Healthy eating.

ldilone13354
ldilone13354 Posts: 125
in Food and Nutrition
So I have an Instagram and I'm on a diet, eating small and healthy plus working out. When I eat I don't eat till I'm full. When I'm done I'm done and I make sure to eat small portions. How come theirs people that eat big meals when their dieting? I follow a lot of healthy food pages on Instagram of people who are dieting and their pictures of their meal is huge. I thought you were suppose to be eating small portions of foods? I'm so confused because that's what I've been doing.

Replies

  • dynamitegalxo
    dynamitegalxo Posts: 299 Member
    The size of your meals, the time you eat them, or the number of hours between meals don't matter. You need to find out the number of calories you should be eating, and eat them. Doesn't matter if it's 2 meals or 6. You can have as many meals or snacks as you want, at any time of day, as long as you're eating the right number of calories.

    If people are eating giant salads or big pieces of lean meat with vegetables or salad on the side, it will look like a ton of food but probably won't be a huge amount of calories since the foods aren't very calorie dense.

    I hope that helps, good luck!
  • ldilone13354
    ldilone13354 Posts: 125
    The size of your meals, the time you eat them, or the number of hours between meals don't matter. You need to find out the number of calories you should be eating, and eat them. Doesn't matter if it's 2 meals or 6. You can have as many meals or snacks as you want, at any time of day, as long as you're eating the right number of calories.

    If people are eating giant salads or big pieces of lean meat with vegetables or salad on the side, it will look like a ton of food but probably won't be a huge amount of calories since the foods aren't very calorie dense.

    I hope that helps, good luck!


    It really helped! :) Thanks!
  • xxghost
    xxghost Posts: 4,697 Member
    Remember, most people are striving for a lifestyle change, not a DIET.

    Now, many different eating styles work for different people. Some eat many small meals throughout the day. Others prefer a few large meals. The size of your meal does not matter so much as long as you are getting in your daily calories. The large meals posted on instagram may be one of the only two meals that person eats a day.

    I wouldn't say that you're SUPPOSED to eat small meals, or that you're SUPPOSED to eat large ones. There is a lot of debate over which style is best, but I think it depends on the person, and what can be worked into a daily schedule. As long as you're getting your calories, you're golden.
  • ldilone13354
    ldilone13354 Posts: 125
    Remember, most people are striving for a lifestyle change, not a DIET.

    Now, many different eating styles work for different people. Some eat many small meals throughout the day. Others prefer a few large meals. The size of your meal does not matter so much as long as you are getting in your daily calories. The large meals posted on instagram may be one of the only two meals that person eats a day.

    I wouldn't say that you're SUPPOSED to eat small meals, or that you're SUPPOSED to eat large ones. There is a lot of debate over which style is best, but I think it depends on the person, and what can be worked into a daily schedule. As long as you're getting your calories, you're golden.

    I meant lifestyle change because if I wasn't in one I would be eating like crazy. I eat very small portions of food, and I when I serve myself food I get paranoid about it being too big. I thought that eating small got you to slim down and when you ate big meals you get big. I don't know. I guess.
  • xxghost
    xxghost Posts: 4,697 Member
    I meant lifestyle change because if I wasn't in one I would be eating like crazy. I eat very small portions of food, and I when I serve myself food I get paranoid about it being too big. I thought that eating small got you to slim down and when you ate big meals you get big. I don't know. I guess.

    Portion size is a big part of being healthier. Almonds are pretty healthy. But if I eat the entire bag in one sitting, I won't lose any weight. But that is not so much about the size of your meal as it is how many more calories you take in by eating a bag instead of half a cup. Again, it comes back to what you're eating, and how many calories are in those meals. I could eat a huge plate full of lettuce, but I'm still consuming less calories (and in theory, losing less weight) than if I had just eaten one cookie. Don't think so much about the size of your plate, but instead what is on it. If you're eating something with a lot of calories - a cheese burger, for instance - it may look smaller than a plate full of grilled chicken. But the chicken has fewer calories. Work on logging your calories, and not focusing on how big or small your plate is. I think that would be a good place to start!
  • shannashannabobana
    shannashannabobana Posts: 625 Member
    How come theirs people that eat big meals when their dieting?
    The volume thing has already been mentioned (ie, veggies are low cal but take up room).

    Many people don't eat all those snacks. I generally eat two meals a day, with lunch (during the work week especially) as the largest meal.

    Also, maybe the people on instagram are not eating the whole plate they take a picture of.
  • grimendale
    grimendale Posts: 2,153 Member
    My meals after insanity are huge. My base calories for the day are around 2000, and I burn anywhere from 600 to 800 calories in a workout. That usually leaves me with 1200+ calories left for dinner, so I eat a lot of food in the hours before bed. I am near my maintenance weight, so I have to make sure to maintain a small deficit in order to burn fat. Since I'm vegetarian, a lot of my protein is fairly low in calories (in comparison to the meat equivalent), so the volume of food increases there too. It's all about calories in/calories out. Calorie dense foods are good if you have a lot of calories to consume (such as after a large burn), where as low calorie vegetables can be good way to get a lot of food and feel full without blowing through your calories. Focus on calorie counts and portion sizes, not total food volume. The latter can be deceiving.
  • corgicake
    corgicake Posts: 846 Member
    Keep in mind that instagram is photoshop's kid sister. The food is likely smaller than you think.
  • aynhagenbarth
    aynhagenbarth Posts: 75 Member
    Some people might be making a huge salad and they don't finish it. I know sometimes I can't believe the size of my awesome healthy meal, but I don't actually finish it because I get full.
  • quirkytizzy
    quirkytizzy Posts: 4,052 Member
    Many people work out more often or heavier. Heavy workouts require more fuel, so they eat more. The more you burn, the more you can eat.

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