eating most fo your calories early in the day

icimani
icimani Posts: 1,454 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
"A new study published in the International Journal of Obesity builds on previous studies that suggest it's best not to eat too many calories late in the day.

In the study, the people who ate late and didn't lose as much weight also tended to skip breakfast or eat just a little in the morning.

Not everyone is convinced by the findings of this study. Madelyn Fernstrom of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center says she's skeptical that the timing of meals can influence weight loss so significantly. The study shows an association between the timing of meals and weight loss, says Fernstrom, but "it's not [proving] cause and effect."

"The greater importance is what you are eating," Fernstrom says. If you want to lose weight, "you need to eat fewer calories and exercise more."

That, of course, is something you likely already know."

from:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/01/30/170591028/to-maximize-weight-loss-eat-early-in-the-day-not-late



I know... I know. It's a huge controversy here, but it's an interesting finding. I guess my point is that, with all the truly weird things that people try (cabbage soup, tapeworms?!) why wouldn't you try something as simple as eating breakfast?



Let the controversy begin!

Replies

  • kconway1017
    kconway1017 Posts: 5 Member
    I can't even fathom how people don't eat breakfast. I'm cranky as a bear if I don't get breakfast in before work!
  • pg3ibew
    pg3ibew Posts: 1,026 Member
    I can't speak for anyone else, But.....

    I eat anytime of the day or night. Mostly between 6 and 11 pm. Dinner and snacks right up until I go to bed and sometimes in bed.

    I lost 88 pounds just keeping within my calorie goals, along with exercise, regardless of the time of day.
  • notworthstalking
    notworthstalking Posts: 531 Member
    I eat most of my calories at night. That's when I am at work and do most of my activity. I do find that by making an effort to eat breakfast though, I fuction better.
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
    I can't speak for anyone else, But.....

    I eat anytime of the day or night. Mostly between 6 and 11 pm. Dinner and snacks right up until I go to bed and sometimes in bed.

    I lost 88 pounds just keeping within my calorie goals, along with exercise, regardless of the time of day.

    Yeah, I've never been overweight and I'm a night eater as well. But I also always eat my breakfast. Everybody's different! :flowerforyou:
  • deedeeFP
    deedeeFP Posts: 28
    Thanks for sharing
  • melbatoast917
    melbatoast917 Posts: 370 Member
    I eat 600+ calories of my 1,700 before 8 AM. I think it works out great for me.. sort of tapering off as the day goes by and my activity decreases.
  • Joycie13
    Joycie13 Posts: 9
    Yeah, I eat the bulk of my cals at early in the day, so my body doesn't have to work so hard at burning those cals at the end of the day.
    So, no controversy here ^_^
  • ashumeow
    ashumeow Posts: 151 Member
    I eat a lot in mornings. I even categorized morning foods into 1.breakfast and 2.early breakfast in my food diary. I mostly eat less at nights. =P
  • pg3ibew
    pg3ibew Posts: 1,026 Member
    I eat 600+ calories of my 1,700 before 8 AM. I think it works out great for me.. sort of tapering off as the day goes by and my activity decreases.

    Seems like you and I are total opposites. And both of us have had some pretty decent success. You a bit more than me. You lost an amazing amount of weight. Awesome.
  • CharityGC
    CharityGC Posts: 499 Member
    I'm not a big breakfast person so my breakfasts are very light. Plus, I only get one meal a day with my husband (dinner) and that's the one I make the biggest effort on which leads to being the most calorie dense.
  • AaronO92
    AaronO92 Posts: 7
    I have started intermittent fasting. This means that you eat only 8 hours a day. So for me it is 11am to 7pm. The studies have shown that this is a huge breakthrough but nobody wants to publish it because it would but supplement companies out of business.
  • cjsacto
    cjsacto Posts: 1,421 Member
    I eat a good breakfast, but I have to have something to eat at night. When I try to cut off food by a certain time, I'm not successful because I just love to eat in the evenings (if I get cravings or feel hungry, that's when) so I always save a few hundred calories for around 10:00 pm. Sometimes I am still eating at midnight.

    That said, I am currently making an effort to eat most of my calories by early evening, only because I don't like it when I have to eat more than I want late at night to meet my calorie goal. I don't like to be under by too much.

    I've read articles about timing of eating, and I think some valid points are made, but I have to choose a method that doesn't make me feel deprived so I basically eat all day and into the night and just about always stay in my calorie goal.
  • bipsqueen
    bipsqueen Posts: 57 Member
    My doctor told me long ago that you need to eat at least 400 calories for breakfast to jump start your metabolism. My Mom always has told me to : Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper. That all being said, it's taken my whole adult life to learn to eat in the morning, and I love to eat at night. I have trained myself to eat breakfast and it is important to do that. However, I do still eat at night, I just make sure to stay within my calories. Thanks for sharing!
  • melbatoast917
    melbatoast917 Posts: 370 Member
    I eat 600+ calories of my 1,700 before 8 AM. I think it works out great for me.. sort of tapering off as the day goes by and my activity decreases.

    Seems like you and I are total opposites. And both of us have had some pretty decent success. You a bit more than me. You lost an amazing amount of weight. Awesome.

    I wake up at 5:00 AM, make myself pre-lifting breakfast, lift, come home, and make a protein shake. 600 calories - poof!
  • mili5726
    mili5726 Posts: 116 Member
    Breakfast is essential for me. If I don't eat breakfast I can't even concentrate from being so hungry. The same goes for lunch and dinner. I just cannot skip meals or I will get too hungry, if I get too hungry I will overeat.
  • Vaisaxena
    Vaisaxena Posts: 109 Member
    "A new study published in the International Journal of Obesity builds on previous studies that suggest it's best not to eat too many calories late in the day.

    In the study, the people who ate late and didn't lose as much weight also tended to skip breakfast or eat just a little in the morning.

    Not everyone is convinced by the findings of this study. Madelyn Fernstrom of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center says she's skeptical that the timing of meals can influence weight loss so significantly. The study shows an association between the timing of meals and weight loss, says Fernstrom, but "it's not [proving] cause and effect."

    "The greater importance is what you are eating," Fernstrom says. If you want to lose weight, "you need to eat fewer calories and exercise more."

    That, of course, is something you likely already know."

    from:
    http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/01/30/170591028/to-maximize-weight-loss-eat-early-in-the-day-not-late



    I know... I know. It's a huge controversy here, but it's an interesting finding. I guess my point is that, with all the truly weird things that people try (cabbage soup, tapeworms?!) why wouldn't you try something as simple as eating breakfast?



    Let the controversy begin!

    Conversely, if you value your metabolic rate: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9040548

    "To conclude, ingestion of larger AM meals resulted in slightly greater weight loss, but ingestion of larger PM meals resulted in better maintenance of fat-free mass. Thus, incorporation of larger PM meals in a weight loss regimen may be important in minimizing the loss of fat-free mass."
  • Beeps2011
    Beeps2011 Posts: 12,161 Member
    I am not hungry at breakfast. I work-out fasted at lunch. And, I eat my alotted daily calories from 12:30 pm - about 7:30 pm day-in and day-out.

    When I used to eat breakfast, it just continued to keep me "hungry" throughout the day (and my breakfast was egg whites and Canadian back bacon, maybe with some OLD cheddar cheese).

    So, for me, it works best to NOT eat breakfast. Once I figured that out, the rest was easy-pleasy.
  • Erienneb
    Erienneb Posts: 592 Member
    Well. I usually eat a bar or something when I get up then I don't want to eat until about 11. I usually eat light at 11 and then real lunch at 1ish and a snack at 330ish.

    So yeah I eat the most of my calories earlier because I'm at work. After work I work out, usually drink a protein shake, and then laze around all night so not so much hungry. I'm not trying to eat only early, but it's just what's been easiest for me.
  • gadenni34
    gadenni34 Posts: 294 Member
    I am not hungry at breakfast. I work-out fasted at lunch. And, I eat my alotted daily calories from 12:30 pm - about 7:30 pm day-in and day-out.

    When I used to eat breakfast, it just continued to keep me "hungry" throughout the day (and my breakfast was egg whites and Canadian back bacon, maybe with some OLD cheddar cheese).

    So, for me, it works best to NOT eat breakfast. Once I figured that out, the rest was easy-pleasy.

    same here. I eat about 1000 cals for lunch(which would be my break fast) and then taper down as the day goes on. ending the day with a nighttime snack is awesome for me and makes me happiest. I drink some coffee in the morning and am good to go until about 12-1. when I was eating a regular breakfast it just made me hungrier all day long. has always been that way actually. I only caved and ate breakfast for a few years because *they* said you had to.:wink: It was such a weight off to realize that I don't have to eat it to still accomplish my weight loss and fitness goals. I too work out fasted and it does not hinder me at all.
  • CristinaL1983
    CristinaL1983 Posts: 1,119 Member
    I typically don't eat until 2pm (or later) I practice intermittent fasting. I have had success so far (both before I joined MFP and since joining). I try to work out fasted.
  • significance
    significance Posts: 436 Member
    I let my stomach guide me. If I'm hungry in the morning, I eat a good breakfast. If I'm not hungry, I find that eating breakfast is a mistake, because it means I will be hungry later in the day, but won't have calories to spare.
  • asta1227
    asta1227 Posts: 2 Member
    I can't even fathom how people don't eat breakfast. I'm cranky as a bear if I don't get breakfast in before work!



    Ditto ditto ditto. I heart breakfast. I hate the days that I'm late and can't eat something. Puts me all out of sorts.

    Doesn't the saying go, "Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper?"

    I try to apply that to my eating habits.
  • kar328
    kar328 Posts: 4,159 Member
    I work 7PM to 7AM three times a week, different days each week. Eating "early" in the day would be hard. I changed my diary to 6 hour blocks, rather than keep the traditional meal names because while at work, I eat around 1-2 AM if it's not too busy. I'll eat a meal before I go to work, then that weirdly timed meal at work, plus some quick snacks, depending on how busy it is. I get home just before 8 and usually have something light before crashing into bed at 9. I keep the food diary at the traditional 24 hour span. So far this is the easiest way I can see to do it. Or win the lottery, get to stay home and have a chef make me healthy food at normal hours . :drinker:
  • Railr0aderTony
    Railr0aderTony Posts: 6,803 Member
    Last time I checked my body did not have a clock, I work swing shift and eat at different hours every day. I have done ok. so No not buying the little study, they are always set up to get the results someone wanted.
  • benol1
    benol1 Posts: 867 Member
    I know... I know. It's a huge controversy here, but it's an interesting finding. I guess my point is that, with all the truly weird things that people try (cabbage soup, tapeworms?!) why wouldn't you try something as simple as eating breakfast?

    Yes, its common sense, really.
    Thank you for sharing!
  • lorih307
    lorih307 Posts: 15
    I think the time of day probably matters more as you get closer to your weight loss goals, when it's more difficult to lose those last, stubborn 5-10 pounds. I've been down the weight loss road before, and that was when I noticed that not having snacks after 7:00 or 8:00 at night made a surprising difference.

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