How do you space out your calories?

catherineandpaul1957
catherineandpaul1957 Posts: 5 Member
edited November 25 in Getting Started
How do you all space out your calories? For instance, I have to eat 1200 a day, but I try to eat 300 for breakfast, 400 for lunch and 500 for dinner. Someone said to me, write down 1200 and when you are hungry eat something and subtract from the 1200. How do you all do it?

Replies

  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    I have been doing this for a couple of years, and generally I find that I'm much more satisfied with 3 meals and no snacks versus many peoples' preference of a bunch of small mini meals. The good thing is you can do it however you want!

    When eating 1300 calories I have 200 at breakfast, 400-500 at lunch and around 600-700 at dinner.

    I find that I am satisfied with very small breakfasts for whatever reason but if I eat lunch that is under 400 calories I'll get grumpy and crave sugar all afternoon.
  • ZeroDelta
    ZeroDelta Posts: 242 Member
    Breakfast ~150
    Lunch ~100
    Dinner ~1000

    I have the same things every day for breakfast and lunch. Dinner is a family meal so that's where I eat the bulk of my calories.
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
    I eat very little during most of the day (generally 2 granola or protein bars before 5 pm) and then most of my calories at dinner, with a little left over for a snack at night.

    Weekends I usually split the big meal into a lunch and a dinner, just because I find not being busy with work changes how hungry I feel.
  • TrickyDisco
    TrickyDisco Posts: 2,869 Member
    I lost just under 30lb eating 1100 calories most days for about a year, then put a few pounds back on and am currently really struggling to eat 1200 a day to lose about half a pound a week. Wondering how I stuck to 1100 for so long before, can't seem to get back into it now. My breakfasts are around 250 cals, lunch between 350-480, evening meal with whatever's left minus about 80 cals for soya milk in teas/coffees and something for a sweet treat. Trouble is, most days I've eaten everything by about 7pm then find I'm snacking on something later and eat maintenance cals instead. Not surprisingly, I've hardly lost any weight and can't exercise right now either due to a sprain.
  • joinn68
    joinn68 Posts: 480 Member
    It'll depend on your appetite (hungry in the morning? not?) and lifestyle. I do better with "heavy" breakfast with lots of proteins, light lunch and heavy dinner (to avoid late night hunger pangs), and 100 cal snacks morning and afternoon. It's trial and error
  • adhebert8
    adhebert8 Posts: 27 Member
    I have a light breakfast usually under 200 calories (I've never been much of a breakfast eater.) I have two small snacks a day 100 calories or less, lunch is usually around 400-500 and the rest I have left I use for dinner!
  • queenofpuppies
    queenofpuppies Posts: 189 Member
    during the week I have 2% fage everyday for breakfast, which is 150 calories and very high in protein which seems to make me get less hungry. I used to eat granola bars that had the same calories but way more sugar and I would be starving by lunch. Lunch is around 100-300 depending on the day, and how hungry I feel. Dinner is 400-500. I eat the rest of my calories in candy between meals because I do what I want. I limit myself to 1000 calories during the week because I was gaining at 1500 and maintaining at 1200. On weekends I up my calories to 1200 and usually have some sort of awesome fried breakfast both days.
  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,501 Member
    OP I eat about double what you do, but here's my pattern.
    Weekdays: ~200 breakfast, 300-400 lunch, 400-800 dinner, ~1000-1500 evening snacks
    Weekends: Bigger breakfast and lunch than weekdays; maybe 400 breakfast and 600 lunch
  • MondayJune22nd2015
    MondayJune22nd2015 Posts: 876 Member
    Since I have hypoglycemia (low blood sugars), I have to eat several times a day. I try to keep my intake below 200, so that I can eat 6 to 7 times a day when I don't exercise & 8 times a day, when I'm able to exercise.
  • hapa11
    hapa11 Posts: 182 Member
    So interesting to see everyone's patterns. I eat 300 calories four times a day--noon, 2, 4, and 6 p.m.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    depends on the day...
  • CasperNaegle
    CasperNaegle Posts: 936 Member
    I don't overwork it really. I definitely eat more at night because I tend to want to snack in the evening.. My GF eats more of hers during the day because that is when she wants to snack. Do it where it works for you, it really doesn't matter when you eat them.
  • Derf_Smeggle
    Derf_Smeggle Posts: 610 Member
    I'm currently trying to hit between 1550 and 1680 calories per day. I'm eating/drinking* 250 to 350 calories at a go. Taking in calories roughly every 3 hrs.

    *Protein and fruit smoothie
  • steelyjoe22
    steelyjoe22 Posts: 40 Member
    Dinner tends to be the meal I eat with other people, so I reserve the most calories for it.

    A typical day for me would be:
    150 breakfast
    400 -500 lunch
    800-1000 dinner

    IF I snack, and IF i stay on my goals, it's only when I'm hungry, and its an apple, banana, or string cheese for 50-100 calories.
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    I do 1100 for breakfast and with the main meal of 1300 late afternoon and an 8 pm 200 calorie snack to slowly lose weight now that I am down to 200. I have always been big on doing breakfast. For the last year I have been off all calories that can be traced back to grains and most all that come from sugars. This manages my arthritis pain OK, cured my leaking gut syndrome which cured my forty years of IBS.

    I think one should do what works for oneself the best. I just need food to start the day and like to eat twice with a spread of about 10 hours so my stomach is never totally empty.
  • TrickyDisco
    TrickyDisco Posts: 2,869 Member
    GaleHawkins wrote: »
    I do 1100 for breakfast and with the main meal of 1300 late afternoon and an 8 pm 200 calorie snack

    Would love to eat this many calories a day! But it's more than two days' calories if I want to lose any weight - I'm small with a big appetite, so hard sometimes to keep within my calorie limit when everyone around me seems to be able to eat twice as much and not even gain an ounce :(

  • kbmnurse
    kbmnurse Posts: 2,484 Member
    I know what I am having for dinner daily so I add that first thing in the morning. The rest of the day I focus my meals on what I have left for the day. I weigh and have found eating correct portion size has made a HUGE difference. Enjoy!!!!
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