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I've been trying to eat 6 times per day for years and years now and its really getting old. I'm sick of taking these damn shakes with me and always being anxious about what I'm going to eat next. It is becoming life consuming and really disruption to life always fixing food and trying to think of what to eat.
Does anyone here stay lean and just eat three meals plus a post workout shake on training days and maybe a late night snack?
Sure. A lot of people. I eat maybe four times a day. Alan Aragon turned me onto the idea that the the nibbling diet does not improve your BMR. It will help with insulin sensitivity, cholesterol and glucose levels, but not your metabolic rate. I did some research on pubmed and found a few pieces pointing to that finding.
Oh, and I'm no longer carbophobic. I just had rice with chicken, side of sweet baby carrots.
Thanks Cynic, that's reassuring. I like to eat healthy and I stay reasonably lean, like 11-12 percent bf, sometimes going down to 9 percent. I just need balance in my life and this six times a day stuff is getting so old I have finally reached my breaking point with it. I want to be fit and lean but at 33 years old I have found carring around shaker bottles to be a burden that I'm not willing to deal with. Plus I think this whole frequency thing can be a little ridiculous and impracticle for anyone with a life.
Thanks lost dog, I'm glad I posted this. Thinking back to when I was the leanest I was less nuerotic about eating. I may be even get leaner with fewer meals.
Like you said six meals is such a huge PITA its ridiculous. I'd like to see anyone with any social life or other hobbys and interests keep it up for long.
I'm naturally a nibbler, but it's often a pain in the butt, it can make me hungrier without helping me burn more, and when my cals are very low, it's unpossible to have a real meal 6 times a day (at 200-250 cals each) so the 3-4 is just better overall for me. I think it depends, for me, on what I'm doing, what I'm eating, and what my goals are.
Frequency and timing are over rated in my opinion. The only reason that they mention this is that it will help control blood glucose spikes. But it is trully all about calories. That is why I get mad when someone talks about not eating before bed. Your body recognizes calories NOT what time it is. But also, I am not saying that you can he crap before bed and it is still fine. I am not saying that at all. Just make smart choices, like choosing healthy fats and whole grains for example. So it truelly doesnt matter what time or the frequnecy of feeding occurs. (sorry for the little rant)
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"Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever."
-Lance Armstrong-
"Hard work beats talent everytime."
-Tony Dungy-
"If you can see yourself doing something you can achieve it." Dave Goggins
"I would rather leave it all out there then not go out there at all." Dave Goggins(Ultramarathon runner)
People have been successful with everything from 6 to 1 meals a day. We tend to need food before a real workout, and more food for marathon type exercise, but the varieties of diet to be successful is huge. Eat like you like. It likely will work. Even diabetics can opt for all of the frequencies of eating.
It did slow down my maintenance for about 200 kcal/day when I did IF in the 'Ramadan' way (eating 10am/10pm). Inserting a 3rd meal made it come back up by the same amount, which meant an equal deficit since I also started eating more.
In the end I settled for 3 meals a day with a large gap in between breakfast (9-10am) and the 2nd meal at 5-6pm, plus a snack thrown in right in the middle.. or not.
Experiment with how many meals you really need to feel 'good'. Generally 3 meals, 3 meals plus 1-2 snacks or even 4 meals will be more than adequate.
Eating 6 meals/day was like sheer punishment, as eating itself generally makes me hungry.. not eating doesn't. I'll also never remember one of the first IF-days.. I'd eaten breakfast at 9am and had to be away from home all day long.. didn't eat anything (but drank water of course) and then ate again when arriving back home at around 11pm. No worries about getting expensive road-side food or carrying my own.
i just eat a few big meals with lean protein sources and fats or carbs. Then i'll drink about 2-3 shakes a day with protein and water to keep my protein intake high. Works for me, and it's easy for someone who's a student and works.
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No need to eat six times per day unless you just like to do that
As far as the claims of decreasing metabolic rate if you don't eat every 2-3 hrs that is NONSENSE. Tons of anecdotal evidence and Primary Scientific data dispute this NONSENSE.
No need to eat six times per day unless you just like to do that
As far as the claims of decreasing metabolic rate if you don't eat every 2-3 hrs that is NONSENSE. Tons of anecdotal evidence and Primary Scientific data dispute this NONSENSE.
__________________
"Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever."
-Lance Armstrong-
"Hard work beats talent everytime."
-Tony Dungy-
"If you can see yourself doing something you can achieve it." Dave Goggins
"I would rather leave it all out there then not go out there at all." Dave Goggins(Ultramarathon runner)
Sick of this meal frequency
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