Is it bad to eat most of your calories at the end of the day?

2

Replies

  • libbydoodle11
    libbydoodle11 Posts: 1,351 Member
    yogsothoth wrote: »
    I have a budget of 1550 calories. I usually don't eat anything in the morning, and for lunch at work I will normally have just a couple hundred calories between carrots, nuts, and nonfat yogurt.

    I usually get home for dinner with the vast majority of my 1550 calories still remaining... So, I have a big dinner! Am I causing myself problems with this eating pattern?

    My losses have been reasonable so far, by the way, but it has only been a couple of weeks.

    Thanks for the input.


    Find what works for you and stick with it.

  • ThePhoenixIsRising
    ThePhoenixIsRising Posts: 781 Member
    PeteSede wrote: »
    PeteSede wrote: »
    As far as weight loss, there is no difference. But your lack of calories when you should be most active can make you feel tired and unmotivated.

    I feel the word "can" and "may" are ones you should refrain from using when giving someone an absolute answer. If you want to advise the op on the possible consequences that's fine, but don't say "you should do X,Y,Z because if you don't A,B,C "can/may" happen."

    If you do you are advising an absolute action hinged on a possible, not absolute, consequence. It just makes you look less objective and because of that less reliable.

    Sorry, you lost me. Almost the entirety of medicine and physiology is based around probabilities of something happening. If you smoke 2 packs of cigarettes per day, it does not mean you will get lung cancer and not everyone who gets lung cancer was a smoker.

    If you do not consume calories early in the day, it may lead to cellular energy issues. While we all think of this as muscle weakness, the majority of the early symptoms involve the brain and include difficulty concentrating, problems with memory, confusion and irritability. If you don´t eat breakfast, does that mean that these symptoms will occur? No, but it increases the likelihood. Does it mean it will happen every day? No, but it will happen more frequently than if you ate breakfast.

    Telling people to eat breakfast to avoid some symptoms is the same as telling someone to quit smoking. There are no absolutes when it comes to physiology, but you are changing the odds of something bad happening. And with skipping breakfast, the symptoms are minor quality of life issues that most people would not even attribute to calories. A co-worker annoys you? You can´t remember where you left your car keys? You dont´feel like going for a walk at lunch? You have trouble concentrating during a business meeting? My belief is a lot of what people contribute to ´having a bad day´ can come back to nutrition.

    What about the people who have switched to an IF lifestyle that note the quality of life issues are temporary, lasting only a few days to a week while their body adjusts to the new rhythm?

  • As a Type 2 diabetic, skipping meals throughout the day is very much discouraged. Before the onset of this problem, I would never eat breakfast and usually skipped lunch at work and I would consume far too many calories in one meal and/or graze all night until I went to bed. Try a non fat yogurt and/or toast or oatmeal for breakfast to get you going and to give you a boost in energy and mental sharpness. Bring some almonds and fruit with you for lunch and keep it lite so you don't get tired by a heavy lunch at work. Enjoy your meal at the end of the day and keep it balanced, portions controlled, and add lots of color and flavors. Grab a snack before retiring. for the fun of it. And always drink a lot of water and keep hydrated, especially if you are not eating during the day. And always enjoy your food.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,050 Member
    As a Type 2 diabetic, skipping meals throughout the day is very much discouraged. Before the onset of this problem, I would never eat breakfast and usually skipped lunch at work and I would consume far too many calories in one meal and/or graze all night until I went to bed. Try a non fat yogurt and/or toast or oatmeal for breakfast to get you going and to give you a boost in energy and mental sharpness. Bring some almonds and fruit with you for lunch and keep it lite so you don't get tired by a heavy lunch at work. Enjoy your meal at the end of the day and keep it balanced, portions controlled, and add lots of color and flavors. Grab a snack before retiring. for the fun of it. And always drink a lot of water and keep hydrated, especially if you are not eating during the day. And always enjoy your food.

    Due to your diabetes meal timing is more important. However, your eating schedule was not the cause of your diabetes. Usually the causal factors that are pointed to for type 2 diabetes are over consumption of calories with a high ratio of carbs especially simple sugars, not eating food mainly at the end of the day while eating an appropriate amount of calories with a good balance of carbs, protein and fat.

    In terms of weight loss, if the calories are the same when you eat is not important. If this eating pattern works for the OP to maintain compliance with the calorie goal, then sticking with this would be fine for weight loss, and weight loss would be beneficial for overall health.
  • MKEgal
    MKEgal Posts: 3,250 Member
    edited November 2014
    Bad? No. But studies have shown that you'll have more weight loss if you eat about half your calories for breakfast. (Big breakfast, medium lunch, small dinner.)
    See the last half of this post for the studies:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/MKEgal/view/2014-06-10-some-studies-about-weight-loss-667818

    I had never been a big breakfast person, but once I learned that, I started changing how I eat.

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  • Thanks, everyone. I'll stick with my routine for now but if I hit a rough patch I might try introducing breakfast as some have suggested.

    Under this routine, I actually find there are many nights when I come in well under my calorie goal. If I have 1000-1200 calories left in the evening, I may well get full well before I've eaten all that I am due. So I guess the next question is how few calories are TOO few calories... But I'll do some reading before I ask that question here. :)
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,624 Member
    yogsothoth wrote: »
    Thanks, everyone. I'll stick with my routine for now but if I hit a rough patch I might try introducing breakfast as some have suggested.

    Under this routine, I actually find there are many nights when I come in well under my calorie goal. If I have 1000-1200 calories left in the evening, I may well get full well before I've eaten all that I am due. So I guess the next question is how few calories are TOO few calories... But I'll do some reading before I ask that question here. :)

    Then eat more peanut butter and fat. It's pretty easy to eat 1000 calories in a sitting when you eat calorie-dense food. Eat a Mars Bar or two or something.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    I haven't had time to read the other replies yet. But for me personally. ... I usually have dinner at around 4:30, and no I'm not a pensioner :p I just can't stand the thought of going to bed with a full gut of food. My other reason is to go without food longer til the next meal
  • The other reason to eat your bigger meals earlier in the day, as mentioned above... if you are hungry at 3am-6am, you will not know it. If you are hungry at 9am-11am, you will know it and will be more likely to eat.

    TLDR - be hungry when you are sleeping, not awake.
  • obscuremusicreference
    obscuremusicreference Posts: 1,320 Member
    yogsothoth wrote: »
    I have a budget of 1550 calories. I usually don't eat anything in the morning, and for lunch at work I will normally have just a couple hundred calories between carrots, nuts, and nonfat yogurt.

    I usually get home for dinner with the vast majority of my 1550 calories still remaining... So, I have a big dinner! Am I causing myself problems with this eating pattern?

    My losses have been reasonable so far, by the way, but it has only been a couple of weeks.

    Thanks for the input.

    I have always eaten most of my calories in the evening. I can work out, work all day, and head into the evening having consumed only 200-400 calories and feeling just fine. Whatever you're most comfortable with. But if you're concerned, swap something out for a higher-calorie food.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,459 Member
    For weight loss, it doesn't matter. But it might set you up for bingeing in the evening. Also, just on a common-sense level, it kind of makes sense to eat to fuel your activity (i.e. before you do things). Also, if sleeping's an issue, the timing of food consumption might play into triggering wakefulness (sorry, in a rush and can't remember which studies showed this - basically, eating soon after waking tells your body you're awake by triggering metabolic processes. I don't know if eating late would keep you awake, though.)

    It's down to how you feel and function, ultimately.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,459 Member
    edited December 2014
    MrM27 wrote: »
    tomatoey wrote: »
    For weight loss, it doesn't matter. But it might set you up for bingeing in the evening. Also, just on a common-sense level, it kind of makes sense to eat to fuel your activity (i.e. before you do things). Also, if sleeping's an issue, the timing of food consumption might play into triggering wakefulness (sorry, in a rush and can't remember which studies showed this - basically, eating soon after waking tells your body you're awake by triggering metabolic processes. I don't know if eating late would keep you awake, though.)

    It's down to how you feel and function, ultimately.

    Triggering metabolic process?

    Or something, I'm not a biologist and I was remembering. It's to do with a 'food-entrainable clock' thought to be involved in our circadian rhythms. It's more of a problem for sleep function.

    http://www.prevention.com/health/sleep-energy/foods-and-meal-timing-linked-sleep-cycles

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronobiology

    http://www.sciencemag.org/content/320/5879/1074.abstract

    I mean I presume metabolic processes are somehow involved.
  • krazyforyou
    krazyforyou Posts: 1,428 Member
    For the love of Christ do what works for you. Me I usually only eat one meal a day and am good with it.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,459 Member

    I didn't say anything different. There s reason to think can be problematic for people with sleep issues. No issues, no problem.
  • GingerbreadCandy
    GingerbreadCandy Posts: 403 Member
    edited December 2014
    According to my trainer at my gym (we are all assigned a trainer when we sign up) you should not eat carbs in the evening, according to her, it won't affect weight loss, but not eating carbs will help avoid an insulin peak before going to bed which should help with burning fat, as the body burns the most fat when it is asleep.

    However, she was also trying to sell me protein shakes and bars, so I am not really sure how much to believe her. :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: (Any hard science input on that?)

    More seriously, based on what I learned so far, I'd say it shouldn't affect your weight loss. It is more a matter of how it affects your sleep.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    According to my trainer at my gym (we are all assigned a trainer when we sign up) you should not eat carbs in the evening, according to her, it won't affect weight loss, but not eating carbs will help avoid an insulin peak before going to bed which should help with burning fat, as the body burns the most fat when it is asleep.

    However, she was also trying to sell me protein shakes and bars, so I am not really sure how much to believe her. :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: (Any hard science input on that?)

    More seriously, based on what I learned so far, I'd say it shouldn't affect your weight loss. It is more a matter of how it affects your sleep.

    your trainer is talking bro-science

    eat when it works for you - I eat more in the evenings because I graze
  • GingerbreadCandy
    GingerbreadCandy Posts: 403 Member
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    According to my trainer at my gym (we are all assigned a trainer when we sign up) you should not eat carbs in the evening, according to her, it won't affect weight loss, but not eating carbs will help avoid an insulin peak before going to bed which should help with burning fat, as the body burns the most fat when it is asleep.

    However, she was also trying to sell me protein shakes and bars, so I am not really sure how much to believe her. :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: (Any hard science input on that?)

    More seriously, based on what I learned so far, I'd say it shouldn't affect your weight loss. It is more a matter of how it affects your sleep.

    your trainer is talking bro-science

    eat when it works for you - I eat more in the evenings because I graze

    Thought so… would've been cool though since I don't actually like eating carbs in the evening. :smile:
  • Iwishyouwell
    Iwishyouwell Posts: 1,888 Member
    Telling people to eat breakfast to avoid some symptoms is the same as telling someone to quit smoking.

    That is a horrible analogy.

    Scores of millions of people skip breakfast the world over. It's not even always been considered an essential meal in many cultures and societies. Entire societies, at given times, even shunned morning meals.