Eating every 2-3 hours a MYTH!??? WTH!

ninerbuff

Broscience trying to be strong on here.

Most competitive bodybuilders will tell people to eat several meals a day because that's what they had to do (not mentioning enhancement) to keep their muscles from catabolizing.

It's BS. There are several peer reviewed clinical studies that show that meal timing has no relevance on metabolism. Worry more about macros and total calories.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor


Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

So Shannon Clark and Jamie Eason use BroScience? If that were the case it wouldnt be called BroScience, now would it?

It's broscience. Unless they've done double blind tests on say a 3 meal a day with the same calorie intake, it's just the crowd following the crowd.
Physiology of people doesn't lie. Eat less than you burn and you'll lose fat and muscle. Strength train while you do it, and you'll retain more muscle. But there is no truth to saying that eating several meals a day changes metabolic rate.

You're appealing to authority here. It's just that authority is using broscience to make their claims.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

pcastagner

But...but... My authority is RIPPED! Ripped people are never wrong!

alisonlynn1976

I eat three meals per day on work days, and usually two on weekends and holidays (later breakfast + late lunch/early dinner). I don't have the time to eat numerous small meals per day. I feel like that's for people who basically eat and exercise full-time and that's it. Perhaps useful for professional athletes, but rather obsessive for people whose lives are (or should be!) focused on things other than eating.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

LolBroScience

It's not ironic, because I can back up what I say.

Jim Stoppani, PhD-Jim Stoppani received his doctorate in exercise physiology with a minor in biochemistry from the University of Connecticut. Following graduation, he served as a postdoctoral research fellow in the prestigious John B. Pierce Laboratory and Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology at Yale University School of Medicine, where he investigated the effects of exercise and diet on gene regulation in muscle tissue.

Science proves that


1. Eat 6 smaller meals per day, not 2-3 feasts

This will ensure that you supply your body with the nutrients necessary to build muscle and burn fat.

Bonus: Your resting metabolic rate increases. It will also prevent your body from kicking into “starvation” mode, which can happen when too much time elapses between meals.

If this happens, your body will start burning muscle for energy and increasing your body fat stores, as well as slowing down your metabolism. This is the exact opposite of what you want to happen.

Don’t be one of those people that complain about their situation but never does anything to improve it. Don’t become “happy” with the status quo of being miserable. Now take action on your knowledge!
(Dr Jim Soppani)"

LOL.

LAnne16

I'm a grazer. I like to snack pretty much always. In the past, it was snacking on a bag of potato chips or something else equally as horrible for you.
Nowadays, though, it's snacking on nuts, and fruit, and yoghurt, and cheese (I love cheese haha)

So yeah, I love eating, and it keeps from being too hungry when it comes time for meals. Keeps me on track.

LBNOakland

I had these same questions so I did some investigation and I've summarized what I found, below. If anyone wants links to the source documents or studies, send me a PM and I can provide them. So...in no particular order, what I've learned in support of eating multiple smaller meals a day:

1) Protein utilization - You cannot utilize more than ~30 grams of protein per meal for anabolic purposes. Protein consumed in excess of this amount is either used for its caloric value (not optimal because protein is a "dirty" fuel), or will be stored as fat. Individuals with protein needs in excess of 90 grams/day, and who only eat 3 meals/day run the risk of being in a continual protein deficit. The body will react to this by catabolizing lean body mass.

2) Excess thermogenesis of multiple meals - This is not a myth. It has been demonstrated that single, large meals are more efficiently processed than are multiple, smaller meals of equivalent caloric value. Another way of saying this is that it takes more calories to process multiple small meals. The difference in the caloric requirements is not trivial, and does effectively raise the metabolic rate of the individual eating multiple meals.

3) Fat storage - Larger, less frequent meals produce a greater insulin response, which results in increased fat storage.

4) Reduced time spent in energy deficit - This is related to the first point listed, but is slightly different. Consider that at any given time your body has a specific requirement for energy. It is less when you are at rest and more when you are exercising. Similarly, at any given time your body is receiving a certain amount of energy through nutrition. This level is high immediately following a meal and will taper off over time. Studies have shown that the less time spent during the day in energy deficit (and the avoidance of large deficits), the lower the amount of muscle catabolism the body will employ. Consider an extreme example of this: A person exercises hard in the morning, and eats one meal a day in the evening. Even if that meal is sufficient to cover the individual's daily caloric requirements, they will have spent most of the day in an energy deficit, catabolizing lean muscle mass, and they will spend most of the evening in a large caloric surplus, with a high insulin response, laying down fat. Think of this as reverse body recomposition. Now consider a person on the opposite end of the spectrum. They eat 5 small meals a day and they time their largest meals to be before and after their exercise period. This person can support both muscle growth and fat reduction. Ignoring that the frequent eater will have burned more calories as a result of the frequent meals, in these two example the two individuals will have engaged in the same amount of exercise and eating the same amount of calories per day, but by managing the amount of time during the day spent in extreme surplus or deficit, they will experience very different outcomes.

The slide below illustrates this. Eating Pattern 1 shows a person eating multiple small meals a day. Eating Pattern 2 shows a person eating three large meals a day. Eating Patter 3 shows a person eating one large meal in the evening. It's important to note that all three end the day at the 0 line, meaning that they all exactly covered their calorie requirements. However, each of them spent all of the minutes and hours during the day at various levels of caloric surplus or deficit. Studies suggest that Eating Pattern 1 is optimal for avoiding fat creation and muscle catabolism.


Anyway...that's what I've found, so that's my story and I'm sticking to it! :laugh:

This makes a lot of sense to me!! Thanks for the info!! :happy:

HappyStack

Don't bog yourself down with the minutiae of weight loss.

If you have a decent amount of weight to lose the most simplistic approach of a sensible calorie deficit will get you to where you want to be. Adjust your macros to your lifestyle and personal preference and you cannot go wrong.

Meal timing is relevant at a higher percentage of body fat ONLY if you find it affects your energy level. If you want to eat every 2-3 hours, do so. If you want to consume all of your calories in 1 huge meal, it matters not. Get your calories in and get moving.

The things people post about thermogenics is bunk. It will take the same amount of energy to digest the same amount of food whether you eat it throughout the day or in one meal.

The things people post about a "limit" of ~30g of protein being "digestible" per meal is bunk. Digestion is a process that takes HOURS sometimes days. It does not matter a bit if you eat over 30g of protein in one meal.

JustineMarie21

I am confused about this as well. I was watching a talk show the other day and Jillian Micheals was introducing her new book and so she was talking about how she de-bunks food mths that are everywhere. One of them was that ''you should eat every 2-3 hours'' She completely DISagrees with that statement saying that its the worse thing you could do for your metabolizm because when you eat, you create insulin, and constant insulin stores fat. She strongly recommends every 4 hours.

SideSteel

I am confused about this as well. I was watching a talk show the other day and Jillian Micheals was introducing her new book and so she was talking about how she de-bunks food mths that are everywhere. One of them was that ''you should eat every 2-3 hours'' She completely DISagrees with that statement saying that its the worse thing you could do for your metabolizm because when you eat, you create insulin, and constant insulin stores fat. She strongly recommends every 4 hours.

In my humble opinion she is replacing one form of dogma with another.

See here regarding insulin:
http://weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=319

pcastagner

I am confused about this as well. I was watching a talk show the other day and Jillian Micheals was introducing her new book and so she was talking about how she de-bunks food mths that are everywhere. One of them was that ''you should eat every 2-3 hours'' She completely DISagrees with that statement saying that its the worse thing you could do for your metabolizm because when you eat, you create insulin, and constant insulin stores fat. She strongly recommends every 4 hours.

In my humble opinion she is replacing one form of dogma with another.

See here regarding insulin:
http://weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=319

Omg why are we even taking this broscience seriously? False equivalence.

People who want to sell you **** will be the LAST ones to admit this is simple. Don't eat too much food. Get enough protein. Lift. Done!

CallMeCupcakeDammit

This was in my e-mail today. I know Shape isn't normally a credible source, but they actually put some good information in here, and one of the commenters posted some good links I know SS would approve of.

http://www.shape.com/weight-loss/weight-loss-strategies/10-unbelievable-diet-rules-backed-science

kdiamond

Okay I came across this article in peer trainer about Myths of Eating every 2-3 hours. So which is it? 6 small meals a day or 3 meals a day!!!

Here is the article.

http://www.peertrainer.com/myth_busters_jjvirgin.aspx

What does everyone else do?

It is whatever the hell works for you.

Six small meals a day was not a recommendation that came about because of any metabolic benefit, it instead curbed hunger by keeping a reasonably steady flow of food going into you throughout the day to keep you from overeating if you had an otherwise complete lack of self control. It is the illusion of a health benefit packaged for helpless morons.

You can eat three meals, you can eat six meals, you can eat twelve meals. You can even fast for 16 hours and eat one big meal for all your calories. You can eat at night. All of this works if you want it to as long as you adhere to your ideal calorie intake.

It doesn't f*cking matter. Your body will always obey the laws of physics (thermodynamics specifically) when it comes to calories.

SOOOOO THIS!!!!!! I eat whenever the heck I want, or not want. It does not matter!!!!

MarioLozano16

Eat whenever you want to eat

SezxyStef

This was in my e-mail today. I know Shape isn't normally a credible source, but they actually put some good information in here, and one of the commenters posted some good links I know SS would approve of.

http://www.shape.com/weight-loss/weight-loss-strategies/10-unbelievable-diet-rules-backed-science

Yah I have that magazine...problem is you can back both depends on what science you want to listen to and which one is more credible.

I always find the more "meals" I eat the harder it is to maintain my weight loss...because I am always hungry...and since I only have a certian amount of calories if I eat 6x a day each meal would be 250 calories...ever seen a decent steak with veggies and milk be 250 calories???? more like a piece of steak only...no thanks I will eat my meals at my times when my body tells me eat or I fail you....9am, 12pm and 5pm...period.

SezxyStef

TinaLatina: do not read articles or take advice from noncredible sources. That article didn't even cite any research or analysis. It's just someone's personal opinion.

Ironic post is ironic.

i think you should look up the definition of irony. that post was not ironic

Was it hypocritical? People often confuse those two terms.

if you (not personally you) don't understand the original statement and context, it could be considered hypocritical or self defeating.. but what the original person (tina) was referring to is to not trust websites/pages that make statements about scientific "facts" without backing up said facts with citations

the person who thought it was ironic is mistaken because it would be hypocritical at best (at best being if you assume that the original statement also means to not take advice from people telling you to only take advice from websites with citations)

I'll be honest...

...I haven't even *opened* page one of this thread.

I'm just here to watch some widely-held myths be defeated by science...

...because



Science!

In for this science mainly tho

StacyReneO

I just eat when I'm hungry. Sometimes it's after 2 hours, sometimes it could be 5-6 hours.

choijanro

Depends on the persons

and its personal preferences

laughingnome

I graze all day, no times for meals. I eat when I want

LeanneGoingThin

It is a myth. In the end, all that matters are calories. A lot of people have been very successful in losing weight through intermittent fasting. Though eating every 2-3 hours might help to keep your hunger in place. If you're sensitive to binging, it might be a good idea to eat regularly.

mslou5851

For the past 6 months I have been eating every 2 hours and have lost 20 pounds. I eat small amounts about 6 times a day. I don't deny myself a sweet if I really want it. I just don't pig out like I used to. The only thing I have given up is soda. It's a lifestyle change, not a diet.

happysherri

3 meals with a few snacks works for me

skinnyinnotime

I usually have 3 meals and maybe a snack or 2, depends when I'm hungry.

I could never be bothered with 6 meals a day, sounds like far too much bother.

Your body doesn't care whether you eat your cals in one sitting or spread throughout the day, the main point is how many cals are going in, not how often!!

welloiledmachine

Why not focus on WHAT you put in your body as opposed to WHEN. You should eat when you are hungry. Being healthy and fit should be our main goals. Focus on healthy food and a good workout routine.
So much stress goes into trying to lose weight and do the right thing. It's all pretty simple....eat less or work out more to lose weight. There is argument for and against every diet/lifestyle out there. You have to decide what works best for you because all of us are different and not everything works for everybody.

Chic

pcastagner

I'm pretty sure eating every 2-3 hours is something that actually happened, and not a myth

antjoanes

I believe the 6 meals a day thing came about years ago by body builders trying to eat crazy amounts of protein a day. Its easy to hit 300g of protein if you spread that over 6 meals in the day rather than 3 or 4 meals.

From what I have been reading this amount of protein is obsessive unless you're on steroids and working out like crazy and there are also lots of studies stating meal timing and frequency don't count, its total calories that count 3500kcal to lose a pound of fat, doesn't matter how you do it.

pcastagner

but it DID happen

jofjltncb6

That it happened:


That it has the benefits that proponents say it does:

WhisperAnne

I 2 big meals. Breakfast and dinner. And a small snack at lunch. I cant eat 6 times a day! I would eat to much. I don't know where these doctors get their info from..200 people is not enough scientific research to determine what the whole world needs you know?

just_Jennie1

I have done the small meals throughout the day and it was a pain in the butt. When my body got used to it I was hungry all the time. I had to pack snacks with me if we were going to be somewhere longer than a few hours and we weren't going to be near any place to eat. It sucked!

Now I eat when I'm hungry