Breakfast vs IF (intermittent fasting)

Thanks for the explanation but I have to be honest with you- you are wrong. To think there is one thing that works for every body is misguided. I know what I was doing then vs what I am doing now and how that has changed my overall health. And for me- such a short eating window would not work with my body. Just because it works for some, doesn't mean it works for all.

Assuming that you don't have any underlying health conditions that DOES make you unique, yes, everyone's body DOES function the same way. You are not a snowflake. Calories in versus calories out is the only way a person ever loses/gains mass. If you gained weight and you're a healthy individual, then you must have been over-eating.

This is not quite correct. I have no idea what snowflakes have to do with weight loss or nutrition, other than it's not a good idea to eat the yellow ones. But, if you gained fat then you have been consuming more calories than you used, but you can gain weight without overeating. Water can add a lot of weight regardless of calories consumed.

She was saying that the calories in versus calories out doesn't apply to her. I was merely telling her that she isn't a snowflake and that if she was undereating (but over 1200) with "healthy foods" then it's impossible that she was steadily gaining weight without there being an underlying health problem or without her under-calculating her foods or over-calculating her exercise. Eating meals close together doesn't determine weight gain therefore, an IF would be just fine for her.

Other than not reading the thread and trying to defend her, I agree with everything else you said.

I don't think there's any advantages that are so profound with any particular meal frequency that it would trump personal preference. Dietary adherence is so, so critical, that I think as a general recommendation, doing "whatever works best for you to allow you to hit your macros consistently" should be the top priority for meal timing.

For me: I don't strictly IF by the book, so to speak. However, I don't eat breakfast, I tend to eat a big post workout lunch and then the rest of my cals between dinner and bedtime. It closely resembles a 16/8 IF, I just don't ever let the clock tell me when it's time to eat because I find that behavior just as dogmatic and OCD as the "6-meal-per-day-boost-dat-metabolism" crowd.

I do think there's one point to make (that has probably already been made ITT) -- people who haven't tried grouping your "snacks" together and eating large meals -- for some people this is great for hunger control because that massive lunch keeps you full.

Give IF an honest shot for a month. Log everything
Now give breakfast+small meals throughout the day an honest shot for a month. Log everything.

Look at the stats from each month and compare them (MFP makes this pretty damn easy).

Pick that one that's closest to your goals.