The nutrition recommendation presented in Fitness in 100 Words has withstood the test of time:
Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.
Who has said more about nutrition in fewer words than this? No one. But it does leave open the question of timing. Is the current state of scientific knowledge and clinical practice advanced enough to offer similarly clear and unambiguous advice? Here goes:
Eat half the day, mostly at regular meal times, and not too late.
Beyond this, there is room for variation and fine-tuning between individuals. The 13 words above should be seen as a starting point.
What we eat (quality), how much we eat (quantity), and when we eat (chrononutrition) all affect our health and performance. However, compared to the other two factors, chrononutrition is arguably the weakest of the three. Many studies on intermittent fasting use high-carb diets with an abundance of processed foods. Despite this, study participants often still manage to eke out improvements in weight and other biomarkers. Clever timing schemes are not a silver bullet, though, and should be understood as a means to squeeze that last 5-10% of optimization out of a good diet and exercise program.
In previous installments in this series, we discussed the key variables of meal timing: meal frequency, the fasting window, and eating at specific times of the day. The scientific literature on chrononutrition is a mess, often showing small or inconsistent effects. The best diet for an individual might come down to decidedly non-scientific factors like enjoying family dinners or Sunday brunches with friends. Figuring out the best diet may require some personal experimentation within the parameters of what is known to be healthy or unhealthy.
The Wrong Answer Is Clear
Failure often leaves a trail of breadcrumbs (maybe cookie crumbs in this case). The clearest embodiment of a deranged eating pattern is the average man on the street. A study utilizing a smartphone app revealed the average person’s meals span 14 hours and 45 minutes a day and occur across seven or more occasions. This type of all-day grazing pattern is how ranchers fatten up livestock. It seems to work just as well on humans.
Keep in mind that the numbers above were the average in the study group. A common logical fallacy is to assume that what is average is normal. Under no circumstances should an all-day food fest be considered normal. What has driven us to this food-driven lifestyle?
Food companies are in the business of creating profit, not health. Their snack foods are not made to satisfy our hunger. Snack foods are designed to keep us coming back for more. The contents are so cheap they barely factor into the cost of the product. Dirt-cheap ingredients like wheat, corn, soybean oil, and sugar are made even more economical through government subsidies. Marketing, distribution, packaging, and a whopping 40% profit margin are where your money goes.
Highly refined foods are pre-digested by chemical and mechanical processes before they reach your mouth. Even so-called “whole grains” break down so fast they are essentially sugar. On top of this, grains contain proteins called gliadins that break down into opioid peptides. Dr. William Davis explains:
We … know that foods contain proteins that, upon partial digestion, yield components that exert opioid behavior and even resemble the structure of morphine. The gliadin protein of wheat and related grains yields so-called gliadorphins, while the casein protein of mammary gland products yields casomorphin. No, nobody is going to the emergency room with acute bagel or muffin overdose. The health effects of wheat and related grains are less acute, more chronic, but no less important.
What luck for the food companies that the cheapest ingredients are also addictive. Considering these processed foods make up 57.9% of energy intake in the United States, it’s no wonder our eating habits have been so shaped by these foods.
Here’s the standard American diet (SAD) in 36 words:
Wheat, corn and seed oil, plenty of starch and sugar, some meat, little fruit, and no vegetables, all highly processed. Eat most of the day, whenever you feel like it, for as long as you’re awake.
Improving upon this eating pattern should be easy, but for most people it’s not. Highly addictive foods create a battle between your hunger hormones and your willpower. Biology beats psychology (almost) every time. Refined carbs offer a quick burst of energy and dopamine (the pleasure/reward hormone) followed by a crash. We barely digest one snack before reaching into the bag for another — and so continues the pattern that leads to all-day eating.
Normalized eating patterns start with choosing the right foods: meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, and no sugar. Once you have the right foods on the table, the correct amount is usually within striking distance. How you partition good food in the correct amount throughout the day is what we’ll discuss going forward.
Sample Meal Patterns
The Zone diet is explained in CrossFit Journal Issue 21 and the Level 1 Training Guide. In addition to the famous 40-30-30 macronutrient ratio, Dr. Barry Sears also recommends a specific meal pattern. To keep hormones such as insulin and glucagon stable throughout the day, the Zone diet recommends three main meals and two snacks per day. Recently, Sears also recommended limiting the eating window to 12 hours.
Although this could be considered a high-frequency eating pattern compared to the examples to follow, it is actually lower frequency than a typical American diet. The fasting window of 12 hours is also two hours and 45 minutes longer than an average American’s. Although Sears rejects intermittent fasting in favor of continuous caloric restriction, a 12-hour fasting window is not extreme and should not be a struggle for a metabolically healthy person.
The most important thing the Zone diet offers is the block system, which provides an easy way to track macros and portion sizes. If you are consistent in tracking your blocks, you will be able to run experiments to find out what works best for you. If your diet is sloppy and inconsistent, any intentional changes you make could be confounded by unintentional variation.
The 16/8 meal pattern entails fasting for two-thirds of the day and eating all your meals in the eight remaining hours. Many people also like the simplicity of not having to worry about food for much of the day. Many people follow this pattern simply by skipping breakfast. Rather than maintaining stable insulin and blood sugar, the idea here is to drive both down for as much of the day as possible to increase utilization of stored body fat.
As mentioned in part two of this series, studies have shown this time-restricted eating pattern can result in greater fat loss than a standard eating pattern while maintaining lean muscle mass.
Moving toward a longer fasting window often means eating fewer but larger meals. It doesn’t make sense to eat five meals within a short eating window. Time-restricted eaters usually consume two or three meals or two meals and a snack.
Skipping breakfast is not the only option. Skipping dinner is also viable, and at least one study has shown the benefits of this early time-restricted feeding approach when compared to a normal eating window. The study did not compare this pattern to a late eating window, however.
Extending the Fasting Window
In a review published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Rafael de Cabo and Mark Mattson reported a variety of metabolic health improvements via intermittent fasting or time-restricted eating, including:
- Weight and fat loss
- Lower blood pressure
- Improved glycemic control
- Reduced systemic inflammation and oxidative stress
- Improved cellular stress resistance, antioxidant defense, and DNA repair
- Increased autophagy
In the paper, they discuss the benefits of intermittent fasting on cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, obesity and diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. They claim:
Intermittent fasting improves multiple indicators of cardiovascular health in animals and humans, including blood pressure; resting heart rate; levels of high-density and low-density lipoprotein (HDL and LDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, and insulin; and insulin resistance. In addition, intermittent fasting reduces markers of systemic inflammation and oxidative stress that are associated with atherosclerosis.
Intermittent fasting and time-restricted fasting is no longer the domain of basement biohackers. It has gained the attention of prestigious medical journals, Hollywood actors, and top athletes. For improved metabolic health and increased fat loss, it’s worth experimenting with a longer fasting window. This is one of the least difficult changes to make to your diet, but the first few weeks can be rough. Moodiness and low energy are not uncommon in the first few weeks. Extending the window by an hour every week or two should help smooth out the transition, though.
The Circadian Factor
Shifting your eating window toward the morning or evening is another parameter that can be fine-tuned. In part three, we explored the science of circadian rhythms. This daily fluctuation in metabolic function primes our digestive system in anticipation of food. Off-schedule eating sends food into your body when it is not ready for it, resulting in suboptimal digestion and elevated blood glucose. Simply maintaining a regular eating schedule, including consistency over the weekend days, helps entrain a strong circadian rhythm.
Breakfast is frequently touted as the most important meal of the day, because insulin sensitivity peaks in the morning and subsequently declines as the day goes on. However, research has shown that this is at least partially a trained effect. In one study, skipping breakfast was associated with poor outcomes only in people who habitually eat breakfast. Epidemiological research has reported a lower average BMI in countries that consume their largest meal at lunch (European countries) as opposed to dinner (North American countries). However, a recent meta-analysis of randomized controlled studies on eating/skipping breakfast showed a slight bias in favor of skipping the meal, to the tune of .44 kg across the seven included studies. The trials ranged from two to 16 weeks in duration.
Adapted from Gu et al. (2020)
Another study, published a few weeks ago, tested the effects of either a late snack or a late dinner. In a randomized crossover design, the participants ate a snack at 18:00 and dinner at 22:00 (LD, late dinner) or ate dinner at 18:00 and a snack at 22:00. The researchers tested the effects of both protocols on blood glucose, insulin, and free fatty acid (FFA) metabolism. Higher blood glucose levels and blunted FFA utilization were observed in the late dinner group. Late dinner-induced glucose intolerance was more pronounced in study participants who were habitually early sleepers.
This study suggests it is wise to avoid eating close to your bedtime. Melatonin, the sleep hormone, binds to the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas, reducing their output. This is one possible explanation for poor glycemic control near the onset of sleep. Keep in mind that this study only tested the short-term effects of a single meal on two occasions. Also of note, the 20-hour mean glucose was slightly higher, but FFA levels and insulin were not significantly different between either condition. So, don’t lose sleep worrying if you occasionally eat a meal too late.
One important factor in our community is how meal intake should be timed in relation to our workouts. There is a near-unanimous consensus that post-workout meals are important and should perhaps be the largest meal of the day. In the few hours post-workout, we are most insulin sensitive as our muscles are in a primed state to take in glucose and amino acids. Late eating is likely to be less problematic if you train in the evening.
There is far less agreement on pre-workout nutrition. Fasted training is loved by some and hated by others. It’s a topic worth exploring more in the future.
The Best Eating Pattern According to Science
If you were to assess every possible combination of meal frequencies, fasting windows and times of day, you would have (very roughly) the following options:
- Low (1-2 meals/day), medium (3-5 meals/day), or high (6+ meals/day) frequency
- Short (<12 hours), medium (12-16 hours), or long (>16 hours) fasting window
- Early, middle, or late in the day eating
Do the math and you get 27 different eating patterns. Imagine the size and scope of scientific research required to test all 27 possibilities. And not just in college-aged males but in a variety of populations: old, young, women, men, obese, frail, Type 2 diabetics, different ethnicities, etc. The amount of research required would be enormous. The fact is that there is no scientifically proven best eating pattern, and it’s doubtful a clear, one-size-fits-all answer will emerge any time soon.
The best eating pattern is one that not only makes you feel and perform well but also fits your lifestyle. One study showed modest benefits to eating 17 meals versus three meals per day. Is becoming a full-time eater worth an 8% drop in cholesterol? Other studies have shown benefits to eating only once a day. Is stuffing yourself full, past the point of comfort, something you will stick with long term? A program is only as good as your willingness and ability to stick with it.
Science might not have all the answers yet, but we know the standard American diet is messed up. Eating half the day, mostly at regular meal times, and not too late is surely a step in the right direction. Please post your eating pattern to the comments. I would love to hear of your experiments and experiences.
Comments on Meal Timing: When Should We Eat?
I started with 16-8 IF, because I developed a craving hunger every Evening between dinner and bed time. And I had created a fulltime eating window.
I skip breakfast now and in the Beginning I was afraid to workout whitout having breakfast. But I started to get used to it Very fast and I have never felt Fatigue, working out in a fasting State. With longer workouts i am feeling even better in a fasting State.
only when I have been working in the Evening, till 2100/2200, I always have a hart time to maintain the fasting State wich starts at 1800/1900.
but when I wake up the next morning, I feel much better, Less willing to snooze, more alert and ready to start the day.
so for me, I feel like a 16hour fasting window Works Very well for me. with mostly three meals in my eating window.
Even if its only to protect myself against late Night snacking.
only when its late in the Evening, I have a hard time not to eat.
Love these articles. Thanks, Tyler. I am 53. I have done CrossFit for 3 years. I was a 'runner' before that only because running was all any coach ever said I COULD do. I am thin and lanky. I had never touched a REAL barbell before CrossFit. EVER. I weigh more now than I ever have which is fine. I am not overweight in the least BUT BUT BUT - I lost my 6-pack somewhere along the way which is weird because I have more muscle now and am stronger than I have ever been - like ever. I am trying to find the right eating plan / pattern for my age, body type and activity level.
I am very interested in fasting for disease control and longevity but I would also like to maintain my 6-pack - or GET IT BACK. Vanity vanity I know! What fat I DO carry tends to genetically collect around my mid-section and lower back (so annoying!). This translates into: my 6-pack is the first thing that goes when I gain ANY weight and the last thing I get back when I try to trim down. So frustrating! Anybody else? I get it that "real" CrossFit men don't care about 6-packs - but that's because most hardcore CrossFitters have 6-packs!
Currently, on a good day - meals consist of high protein (meat, eggs with WHEY supplements), low carb with veg and some fruit - low to no sugar. The main micro I try to hit is 130g of protein per day. I stop eating at 9pm. I don't consume a meal until 2pm or later most every day. However, I do sip on coffee with 2 tablespoons of fatty cream and splenda (oops!) during the morning hours while I work. I'm a writer. I work out 5 times a week - strength training with CrossFit conditioning. Again, why the 6-pack has disappeared ... I don't really know. ;-(
I think I know what you, Tyler and others will tell me. Tom, you want the 6-pack - nix the cream and splenda in the mornings!! Drink it black or have tea. Thanks for listening. Agreed that there is no 'one-size-fits-all' formula and self-experimenting and trial and error are key!
Feeling my age here in Scotland,
tjs
6 pack is the first to go for everyone dude !
Try IF. It's working for me and apart from first week it's been easy. 2 meals in a 6 hour window. 1 meal clean and the other whatever you want !
Hi Tom,
It's possible the splenda is not helping your cause, as it does provoke an insulin response. The combination of fat and carbs is the most destructive on body composition, and that includes fake carbs, too.
Along with Leigh's advice, you might try training fasted to see if that helps. Some people swear by it, while others feel it impairs their performance too much. Some people try it only a few times and quit before their body has a chance to adapt to it. I don't think it's a magic bullet, but it's one of those little optimizations that can help a person who is already doing most of the right things (such as you).
How much weight have you gained compared to your running days?
I will definitely TRY training in a fasted state for a few weeks and see what's what. Thanks, guys! I typically train on Saturdays fasted. Yes, splenda is probably NOT doing me any favours. True that! I will also try IF ... eating 2 meals in a 6-hour window. Indeed.
I have gained about 17 lbs since my running days. Keep in mind that I had never done a weighted squat before 2017. I had rarely ever lifted a barbell over my head. I do hope that some of the 17 lbs is muscle. Fingers crossed!
Thanks for the input!
Dumping my splenda now (sad music in the background),
Tom
I'm 1 month into IF doing 18/6. Finish eating by 6pm and dont eat again til noon. Eating 2 meals and no snacks so the meals are large and satisfying ! Trying to keep lunch carb free and very healthy and dinner I eat what ever I want. Lost 8 pounds, breathing is much better, lost my bloating and digestion system feels much healthier. Managed to do all this whilst still allowing myself pizza and burgers etc for dinner ( not every day! ). First week was hard in the evening not having a snack with netflix when kids went to bed but it was more a habit breaking rather than a hunger thing. I'm over that now and dont feel hungry at all. I was worried that I wouldnt have energy for exercise esp my longer paddleboard adventures but no problems at all. Overall I cant see I will go back to another eating pattern, it's been fantastic !
Résumé rapide pour les Françophones (Désolé pour les fautes d'orthographe)
La qualité (ce qu’on mange), la quantité (combien on en mange) et quand on le mange (la chrono nutrition) affectent notre santé et nos performances.
Mais comparé aux deux autres facteurs, la chrono nutrition est probablement la moins importante.
Un schéma nutritionnel normalisé commence par choisir les bons aliments.
Une fois que vous avez les bons aliments, choisissez les bonnes quantité. Une fois cela accompli on peut discuter de comment étaler les quantités dans la journée.
Zone par exemple permet de garder le ratio 40/30/30 et permet aussi de garder les hormones comme l’insuline et le glucagon à un niveau stable.
Zone recommande 3 repas plus 2 snacks.
Récemment, Sears a aussi recommandé 12h de fenêtre d’alimentation.
Même si on pourrait dire que Zone est un schéma de repas à haute fréquence. On peut quand même dire que c’est plus bas que le régime américain moyen.
Ce que Zone permet c’est un moyen facile de suivre les portions et les macros.
Une fois que vous avez réussi à suivre vos macros, vous pouvez faire des expériences.
Le régime intermittent 16/8 par exemple vous demande de jeuner 2/3 de la journée. Il y a également de la simplicité puisque vous n’aurez donc pas besoin de vous soucier de la nourriture pendant une bonne partie de la journée.
Une manière simple de le mettre en place est de ne pas prendre de petit-déjeuner.
Dans ce scénario, l’idée n’est pas de garder l’insuline et le sucre dans le sang stable mais de diminuer les deux le plus possible dans la journée pour forcer l’utilisation de graisse stockée.
Comme montré dans des articles précédents, la restriction de temps semble aider plus la perte de poids qu’un régime standard tout en maintenant la masse musculaire.
Dans ce cas, les pratiquants mangent en général 2 ou 3 fois.
Plusieurs bénéfices sur la santé métabolique ont été observés d’après plusieurs études :
Perte de poids et de gras Baisse de la pression sanguine
Amélioration du contrôle de la glycémie Réduction de l’inflammation systémique et du stress oxydatif
Amélioration de la résistance au stress cellulaire, des défenses antioxydants et de la réparation d’ADN Augmentation de l’autophagie
Dans une étude sur les bénéfices de l’intermittent sur le cancer, les désordre neurodégénératifs, l’obésité, les diabètes et les maladies cardiovasculaires il est dit :
Le régime intermittent améliore de multiples indicateurs de santé cardiovasculaire chez l’animal et l’humain, incluant la pression sanguine, le rythme cardiaque au repos, les niveaux de HDL et LDL, les triglycérides, le glucose, l’insuline et la résistance à l’insuline. En complément, l’IF réduit les marqueurs d’inflammation systémique et le stress oxydait lié à athérosclérose.
Bouger sa fenêtre alimentaire vers le matin ou le soir est un autre paramètre que vous pouvez faire évoluer.
On a donc abordé le rythme circadien. Cette fluctuation de fonction métabolique prépare votre système digestif à anticiper la nourriture. Manger à des moments non propices envoie de la nourriture dans votre corps quand vous n’êtes pas prêts provoquant une digestion sous optimale et une élévation de glucose dans le sang. En maintenant un schéma régulier avec de la constance même le week end permet d’entretenir le rythme circadien.
Il est souvent dit que le petit dej est le repas le plus important de la journée. En revanche des recherches ont prouvés que c’est en partie du au fait que c’est basé sur une habitude.
Dans une étude, éviter le petit-dej a montré des conséquences négatives uniquement pour les personnes qui avaient l’habitude de prendre un petit dej.
Plusieurs études ont montré les effets néfastes de manger tard.
Il serait donc intelligent d’éviter de manger proche de l’heure du coucher. La mélatonine s’accroche aux cellules qui produisent de l’insuline dans votre pancréas ce qui réduit la sécrétion d’insuline.
C’est l’une des explications du mauvais contrôle de l’insuline lorsqu’on est proche du couché.
Il faut aussi prendre en compte l’heure à laquelle on s’entraîne.
Il est presque unanime que le repas post entraînement est important et devrait être le repas le plus gros.
Dans les quelques heures suivant l’entraînement, on est plus sensible à l’insuline car nos muscles sont dans un état d’absorbtion de glucose et d’acide aminée.
Si on combine toutes les manières de manger possible, il y a 27 schémas différents.
Le meilleur schéma est celui qui vous fait sentir bien et performer mieux.
Manger la moitié de la journée, à des horaires réguliers et pas trop tard est déjà un bon début.
First off Tyler, big ups to you on this series. I'm sure you are putting a lot of effort and energy into it. And it's really informative. What this helps me the most with is broadening my acceptance of non-Zone stuff.
Anyway, I still follow the Zone Diet, 11 years into it now, mostly eyeballing now and at least doubling the fat. Coincidentally, the main thing I've adjusted over the years I've been doing it is meal timing - which is why I think these articles are really interesting.
During my college basketball days, we'd go to Ponderosa or Golden Corral before games and I'd notice that if I kept things close to my 5-block portions I could eat a hour or so before a game and feel fine. Even now I'll eat 10-20 minutes before a workout and do fine. But knowing my schedule in advance usually meant I would end up eating snacks even when I wasn't hungry because I knew I wouldn't have the option to eat that snack when I really wanted. This worked pretty well because the last thing I want to ever be is hungry. First world problems, for sure. Seriously, how fortunate are we that we get to pick when and how much to eat?
As a coach now, I find myself doing the same things. For example, there have been times where I'll eat a 5-block lunch at like 4 pm, before some sessions, then have a 2-block snack at like 5:45 pm after they're done before I head to coach a basketball practice. I'll do this because I know I won't make it home until like 11 pm - at which point I'll eat a 5-block dinner because I'm hungry.
Right now the way my sessions are set up I'll eat breakfast at like 7:15 am and then I'll have a snack at 9:30 am. Ideally I'd wait another hour because I'm not usually hungry by the time I have the snack, but if I have 10, 11, and 12 noon sessions lined up then it usually holds me long enough for me to wrap stuff and be home to eat around 2. Especially if the dinner the night before was late enough (9 pm or so).
I went off on a rant a bit. Really interesting to play around with the timing, though. My only critique of your article is that you forgot to mention that on College Football Saturdays the feeding window biologically and divinely extends from 10 am until the games wrap up around 2 am. Starbursts and Kit Kats are the prime food groups to get us through Boise State vs. Nevada. Perfectly healthy, in my opinion!
I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was a lot of research to sift through! And it's cool to hear you've stuck with the Zone for so long and modified it for your lifestyle. That's the best thing about it, in my opinion. It's flexible, but it's still precise and repeatable. Great for experimenting and troubleshooting.
I will have to get to work on part 5 to cover the miracle of the college sports feeding window!
I have not ever paid any attention to how many hours I eat. So, this is something I should perhaps consider. However, I also do not work traditional hours/days ( I work 7pm-7am, 3 days per week but never the same 3 days). And if I coach, I usually close the gym which gets me home around 8pm. I know these theories are just kind of used as a loose reference but sometimes they are completely impractical. There are bits and pieces in which I can use and apply to my personal situation so I am going to try!
Excellent summary, Tyler. The last paragraph's nibbling study was about cardio risk read cholesterol. Who cares, I definately not. Total to Hdl ratio did not change, i.e. Hdl rose. This is a good thing, in favour of the 3-meal eaters. Interestingly, insulin iUC ? was 17% lower for nibblers. So you trade 3 peaks lasting for 3-4h to even curve lasting for all day? This sounds "chronic" to me, packing energy to most insulin sensitive tissues: visceral adipose. Ok, enough with speculation.
When you wake up, you are fasted and run with fats and recirculated proteins. If you start with (coconut oil fried)eggs and bacon/salami, you mainly add more proteins and fats to the mix; it does not change that much, you do not enter into carb burning mode. Shifting "break fast" rather than skipping breakfast comes naturally. This happened to me; I did not feel hungry in the morning, and answered to my question "do I have to eat while not hungry" by settling to black coffee and shifting my "break fast" to lunch time. The downside was a drop in eggs consumption; there is so many lunch options...
As a foreigner who have lived in the USA long time ago (had no idea of these things then), any shift from SAD with excessive carbs, frequent grazing and giant portions, is an improvement. There are excellent whole foods raw materials available, as I can remember.
JR
JR,
I agree with you on the cholesterol in the nibbling study. It offers very little predictive validity. The nibbling study was done in a different era, before there was such a thing as "healthy fats". What they report as a benefit is probably wrong. It would be interesting if they had run the study for longer to see what the effects would be.
In general, I am wary of chronic stressors. I'm always curious about the dosing with any stressor and usually find an intermittent/hormetic dose to be worth looking into.
It sounds like you do a carb fast during the day. Do you consume carbs at pre or post-workout, or just later on? Your experience is similar to others I know. They inadvertently miss meals on low-carb diets because they just don't have the hunger.
We need to find out which strategy works better for us individually by playing with the variables in SELF TESTING.
The QUALITY is not negotiable, the QUANTITY needs to reflect our personal goal and the TIMING has to match our lifestyle in order to be sustainable on the long term.
Regardless from the nutritional approach chosen, by lowering insulin levels and increasing insulin sensitivity, we will be already way ahead in the fight against chronic diseases.
Adopted 11am-7pm eating window, fasting for 16 hours. Have been doing it for the last 3 months. Eating a late breakfast and an early dinner with some raw nuts and fruits as a snack in between post workout. Starting workout around 1.30pm and finish by 4pm.
I did not adopt this lifestyle to lose weight, I did it to improve my food choices (eat cleaner & healthier), to have stable energy levels throughout the week. But I lost 4 kgs (about 9 pounds) in 3 months anyway, mostly fat though.
I feel like I might continue eating this way through the rest of my life. It doesnt hurt to have a couple of drinks with friends at night every once in a while though.
Dinner at lunchtime works for me, coffee and cream in the morning and sometimes an evening snack [occasionally more if i am hungry]. Real food prepared at home from scratch!
Fasting worked great for me when I was losing weight on a ketogenic diet (it’s almost natural it’s so easy), but as I’ve trimmed down I find I have to be careful not to overdo it with the “I earned it” attitude coupled with serious hunger. I would just crush anything and could easily exceed my TDEE and gain weight even with one meal a day.
Now, keeping several portion-controlled, high protein (edit: and low fat) snacks around for the majority of the day is a good way to ensure I arrive to dinner hungry but not ravenous. Probably average to a 10 hour eating window most days.
suppose it makes sense this is where I landed given the takeaway from the piece that timing plays a more minor role than other factors.
It sounds like you created a battle between biology and psychology. Hunger hormones will steamroll your willpower in the long run. When you think about it, it’s pretty impressive you were gaining weight on only one meal a day. You came up with an interesting solution to the problem. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve always loved an early breakfast. I eat a lot for breakfast, but all healthy stuff. A small or no lunch and a decent size dinner. Usually done with dinner by 7:30pm but under Covid, more like 9:00. I may experiment giving up dinner.
I eat from 12pm-8pm everyday, then fast rest of the time. I have a normal lunch, and a big dinner.
Meal Timing: When Should We Eat?
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