Do you have a calorie limit for each meal and snack?

ahmshaki
ahmshaki Posts: 37 Member
edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
For example for breakfast I try not to go over 400 cals. Lunch the same 400 cals and dinner is alsways 600 cals.
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Replies

  • procrox
    procrox Posts: 38 Member
    Of course, the wonderful thing is that you can just supplement with exercise if you want to eat more :)
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    edited October 2016
    No I do not. But Mon - Fri I eat the same breakfasts, lunches and snacks (fruits are different) but all of this is the same. Dinner is usually 350 - 500 calories, and if a dessert fits or evening snack I do that too.

    Weekends same calories but relaxed on food choices and usually my dinner is 75% of my whole day.. we usually grill on weekends.
  • ogtmama
    ogtmama Posts: 1,403 Member
    Yes, my limits are similar to the op.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    nope not meals...daily yes but mainly weekly
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,775 Member
    edited October 2016
    Do you have a calorie limit for each meal and snack?

    Nope.

    Just a daily calorie goal.
  • lightenup2016
    lightenup2016 Posts: 1,055 Member
    I generally shoot for 100 for AM coffee/chocolate, 400 lunch, 250 snack, 600 dinner, then 200 for after dinner drink or snack. If I have extra calories they usually go towards a bigger dinner.
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
    No. My plan is always to eat delicious and satisfying meals and I can't do that if I'm restricted to a calorie count per meal. For example, a chef salad made with everything I want would be a 700 or 800 calorie dinner but a ribeye steak dinner is more like 1,200 calories.

    I do much better moderating the frequency or number of times I eat per day rather than robbing calories from one meal to apply them to another.
  • akf2000
    akf2000 Posts: 278 Member
    edited October 2016
    I've got MFP Premium and 'Calories by meal' is one of the features but I never use it. Really don't see the point as long as I've eaten them all by the time I'm asleep.
  • workinonit1956
    workinonit1956 Posts: 1,043 Member
    I don't, just a daily limit.
  • fitoverfortymom
    fitoverfortymom Posts: 3,452 Member
    I know I am best with a dinner at least at 450 calories. I prefer 550 calories. So, I try to plan the rest of my day around that amount. I keep my breakfasts and lunches super boring/consistent so most days dinner is my highest calorie meal a day. It's the meal I eat with my family, and it's important to me that we eat together and eat the same things.
  • vikinglander
    vikinglander Posts: 1,547 Member
    Based on the original calculation of my TDEE, a 20% deficit landed me at 2000 per day. I typically eat 500 each for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and two 250 calorie snacks. I lost just under 40 pounds in about as many weeks this way. I seem to be stalled for the last two weeks, so I plan to reevaluate and most likely cut out one or both of the snacks.

    I do well on a routine regimen; you may not, but you will find what works for you. Good luck...
  • CorneliusPhoton
    CorneliusPhoton Posts: 965 Member
    edited October 2016
    AlabasterVerve wrote: »
    No. My plan is always to eat delicious and satisfying meals and I can't do that if I'm restricted to a calorie count per meal. For example, a chef salad made with everything I want would be a 700 or 800 calorie dinner but a ribeye steak dinner is more like 1,200 calories.

    I do much better moderating the frequency or number of times I eat per day rather than robbing calories from one meal to apply them to another.

    Isn't that pretty much what you are doing though? Without counting them, you are still saving all of your calories for your less frequent meals (while robbing your missed meal(s) blind). Don't get me wrong, I fast almost every day and enjoy my one or two large meals. It has allowed me to stop counting calories to maintain my weight effortlessly.

    When I do track calories to lose weight, I keep similar numbers to OP's in mind to help budget out the day. I am most hungry later in the day, so I like my larger meal to be at that time. When I do IF, I typically eat 2 larger meals, each around 700 calories. If I go over, I'll take a longer walk that day to burn off the extra calories.
  • ogtmama
    ogtmama Posts: 1,403 Member
    If I didn't have a basic idea of how much each meal should be I would come to the end of my calories before the end of my day every.single.day.
  • WickedPineapple
    WickedPineapple Posts: 698 Member
    Not really. I just try not to eat all my daily calories in one meal.
  • akf2000
    akf2000 Posts: 278 Member
    vikinglander wrote: »
    Based on the original calculation of my TDEE, a 20% deficit landed me at 2000 per day. I typically eat 500 each for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and two 250 calorie snacks. I lost just under 40 pounds in about as many weeks this way. I seem to be stalled for the last two weeks, so I plan to reevaluate and most likely cut out one or both of the snacks.

    I do well on a routine regimen; you may not, but you will find what works for you. Good luck...

    Have you re-calculated your goals? I was originally on 1,750/day and after losing about 30lbs I recalculated and it dropped to 1,500.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,333 Member
    nah.. i want to live my life without it being a numbers game.
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
    CorneliusPhoton wrote: »
    AlabasterVerve wrote: »
    No. My plan is always to eat delicious and satisfying meals and I can't do that if I'm restricted to a calorie count per meal. For example, a chef salad made with everything I want would be a 700 or 800 calorie dinner but a ribeye steak dinner is more like 1,200 calories.

    I do much better moderating the frequency or number of times I eat per day rather than robbing calories from one meal to apply them to another.

    Isn't that pretty much what you are doing though? Without counting them, you are still saving all of your calories for your less frequent meals (while robbing your missed meal(s) blind). <snip>

    Meals that I don't want aren't "missed" though. My meals are based on hunger as well. How hungry I am when I wake up determines the size of my breakfast. And the size of my breakfast tends to impact the size of my dinner. If I had a huge breakfast my dinner is usually smaller. If I had a huge breakfast and a large dinner a few days in a row - again because that's how hungry I am - chances are good I'll skip a meal later or maybe fast for a day simply because I don't tend to want to eat when I'm not hungry. It all balances out for me. YMMV.

  • YalithKBK
    YalithKBK Posts: 317 Member
    Way too much micromanaging for me. I generally eat a smaller breakfast/lunch so I have extra calories for a bigger dinner and/or some dessert. But, I control that just by the foods I eat, I don't have a strict value for each meal.
  • kgirlhart
    kgirlhart Posts: 5,209 Member
    I don't specifically, but I tend to eat about half my calories for breakfast and lunch and the rest plus exercise calories for dinner and a snack so I usually end up having roughly the same amount of calories at each meal.
  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    Not specifically but it basically works out that way. I typically stay around 500 per meal, maybe less for lunch or a little more for dinner when I am headed to the gym. Snacks just depend on where I am for the day but because I eat good size meals, I typically don't eat snacks other than some post workout protein or maybe grazing a little fresh fruit, usually blackberries.
  • ThatUserNameIsAllReadyTaken
    ThatUserNameIsAllReadyTaken Posts: 1,530 Member
    It depends really. If I know dinner is going to be something like pizza I will try to have less calories all day so that I can have enough pizza to satisfy me. Other days I don't really try for a specific range at meals. I just try to eat enough to satisfy my appetite. Which around PMS is tough work. That seems to turn me into a face stuffing pig.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    No, but my breakfasts are one of a few different things, so generally in the same ballpark (350 to 400, although I sometimes eat more or less). I eat smaller dinners if bigger lunches and that varies more, and will often eat less for lunch if I have a bigger dinner planned. I usually don't snack. I focus on the day, not amount per meal.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    I don't, but from trial and error, I find that 250 calories for a snack is my sweet spot. Any more than that and I tend to feel hungrier after my regular meals. My others meals are more flexible and each meal can range between 0% of my daily intake to 100% depending on how my hunger plays out and what plans I have for certain meals.
  • Ploofs
    Ploofs Posts: 59 Member
    I do it unintentionally. I find that most of my meals are around 400 calories, give or take.
  • JessicaMcB
    JessicaMcB Posts: 1,503 Member
    Given that my breakfast today was 1,462...nah lol
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    No and yes. My breakfast is pretty much the same every day at about 700 calories. My dinner is pretty much the same every day at about 600 calories. My lunch is a variable collection of workplace snacks at about 300 calories.
  • lightenup2016
    lightenup2016 Posts: 1,055 Member
    ThatUserNameIsAllReadyTaken wrote: »
    It depends really. If I know dinner is going to be something like pizza I will try to have less calories all day so that I can have enough pizza to satisfy me. Other days I don't really try for a specific range at meals. I just try to eat enough to satisfy my appetite. Which around PMS is tough work. That seems to turn me into a face stuffing pig.

    All of this!! I've recently begun "allowing" myself about 300-400 more calories each day during PMS. It helps me put a limit on eating, while not having to completely ignore my bigger appetite. I've read that we burn more calories during that time anyway, and for me it usually seems to even out. I also sometimes save calories from earlier in the day if I know we're having a special dinner.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    I've observed I tend to eat a certain amount at each meal and that I function pretty well that way. When I plan food I try to have about that much for those meals.
    100-300 calorie breakfast
    300-500 calorie lunch
    500-600 calorie dinner
    100-300 calorie snacks
  • jopalis
    jopalis Posts: 238 Member
    I try to stay in the recommended MFP calorie limit. I occasionally dip into my exercise calories. If I need a snack and have the calories I will have one. Usually around 100 calories. I am at 1200k per day so I try to use 1/2 between breakfast and lunch and save the rest for dinner.
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