1 meal a day?

For the record, nobody is suggesting you eat one meal per day here. At least that's not what I'm doing. For anyone who follows my advice it's pretty much always to eat as many meals as you can comfortably fit into your day.

I'm simply playing devil's advocate to those who refuse to look at the facts and love to sling absolutes.
 
Great thread!

Steve,

I completely agree, you don't need to eat many meals a day to lose weight.

That being said, eating smaller meals throughout the day can help psychologically and also physically (by keeping hunger down, and blood sugar levels more stable.)

But you're right, the science does say that you can eat 1 meal a day, or 10, it does not matter as long as your energy (calories/macronutrients) are at the right level for you.

Here's a study that I usually cite when this argument comes up:



Here's a quote from the abstract:

Finally, with the exception of a single study, there is no evidence that weight loss on hypoenergetic regimens is altered by meal frequency. We conclude that any effects of meal pattern on the regulation of body weight are likely to be mediated through effects on the food intake side of the energy balance equation.
Click to expand...
 
Sean_Bissell said:
Great thread!

Steve,

I completely agree, you don't need to eat many meals a day to lose weight.

That being said, eating smaller meals throughout the day can help psychologically and also physically (by keeping hunger down, and blood sugar levels more stable.)
Click to expand...

Sometimes.

Not always.

I've come across plenty of people who feel less satiated on more frequent feedings. My point is there is no right or wrong.

Check out what people are doing with intermittent fasting.

But you're right, the science does say that you can eat 1 meal a day, or 10, it does not matter as long as your energy (calories/macronutrients) are at the right level for you.

Here's a study that I usually cite when this argument comes up:



Here's a quote from the abstract:
Click to expand...

I've shown a bunch of studies on this forum about this, just do a search.
 
Steve,

I agree, when it really comes down to it, it's personal preference.

And that's good news, because, as you stated, you can eat 1 meal, or 10 a day.

You do need to make sure to keep your energy correct though.

And I'm sure you've given out lots of great advice here on this forum, I was just contributing my 2cents on the study above.

Happy Wednesday!
-Sean
 
I weighed apporx. 22 stone, and I began the one meal a day diet about 2 weeks ago. I do not eat in the day and have a few drinks. I also don't have a 2000 calorie meal in the evening, as some people suggest happens. I have a normal meal. I do not know exactly how much weight i have lost, as i do not like weighing myself and have found that not many scales go up to my weight. But, I know that I have lost weight because i can see/feel it, and my clothes are looser. I also feel great on this diet, have lots of energy, something which is good as I have recently started a high energy job. I have also done the atkins diet, which worked but made me feel like crap. It is incredibly hard work, and takes a lot of discipline. I started it because i was desperate to lose weight and felt it was the way that would make me feel like i was doing something. I don't know if it will work long term, but i am hoping to go to slimmers world soon so that i can assess the impact better and decide when/if i need to move on to the more frequent small meals, or another diet.
i'd be interested to know what you think.
 
So....

You're starving yourself.

Why wouldn't that work, assuming you define "work" as the act of losing weight.
 
Well, i'm not starving myself, because i eat a decent meal in the evenings. And as for it not 'working', the vast majority of posts on this thread have been from people saying that it doesn't work etc. And of course a weight loss diet works if you are losing weight, how else would such a diet be judged to be working?
 
Zwib said:
imo, that's not a good idea. I think it is much better to eat more smaller meals throughout the day.
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Yes you are right, that is the way i achieved my goal, i have wrote my story in obesity forum, if you wish you can view it here. :hurray:
 
blue ed said:
Well, i'm not starving myself, because i eat a decent meal in the evenings. And as for it not 'working', the vast majority of posts on this thread have been from people saying that it doesn't work etc. And of course a weight loss diet works if you are losing weight, how else would such a diet be judged to be working?
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Haha, how else.

Let's see.

Health. Muscle maintenance.

Should I go on?

You know, the things that actually matter at the end of the day.

No, you're diet isn't working by my standards or metrics unless you have that once meal fantastically dialed in and even then it's most likely suboptimal.
 
I'd be interested to hear if you have any ideas Steve, as you sound like you know a bit about this. Honestly, i don't know what the effects/benefits are, i'm just desperate to lose weight and i can't afford the gym at the moment, so i thought this might be a good idea. It certainly gives me the sense that I am doing something proactive. As i mentioned earlier, i feel great at the moment, and I certainly feel better than before i only ate one meal a day. I don't think that I have lost any muscle mass at the moment, but I will definitely keep an eye on it. And once i can afford the gym I will begin to do work weights work.
I would really appreciate any constructive advice.
 
What are your stats?

How are you measuring the loss or maintenance of muscle mass?
 
I dont think eating one meal a day is a good idea.
I used to do that, a lot, and eventually you get really hungry.
I also had gotten very tired and weak after awhile. [everyones different, I don't know your body system]

Not eating can be bad.
And over eating can be bad.

Eating even two/three times a day with good foods and portions will do more than one meal a day, but that's my opinion.

Couple it with walking or jogging even outside, anything you can do on your own without the use of a gym will be a great help as well.

Just don't starve yourself.
 
This is a terrible thing you can do to yourself. It will create acidity in your body, which later in life is an important cause for many health problems. You should eat at least three meals in a day, let them be small meals, but you must eat at intervals. Doing this along with regular cardio exercise will help you to lose weight.
 
don't ever starve yourself! Learn to eat right, eat healthily and eat more meals a day. When you don't eat, your body goes into this survival mode and it will keep every ounce of fats and keep piling them on cos' it thinks that there isn't enough food.

plus, by eating one meal a day, you will end up slowing down your metabolism. this will result in putting on weight fast and losing weight slow!
 
I know this is an old post but I just had to reply.

So I am a 14 year old girl and I've been on a mixture of this and another diet for a two weeks to test the theories. before beginning the I weighed 12.5. I started the diet at school by not eating breakfast or lunch, then coming home to eat a meal of controlled portions. The second half of the diet was to not eat any flour and sugar and to drink a bottle of water every hour. Two weeks later I weigh 10.11 I am severely pleased with the results and due to the new routine my stomach has stopped growling at random points in the day and is very effective.

I will certainly be keeping this up.
 
I'm still going with this and still loosing weight by the day. it's fab i feel great too. although i can't help but wonder how long until my body starts storing the fat. how long do you reckon? x
 
I don't think it is a good idea. combination of low fat diet and exercise would be much better way to lose weight.
 
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