how do you all space out your calories for the day

mom23nuts
mom23nuts Posts: 636 Member
edited September 28 in Health and Weight Loss
just curious...I seem to try to spread my 1350 cal pretty evenly throughout the day but I was just curious what other people were doing and if they were finding success doing something differently.

I used to hear that you should eat like a king for breakfast and a queen for lunch and a pauper for dinner but that is so not the typical American way. As Americans we tend to skip breakfast or go small and then eat a mid size lunch and a huge dinner.

Anyone spreading the cals evenly and losing faster than say someone doing the typical American plan vs the start big and then go smaller as the the day goes on.

I would love to analyze the 3 types of plans and see who is gaining greater results.

I am not a scientist or a math nut, but just a bit of a fact loving nerd looking for best possible results.

Replies

  • jrich1
    jrich1 Posts: 2,408 Member
    it doesnt matter when you eat your calories, I eat about every 2-3hrs . Makes it easier to stick to when I am never really hungry
  • iojoi
    iojoi Posts: 378 Member
    TBH what I usually do is plan ahead, but I pretty much have the same for breakfast so I have can manage lunch and dinner between whats left.
  • schnarfo
    schnarfo Posts: 764 Member
    My breakfast tends to be between 200 and 300 calories, my lunch between 350 to 500 and my dinner between 500 and 800. Then theres snacks which range from 30 calories to 300 depending on my needs for the day and how many calories I have left to play with.
  • live4turns
    live4turns Posts: 314 Member
    I've tried to make dinner my smallest calorie meal but it just ain't happenin'. I also read somewhere that eating a huge breakfast is not all that it's cracked up to be - a big breakfast expands your stomach for the rest of the day and when you decrease your intake per successive meal you are left hungrier.

    I've tried balancing my meals evenly - so for 1600 calories I'd do 3 meals @ 400 calories and 2 snacks @ 200 calories. I never went to bed hungry doing this. It takes lots of discipline though.
  • trainguy917
    trainguy917 Posts: 366 Member
    I've gotten pretty good at knowing when I'm hungry, but sometimes I have to eat even if I don't feel like it (like after a strenuous workout). Most of the time, however, I eat when I'm hungry, which is way less often now that I eat low carb. When I was eating a low fat, high carbohydrate diet, I was constantly nearly sick with hunger. Now, with the fat in and carbs out, I nearly have the opposite problem.

    But that's a little off the subject of your question. Try to eat a decent amount of calories no less than every 3-4 hours. Eating throughout the day keeps your metabolism going nicely. I completely ignore the idea of avoiding calories late in the day and I'm having success.
  • McGruber03
    McGruber03 Posts: 113 Member
    I think it's different for everyone. I have 2 favorite breakfasts. One is instant oatmeal when I'm in a hurry, the other is an egg sandwich on whole wheat when I have more time. When I eat the sandwich, I feel more satisfied all day and don't really snack that much. When I eat the oatmeal, I feel like I'm already ready for lunch at 9 am! And I usually find that I consume less calories for the whole day when I've had the big breakfast. So, I try to eat more calories at breakfast with some protein, then a semi large lunch and a smaller dinner. But that's just me.
  • jenv710
    jenv710 Posts: 4
    You should eat aboutevery 3 hours so make sure you plan some good snacks in there. Breakfast should be your largest meal of the day then your lunch and your dinner should be your smallest. Load up at breakfast because you have all day to work that off when you eat too much for dinner it tends to stay in your stomach because your body doesnt have enough time to digest it. It often ends up being stored as fat.

    I have always been told to eat "smaller, more frequent meals" throughout the day. Your body should never be starving, because this often leads to just binging.

    Always plan ahead- I recently starting bringing my lunch to work everyday and logging it in in the morning. This way I know exactly what I am having and there are no temptations for anything else.
  • mom23nuts
    mom23nuts Posts: 636 Member
    I guess that's what i do I was just wondering if you all see a trend in yor own food diaries on which meal is the biggest for you and is it a regular thing?
  • clarehaines
    clarehaines Posts: 49
    My gran is a firm believer of the eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a queen and dinner like a porper theory!!!
    Bless her!

    I havent really thought too much about it but I do try to alllow my calories around the.....

    200 Breakfast
    300 Lunch
    400 Dinner

    Mark, then it allows for snacks if I find myself hungry in between.

    I may be English.... but I do LOVE my food!!! I often find myself more hungry in the evening (or maybe its coz im bored - not sure lol!!) so an easy way off not adding too many calories and still having a good sized meal is to bulk it up with lots of veg!!

    I think spacing out calories per day are kind of individual dependent on working hours/peoples general lifestyles really.
    You just need to evaluate your lifestyle ie the best time to cook a proper meal in the day, days where you know you wont be able to spend the time to cook pre-make stuff, ie cook extra and have it in the fridge so it just needs warming, or if you arent near home plan meals/snacks to take out with you.

    Not sure if ive gone off the point a little here lol!! i get way laid easily!! Sorry if I did, my intentions were good!!!

    Good luck with your goals!!!
  • schnarfo
    schnarfo Posts: 764 Member
    It doesnt really matter when you eat your calories... if you eat 800 before bed and your body needs the 800 its going to use it and it wont be stored as long as its a healthy choice. I think your going to find lots of different opinions on the boards but you have to do what works for you. Play around with different ideas till you find somethings that suits you and go with it :)
  • seers
    seers Posts: 7 Member
    I have my best results when I start off slowly. I try to eat smaller portions all day long. Yogurt, fruit, vegetables. Plan out my food in advance for the day. It usually changes a bit but it has at least gotten me to think of what i could eat and stay on target. My original problem was that I ate because it was fun and yummy. Don't think I was ever truly hungry. I now try to eat when my body tells me to.
  • brittanydrodgers
    brittanydrodgers Posts: 1
    I'm nursing so the doctor wants me to have about 1800 calories. I get 3 meals and 3 snacks so I just divided it up between t hem all and should eat roughly 300 calories per meal/snack. That said, I'm having a hard time sometimes. I sometimes find I can only get in 250 per meal. I'm nervous about my milk supply but it seems well so far.
    I've lost 9 lbs in the past 2 weeks I think? and I think 6 of them have been since Sat. when I started the South Beach Diet.
  • wheelieblade
    wheelieblade Posts: 323
    I eat when I'm hungry, usually later in the day
  • Shushonet
    Shushonet Posts: 37
    I found that 300-400 cals for main meals (lunch&dinner) are the best for me, 250 in the morning and the other calories I eat between meals and as snacks.
    Most important for me is the lunch, and the hardest time for me is the evening so I actually eat two dinners, 150-200 cals each.

    It sounds like I'm eating all day, it kind of is, but that's what works for me.
  • jo_marnes
    jo_marnes Posts: 1,601 Member
    I'm quite even until the evening - I think my evening snacks often outweigh my daytime meals altogether! I have about 200 cals for breakfast and lunch, a 200 cal snack at about 5pm (when the kids eat) and then around 400 for dinner. Then I'll drink wine, eat choc, eat fruit, eat yoghurts etc and often have up to 800 cals! But, it's within my daily allowance, it's not stopped me losing weight. I'm now maintaing at 51 kilos (approx 114lbs) and have been for ages now. I workout at all different times of day, and am busy most of it. That's why I like to sit and eat in the evening - my reward for getting through another mad day :-)
  • nukehiker
    nukehiker Posts: 457
    I normally eat a good breakfast close to 500 cals or so but then have a shakeology drink with protein powder and a decent dinner. try to be around 2000 for the day. snacks just depends on the day
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