Advice for irregular eating habits.

Melinda77w
Melinda77w Posts: 96
edited September 30 in Food and Nutrition
Hi all,
I'm fairly new here...I'm trying to get myself set up to concure this healthy lifestyle thing, lol.
I'm in need of some advice. You see, my problem is that i never eat breakfast, very rarely have lunch, so i pretty much only eat once a day, & that's at dinner time.....I smoke my way through the day. I suffer from terrible tummy cramps & get upset bellies a fair bit.
I dont know how to make myself eat regularly. If anyone has some tips for me i would love that, and thank you in advance :-)

Replies

  • _Sally_
    _Sally_ Posts: 514 Member
    Have dinner earlier, cut back the portions and don't snack after dinner. You will eventually wake up hungry for breakfast.
  • peachNpunkin
    peachNpunkin Posts: 1,010 Member
    At least have some fruit or yogurt to get your metabolism going. If your not eating right your body is not going to metabolize.
    The idea is to eat 6 small meals a day, when and how you eat them is up to you, but makes sure your getting plenty of protien, healthy fats, and fiber. You should have between 20 and 25 grams of fiber a day. If you get your fiber in, I'll bet you cash money your stomach will stop cramping. Oh and you said you smoke? Not sure if you do, but if you do, nicotine being a stimulant can make your stomach cramp too. Suprisingly enough.
  • kylakesgal
    kylakesgal Posts: 952 Member
    I have never been a breakfast eater either. It's all about habits and learning to change your habits. I started eating small things for breakfast like a banana or some oatmeal and after awhile you will eventually WANT to eat in the morning. Now I wake up every morning and my stomach is growling lol. If you want to rev up your metabolism start eating breakfast and eat a small lunch. It will make a huge difference for you in your weight loss journey!!:) Good luck.
  • lindalou0703
    lindalou0703 Posts: 226 Member
    I am not a breakfast eater either, what I do is have a container of yogurt or something else small.
  • MrCake
    MrCake Posts: 53
    What is the main reason why you avoid eating during the day? Time constraint?

    Your body is very good at depending, these includes your eating habits. If your body has been forced to eat only once a day for a while it will eventually tamper with your hunger levels during the day, allowing you to perform which ever activity more effectively. Now although your body is good at adapting how it outputs those hunger signals, it is not as effective to adapt to the lack of food, hence the discomfort.

    In my opinion, the best thing to do is to gradually force a change in your habits. Start by having a morning and mid day snack. Even a granola bar will do the trick. Your bodily will eventually start to take this surge of energy for granted and crave it, thus improving your hunger levels. Gradually increase the portions. Although carbs will be the most readily accepted, you eventually will want to transition to having healthy meals compromised of protein and healthy fats.
  • I tend not to eat breakfast when I am in a hurry- I started buying things I could grab and eat on the go or when I got to the office-- like cereal bars, apple, banana, nuts, etc. Anything portable that you can put in your purse the night before will work. I did much better this way and developed the habit and my body adjusted. Now I eat breakfast more often than not. Eating simple foods and cutting back a little bit on the smoking might help the appetite and tummy too.
  • maryd523
    maryd523 Posts: 661 Member
    I used to be like you, smoking all day and not eating until late in the day. Then I quit smoking and started eating regular meals, including breakfast. I gained about 20 pounds from adding an entire meal or two to my day. It wasn't from quitting smoking, of that I am sure. I went months after I quit without gaining...it was only after I had been eating breakfast for awhile.

    So I am back to my old routine of not eating until late in the day. It's 5:37 right now and I haven't eaten anything yet. I'm sure people will be shocked by this, but that is just what my body wants to do. I don't feel hungry at all during the day, so I'm not going to force myself to eat just because people say I should. I was always slim doing this for years, and I'm losing two pounds per week now, so it seems to work just fine for me.

    All I'm saying is that maybe you shouldn't argue with your body.
  • babyblake11
    babyblake11 Posts: 1,107 Member
    Have dinner earlier, cut back the portions and don't snack after dinner. You will eventually wake up hungry for breakfast.

    i agree. if you eat earlier you will be more likely to be hungry in the morning.
    if that doesnt work,, your body may just be too used to not gettting breakfast, so i would just make yourself eat a yogurt and some nuts/fruit/milk. maybe even a smoothie. start small and you will notice yourself getting hungrier in the mornings.
  • I had/have the same problem. I am always so busy with every life that it doesn't bother me not to eat. As long as I had a cigarettes and soda I was all set. Now that I started this program I take a yogurt to work and a couple 100 calorie snacks. I have one snack midday and one mid afternoon. I have a Lean Cuisine for lunch. I no longer take sodas to work and have Crystal Lights in my water. Then I cut my portions down at night. It's still a work in progress for me. But I have gone many many yrs not eating breakfast or lunch so I know how you feel. Just have to eat small and you will get used to it.
  • 1CALIJIBARO2
    1CALIJIBARO2 Posts: 132
    It is CRUCIAL & ESSENTIAL that u start ur day w/ breakfast. A piece of fruit, oatmeal, something fortified & wholesome to help stop the hunger.......You will adapt soon when those hunger strikes get to you......
  • milaxx
    milaxx Posts: 1,122 Member
    That was me. I could go all day without eating. When I decided to get healthy, the first thing the doctor said was you have to eat breakfast. I'm not sure if it will work for you because I hear smoking dulls the taste buds, but I simply made it a point to have breakfast. At first it was hard because the thought of food early in the morning made me nauseous. The doctor recommended I break it up. When I woke up I would have a piece of fruit or a handful of nuts and a glass of water. Mid morning I would eat something more substantial; a hard boiled egg, a baked potato, some yogurt with fruit/nuts. Once I got my metabolism going I was ready for lunch.

    The other thing is if you aren't used to breakfast, making time for it in the mornings can be challenging. I do food prep for the week on Sunday's. I boil a half dozen eggs, cut up fruit and veg for the week. make a pot of brown rice (or grain) and pot of beans (I'm vegetarian). This makes it easy to grab and go meals.

    My last tip would be set and alarm. Most of us have smart phones. Set that thing to go off every 3-4 hours. This can be your cue to either drink some water or eat a meal/snack.
  • Thanks all for the advice. I think i should try starting off on incorporating some yoghurt into the morning, yoghurt is something i do like to eat so i should atleast give that a go :-)
    There is alot of good advice from you all, & i'm going to take it on board & give it a try. Breakfast cant be that hard to concquere can it? lol
    wish me luck, & if anyone would like to jump on board with me for some support you're welcome to add me :-)
    Cheers
  • Instead of having large meals, eat throughout the day. I find that I can't handle 3 large meals a day (except for maybe supper). I eat 6 smaller portions throughout the day. This also gives your body a boost in your metabolism because it's constantly working at digesting food.

    A typical day for me is:
    B-Oatmeal or cereal
    Snack-yogurt & berries
    L-Bread + peanut butter, veggies + hummus
    Snack- fruit (usually orange), yogurt + berries or cottage cheese
    Supper- whatever my mom makes :p but small portion
    Snack- yogurt + berries

    I eat a lot of yogurt because I need more calcium in my diet, and I try & stray away from milk because my parents have settled for 1% (my dad likes 2 and my mom like skim, so they just decided to use 1%).
  • BeverageTreats
    BeverageTreats Posts: 149 Member
    This was me, too. As soon as I started making it a point to start a breakfast habit, everything fell into place and I started to become hungry for it.

    MFP will help you to make sure you don't overdo calories when increasing your number of meals. I didn't join MFP primarily for weight loss, I just needed to "recomposition." I wanted to begin weight training, and I wanted the MFP tool to help me try and make sure to get a somewhat respectable amount of macros. It would be a waste of a ton of effort to tear all those muscles down, if I didn't get enough nutrition to repair them.
  • First...quit smoking! I know it's easier said than done, but your health depends on it. Next, you might ask your doctor to test you for food allergies. My husband avoided eating because it caused so much cramping and bloating, and he was diagnosed with celiac disease. Since he stopped eating wheat gluten and dairy products, he is like a new man. He had so much pain for so long, he had forgotten what it was like to eat without stomach pain.
  • First...quit smoking! I know it's easier said than done, but your health depends on it. Next, you might ask your doctor to test you for food allergies. My husband avoided eating because it caused so much cramping and bloating, and he was diagnosed with celiac disease. Since he stopped eating wheat gluten and dairy products, he is like a new man. He had so much pain for so long, he had forgotten what it was like to eat without stomach pain.

    Yes, i am trying atm, but it is a very hard thing. I have cut down from 15-20something a day to just around 5/6 a day, so i know i will finally be able to do it. Yes, your husbands problems sound like mine. I'm always bloated even thougb i only eat once a day, and when i do eat, it upsets my stomach alot. I will go to the doctor & ask him. Thank you so much :-)
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    First up, breakfast DOESN'T start your metabolism, that's a myth. All breakfast does it make it less likely you'll make bad snack/lunch choices later on. If you have the willpower not to snack, no need for breakfast.

    I smoke as well, so i feel you there. Im not even going to try to quit while im losing this weight. Atm, i'd rather be a 13st smoker than a 20st non smoker.

    But, from what you're saying, the doctors would be my first port of call.
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