Eating Schedule

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thomaslh83
thomaslh83 Posts: 79 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm so thankful I came across this website! It's been extremely helpful in managing my food intake and exercise. I've really learned a lot just from the types of food that I eat and how much to eat.

I do need some suggestions on my meal schedule. I was just wondering if there was a general rule to follow in terms of when to eat and how far apart you should space your meals. Also, will eating too late in the evening effect my metablolism? Here is a general schedule of my day:

Breakfast - 8am
Midday Snack - 10am
Lunch - 12:30ish
Afternoon Snack - 3pm
Dinner - between 7pm and 8pm
Bedtime - 11pm

Replies

  • Barelmy
    Barelmy Posts: 590 Member
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    I just eat when I'm hungry, and it seems to be working for me. If you let yourself get too hungry, you'll end up eating more than you meant to. Plus, I find it's worth spacing your calories throughout the day, so you never reach a point where you can't eat for three or four hours until after midnight.

    For instance, even with a snack, your gap between lunch and dinner seems like an awfully long time, to me. I'd generally have dinner around 5-7pm, and then supper around 9-11pm, depending on whether I'm working or not (evening shift).
  • stevepayette
    stevepayette Posts: 10
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    I do my best to space my calories out throughout the day. If on an average day I'm supposed to eat 1600 calories, and I'm awake for 16 hours, that means 100 calories each hour. This doesn't work perfectly as I tend to eat a bit more in the evenings then I probably should, so I often am a bit hungry in the hour or two leading up to dinner, but overall it keeps me relatively comfortable throughout the day.
  • thomaslh83
    thomaslh83 Posts: 79 Member
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    @ Barelmy - Thanks for your suggestions. The gap between my afternoon snack and dinner is pretty long. I've been trying my best to pick snacks that are low cal and high in fiber and protein so that I'm not as hungry throughout the day. I've done pretty good on controlling my portions throughout the 2 weeks I've been committed to MFP (with the exception of today), but you're right - there's always that temptation of eating more than you plan to during any given time of day. portioning out my meals ahead of time has been very helpful.
  • aecryan
    aecryan Posts: 89
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    If that schedule is working for you, then stick with it. I agree that there is a long gap between afternoon snack and dinner but if you are not hungry, then no worries. If you are, maybe a small snack around 5ish?
  • RachelJE
    RachelJE Posts: 172
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    From what I've read and learned over the years, best to have 6 small meals throughout the day, spaced every couple of hours. Even if its just a handful of almonds, its good to have something every couple hours to keep your blood sugar at a consistent level and keep you from over eating at dinner after that long gap. That said, every body is different so if you find the schedule you are using works for you, stick with it. It's all about finding what works for you. I find it very hard to eat early, so I usually don't start my every-2-hour routine until 10 or so. That makes it hard to get all my calories in throughout the day, so I'm working on tweaking my schedule myself. I try not to eat after 8pm.
  • MakingAChoice
    MakingAChoice Posts: 481 Member
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    If the afternoon stretch is a struggle for you than makes it a range of 2pm-5pm and get a couple low cal snacks in there. That way you can have one around 2 and one around 5 and easily make it to dinner. It doesn't take much, some beef jerky, a handful of almonds, or a banana will get you through. Eating in the evening should not hurt you, I generally have a snack an hour or so before bed. That way I am not starving and looking for a quick fix when I wake up.
  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
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    no eating late does not effect your metabolism.

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