what time you eat them?

VballLeash

Its basically 3 meals and 2 snacks for me. I try and have a big breakfast then a snack around 10 or 11 which is only 200 calories or so and then lunch around 1 or 2 and then another snack at 4 and dinner at 7. Hope this helps, I have to leave otherwise I would post exactly what I eat... I'm sure someone else will!

~Leash

mfinney

i absolutely live by this rule.

basically, you have to change your concept of "meal" -- a "meal" doesn't have to be a full-course deal. in fact, most of mine are not, but i still get everything in all day.

for example, a typical day for me will look like this:

6:30-7am M1: 2 hardboiled eggs, fat-free milk, all natural juice
10-10:30am M2: protein shake and banana
1:30-2:00pm M3: tuna with light miracle whip, cottage cheese, applesauce, whole can green beans
4:30-5:00pm M4: protein shake or peanut butter and an apple
7:30-8:00pm M5: grilled chicken or steak (not a 20 ouncer, maybe 6-8 oz tops) baked potato
Before bed M6: Fat-free cottage cheese or milk and peanut butter

I'm on 3000 calories a day.... so i typically try to make these meals individually add up to 500 calories each... and provided i stay on that, i get excellent results...

when i get off that...well, the belly isn't so tight!!! it's an adjustment for sure...but once you get it and can incorporate it throughout your day, i think it's one of the best things you can do.

my "not-so-famous" saying is "Never feel starved and never feel stuffed and you're doing it right"

xsargex

Well, its real easy. The main reason why I break up my daily consumption over 6 meals, instead of say 3 sittings.... because of my protein intake. I've read quite a bit about how much protein the body can digest from one meal. The more meals you eat, the more you can spread out your protein intake and therefor your body can digest it properly. Look it up.

Each meal usually I keep around 400 calories. If I go over or a little under, I don't cry about it. I just keep track with MFP. If your consuming 800-1000 calories in one-sitting....your wrong.

5:30am
High Fiber Cereal
hard-boiled egg
1 cup milk
banana (or some kinda fruit)

9:00am
protein bar
apple

11:00am
tuna sandwich
whole wheat bread

2:00pm
popcorn (no popcorn)
yogurt (low-fat)

5:00pm (varies depending on my workout)
whole wheat pasta with a meat (protein)
or salad with meat (protein)
some vegetables and fruit

7:00pm
protein shake (after a workout)
maybe popcorn for a late night snack if I'm feelin it


When I stick to this..... I don't get hungry or feel like I gotta go sneak off and eat some food.
This keeps me full. Also I drink about a galon of water a day. I use a milk jug, so I don't lose
count of how many cups or glasses or whatever.

CarmenSantiago

I do this. I eat about 1200 calories a day and break up the meals as such:

Breakfast: 250 calories apx between 7:30 to 8 am

Snack: 150 calories apx between 10:00 to 11

Lunch: 250 to 300 calories apx between 1 and 2 pm

Afternoon snack: 150 calories apx between 4:30 and 5:30 ( I work until 7pm)

Dinner: 300 calories apx between 8 and 9

PM Snack 100 calories (if I have this I don't eat it too late generally around 10)

I actually work out AFTER all my meals and go to bed around 1am or later. I also drink no less then a gallon of water a day and I don't drink a lot of caffeine. Also I take my vitamins. For us women we need a lot of calcium (which I've read also helps with weight loss). So, I take calcium supplements, along with multi vitamins and iron.

P.S. I don't sleep a lot, though I really sleep.

Carrie6o6

My biggest concern is that I may get hungry!

I dont eat protein bars... or drink shakes... or anything like that! I eat fruits, veggies, dairy, a bit a meat here and there... Your basic things... I dont really eat processed food.

I eat about 1400-1500 cals a day plus a little more when i exercise... and 250cals a "meal" doesnt seem like a lot... Though I have not tried it...

xsargex

My biggest concern is that I may get hungry!

I dont eat protein bars... or drink shakes... or anything like that! I eat fruits, veggies, dairy, a bit a meat here and there... Your basic things... I dont really eat processed food.

I eat about 1400-1500 cals a day plus a little more when i exercise... and 250cals a "meal" doesnt seem like a lot... Though I have not tried it...

Some of that issue is mental, alot of it is just reconditioning your body. Its just a regimental thing that you have to get into, just like going to the gym or workingout. It sounds like you already have a good pallet of healthy food to work with. Thats actually a plus. I would say that in the meantime, just find foods that are low-calorie and are filling...snack on that.

This is taking into consideration that you are actually tracking your calories burned in relation to calories taken in. If you have no problem burning calories...then tailer your meals accordingly.

mfinney

i totally get what you mean, but you gotta understand that you wanna time these about 3 hours apart...and make that your top priority. the first day or two may be awkward, but once you get into it, you won't be starving, in between. (not to mention it takes a while for us to realize we are "full"... long after we actually are) you will be amazed by the fact that 250 calories every three hours IS ENOUGH!

what most people do is go too long without eating, and then dump in more food than the body can handle at one time. this is metabolically devastating! spreading everything out evenly gives your body what it needs and the ability to actually use it efficiently.

i wouldn't believe it if it didn't do wonders for me, and everyone i've gotten to try it and truly live by it swears by it now....

good luck to you! hope you give it a shot! :drinker:

Carrie6o6

Makes sense yes... But finding something filling is the problem... Low cal is easy.. fruits and veggies! hahaha But filling... no way!

But perhaps yes my body just needs to adjust, and mental DEFIANTLY! Thats a HUGE problem for me.. This wouldnt be so hard if it wasnt hahahaha

I think I will try it out. Where to begin though? Things that are filling? Things that I should avoid? I drink about 4-5 litres of water a day already hahaha What should I start my day with or end it?

mfinney

Makes sense yes... But finding something filling is the problem... Low cal is easy.. fruits and veggies! hahaha But filling... no way!

But perhaps yes my body just needs to adjust, and mental DEFIANTLY! Thats a HUGE problem for me.. This wouldnt be so hard if it wasnt hahahaha

I think I will try it out. Where to begin though?

look at the foods and meals you currently eat.... if you keep your diary this should be fairly simple.... just plan it out so instead of 3 big meals, you pick out some combos that will be right around the 250 mark...

and, as sarge said.... don't worry if one meal i s275 and another is 225.... close is close...

Carrie6o6

Alright! Sounds gut! Sehr gut danke! :bigsmile:

xsargex

i totally get what you mean, but you gotta understand that you wanna time these about 3 hours apart...and make that your top priority. the first day or two may be awkward, but once you get into it, you won't be starving, in between. (not to mention it takes a while for us to realize we are "full"... long after we actually are) you will be amazed by the fact that 250 calories every three hours IS ENOUGH!

what most people do is go too long without eating, and then dump in more food than the body can handle at one time. this is metabolically devastating! spreading everything out evenly gives your body what it needs and the ability to actually use it efficiently.

i wouldn't believe it if it didn't do wonders for me, and everyone i've gotten to try it and truly live by it swears by it now....

good luck to you! hope you give it a shot! :drinker:

Also to add to this....realize that your body is burning calories throughout the entire day; even while we sleep. Not just when we workout or do strenuous activity. Therefor, if you are going periods of your day without proper nutrients in your body..... your body needs fuel to burn and is like "WTF!?!?" So your not only starving your body, but you aren't burning calories at a efficient/proper rate. Your not only doing yourself a disservice, but your body as well. It'd be the equivilent of running your car for a long period of time without any oil. Devastating. Think about it.

hiddensecant

Pair up all your carbs with proteins and you shouldn't be hungry. You may not feel as "full" as 3 big meals might make you feel but that's a good thing to get used to, hehe. It will help transition your food mentality to a source of fuel rather than a means of filling you up.

Carrie6o6

Also to add to this....realize that your body is burning calories throughout the entire day; even while we sleep. Not just when we workout or do strenuous activity. Therefor, if you are going periods of your day without proper nutrients in your body..... your body needs fuel to burn and is like "WTF!?!?" So your not only starving your body, but you aren't burning calories at a efficient/proper rate. Your not only doing yourself a disservice, but your body as well. It'd be the equivilent of running your car for a long period of time without any oil. Devastating. Think about it.

Yes makes perfect sense, thanks!

j4nash

3 meals + 1 snack. 8AM, 12PM, 3-4PM Snack 6-7PM dinner. Nothing after 9. Bottom line eat every 4 hours. Calorie intake for each meal should decrease over the course of the day with breakfast being the largest. This is what I have been sticking to for a month and I have lost 32 lbs. The 6 meals a day actually made me more hungry. IMO.

Carrie6o6

Why should it decrease? Wouldnt your body be burning the same amount of cal in the morning as it will as you go to sleep? Maybe during sleep it will burn less... But if your not eating right before bed I dont see the problem... Though I dont know much about the way the body works haha

heathcox

Here is what I ate/have planned for today. It's also more of 3 meal w/3 snacks. I will sometimes skip the last snack depending on calorie intake for the day.

Breakfast 7:00 am
½ cup oatmeal
¼ cup egg whites

Snack 10:00 am
½ cup fat free cottage cheese
Cup of yogurt

Lunch 12:30
Chicken Wrap (small chicken breast on WW Tortilla w/lettuce, tomato, 2% cheese & dab of Fat Free Ranch)
Salad w/FF Italian dressing and a tbs of avacado

Snack 3:30
½ cup cottage cheese
fruit

Dinner 6:30
Chicken breast
baked sweet potato
green beans

Snack 9:00
Piece of fruit
Cottage cheese or protein shake

j4nash

Why should it decrease? Wouldnt your body be burning the same amount of cal in the morning as it will as you go to sleep? Maybe during sleep it will burn less... But if your not eating right before bed I dont see the problem... Though I dont know much about the way the body works haha

your body hasn't had any food for 8-12 hours when you wake up. needs food. plus your activity goes down as the day goes on and snacks before bed can disrupt sleep. i don't usually eat carbs at night, just in the AM and for lunch.

"The study compared sedentary, obese women eating a big breakfast containing carbs with sedentary, obese women eating a low-carbohydrate breakfast. Results showed that at the end of the eight-month trial, women eating the big breakfast lost an average of almost 40 pounds, while the low-carb breakfast group lost only nine pounds on average. Researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University, led by Daniela Jakubowicz, M.D., of the Hospital de Clinicas, Caracas, Venzezuela, conducted the study, released in June 2008. "

"Cohen: When you wake up in the morning, your body and your brain are primed to look for food. Your metabolism is revved up, and levels of cortisol and adrenaline are at their highest. The brain needs energy quickly, so if you don't eat enough early on, the brain looks for a different fuel source. It goes into emergency mode, resorting to the energy stored in your muscles, destroying muscle tissue. When you finally do eat, the body stores the energy it gets from food as fat. The high protein-carb mix gives the body the jump-start it needs in the morning. Because the protein is digested slowly over the course of the day, you don't feel as hungry. Not feeling hungry is what makes this diet successful, according to the study author.

In the morning, your serotonin levels are also high, so that keeps food cravings at bay. But later in the day, your serotonin levels go down, so you get cravings for indulgent foods such as chocolate. The study author says that if you eat the chocolate in the afternoon, your body gets addicted to that sensation, and you look for chocolate the next day at that time, too. Bubt if you eat it in the morning, it doesn't feel as good as it does when you eat it later, and so your body decides, "Hey I don't need this chocolate at all!""

There is research to support both methods. Again my opinion and what works for me.

j4nash

Also, body builders sometimes do the 6 meals a day in order to consume enough clean calories. I don't think it is the best method for weight loss.

Interesting article:

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=56254

Carrie6o6

Okay. I have heard things before about breakfast being important because our body "fasts" through the night.

Interesting

Carrie6o6

Also, body builders sometimes do the 6 meals a day in order to consume enough clean calories. I don't think it is the best method for weight loss.

Interesting article:

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=56254

Yes that is interesting thanks!