Breakfast like a King, Dinner like a Poor Man

JeremiahStone
JeremiahStone Posts: 682 Member
edited September 29 in Food and Nutrition
I heard that dinner should be the smallest meal (calorie wise) of the day, while breakfast be the largest. The problem with me is that I usually workout during the end of the day and have a raging appetite come dinner time.. And then you can imagine the rest. Is eating more calories during dinner rather than at breakfast harmful to a weight loss diet?
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Replies

  • KourtneyP83
    KourtneyP83 Posts: 319
    I keep all my meals pretty even. I divide my calories into 3 and then take away 100 from whatever number I get - so I will have 3 meals the same and 3 100 calorie snacks. I don't always eat my allotted calories for each meal, but I try to keep them the same. That is what I was told by my nutritionist...
  • sarahsmom1
    sarahsmom1 Posts: 1,501 Member
    It doesn't matter how you split up your calories
  • SarahofTwins
    SarahofTwins Posts: 1,169 Member
    Well I like the small breakfast and large dinner...I have a small breakfast around 160 and then have snacks and a big dinner. But hey thats how I like to roll cause dinner is my favorite meal of the day :bigsmile: :drinker:
  • methetree
    methetree Posts: 381
    I usually eat around the same calories for each meal. Sometimes dinner is bigger, depending on the rest of the day. I often exercise in the evenings because that is when the baby is asleep and it's the only time I have to fit it in. I am still losing and there have been days when I ate like a king at dinner and dropped weight by morning.

    As long as you are eating healthy meals and keeping your calories where they need to be and exercising, you should be ok.
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    I eat more for dinner than I do for breakfast and lunch since I tend to workout later in the day. Actually, the majority of my calories are consumed between 7p-1am.
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
    I've heard that, too, and it does make sense, but it hasn't seemed to matter to me in terms of successful weight loss as long as I stayed within the calorie limit for the day. I usually have a bigger dinner after I exercise in the early evening.
  • simplyblessed89
    simplyblessed89 Posts: 43
    Look at it from a view of what your body needs...

    Breakfast. The first meal of the day. Your body will run on that fuel throughout the day.

    Lunch. The mid-day "refill" that will keep your metabolism humming.

    Dinner. The last meal of the day... you're not going to be doing much after dinner usually.


    In a nutshell... your meals obviously are your fuel for your body machine. If you aren't going to be active where you need the extra calories, make your bigger meal earlier like breakfast or lunch. Just divide it up so it matches your daily caloric goals. It's simple as that.
  • Sweetlux
    Sweetlux Posts: 222 Member
    I eat breakfast like a queen and dinner like a princess...hope that helps?!
  • JayAlexander
    JayAlexander Posts: 268 Member
    I heard you should eat small for breakfast. Eat a little to start your metabolism, then work your way to a bigger evening meal when your body is working full blast. Different strokes I guess :happy:
  • NeuroticVirgo
    NeuroticVirgo Posts: 3,671 Member
    I've heard the same thing, but I'm just not a breakfast person. My breakfast is usually small or not at all. So far eating most my calories at night hasn't really hurt me in the long run.
  • Sweetlux
    Sweetlux Posts: 222 Member
    Okay seriously you should listen to your body! If I skip breakfast its off with someone's head!!!! (see what I did there?) I can eat a granola bar for dinner and be content.
  • jbucci1186
    jbucci1186 Posts: 440 Member
    It doesn't matter how you split up your calories

    agree.
  • Heather75
    Heather75 Posts: 3,386 Member
    I eat like a princess all day long! :happy:
  • Cindy311
    Cindy311 Posts: 780 Member
    Keep breakfast for yourself, share lunch with your commrades and give dinner to your enemies. :) I don't follow it, but I do understand the logic behind it and think you can see a lot of people use that wisdom worldwide. I enjoy my hearty breakfast each morning (eggs/toast/ham/cheese) and find that by the end of the night I eat "lighter" foods (yogurts/cottage cheese). Try it different ways and see what your results are!
  • brittanybee07
    brittanybee07 Posts: 39
    Generally speaking, a calorie is a calorie no matter when you consume it. Spacing your meals out throughout the day, somewhat evenly, will keep your metabolism burning. If you were to eat most of your calories at one meal your metabolism is likely to go into "starvation mode". Meaning that it will try to store calories as fat to prepare for a time where there will be no food. Ideally you will want to space your calories out pretty evenly throughout the day with several meals and snacks. This also will help you feel satisfied throughout the day and leave you much less likely to get over hunger and over eat.

    For instance: If your calorie goal is 1500 per day. I would recommend that you eat a 300 calorie breakfast, a 400 calorie lunch, and a 500 calorie supper... Leaving the remaining 300 calories for light snacks throughout the day (maybe a pre/post workout snack).

    I hope this helps.
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    Look at it from a view of what your body needs...

    Breakfast. The first meal of the day. Your body will run on that fuel throughout the day.

    Lunch. The mid-day "refill" that will keep your metabolism humming.

    Dinner. The last meal of the day... you're not going to be doing much after dinner usually.


    In a nutshell... your meals obviously are your fuel for your body machine. If you aren't going to be active where you need the extra calories, make your bigger meal earlier like breakfast or lunch. Just divide it up so it matches your daily caloric goals. It's simple as that.

    Unless you are someone who works out later in the day (I work second shift and tend to workout AFTER work - so around 11pm). In my case, dinner needs to be a meal of substance since I'll be using that to fuel my workouts for the day.
  • MarieNevada
    MarieNevada Posts: 395 Member
    i eat 5 meals a day, not three meals and two snacks, but five small meals. my breakfast is around 400 cals and by the time i get to dinner it's around 250 cals. i work out every afternoon and have dinner right after the workout. i lift weights 3 times a week, do a bootcamp class twice a week and cardio after the weights. once i get home, i eat my dinner and that's it. I find i'm just not hungry when i eat that way. breakfast is larger because i've been without food for about 10 hours. after that i eat every three hours so my body is never without fuel and i never get hungry. but it's whatever works for you.
  • bjohs
    bjohs Posts: 1,225 Member
    For me, as soon as I switched my meals to breakfast being the largest meal of the day instead of dinner... I dropped weight very quickly without any exercise (had to stop due to an injury). I actually dropped just shy of 10 pounds in 3 weeks. My day usually looks like this now:

    Breakfast (like a King) = 450-550 calories
    Morning snack = 150 calories or less
    Lunch (like a Prince) = 300-400 calories
    Afternoon snack = 150 calories or less
    Dinner (Like a Pauper) = 250-300 calories
    Evening snack = 150 calories or less

    I find that I am not hungry at all after breakfast and sometimes have to force myself to eat a light lunch before it gets too late in the afternoon. By dinner time, I am still not very hungry so I can make wiser choices too.

    Do whatever works best for your lifestyle. I don't know if having a large breakfast will work for everyone, but for the people who have switched... it has made a world of difference in their energy level throughout the day.
  • Jimbowill2011
    Jimbowill2011 Posts: 2
    My Dr. Says that eating big in the am and lite in the evening is the healthy way to go. Works best for weight loss also. According to him. FYI?
  • kirstyfromscotland
    kirstyfromscotland Posts: 555 Member
    i heard breakfast for a king, lunch for a prince and dinner for a poor man! But im the same i work out after work so i am starving after i work out i try 2 make my cals even but i do have a bit more for dinner or else i would snack later in the evening.:bigsmile:
  • DorkothyParker
    DorkothyParker Posts: 618 Member
    I'd say do what works best for you. I generally eat a fairly large dinner compared to my other meals, but I never eat so much that I'm not hungry for breakfast in the morning. Like the others, avoid the night time snacking (unless worked into your plan.)
  • jrcox520
    jrcox520 Posts: 130 Member
    For me, as soon as I switched my meals to breakfast being the largest meal of the day instead of dinner... I dropped weight very quickly without any exercise (had to stop due to an injury). I actually dropped just shy of 10 pounds in 3 weeks. My day usually looks like this now:

    Breakfast (like a King) = 450-550 calories
    Morning snack = 150 calories or less
    Lunch (like a Prince) = 300-400 calories
    Afternoon snack = 150 calories or less
    Dinner (Like a Pauper) = 250-300 calories
    Evening snack = 150 calories or less

    I find that I am not hungry at all after breakfast and sometimes have to force myself to eat a light lunch before it gets too late in the afternoon. By dinner time, I am still not very hungry so I can make wiser choices too.

    Do whatever works best for your lifestyle. I don't know if having a large breakfast will work for everyone, but for the people who have switched... it has made a world of difference in their energy level throughout the day.

    This has worked wonders in solving my nighttime eating. Previously I would be so hungry by the time I got home from work that I would just grab whatever, I had no patience to cook a decent meal. Now I look forward to my enormous breakfasts and don't feel so starving when I get home. I don't take the morning snack though, I'm just not hungry yet after my eggs, bacon, almonds, and banana. Loving it.
  • agent300
    agent300 Posts: 73
    there is no "best" way. whatever way gets you to eat less calories to lose weight is the best. its a complete myth that you have to have breakfast be your biggest meal. that might work for a lot of people, but its not the reason for success. the reason is just simply eating less calories. so just pick whatever is most convenient for your lifestyle.
  • Schwiggity
    Schwiggity Posts: 1,449 Member
    I think a king eats more than 550 calories in a meal. Just saying.
  • Dtho5159
    Dtho5159 Posts: 1,054 Member
    Im not a huge breakfast eater. I will maybe eat a breakfast sandwich or some cereal or oatmeal but couldn't eat a HUGE meal.. I guess it works different for everyone..
  • Rilke
    Rilke Posts: 1,201 Member
    I eat when I'm hungry. :P

    Honestly, though, I have found that I feel best when I do as my Italian ancestors did: biggest meal at lunch. I only manage it about half the time, though, because when I know we are going out to dinner, I save calories :P
  • seasonalvoodoo
    seasonalvoodoo Posts: 380 Member
    I have heard this, too....but I generally eat a larger dinner than my breakfast or lunch. But I DO eat a substantial breakfast and lunch and, although my dinner is larger, I am very hungry in the morning when it is time for breakfast.
  • takemeaway10
    takemeaway10 Posts: 75
    "Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, supper like a pauper." That's the quote to which you are referring. I don't think the last,two meals matter much (As far as division of calories) but your breakfast should definitely be the biggest because... it's your breakfast! They call sleeping "the overnight fast," so you have to "break" That "fast' with breakfast!
  • petekane51
    petekane51 Posts: 1
    Hi,

    I agree with concept of eat like a king. My situation though is somewhat peculiar as I have have a fast metabolism as reported by a device I wear called BodyMedia. It is reporting that i burn in a 24 hour period something like 3200 calories. And all i do is go for walks with the occasional visit to the gym for resistance training. I do not go down the road of too much CV, as I burn more.

    I would appreciate someone help me understand how I would spread my calories through the day. I eat something like 2600 calories per day, taking into account approx 500 deficit for weight loss.

    Many thanks in advance.

    Pete
  • spoiledpuppies
    spoiledpuppies Posts: 675 Member
    I think that for general loss, it doesn't matter. But a dietician told to space things pretty evenly--to think of myself having 4-5 "snacks" vs any meals (and this was for maintaining even). And my trainer has given me pretty specific guidance for breaking out my macros by each meal (5-6), with calories being pretty even. He said that, sure, my body will get what it needs when it can get it so it's not the end of the world to have a big meal now and again; but it is preferred to keep a pretty consistent level of fuel for best efficiency.
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