How to Do One-Meal-a-Day (The Basics)
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Thanks.
The thing about natural eating is that it only takes life experiences and a little time to see what makes sense and works.1 -
I've been doing this for a week and I really like it! I've always been a type of person who doesn't get hungry if I don't eat breakfast. I've found that If I skip lunch too, then I don't really start to get good and hungry until like 5 or 6. Then I can eat an actual meal and be satisfied, compared to the sad tiny meals I used to have for dinner after spreading my calories out evenly throughout the day. Oh, and I lost 5lbs this week! without even feeling like I was trying! OMAD=awesome!4
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No doubt about it--OMAD is for you!1
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SOUNDS great I,d like to try it.... but I wanted to ask you how did you fit in your exercise while eating just once a day? I mean did you not feel out of energy or weak while exercising?0
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By the time I brought exercise in (240 lbs), it was light and only once a week. At 205, I went to exercising with weights and brisk walking, and finally, at 196 began a running regiment. But basically, when you have a lot to lose, you don't go the exercise route. Can't with sustained ultra-low calories. Since becoming really active, I will cycle on with more feasting than fasting days. I usually do a larger meal to maintain these days, but like life, all routines must sometimes change. And it's good to stock up prior to exercise.1
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I have recently started eating twice a day. Mainly because of work schedules, but also because I need to lose weight. The meals I do eat are very small. A lot of my calories come from beverages. I've started drinking water, but not a lot. I have lost around 7 pounds. I'm on my feet all day 6 days a week now, so I'm sure being forced by my job to be active is helping. Keeping busy keeps my mind off of food, too. I will be trying your method in the very near future. I'll just have the challenge of finding something healthy that my kids will enjoy. Thanks for posting this. Most people put a price on their weightloss secret. I really appreciate you putting it on here for everyone to see and take advantage of. Here's to getting healthy!!!4
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taramitchell3210 wrote: »I have recently started eating twice a day. Mainly because of work schedules, but also because I need to lose weight. The meals I do eat are very small. A lot of my calories come from beverages. I've started drinking water, but not a lot. I have lost around 7 pounds. I'm on my feet all day 6 days a week now, so I'm sure being forced by my job to be active is helping. Keeping busy keeps my mind off of food, too. I will be trying your method in the very near future. I'll just have the challenge of finding something healthy that my kids will enjoy. Thanks for posting this. Most people put a price on their weightloss secret. I really appreciate you putting it on here for everyone to see and take advantage of. Here's to getting healthy!!!
Welcome!
It will be a bit of a transition, but, yes, OMAD will do the trick!
:-)1 -
Thank you so much for this..I am thinking doing the same, and i will ^-^0
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Wonderful. You'll love the results!0
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Really fascinating! My husband has never been interested in breakfast and lunch (just eats at dinner) and he's always been lean and in great health. He never even catches so much as a cold. The logic definitely makes sense to me as I know the weight that I've gained has come from snacking when I wasn't even hungry. Thank you for this post!1
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Very interesting. And now that you are running and lifting weights, do you try to time that so you do this before you eat? I work out in the mornings, and have always been told to eat back at least what I burn within 60 minutes to avoid muscle loss. Just wondering how this would work or need to be changed. What do you think? Thanks for sharing!0
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Well, I can tell you I most enjoy running--a few recurrent knee issues aside! :-)
But I have now (re)considered a new weight program, going above the mere bodyweight exercises I was doing. I know that when I eat for a workout, I eat the meal that day when I get up (these days, around 11 am to 2 since I'm back on nights for the time being). I just fill up. It's about 3 plate-fulls of food, plus some stand-around snacking. I am usually done in 30 to 45 minutes.
From there, I let 6 to 10 hours or so pass. I am not picky on the time. I just don't want any food in my stomach. If I feel full at all, I won't want to work out. Once the food has fully been processed and I feel good, I hit it.
And I don't worry about so-called "muscle loss" from missing meals. I believe that is only an issue when a calorie deficit is present and it becomes an ongoing issue. Your body is not going to start burning off muscle if you are getting your calories. It would be counterproductive to both life and survival.
But let me say that you have to be careful to get enough calories because if you need 2,200 to maintain and your meal is 2,800, you may only absorb 2,100 because one meal tends to be less efficient digestion-wise than smaller portions. So you have to make sure you are getting enough, which can be tricky. But basically, I don't worry about it. I can justify eating after or before a meal. I don't think it matters, honestly.1 -
I'm sure this works. I'm going to try it. It seems you are basically forcing your body to burn fat at the same time each day by being in a "starved" state until the designated eating time.
Thanks for the post! Sounds great.0 -
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Thank you for this!! I have started doing essentially exactly this before I even read this and it has worked great for me so far!! I have already lost 8 lbs as a jump start, and this just confirms it will be something I want to continue!2
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Thanks!! I've been doing OMAD for about a week now, and it works!! Having said that, since I only discovered your site today, I haven't been limiting myself to the one average-sized plate meal you recommend. No, my one meal a day has been more like three hefty plates with beer or wine. I am able to refrain from food all day because I look forward to the feast at night. Is what I am doing counter-productive? BTW, I found after reading your site that I follow ALL the other instructions, including taking the apple cider vinegar.1
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Thanks!! I've been doing OMAD for about a week now, and it works!! Having said that, since I only discovered your site today, I haven't been limiting myself to the one average-sized plate meal you recommend. No, my one meal a day has been more like three hefty plates with beer or wine. I am able to refrain from food all day because I look forward to the feast at night. Is what I am doing counter-productive? BTW, I found after reading your site that I follow ALL the other instructions, including taking the apple cider vinegar.
Nice. Well, it depends on what you want to lose. The one-plate rule is just a guide for people who need to re-establish a sense of control.1 -
Does the 1 plate have to be all good for you stuff. I think I could do this if I could make it a mix of good for you stuff and what I consider junk food. If my plate could be fruit, cheese, pepperoni, chicken with the skin and say 2 or 3 Oreo cookies, I think I would be good until my next plate of 4 oz beef, small salad, potato salad handful of M&M0
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nmidwood13 wrote: »Does the 1 plate have to be all good for you stuff. I think I could do this if I could make it a mix of good for you stuff and what I consider junk food. If my plate could be fruit, cheese, pepperoni, chicken with the skin and say 2 or 3 Oreo cookies, I think I would be good until my next plate of 4 oz beef, small salad, potato salad handful of M&M
No, no need for healthy stuff. Just take control first. Have whatever you want, so long as you can make a meal out of it and stay satiated for 23 hours. That would be your only concern there.1 -
It's great to see this here, I have been dieting for about 6 months now and lost just over two stone only to put half of it back on at Christmas. Today it got to 5pm before I realised I'd only had 41 calories today (coffee with whitener and a spoon of sugar) and I wasn't even hungry. I the had a big meal and feel great. I'm looking at doing at doing this every day now as I never really get hungry in the mornings and when I eat that almost "wakes" my hunger up.
Will 41kcal coffee every morning to tide me over til my evening meal mess it up or is that cool?1 -
It does't mess up your calorie deficit and i doubt it messes up other benefits of fasting. A big reason this diet works is that you get a calorie deficit without a ton of suffering, so if you don't get hungry and then eat reasonable in the evening so that you have a deficit, your golden and it will work for you and be a sustainable thing you can keep doing! The only thing I would worry about is if the coffee is upsetting your stomach. I hope I didn't misspeak here.0
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I have coffee with heavy cream every morning (albeit with no sugar), and it does not "wake up" my appetite. But it gives me something to look forward to in the morning. Everyone's different, of course, but I suffer no upset stomach from the coffee.1
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Hi, Carla. Welcome!0
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Welcome aboard Carla!
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dantopolski1 wrote: »Also - just to be clear. So MFP says I need to eat 2100 calories a day.
So with this plan I wake up - eat nothing till 6:00pm.
Am I correct that at that point I need to eat my 2100 calories all at once? What if I can't - we started to eat healthy and most meals are around 400-600 calories.
My wife will never go for this - she loves eating all day - she is going to be like WTF - your gorging yourself at dinner - ha ha
Hi, Danto...
Didn't know about the 8-hour diet, but it sounds like an intermittent fasting window diet like the one Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson talked about doing.
Your MFP recommended calories are just that -- recommended. You can totally do that if you find it sound. Many around here go more or less, depending on their goals. If you want to and you find you can't get that much, then just do like anyone on an IF window--track your cals over a certain window of time and then close it.
IF, in any form, is extremely flexible.
As far as the wife, hey, we each must do our own thing and walk our own paths. I know very well the guff that OMADers take. Just try not to make it a topic of argument.3 -
dantopolski1 wrote: »Also - just to be clear. So MFP says I need to eat 2100 calories a day.
So with this plan I wake up - eat nothing till 6:00pm.
Am I correct that at that point I need to eat my 2100 calories all at once? What if I can't - we started to eat healthy and most meals are around 400-600 calories.
My wife will never go for this - she loves eating all day - she is going to be like WTF - your gorging yourself at dinner - ha ha
Hey dude! You found us! As arguablysamson said, some eat more or less. Some only eat one platefull and are done. I eat about a plate and a half full but allow myself to continue to eat for the next couple of hours and I am still am at a deficit and lose but just not as fast as some. I did count cals for awhile to see what was happening and if you eat like I do, I think you should count also. If you go for just the one plate route, I think you probably don't have to count and should have a deficit. You might want to count anyways just to see what your doing. It is informative to learn how much cals stuff has in it.
I think if you did this and ate at maint cals, you will be surprised how much better you feel due to getting your blood sugar stabilized and I bet you will still lose some weight even though you should be maintaining at those cals.
Some people work there way up to doing this also. Good luck!
You should read arguablysamson's story if you haven't already!2 -
So when you first started and did just one plate did you count calories? Or did you wait until your stomach started to shrink and you wanted healthier food? Was it a heaping plate or just kind of regular?0
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dantopolski1 wrote: »Read the whole 8 HOUR DIET book last night. It's just another form of intermittent fasting.
You basically don't eat for 16 hours. Then you have a 8 hour eating window.
WILL THIS BE AS SUCCESSFUL?
Mine is going to be from 1pm to 9pm. Starting today to see how it feels and how my body handles it.
It suggests I wake up in the morning and do 8 minutes of exercise to jump start my metabolism and get my body burning fat (not from food - from fat stores in body). That could be jumping jacks in the house, walking around the block, whatever - doesn't need to be intense.
I then need to drink two glasses of water before I walk out the door. If I want I can make meals or shakes or whatever for later. Right now I am getting healthy prepackaged stuff (salads, wraps, fruit cups, etc) I can grab and go.
I then have to wait till 1pm to start eating anything. At that point I have a healthy lunch and some more water. Probably around 800 calories.
Then I can have a afternoon snack if I get hungry.
Then when I get home around 6:30pm I start cooking dinner - try for around 1000 calories for dinner.
Really trying to fit in all these SuperFood Groups each day:
- Chicken, Turkey, lean meat
- Berries
- Fruit (apples, cantelope, watermelon, etc)
- Nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios, etc)
- Yogurt/Dairy
- Beans and Legumes
- Green veggies
- Whole wheat bread and grains.
I can have a night time snack around 8:30pm and am done eating by 9pm.
Going to try really hard to start getting to be between 10 and 11 rather than midnight like I do now. At least go up and read till I fall asleep rather than starting at tv.
After a week or so I hope to maybe join a gym or kickboxing place and workout three times a week (cardio and strength). Also trying to quit smoking on March 1st which has always held me back exercise wise.
Will it work? Depends on you. I know that it wouldn't have with me since I could have slammed down all sorts of calories well within 8 hours--and would have. And that becomes the problem with larger window timeframes--people instinctively find a way to worm around them. I can finish a meal in less than 12 minutes. Many others can, too.
The 4-hour OMAD window I employed in my plan merely allots time for a person to move their meal around a few hours and then 1 hour to eat. But some have done a casual 4-hour eating window and have had great success. My plan was designed, first, for me, but eventually became useful for others because with strict rules in place (like the one-plate rule), their instincts couldn't get around the guidelines not to eat. Some people need those extra guidelines.
So track your calories, but you're better starting with this than with nothing.1 -
murphy1078 wrote: »So when you first started and did just one plate did you count calories? Or did you wait until your stomach started to shrink and you wanted healthier food? Was it a heaping plate or just kind of regular?
Hi,
I had the one-plate rule when I started. I only counted calories when I went out to eat since the stats were already available. The ideal one-plate is standard-sized (10 inches wide), stacked no higher than 3 inches, and can be wobbled from side to side without anything falling onto the floor.
As my stomach shrank, it became progressively easier to eat on that plate, and eventually, I didn't worry about it except as only a habit. I began to eat healthier and naturally had to discard the rule because nutritious foods are far less calorie-dense than junkier foods and needed 3 to 4 plates to hold all of my food. And beyond that was maintenance, which also required more food than one plate would hold. Not an issue, though, since you graduate past that rule earlier than that. However, for people starting out and trying to re-establish portion control, it is a super good rule!1 -
Hi arguablysamson and congratulations on your success. I liked reading this whole thread.
Did you experience any hair loss during this process?
Hi,
Thanks.
Not at all...just the normal thinning as I get older. lol
Only in issues of serious ongoing malnourishment will that be an issue. I've yet to hear about that being attributed to OMAD.0
