Breakfast as your biggest meal of the day?
teecee60
Posts: 47 Member
Is anyone practicing the concept of eating their largest meal of the day for breakfast and tapering their daily calories from there? I am very interested in this and wonder how to go about it. As an example, if I am to eat 1500 calories per day...how many calories should I have for each meal and should I eat in between meals (grazing)? Also, what time should I have my last meal if I am going to bed at 11:00 p.m.?
I often do an evening swim workout between 7-8:00 3x per week. This isn't by choice, this is when I can get in the pool. I am often confused as to whether I should eat before or after the swim. If I eat after, that has me often eating between 8:30-9:00 and I am in bed by 11:00. That is why I am asking the timing of the last meal.
Thanks!
I often do an evening swim workout between 7-8:00 3x per week. This isn't by choice, this is when I can get in the pool. I am often confused as to whether I should eat before or after the swim. If I eat after, that has me often eating between 8:30-9:00 and I am in bed by 11:00. That is why I am asking the timing of the last meal.
Thanks!
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Replies
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Well, see how your body responds to eating before/after your swimming sessions. Some people just can't workout on an empty stomach, while some others can't workout on a full stomach. See what fits you best! You can also eat a little before and a little after.
About the breakfast part... Well I usually eat a light breakfast because I'm not that hungry when I wake up. I'll usually get a half-bagel with cretons or cream cheese with a greek yogurt. It totally satisfies me and I'm not hungry before lunchtime. And well, when I lift before lunchtime, I'm not really hungry for lunch. I still eat, but I sometimes force myself because it's important to eat :P
About snacking... Well it's up to you. if you are not doing some kind of lifting schedule, you don't really need to worry about the number of meal, as long as you never feel hungry. Some people eat 3 meals, while some have 6. Just make sure you are below your calorie goal
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If it works for you.
Sometimes breakfast is my biggest meal. I've had 500-700 calorie breakfasts before, but they are usually later in the day. I think I do better when I have a pretty evenly spaced day..
Doesn't matter when you have your last meal of the day.0 -
"Meal Tapering" sounds like an interesting concept. I'm usually down for volunteering as a guinea pig for such things, but I have to bow out of this one. Eating a big breakfast makes me a completely useless human for a 24 hour period. I reserve it for cold rainy/snowy Sundays where I have no plans or to-dos whatsoever.0
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I often eat a large breakfast and find that when I do I really am not hungry between meals. I therefore do not have snacks those days and plan accordingly. I have a water aerobics/sculpting class 2 days a week 7-8:30 PM. I try to eat before 6 and sometimes have a snack when I get home if I am still hungry.0
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Meal timing is pretty much irrelevant. Eat whenever works best for you, which you'll find out by trial and error. If you have enough energy to get through your day and to put in a good workout, then you've got it down. Eating right before bed is fine, too.0
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If you're young and healthy, then I see no need for taking on this extra stringency. I do it because I have to, because I have gallbladder issues. That said, it's really rather simple. I start my day with a hearty snack, then eat a large brunch around 10am, then a big lunch at 1pm, then a snack at 3pm, and dinner no later than 6pm. In the winter, it's easier to be done eating at sundown, for some reason. After dinner, I only drink tea and water, and then fresh squeezed lemon juice in water right before bed.
I exercise after dinner. As long as I wait 15 minutes or so for the food to settle a bit.
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Yes i do a queen,princess, peasant thing
Bf i eat up to 700 cals sometimes! Dinner is low so im hungry and love bf food!
You should totally drink at least a protein drink after your workout. Wont do harm by your bedtime0 -
Meal timing is pretty much irrelevant. Eat whenever works best for you, which you'll find out by trial and error. If you have enough energy to get through your day and to put in a good workout, then you've got it down. Eating right before bed is fine, too.
This. I'm very rarely hungry before lunch, and I like going to bed full, so I naturally do IF and eat between noon and 10 pm. (I didn't even know that's what I've been doing until I joined MFP!) My workouts are mainly done in a fasted state and this hasn't hurt my energy levels or weight loss at all. It's totally whatever your body feels best doing. 0 -
Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.0 -
Whatever works for you. My breakfasts are all over the place.0
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Do whatever is going to allow for optimal adherence to your diet...otherwise, meal timing, frequency, calories per meal, etc is irrelevant.
Breakfast is generally my smallest meal of the day. I eat about 80 - 85% of my calories after the noon hour. I pretty much eat nonstop from about lunch through bed time.0 -
Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.0 -
Oh Snap! It's about to get hot up in here!Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
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My breakfast and dinner are each around 500 calories, with my other 400 a day spread between lunch and snacks. I find that if I have a large breakfast, I'm not playing catch up with my hunger for the rest of the day, whereas when I eat a little I feel just a bit hungry all day long.0
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Generally make my breakfast as light as possible, then have quite a big lunch around noon, before having a medium dinner + shake around 9pm0
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Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
really?? I wonder how I've lost 75 pounds with most of my dinners being after 7:30 and my night snack happening around 11ish. I have bankers hours and a sedentary desk job. so no eating around my work schedule here .. soooo...
I had cottage cheese mixed with protein powder and a little milk with tea last night around 11 or maybe it was 11:30.. *gasp* (i know it sounds gross but i like it lol)
Maybe a particular person does better if they don't eat super late because of one reason or another.. But in general timing of meals makes no difference.0 -
Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
BAW HA HA HA HA HA
No.
Just no.
I eat ice cream for breakfast too if I feel like it. I'm curious as to why the ice cream is suspect but my 700 calorie dinner (biggest meal of my day) 30 minutes before isn't?
Meal timing is 100% irrelevant to weight loss and metabolism. You get xxxx calories to eat in a day. 1 day = 24 hrs.
then them whenever you want.
I would literally be completely none functional if I stopped eating at 8 PM. Why? Because I am at the gym from 8 PM to 11 PM. I burn upwards of 600-800 calories... I would starve to death if I ate all my calories and nothing after my work outs.0 -
Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
That's just funny! When I eat ice cream, its always later in the evening, and usually half the time WHILE I'm in bed watching tv right before I fall asleep.0 -
Meh, I tried it, lasted maybe a day or two. I really like having a large dinner. If I don't, then I'm snacking an hour later, causing me to go over my daily calories. Big dinner = full till bedtime.0
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I do the complete opposite.0
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You have to do what works for your body.
For me eating a big breakfast does not work. I feel bloated and out of it all day. I do better with a small breakfast and then splitting the rest of my calories between lunch and dinner with it depending on the day which one is bigger. I have also found that if I eat after 8pm I don't sleep as well and don't feel as good the next day.0 -
I break all the "rules" and do the complete opposite. I skip breakfast, don't eat lunch until 2, and usually don't eat dinner until somewhere in the 8-10 range. Dinner is more often than not my largest meal, by far.0
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My biggest meal is breakfast (500 to 600 calories), and then I tend to eat less during the rest of the day, often going to be slightly hungry (when trying to lose weight). I don't know why, but this works quite well for me, always has.0
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Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
100% incorrect.0 -
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:0
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Only, you didn't frame it as "this is what works for me", you framed it as a fact that applies to everyone. I personally prefer to do most of my digestion in the evening/night when I'm not as active. Eating a lot early on in the day makes me feel sluggish, bloated and sleepy, and eating breakfast early generally makes me feel hungry by mid-morning, whereas when I skip breakfast I don't feel hungry until early afternoon. That's how it works for me, it doesn't work for everyone.Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
BAW HA HA HA HA HA
No.
Just no.
I eat ice cream for breakfast too if I feel like it. I'm curious as to why the ice cream is suspect but my 700 calorie dinner (biggest meal of my day) 30 minutes before isn't?
Meal timing is 100% irrelevant to weight loss and metabolism. You get xxxx calories to eat in a day. 1 day = 24 hrs.
then them whenever you want.
I would literally be completely none functional if I stopped eating at 8 PM. Why? Because I am at the gym from 8 PM to 11 PM. I burn upwards of 600-800 calories... I would starve to death if I ate all my calories and nothing after my work outs.
Every one has there own ways of doing stuff, bodies are different all i know this would defiantly not work for me. So have at it!
People get way too worked up and everyone has balls over the internet! :laugh: :laugh:0 -
Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
LOL, no you're not. You can eat whilst in bed, 5 minutes before you go to sleep - it makes no difference.0 -
It works really well for me to have a bigger breakfast. I have much more energy in the day and don't feel sluggish in the evenings. I go to bed about 10pm and I don't like to eat after 6pm (even if I go to the gym in the evening). Some people say it doesn't matter if you eat late, in my personal experience it does. But do whatever your body responds well to.0
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I prefer to eat at night. I eat 2/3 of my diet starting 2 hours before bed and typically right up to the point of going to sleep. In other words I eat about 2500 calories right before bed, every day. Meal timing is really a personal preference.0
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Nope. I eat the biggest meal at the end of the day.
200-300 calories around 930/10 AM
500 calories between 1130-1230
100-200 small snack 130 PM
20-300 meal 3/4PM
1130 PM- Dinner/Protein shakes
1200 AM Ice cream and tea.
Not so sure i would listen to this person..... ice cream before bed? Your suppose to generally stop eating between 8 and 9 so your stomach has time to digest before bed.
I eat ice cream and poptarts right before bed almost 5 nights a week. Try it sometime.0
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