One onerous cross-county trip, somewhere around mile Nebraska, my husband invented a fun little car game. Turning to me with a straight face he said, “Plastic: pro or con?”
“Excuse me?” I said and threw some rice cakes behind me, hoping they’d land somewhere in the vicinity of the kids.
“Plastic. Are you for it or against it?” replied the high school debate geek.
“You mean like credit cards?” One of the rice cakes came flying back at my head. Note to self: baby does not like rice cakes.
“Whatever. Just plastic.”
“How can anyone be against plastic?” I said, exasperated. “It’s omnipresent.”
“Ah, then you’re pro plastic. I never knew that about you before.” He said it so seriously that I was sure this was going to come up in a marriage counseling session some years down the road.
He was silent for a couple of miles as I threw goldfish crackers at the baby (missing more than I hit – my aim is not great) and then, “Michael Jackson: Pro or con?”
Before I could even answer, from the back seat a tiny voice yelled out, “Pwo!” And thus it began.
Sometimes I feel like health and fitness research is a lot like my husband’s car game. Researchers take something random and obvious and then throw a lot of money at it trying to decide if it’s good or bad. The most current example is one of the latest fitness fads to hit the market: snacky snacks.
You know what I hate more than adults who use the phrase “snacky snack”? People who would take away my snacky snack. So I can’t say I’m completely impartial on this subject. Back in the day, our grandmothers used to admonish “No snacks, you’ll ruin your dinner!” to their kids and even used it themselves as a diet technique. Eating between meals was not popular. And then over the last 10-20 years, research has swung the opposite direction with every major diet proclaiming “three meals and two snacks” or “don’t go more than three hours without eating” or the even more ubiquitous five (or six! or seven!) mini meals a day instead of three squares as the secret to stoking our sluggish metabolisms and torching fat. In fact, I dare you to open up any lady mag these days and not find an article on the benefits of snacking.
So it’s about time for the pendelum to swing the other way, wouldn’t you say? Enter The Leptin Diet by Byron J. Richards. This diet claims to help control your hunger hormones, specifically leptin and gherlin, by timing your meals to take advantage of your natural hormonal fluctuations thereby avoiding insatiable hunger. This diet espouses several tricks including:
- Never eat after dinner. Allow 11 to 12 hours between dinner and breakfast, and finish eating dinner at least three hours before bed.
- Eat three meals a day. Allow five to six hours between meals and do not snack. Snacking causes leptin to malfunction.
- Do not eat large meals. Eat slowly and stop eating a meal when you are slightly less than full. Consistently eating large meals is the easiest way there is to poison your body with food.
- Eat a breakfast containing protein. Your metabolism can increase by 30 percent after a high-protein meal. A high carb meal such as cereal or a bagel will increase your metabolism only by four percent.
- Reduce the amount of carbohydrates eaten. Definitely eat some carbs, but don’t overdo it. In each meal, half should be a protein source, and half should be a healthy carb.
Don’t overeat, eat a bunch of protein, reduce carbs – all standard weight loss mumbo jumbo. Until you get to the snacking part. What – no snacks?!?!? What kind of diet is this? And how does he ever expect to sell his (I’m sure forthcoming) line of snack bars, shakes, yogurts and after-dinner mints with such advice??
But Does It Work?
I know people – very healthy people, even – who swear by three meals a day with no snacks. When I was in Europe I discovered that snacking is not very common there – at least in the sense that you don’t see Spaniards or Germans pulling out little plastic baggies of trail mix on the metro. They did, however, have two-hour lunches and a siesta (well, the Spaniards anyhow) that probably helped nip that urge to snack in the bud. And the Germans just seemed really anal about having food outside of a designated food area. For the most part, all of our European friends were quite svelte.
Europeans, blah, blah, blah; we all know that Americans have a fat inferiority complex. So what about this leptin business? Back in the day – yes, the same day in which our grandmothers forbade snacking (i.e. the ’50’s) – scientists discovered the effects of a hormone that seemed to control obesity in mice. It sat on the backburner for a few years but as Americans got fatter, interest in the mysterious hormone grew until finding it became the Holy Grail of nutrition research. Finally, to much fanfare, in 1994 leptin was identified by Jeffrey M. Friedman.
As he discovered that leptin signals satiety, this led scientists to crow loudly that they had found the cure to obesity… only to make them eat crow a few years later when it was discovered that save for a select few humans missing a gene, leptin did not seem to have the same effect on humans as it does in mice. Moreover, scientists were discovering that leptin was only a tiny part of a complicated pathway that tells the body when it is hungry and when it is full. (Ignoring of course, that many people eat when they are decidedly not hungry.)
While leptin didn’t turn out to be the miraculous discovery that people – namely the drug companies – were hoping it would be, it has still taught us a lot about how our bodies regulate our desire for food. But has the science evolved enough to make dietary recommendations based on that research? Researchers are skeptical, but that didn’t stop Richards from writing his book.
At this point, I think it all comes back to deciding what works for you and your body. For myself, ever since I saw the Intuitive Eating light and angels started heralding my every meal, I’ve found that some days I really want snacks. And, surprisingly to me, some days I don’t. Sometimes just knowing I can have a snack if I want it is enough to make me realize that I’m not really hungry after all. My body doesn’t seem overly confused by my lack of schedule. But hey, if you’re trying to lose weight and you snack all the time, then try cutting out the snacks to see if it helps. For some people, letting themselves get really hungry sets them up for a binge. For others, if they tell themselves they don’t eat between meals then that’s the end of it and they don’t think about food except for the 3 appointed times of day. What research does agree on is that we can train our bodies to anticipate hunger so perhaps it’s just a matter of deciding a schedule and sticking to it?
So, snacks: pro or con? Go!
Definitely pro! I need snacks, and try to stick with fruit and nuts. I thought leptin was related more to sugar, or sugar suppresses leptin formation. I was on the belly fat cure from jorge cruise and he touted something along those lines. Leptin was a key hormone he mentioned, and that was the first time I had heard about it. The program worked for me, I lost 50 lbs. (only to gain it all back, when I realized I was having a hard time remembering things, which I found was related from having too few carbs, or so one research study said. And I missed fruit!)
I would miss fruit too! That’s one of those things that’s a deal breaker for me – I can give up a lot of things, but not fruit!
Sometimes I snack sometimes I don’t. I find the more busy I am the less I eat. I don’t like to get so hungry that I will eat anything that’s not nailed down but that doesn’t necessarily mean I have to snack.
Um, it depends. I find that when I did something extra active (long-shopping, got lost looking for car, excited to see stairs instead of elevator and went up 10 flights because I’m too stubborn to take the elevator), then I’ll find myself needing a snack. If I wasn’t very active (e.g. sat at a desk all day, despite water and potty breaks), then I don’t need a snack.
Ever since I got braces (so much FUN being the only person in the waiting room who drove themselves), I’ve stopped snacking. It also led to me losing 10 lbs and 2 dress sizes (apparently I LOVE baggy clothes, so I completely skipped one size). I ended up tacking on what I would normally snack on (nuts, fruits) to the end of my meal, resulting in less of the actual meal being eaten, and I suspect the fats from the nuts contributed to my satiety.
It really depends on the person, and what they normally eat/do. For JUST me: CON.
Okay this: “I find that when I did something extra active (long-shopping, got lost looking for car, excited to see stairs instead of elevator and went up 10 flights because I’m too stubborn to take the elevator)” made me laugh.
And then this: “so much FUN being the only person in the waiting room who drove themselves” made me laugh even harder.
You are awesome.
PRO. As an European, I see it as an important part of my culture…;-)
In Scandinavia, no day is a complete without at least one or two “fika”, i e coffee breaks with everyone in the office. There used to be cookies or buns served, but nowadays it is more common with coffee and a fruit at 10 am and 3 pm. Or sometimes just in the afternoon.
Same at home. I would never, ever miss my afternoon-“fika”; it is as mandatory as breakfast, lunch or dinner. And of course my parents do the same – everyone does!
(But no, we do not eat on the streets or the metro – that is very American!)
Fika! I love it! Would it sound presumptuous if I started calling my afternoon snack a “fika”??
Pro. Actually, I’m not having ‘meals’ anymore, just food spread out throughout the day (and in the middle of the night too). I’ve always been this way, though. I suspect that people who hate to cook (such as myself) are snackers more than people who love cooking.
” I suspect that people who hate to cook (such as myself) are snackers more than people who love cooking.” Interesting! I hadn’t thought of it from the cooking perspective. I like to cook but I always end up snacking while I cook, which can be a problem. Hmm.
Im with the intuitive eating vote. So whatever works best. Not that I snack right now, being an Intermittent Faster as I am (see my experiences here: http://blog.superbootcamps.co.uk/2011/intermittent-fasting/intermittent-fasting-results-guide/)
FWIW lyle ms Donald has written a great series of articles about leptin here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-hormones-of-bodyweight-regulation-leptin-part-1.html
Keep up the good work,
George SuperBootCamps
Ooh thanks for the links on leptin and intermittent fasting – off to check them out!
“And how does he ever expect to sell his (I’m sure forthcoming) line of snack bars, shakes, yogurts and after-dinner mints with such advice??”
*****
You know, it never occurred to me before that there might be an ulterior motive for recommending snacks. I think you just busted the conspiracy!
It’s what I’m here for;)
Pro snacking – I’m very irritable when I’m hungry , so snacking keeps me happy and prevents me yelling at people. I don’t think that I would get in enough fruit and vegetables and calories if I didn’t snack. But maybe I just need to plan bigger meals.
I do enjoy my afternoon snack which typically consists of yogurt or something to that effect. I love it but that’s the only snack I have during the day (usuuually). So I’m definitely PRO!
I don’t think anyone’s come up on the con side yet. And I’ll have to agree — some days I just need a snack. I try to keep some Larabars or nuts in my desk so that I can munch on something if I get hungry without having to resort to the vending machine.
My parents like to play “Beatles or Stones” in the car, wherein you name two similar bands or musicians and everyone has to choose one — i.e. Tom Jones or Wayne Newton? Donavon Frankenreiter or Jack Johnson? Blondie or Joan Jett? … It can get pretty heated.
I like your parents! I’m going to have to try that game on our next trip!
I have serious portion control issues when I snack.
Also, making “good” choices can be a challenge.
I’ve been doing a two protein shakes and a meal diet for the past few weeks and I tweaked it this week to a modified Warrior Diet approach.
Yesterday I think I was really good. Here is what I ate:
5:20am – Alarm goes off
5:55am – Allergy meds & water
7am to 10am – Pot of coffee
11am – “Creamsicle” Protein shake (1 scoop vanilla protein, 1 heaping tablespoon of Sugar Free Orange Fiber, & 1 scoop creatine) + Supplements (Niacin, Multivitamin, Vitamin C, Mega Green T, 2 Fish Oil caps)
3:30pm – 2nd shake (same as before minus the creatine) + 2nd Mega Green T of the day
7:30pm – Cardio workout at the gym
8:45 – Dinner – Bag of frozen brocolli, 2 italian sausage links, kidney beans, mustard, spices
9:30 – 2 apples with peanut butter
10:20 – 2 handfuls of grapes
I’m not trying to be nosy but I am a little concerned — while you didn’t include portion sizes for the beans or peanut butter, I’m getting a daily calorie total for you anywhere from 1200-1500 cals a day which is really low for a male. I’m hoping I’m wrong but just be careful – I did a lot of damaget o my metabolism eating 1200 cals/day and working out.
I tend to split a can of beans between two meals.
And I really like PB, so I had about a heaping tablespoon and a half of it last night.
Yesterday was probably the lowest calorie day of the week as I had carrots and 1/2 a container of hummus on Tuesday, IIRC.
Good point – I too have done a lot of damage to myself by working out too much on too few cals!
First, your creamsicle shake sounds really good. And I normally hate shakes!
Second, why are you taking niacin?
Third, I need to do more research into the Warrior style of eating – I thought it was similar to intermittent fasting where you only eat during a small window of a few hours each day?
1) Dan John always talks about getting Protein with Fiber and I tried this and it tastes pretty good.
2) I had a health screen a few weeks ago and my HDL level was a little low. Niacin is supposed to help with that. My triglyceride level was high, but I think that was due to eating a low carb/high fat breakfast of egg whites, 2 eggs, salsa, and sausage before the test. Oh yeah, my BMI said I was obese at 215 lbs at 5’11”. But, I’m not worrying about that.
3) The Warrior Diet is an IF type thing. The big thing for the modified version is it low carb until the post-workout window.
Well, that’s it: I’m screwed. I snack. Way. Too. Much.
Hit “submit” too quickly. What I was also going to say was that, back when I was in a more centered place (pre-car crash), I was much better at staving off snacking. But it worked for me to eat a small breakfast (6am), snack (9am), lunch (11:30am), snack (3pm), dinner (6pm), all while drinking water, lots of water, between meals.
I love your husband’s game! I’m going to steal it for our next trip.
Ok, con if it’s a high-sugar snack that will lead to an insulin spike and crash. Pro if the snack consists of fruit, veggies, or lean protein; but that’s not easy for some people to do.
I know people who are perpetual snackers. They feel like it’s bad to experience actual hunger, so they eat BEFORE they ever get hungry and thus end up eating pretty much all day which wouldn’t be bad if they were active enough to use the calories they’re consuming.
Intuitive eating is essential. Seems like snacking can be a slippery slope if the snacker is only eating out of anxiety, boredom, or habit… rather than actual hunger.
Good points about both the hunger and the sugar crashes!
I´m european (from austria) and definitely not a snacker. I like to have big portions 3 times a day and enjoy it much more, when i´m really hungry. But we use to have one or two coffee breaks , but I don´t count them as a snack .
The reason why i´m not snacking on my way to work or in the metro is, that I like to enjoy my daily calories with all senses.. 🙂
” I like to enjoy my daily calories with all senses.. ” I love this! Said like a true intuitive eater!
I eat 6-8 small meals a day 🙂 No matter howI eat, and how much fat the meal contains, I am always hungry like clockwork 3 hours later so I just divided my old 3 square meals a day into a bunch of smaller ones 🙂
Yep, I discovered the same thing. I’m going to be hungry every 2-3 hours no matter how much I eat each time so i now eat small amounts every few hours. Also this is the only way I can even get close to eating recommended amounts of fruits and veg per day.
I really think it depends on the person. But I will say that it’s important for someone to experience true hunger before snacking and also to have it be a protein balanced snack and not something just starchy/sugary. A few roasted almonds can really stave off a headache if someone’s blood sugar is low. I have to pack them with me wherever I go just in case I need them.
I agree with your philosophy. Know they are an option but use them only when needed.
I really think I could lose the last 15 if I were better at not snacking as much…so I’m going to work on the 3 meals a day and just have one small protein snack in the afternoon.
I like your point about true hunger. So many people are terrified of feeling hungry that they never actually let themselves feel it.
I’m the same as you — some days I really “need” snacks and others I don’t. It all depends on what I’m doing that day, how much I’ve been exercising, how much stress I have, etc.
I tend to snack when I am not busy, but if I’m busy, forget food.
The part that interests me is the “eat small meals” + “no snacks” = not enough calories. I’m guessing that’s why this “diet” works.
I’m the same way – when I’m really engaged in something, food doesn’t even cross my mind! But look out when I’m bored… I’ll eat my way through the day.
I prefer snacking. I do agree with you that each person should decide what works best for them. I do not think there is a cookie cutter appraoach that works for determining ones diet.
I use my snackiness as a judge of whether my meals were “good” enough for me. I adjust proteins, etc., if I get crazily ungry befor e my next meal. I keep lots of nuts and apples around for when I get the nibbles. I find, with the exception of a few brands, a lot pr packaged snacks make me more hungry than when I started. I’d rather have an apple before supper if I’m starving so I don’t eat too much…it’s all relative. THe busier I am , the less I snack. Plus I work in a lab where you can’t have food or drink, so I have to watch myself when I’m at home and am suddenly “free” to eat wherever I wish.
I’d snack all day if I had the option. I really have to watch myself 🙂
Ooh I like your “test”! That’s a good idea. If you’re hungry an hour after your meal then you probably didn’t eat enough fats/protein.
I get obscenely cranky when I get hungry. It’s not pretty. My roommate carries extra food around for me if we’re going out , especially if we’re racing. I need to eat (usually) every 3 hours. And the idea of eating dinner at 5:30, going to bed at 10 or 11 and then not eating until 7 or 8 the next morning sounds like cruel and unusual punishment to me. I lost my first 50 pounds with snacking, I think I’ll keep my snacks in while I try to lose the next 50.
True, blood sugar swings can make a person super crabby! With one of my kids I know whenever he starts getting really obnoxious and fighting with everyone, it’s really because he just needs some food!
I’m pro snacking even though I don’t do it now.
If you wake up at 6, get to work at 7 and have breakfast by 7:30, you’re going to be hungry for lunch around 11 or 11:30. If you eat lunch then but want to have dinner late enough that you won’t be hungry before bed, you won’t eat until 6 or 7. That’s 7 to 8 hours without food. If I had to do that I think I’d be more like a velociraptor and less like a woman. Besides, hunger gives me a headache.
However, because I need to take my medicine three times a day with food, and enough of it to prevent vomiting, I’ve been eating three meals a day. I suck at it.
True- sometimes life mandates a certain way of eating and you just have to learn to be flexible!
I eat when I’m hungry. Sometimes I eat snacks all day; sometimes I eat meals and no snacks… it depends. The difficulty is determining when I am actually hungry versus just procrastinating.
I have that same problem. I also get really snacky when I’m trying to concentrate.
Personally I’m not a snacker, so I’m in the CON group. I’m much for 3 well balanced, larger meals a day. Although I think in the big picture it’s whatever works for you! If you’re better with 3 medium meals and 2 small snacks, or 5 mini meals… do your thing!
I’ll present the con side: I’m definitely anti-snacking! My kids don’t snack either. We do eat high protein, high fat meals with lots of veggies, so we just don’t get hungry between meals. We don’t eat sugar, grains or processed foods. Since we started eating this way, I don’t ever have the need to eat between meals. In fact, I usually skip lunch because I’m just not hungry.
I’m actually pretty glad it has worked out this way for us.
I bought into the crap about needing small meals all day to “keep the metabolism burning” for a couple years, and besides the fact that it was highly inconvenient to never be able to be away from food for more than three hours, I just didn’t feel that great. It is very freeing to be able to go hours, and even a whole day occasionally, without needing to eat and without feeling bad because I haven’t eaten. (Gotta love that stable blood sugar!)
I used to have hypoglycemia and needed snacks more often, now I can go for 8 hours or more without being hungry and without blood sugar dips. I used to get cranky, tired, or lightheaded if I didn’t eat… so glad to be past that now!
As you said, snacking has gotten more popular in the last couple decades, supposedly touted as a way to stabilize weight. Glad that’s worked out so well for the obesity trend… eh? I agree with a lot of the research about Leptin, and at least in my experience (I self-track blood sugar often just to see the effect different foods have on it), fasting has a better effect on blood glucose (fasting and after meals) and on Leptin (from what I can tell) than snacking.
Another problem I see with snacking, is that people often turn to unhealthy, processed, sugar filled foods for snacks. Of course you are going to get cranky and feel tired if you are used to getting a sugar shock from a granola bar every three hours. My personal suggestion would be to try high protein, high fat high veggie eating for at least three weeks, then cut out snacks and see how much better you feel. I’m never going back!
Very thought provoking comment! Especially this: ” It is very freeing to be able to go hours, and even a whole day occasionally, without needing to eat and without feeling bad because I haven’t eaten. (Gotta love that stable blood sugar!)”
I snack, and I love it. Take away my snacks and I would die. Well, actually I think some one else would die because I’d be so hungry I’d have to kill some one….or something. I just wrote a 2 part post about all the “secrets” that have worked for me. Everyone is different. Find what works for you and stick with it, until it stops working of course. Then find something else.
Total pro! I usually eat mini meals anyways, that are more like large snacks…I don’t like to go too long because of my low blood sugar, so spacing out my “mini meals” about every 3 or 4 hours helps me to not get sluggish, dizzy, etc. Plus, snacking is fun! And easy! It’s (for me) a lot easier to prepare the mini meals than a large dinner or lunch.
Well I, for one, won’t ever be eating again because of the question, “Which one is the scab and which one is the turkey jerky?” 😛
You’ll think of me next time you eat jerky, oh yes you will!
Is that the baby with a thing against rice cakes? Totally explains everything in this post.
Charlotte: Thanks to your recommendations, after reading Women Food and God, I’ve been working on Intuitive Eating. Therefore, I eat snacks if I’m truly hungry and stay away from them if I’m not. I’m finding that I truly feel better having three larger meals a day and no snacks. My sugar cravings are almost gone now, too, which is amazing. Overall, I’d say I see snacking as a con.
After I finish with your book (half way through and love it!), I will be reading more about Intuitive Eating. Exciting!
Oh yayayay! I’m so happy for you Heather! IE really is a miracle isn’t it? And thank you thank you for reading my book – that means a lot to me:)
The phrase “poison your body with food” is just so wrong on so many levels.
Other than that, I need snacks to thrive. It´s probably due to my low blood sugar level…
Heh – good point! The phrase “poison your body with food” is just so wrong on so many levels.”
I LOVE snacks! I’ve tried going without snacks, and it made me sad. Perhaps I need them more emotionally than I do physically. I’m just trying to focus on eating when I’m hungru and NOT eating when I’m not hungry.
Because having to think about food all the time makes me crazy.
I’m pro snacking. We don’t eat supper until around 7pm and I would eat my children if I didn’t have a snack in the afternoon. The babes get a snack too. Ninety percent of the time the snack is healthy. The other ten percent helps teach the babes about sometime foods. 🙂
I used to do the regimented six small meals a day thing and I felt great doing it, but it doesn’t fit into my life style right now. If I start to gain a few lbs the snacks go away until I figure what’s up, but honestly I’m a horrible person when hungry.
“and I would eat my children…’ Buwhahahah!
I have a love hate relationship with snacks. In theory I think they’re great (if you’re actually hungry of course) and on rare occasions when I have one when I’m hungry before dinner it makes me so much happier. Most of the time though I worry about it just being added calories since I figure I’ll eat the same amount at the next meal anyways. I think it would help my afternoon work sanity if I could get fully on the snack bandwagon.
This sounds like the way my parents and grandparents ate.
Worked pretty well for them!
Hey, I responded to your question before you asked it – how cool is this ? http://thorfalk.wordpress.com/2011/04/14/grazing-is-it-better-to-eat-3x-or-5x-per-day/
I would say (a) there is no general answer as it depends on the person, and (b) in the grand scheme of things it does not matter – most people should be able to get used to either mode of eating
It’s like you’re psychic! Off to read it now….
I have found that I do better physically and emotionally when I fall into a pattern. No matter if it involves snacks or not — just if I regulate my eating. My weight regulates when my eating does… and so do my moods.
I’ve done it both ways with snackish meals (after IOP) and with 2 (or 3) meals (during IOP) and the result was the same with regulation
I’m a big fan of eat when you’re hungry, stop eating when you’re no longer hungry (not when you’re full), and pay attention to what your body is asking for (unless you have some very specific goal with a specific cause — if you want to drop a lot of weight very quickly, dehydration plus a calorically restrictive ketogenic diet will do you well, though it will make you feel like crap).
I dropped almost 30 pounds (28.9, to be exact) in 12 weeks mainly by doing a lot of exercise (I work in a gym, so getting in a workout plus some pickup racquetball is easy for me) and eating what my body wanted (generally high-fat, high-protein, high-fruits and veggies, and lots of fermented foods like sauerkraut and yogurt).
This: ” stop eating when you’re no longer hungry (not when you’re full)” is a very interesting observation. I will need to think on this one more! And congrats on your weight loss! I heart the sauerkraut!
PRO snacking! I can’t stand eating giant heavy meals, so I naturally follow the advice to stop when I’m not hungry, rather than when I’m full (I don’t like the “full” feeling). The result of this, though, is that I’m generally hungry again in about three hours, after I’ve digested what I ate. So then I eat a little more. It works for me!
I eat a huge breakfast (600-650 calories), then snack on foods the rest of the day
I have to add my vote for the minority opinion–I’m pretty much “con” when it comes to snacking. I find the only time I want to snack is when I’ve crammed too much into my day and skipped lunch (sadly easy to do when I only have a half hour lunch break–hard to run an errand and have a proper lunch — e.g, not just a handful of nuts eaten surreptitiously under my desk cause I ran out of time), and for me mini-portions of anything is just so unsatisfying. I’d rather have two or three read meals and eat enough then not to get hungry in between. I some ways I find stopping what I’m doing to eat a bit of a nuisance. When my mom (who is a total grazer, as she puts in, she doesn’t eat a lot at once but she eats all the time) and I are out on all all day excursion, I’ll sometimes get impatient with her wanting to stop for (yet another) snack, like, “WHAT?? We just ate! How can you be hungry AGAIN?” Mostly we have a good time, though, despite the difference in snacking styles….
I’m pro snack but if I could rearrange my schedule I’d be all about the squares. I eat breakfast around 10am, lunch around 1pm, and dinner around 9pm. I work out around 6-7pm. If I don’t put something in the tank, I’ll fall over and die (ok, probably not literally, but I’ve forgotten to eat before the gym and gotten lightheaded and shaky – it’s NOT FUN – so I always keep some emergency food with me just in case now). Lately, my snack consists of carrots, hummus, and fruit or something similar.
In my perfect world, I’d work out between breakfast and lunch, eat lunch later, and eat dinner a wee bit earlier (getting rid of the need to work a full 8 hours at work, and having dinner magically appear for me when I get home!).
Most research I’ve seen says that what ultimately matters is the number of calories you consume in a day; it doesn’t really matter if you eat them all at once or spread them out or something in between. From this standpoint, the advantage of 3 meals a day is that it allows you to eat larger, more balanced meals that may give you more options and leave you more satiated. But it’s still just personal preference. I prefer a mixture of the two. When I’m in class all day (9:30-4:45), I’ll eat breakfast and then bring two or three snacks easy and portable snacks–usually a piece of fruit, a protein bar, and a bag of almonds. On the other hand, when I’m home for the day and have access to my kitchen I’m more likely to just eat 2 or 3 meals that are larger and more balanced. I definitely prefer to eat this way but when you’re on the go all the time you do what you gotta do!
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