Restress the small meals more often technique

banks1850
banks1850 Posts: 3,475 Member
edited November 2023 in Food and Nutrition
I wanted to restress this technique. It was touched on a few weeks ago with the Eat like a hobbit thread that Nevada posted too.

For the last 3 weeks I have been eating smaller meals and having a snack every 2 to 2.5 hours of atleast 100 calories, this has kept my metabolism roaring and ready to go. Besides the benefits of metabolism, there are 2 great side effects of doing this. You never get the afternoon sleepy's, and you aren't hungry at all. Since the snacks are so small, even if you aren't hungry, you can pop them in without feeling like you stuffed yourself. It reall has worked like a charm for me. Here is my schedule for anyone else who wants to try but doesn't know quite how to do it.

7:30 am eat a light but protien packed breakfast (oatmeal or egg whites ...etc.)
10:00 am eat my morning snack, 1 medium sized apple or pear with skin and a light n fit yogurt
12:15 pm eat lunch (usually a weight watchers meal or something else that totals about 300 cals)
2:30 pm drink a V8 and eat 1/2 an 8 oz. bag of mini pretzels (this ends up being about 185 cals)
4:30 very light snack (usually some fruit or something else around 60 cals)
6:30 Dinner Since you aren't starved you don't need quite as big a meal (450 cals or so for me)
(if your like me and sit in front of the tv when you get home at night, lay off the carbs for dinner,
unless you work out at night and your body can burn them off)

now if you total that up its somewhere in the neighborhood of 1300 cal a day (way under for someone my size), which is why I usually have a snack of some kind of seed or nut at night.

This plan works so well for me. I hope it works for you.

Replies

  • banks1850
    banks1850 Posts: 3,475 Member
    I wanted to restress this technique. It was touched on a few weeks ago with the Eat like a hobbit thread that Nevada posted too.

    For the last 3 weeks I have been eating smaller meals and having a snack every 2 to 2.5 hours of atleast 100 calories, this has kept my metabolism roaring and ready to go. Besides the benefits of metabolism, there are 2 great side effects of doing this. You never get the afternoon sleepy's, and you aren't hungry at all. Since the snacks are so small, even if you aren't hungry, you can pop them in without feeling like you stuffed yourself. It reall has worked like a charm for me. Here is my schedule for anyone else who wants to try but doesn't know quite how to do it.

    7:30 am eat a light but protien packed breakfast (oatmeal or egg whites ...etc.)
    10:00 am eat my morning snack, 1 medium sized apple or pear with skin and a light n fit yogurt
    12:15 pm eat lunch (usually a weight watchers meal or something else that totals about 300 cals)
    2:30 pm drink a V8 and eat 1/2 an 8 oz. bag of mini pretzels (this ends up being about 185 cals)
    4:30 very light snack (usually some fruit or something else around 60 cals)
    6:30 Dinner Since you aren't starved you don't need quite as big a meal (450 cals or so for me)
    (if your like me and sit in front of the tv when you get home at night, lay off the carbs for dinner,
    unless you work out at night and your body can burn them off)

    now if you total that up its somewhere in the neighborhood of 1300 cal a day (way under for someone my size), which is why I usually have a snack of some kind of seed or nut at night.

    This plan works so well for me. I hope it works for you.
  • time2wrk
    time2wrk Posts: 773 Member
    My husband did the "Body for Life" program, which stresses eating 6 small meals a day that consist of 1 serviing of protein and 1 of HEALTHY carbohydrate (fruit, whole grain, etc.) and adding in veggie servings at a minimum of 2 of the meals. It also then allowed 1 "cheat day" a week, so if we were planning to go out to dinner or anything, he could keep that as the cheat day. he had a great deal of success with it and found that his body learned 1) when it was time to eat - he knew when 3 hours had passed because he was hungy! and 2) how to be satisfied on a smaller portion.

    I have tried to structure my eating in a similar fashion, you are right, banks, it does offer success!
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,932 Member
    If you do just this one thing for two weeks - you will never go back.

    Hobbits are scary, but wiley.

    cm
  • banks1850
    banks1850 Posts: 3,475 Member
    Agreed! I am done with large meals, they make you feel sluggish, and your body doesn't use half the food you eat when you eat big meals, it either ends up as waist, or stored as fat! Small meals get used up quick, once your body understands that this is how you will do it (maybe 2 weeks or so), it will be like a car idleing, it will never shut down, bad for cars, good for you. Just think of food as gasoline, how much gas would you go through if you left your car idleing all day instead of just sitting in the lot? :)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,932 Member
    Banks! thanks!

    Another great visual image I can use. I do much better with motivation that is tied to some visual cue. Like the idling car. And Hobbits.

    cm
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