September Focus: Reverse the Way You Think About Meals

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Number1BooBoo
Number1BooBoo Posts: 6
edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello MFP Readers!

Quick Disclaimer: I apologize for the title, which should read "August Focus: Reverse the Way You Think About Meals"

This is the first of a series of posts I will be writing about general health practices that can help people who are on hardcore diets, people looking to shed a few pounds, or even people who just want to keep extra weight off. August's topic is Reversing the Way You Think About Meals. This doesn't mean reverse the types of foods you eat, rather than reverse the order in which you eat them. Studies have shown people who eat the largest meal at the end of the day, which is a more traditional practice, are generally not in as good of shape as those who reverse the meal order and eat the biggest meal first.

We've all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. This is quite true. Breakfast jump-starts the mind and metabolism and if you only grab a banana on the way out the door, you're doing your body an injustice. Eat a big, high calorie meal in the morning like a couple of scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, or a big bowl of cereal. This will help your body stay energized and keep you focused throughout the day. Your metabolism will be off to a good start, then, as you eat smaller meals throughout the day, your body works harder to maintain your energy. Eat a small snack, like a handful of peanuts, a cereal bar, or a slice of bread with some peanut butter before bed to prevent your body from going into starvation mode, but keep it light so your body continues to burn excess calories in your sleep.

As with any diet or weight loss exercise, results will not be instant, but as your body begins to react to your reversal, it will then adjust it's metabolism to accommodate the different intake times. Once your body begins to develop a pattern, you'll notice you're not as hungry as you used to be before bed, and the excess weight will begin to disappear. Remember, you have to choose healthy foods, exercise, and drink lots of water for any diet or weight loss program to help you. With that in mind, reverse the way you think about meals and start losing!

Thoughts, questions, comments, and/or concerns are welcome!

Replies

  • sparklelioness
    sparklelioness Posts: 600 Member
    Your body will go into 'starvation mode', even if you've eaten normal meals ( breakfast, lunch, dinner), when you go to sleep at night, if you dont 'eat something to prevent it'? 8 hours of sleep will put you into starvation mode? That doesnt sound right.

    Btw, I'm curious about your qualifications. You say you have a series of posts planned to inform us all. Are you a doctor? Nutritionist? Fitness instructor?
  • Number1BooBoo
    Number1BooBoo Posts: 6
    Your body will go into 'starvation mode', even if you've eaten normal meals ( breakfast, lunch, dinner), when you go to sleep at night, if you dont 'eat something to prevent it'? 8 hours of sleep will put you into starvation mode? That doesnt sound right.

    Btw, I'm curious about your qualifications. You say you have a series of posts planned to inform us all. Are you a doctor? Nutritionist? Fitness instructor?

    Of course your body naturally does this, however NOT eating something small before you go to bed can cause over-eating when you wake the up next day. Also, after a certain period of time when you've not eaten, your body passes beyond hunger. If you wake up and you're not hungry, it can affect your pattern.

    And no, my qualifications are simply that I'm a health enthusiast, I never claimed to have a degree of any kind, and the information I am posting is simply a collection of ideas I thought I might share with anyone willing to listen. I'm open to arguments, and I'm certainly not trying to "inform" you all. Just posting a casual post on a casual weight loss website.
  • douglasmobbs
    douglasmobbs Posts: 563 Member
    What a load of rubbish

    Eat a small snack, like a handful of peanuts, a cereal bar, or a slice of bread with some peanut butter before bed to prevent your body from going into starvation mode, but keep it light so your body continues to burn excess calories in your sleep.

    This rates as one of the silliest serious comments that I have read on this in a while.
  • Number1BooBoo
    Number1BooBoo Posts: 6
    What a load of rubbish

    Eat a small snack, like a handful of peanuts, a cereal bar, or a slice of bread with some peanut butter before bed to prevent your body from going into starvation mode, but keep it light so your body continues to burn excess calories in your sleep.

    This rates as one of the silliest serious comments that I have read on this in a while.

    And yet, common sense will tell you, when you eat something, specifically something with protein and carbohydrates, you become energized. This is a basic health fact. Energy isn't just in the form of alertness or being able to run a mile, energy is what drives your metabolism. Once again. Fact. So when you go to sleep at night, after eating a small snack, you will become energized and your body will continue to metabolize. Fact.
  • douglasmobbs
    douglasmobbs Posts: 563 Member
    What a load of rubbish

    Eat a small snack, like a handful of peanuts, a cereal bar, or a slice of bread with some peanut butter before bed to prevent your body from going into starvation mode, but keep it light so your body continues to burn excess calories in your sleep.

    This rates as one of the silliest serious comments that I have read on this in a while.
    #.

    And yet, common sense will tell you, when you eat something, specifically something with protein and carbohydrates, you become energized. This is a basic health fact. Energy isn't just in the form of alertness or being able to run a mile, energy is what drives your metabolism. Once again. Fact. So when you go to sleep at night, after eating a small snack, you will become energized and your body will continue to metabolize. Fact.

    Regardless of what you eat, if anything, your body will continue to burn calories through the night at a rate slightly higher than your BMR as you will be moving about in your sleep. There is an argument to be made about slow release proteins and muscle repair through the night post workout, but eating before bed to help weight loss is just wrong.. Oops, forgot to add "fact" at least three times to my post to make it true. fact. That is a fact you know
  • Number1BooBoo
    Number1BooBoo Posts: 6
    http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/fitness/weight-loss/how-to-burn-more-calories-while-sleeping.html#b

    This article perfectly explains that what you just stated is incorrect (#2), and quite to the contrary, your body burns LESS calories when you sleep. I will give you the last statement in #2, "Of course if you don’t feel hungry, skip the bed time snack," which may support that a small snack before bed isn't for anyone, and for that, I apologize for the statement in my original post, I should have specified as the article does. That said, if you'd like I can look up some other articles to support my statement. Please let me know! :)
  • Number1BooBoo
    Number1BooBoo Posts: 6
    What a load of rubbish

    Eat a small snack, like a handful of peanuts, a cereal bar, or a slice of bread with some peanut butter before bed to prevent your body from going into starvation mode, but keep it light so your body continues to burn excess calories in your sleep.

    This rates as one of the silliest serious comments that I have read on this in a while.
    #.

    And yet, common sense will tell you, when you eat something, specifically something with protein and carbohydrates, you become energized. This is a basic health fact. Energy isn't just in the form of alertness or being able to run a mile, energy is what drives your metabolism. Once again. Fact. So when you go to sleep at night, after eating a small snack, you will become energized and your body will continue to metabolize. Fact.

    Regardless of what you eat, if anything, your body will continue to burn calories through the night at a rate slightly higher than your BMR as you will be moving about in your sleep. There is an argument to be made about slow release proteins and muscle repair through the night post workout, but eating before bed to help weight loss is just wrong.. Oops, forgot to add "fact" at least three times to my post to make it true. fact. That is a fact you know

    And as for my over-usage of "fact," I do apologize, I was a little aggressive. Won't happen again!
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    Hello MFP Readers!

    Quick Disclaimer: I apologize for the title, which should read "August Focus: Reverse the Way You Think About Meals"

    This is the first of a series of posts I will be writing about general health practices that can help people who are on hardcore diets, people looking to shed a few pounds, or even people who just want to keep extra weight off. August's topic is Reversing the Way You Think About Meals. This doesn't mean reverse the types of foods you eat, rather than reverse the order in which you eat them. Studies have shown people who eat the largest meal at the end of the day, which is a more traditional practice, are generally not in as good of shape as those who reverse the meal order and eat the biggest meal first.

    We've all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. This is quite true. Breakfast jump-starts the mind and metabolism and if you only grab a banana on the way out the door, you're doing your body an injustice. Eat a big, high calorie meal in the morning like a couple of scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, or a big bowl of cereal. This will help your body stay energized and keep you focused throughout the day. Your metabolism will be off to a good start, then, as you eat smaller meals throughout the day, your body works harder to maintain your energy. Eat a small snack, like a handful of peanuts, a cereal bar, or a slice of bread with some peanut butter before bed to prevent your body from going into starvation mode, but keep it light so your body continues to burn excess calories in your sleep.

    As with any diet or weight loss exercise, results will not be instant, but as your body begins to react to your reversal, it will then adjust it's metabolism to accommodate the different intake times. Once your body begins to develop a pattern, you'll notice you're not as hungry as you used to be before bed, and the excess weight will begin to disappear. Remember, you have to choose healthy foods, exercise, and drink lots of water for any diet or weight loss program to help you. With that in mind, reverse the way you think about meals and start losing!

    Thoughts, questions, comments, and/or concerns are welcome!

    Hmm....apparently I've been doing everything wrong.....

    I don't eat breakfast most days. If I do, it's a protein bar about 4 hours after I wake up. That's after I run 3-5 miles, shower, get ready, go to work.
    I eat my largest meal and a lot of snacks at night.
    I don't always eat healthy food - I pretty much eat whatever I want.

    I wonder if I make these changes if I will finally start losing weight and getting in shape?




    :laugh:




    Seriously though, most people just need to work on meeting their calorie goals and starting to exercise first.
  • cally69
    cally69 Posts: 182 Member
    The problem with al these well meant posts is that is overcomplicates weight loss.
    If you eat less than your TDEE then you will lose weight. Whenever or whatever you eat.
    If you are eating for optimal health then the composition/macros of what you eat becomes important.
    People just need to find what fits with their lifestyle.
    X
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
    This is quite odd for a first post. Perhaps you meant to post a blog?

    I suggest you do some research - not random articles on the internet, but actual studies - and post those links along with your musings.

    I seriously question your expertise since you don't seem to have a good grasp on how metabolism works, or even what it really is.
  • Number1BooBoo
    Number1BooBoo Posts: 6
    First of all, you can lose weight and still be unhealthy. And yes, you're absolutely right, meeting your calorie goal and starting to get in the habit of exercising is of course where everyone should start! I don't recall ever stating anything contrary to that. However, I did state that "Remember, you have to choose healthy foods, exercise, and drink lots of water for any diet or weight loss program to help you." So while I agree with the last thing you said, and just because you "pretty much eat whatever [you] want," and still may lose weight, it certainly doesn't mean that you are healthy. It doesn't mean you're not healthy, necessarily, but any nutritionist or doctor will tell you that eating whatever whenever is typically not a good health practice.
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    First of all, you can lose weight and still be unhealthy. And yes, you're absolutely right, meeting your calorie goal and starting to get in the habit of exercising is of course where everyone should start! I don't recall ever stating anything contrary to that. However, I did state that "Remember, you have to choose healthy foods, exercise, and drink lots of water for any diet or weight loss program to help you." So while I agree with the last thing you said, and just because you "pretty much eat whatever [you] want," and still may lose weight, it certainly doesn't mean that you are healthy. It doesn't mean you're not healthy, necessarily, but any nutritionist or doctor will tell you that eating whatever whenever is typically not a good health practice.


    But "whatever I want" could be apples, spinach, chicken, etc. Or it could be pizza, pasta, butter, etc.

    And you also said " this doesn't mean reverse the types of foods you eat, rather than reverse the order in which you eat them." So which is it? Chose healthy food or eat the foods you want and just watch the "order" in which you eat them? I take that to mean pizza is ok, as long as I have it for breakfast?

    I do understand that lower weight does not necessarily equal health. But reducing weight by 10% greatly reduces the chances for diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, etc. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/

    And I don't think you are exactly in a position to determine if I am healthy or not.....I'll leave that up to my doctor.
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