Do you HAVE to eat 5 meals a day? If I stay within my calorie range can I eat 7 or 8?
Im not working now if I was things would be a bit different but as such right now I'm hungry especially days I work out. So if I eat more frequently but stay within my calories is that going to be counterproductive in anyway?
If this would be better to post in the FLTS I will...
Missjane how to you link other threads or sites to your signature? Thanks! I want to start a training log too here and then I want to link it to my food log and my blog. Thanks so much!
I tend to eat at least 7 times a day, 8 on a workout day, sometimes more. At times it's just separating the main course and the salad course (after) at dinner, but other times it really is separating a snack on purpose. Basically it's just whatever works for you.
There aren't really any ironclad rules; Lou makes suggestions, and says if you alter things it isn't exactly the program he designed. .. . .but that doesn't mean it will automatically self-destruct if you don't do it his way!
Also, he is assuming a readership of mostly women who have been brainwashed to starve themselves, women who think they have to eat 1200 calories a day, and probably eat twice a day. They will think that 5 or 6 sounds like a lot.
If you're eating good food, hitting your protein right, and eating enough calories, it's not gonna matter much how many "eating episodes" you break it into in a day.
Also, he is assuming a readership of mostly women who have been brainwashed to starve themselves, women who think they have to eat 1200 calories a day, and probably eat twice a day. They will think that 5 or 6 sounds like a lot.
Ha that's definately not me (and probably the reason I am in the place I am now). I *like* food. The only time I lost weight was when I began to see it as a means to an end, the end being nutrition (wow moment of enlightenment here). Some people have a very austere approach to eating, my mom is that way. But its not my nature. I thought 1200 wasn't too bad until I got on spark people and found that if I just east as I like I'm exceeding 2300 calories a day! No wonder the scale hasn't budged...
it is enlightening to track for a while. People tend to underestimate what they're eating. I was like you, I really, really like food, and especially sweet, starchy, fatty food. Cake, cookies, candy, etc. I didn't have too much trouble with weight gain because I tend to be thin anyway, and I have always exercised. But when I got on NROLFW I decided to try the clean diet and see if I could lose fat. I did. I lost a lot of fat very quickly, because I just totally cut out the crap food. And after two or three weeks, I didn't even miss it! Lost at least 4 pounds of fat and could see my muscles, especially my abs,for the first time. It was very eye-opening.
Confession here: I used to sit down and eat 10-12 Oreos at a time, with huge glasses of milk. Loved that! But then I wondered why I couldn't get rid of the love handles and belly fat, even though I did lots of weightlifting and cardio. Duh. Never occurred to me that I hadn't eaten a vegetable in a week.
Pfft. Lightweight! Try double that with double-stuff oreos and regular soda. How I didn't keel over dead is a mystery.
I meant double-stuff. I would take off one "lid" from two cookies and put them together to make one really freaking huge stuffed oreo! Hahaha. No regular soda, though. Soda with oreos? Yuck. Gotta be milk with chocolate. Just gotta be.
yeah, i was a soda-addict, used to have one to wake me up as soon as i got out of bed. i should have just mainlined sugar, it would have been cheaper!
Hard to believe that now I don't eat any processed foods except for protein powder and cheese, all my carbs come from fruits and veggies, and I haven't had any sort of soda for weeks.
BTW, I found this one blog from this one guy who's lost ~220 pounds, he's very motivating and inspiring: The Anti-Jared
OP, I noticed that he had 5 meals as one of the "ironclad rules" as well. I'm opting to interpret that at "at least 5 meals," since often I like to have a small lunch then 2 afternoon/evening snacks. I think he just wants us to keep ourselves fed throughout the day, but I'll see how it goes.
well, some ppl do better with a few big meals and some ppl do better with eating frequent, smaller meals. Whatever helps you keep to your calorie goal works. For me, if I wait too long between meals (even big ones), I just want to binge on anything in sight. I have friends who want to binge if they don't get "enough" food in a meal, so they eat less often but bigger amounts. Either way works as long as you manage your calories.
I used to sit down and eat 10-12 Oreos at a time, with huge glasses of milk. Loved that!
A sleeve of regular Oreos and a coffee mug full of milk. A two finger pinch to hold the Oreo under the milk until the bubbles stop. One bite of heaven. Repeat.
Oreo Truffle Balls-grind a whole pkg of Oreos up in the food processor, add 1 brick of cream cheese and roll into balls and dip in melted chocolate. omg good
A sleeve of regular Oreos and a coffee mug full of milk. A two finger pinch to hold the Oreo under the milk until the bubbles stop. One bite of heaven. Repeat.
Oh my god; that's EXACTLY what I used to do! (Except when I had Double Stuf, then it was just a lot of them) Everyone stop talking about Oreos before I run out and ruin my record of very, very little sugar in months!
Oreo Truffle Balls-grind a whole pkg of Oreos up in the food processor, add 1 brick of cream cheese and roll into balls and dip in melted chocolate. omg good
Now, see? I answered Lost Dog before I saw this. . . . . .and I'm gonna have to try it. HELP!!!
well, some ppl do better with a few big meals and some ppl do better with eating frequent, smaller meals. Whatever helps you keep to your calorie goal works. For me, if I wait too long between meals (even big ones), I just want to binge on anything in sight. I have friends who want to binge if they don't get "enough" food in a meal, so they eat less often but bigger amounts. Either way works as long as you manage your calories.
Thanks. Yeah depending on appetite and how busy I am, I can do either but more comfortable eating more frequently. These days I feel like I need something every hour or two! I am just focusing on trying to make whatever I snack or eat contain some protein b/c I'm struggling to get to 150 on a consistent basis.
But I have on my Christmas food list to make those Truffle balls, and to hell with the calories and carbs! I've gotta live!
I'm not crazy about the cream but the cookies themselves are yum. Wow I'm needing sugar, good thing I'm sipping on a strawberry protein smoothie right now. Hit 104 g protein yay! If someone has answer an my thread re substitution excercises I might lift today.
Good thing I have a chocolate chip balance bar today almost forgot about that. i like those as much as regular cookies. yum
just remember that food-coma-bloaty-ill feeling you get afterwards and then remember how great you look now, trust me the crap food won't seem so tempting anymore.
aw man, have you guys had some of the yellow peaches lately? They are so ripe and delicious! I was having one last night, had to eat it over the sink because it was so juicy. It was so sweet and had a bit of spicy-ness to it too, y'know? It was sooooo good. I'm lucky to live in California where we get fresh fruits and veggies all year, do you guys who live in areas where white stuff falls from the sky in winter have problems getting fresh fruit during the colder months?
just remember that food-coma-bloaty-ill feeling you get afterwards and then remember how great you look now, trust me the crap food won't seem so tempting anymore.
aw man, have you guys had some of the yellow peaches lately? They are so ripe and delicious! I was having one last night, had to eat it over the sink because it was so juicy. It was so sweet and had a bit of spicy-ness to it too, y'know? It was sooooo good. I'm lucky to live in California where we get fresh fruits and veggies all year, do you guys who live in areas where white stuff falls from the sky in winter have problems getting fresh fruit during the colder months?
Cali here too and I agree. Haven't tried the peaches yet but I love white nectarines! And strawberries!
strawberries are teh diggity bomb! I love mixing them up in my yogurt & ricotta cheese for breakfast. yummers! Especially the ones that are just a *tiny* bit manky, so sweet!
Boysenberries are my favoritest of all time, but I can never find them. Blackberries are my 2nd fav but dang, so expensive for so little. These teeny weeny baskets are like $3.99 here now.
I have been loving those yellow mangoes I get at Costco in a six pack. I chunk them up and eat them with cottage cheese. Yummy. Also the strawberries, peaches, plums, pretty much any fruit. Raspberries, too. But they, like the blackberries, are expensive.
Blackberries are my 2nd fav but dang, so expensive for so little. These teeny weeny baskets are like $3.99 here now.
Costco! Three berry mix, I don't remember how much it is but its a giant bag of blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. Also TJ's sells smaller frozen bags for like $3 something. I don't eat them plain b/c like you said they are expensive but sometimes i'll put them in my yogurt with walnuts, yum. but mostly i use it for my smoothies yummy yum
hmm.... costco... i might have to rethink getting a membership there. I have never gone there because I live in a small apartment which has laughably little storage space. But, since I'm now getting all my carbs from fruit & veggies, I'm eating a lot more of them and that be the way to go. it's surprising how easy it is (and cheap) to shop now that I'm not buying lots of crap.
To OP , no you don't *have* to eat 'only' 5 meals a day .. if you can hit your calorie target better when eating more often, so do it..
As for me, I just never could lose weight when I tried to eat 5-6 meals a day as I'd get hungry during or even *after* a meal & not before! So, less meals work better for me to lose weight.. vice versa, most people that want to put ON weight do better with more meals.
There are of course exceptions to this rule & some people do better with more meals.. my guess is that these are the ones that get hypoglycemic easily & start getting all shaky when they don't eat frequently enough.
Those whose blood sugar levels tend to run on the high side do better with less meals. There's also a hormone called cholecystekine (sp?) or CCK which tends to not work very well for obese folks.. they don't release as much of it as leaner people do & CCK is basically the satiety hormone that tells you to stop eating.. also stretchability of the stomach is another factor.. maybe lean folks have very tiny stomachs & just literally can't eat more than a few bites at the time.. just like people who had their stomachs stapled or even totally bypassed...
FWIW, the only time I really felt good about eating 12 times a day or even more frequently was when I was cycling all day long & frankly that wasn't eating.. just chugging liquid foods. Interestingly w/o me forcing down that liquid I'd sooner just starve myself & have done so in the past = not eat while covering ginormous distances ... being in ketosis will shut down appetite almost completely .
Do you HAVE to eat 5 meals a day? If I stay within my calorie range can I eat 7 or 8?
i should have just mainlined sugar, it would have been cheaper!
Linear Mode
