question about calories

[cparker4]

I've heard many different things about the way to eat, and when you're supposed to eat. Like how breakfast is the most important meal and you should never skip it, or never eat past 7.

I've also heard calories are calories, no matter when you eat them. It just matters how much you consume in a full day.

Well my question is this, should I eat breakfast if I'm not hungry?
I'm usually never hungry until 3 to 4 hours after I wake up but I'm not sure if I should just eat anyway, because I've also heard to only eat when you are truly hungry.

 

[KaraCooks]

Breakfast is one of the few meals that you SHOULD eat, yes.

In general the two biggest things you need to be concerned about are:
1 - calories in vs. calories out
2 - the quality of the calories you eat (getting proper nutrients)

The whole eat 6 times a day thing to raise metabolism is a myth. The whole don't eat after a certain time of day is also a myth. Both of those things are designed to help prevent binging and/or late night snacking - which is an indirect way of controlling calories. But neither of them has an effect on your metabolism.

However, there are two times that you SHOULD eat ... and you should consume certain things.

Breakfast is one. Our bodies are designed to fast overnight while we sleep and to break that fast upon waking (hence: breakfast). When you eat within 30 mins to an hour after waking, you are kicking your metabolism awake as well. Scientific studies have shown that people who eat a healthy breakfast generally have a steadier metabolism throughout the day than those who don't eat breakfast. It doesn't have to be a big meal - but some kind of protein and some kind of healthy carb is a must. Eggs and toast. Peanut butter and an english muffin. Oats and fruit. Anything like that.

After you work out is the second time you should be consuming something. After a workout and especially after lifting weights or doing body resistance work, you should consume protein and complex carbs in order to aid in the recovery of your muscles and nervous system. Making sure that you get in a good amount of protein will make recovery faster.

 

[Girl Squirrel]

I live by the rules you just mentioned above, always eat breakfast & dont eat past 7pm (i actually dont even eat past 5:30pm most the time). I was not a breakfast eater at all, i am just like u, i wake up and im not hungry until almost lunch time. I knew i had to change that if i wanted to help out my metabolism 7 weight loss. What i do in the morning is protein shakes or smoothies, so its not really like eating breakfast but im still putting something with calories and nutrients into my body to start off the day. Even buying the pre-made Slim Fast shakes or Ensure shakes have worked for me. In the yogurt section u can buy the bottles of fruit yogurt smoothies which are delicious! I have found that once u get into the habit of having something for breakfast the body gets used to it and when u skip, u actually will feel hungry. Now i have bought the Quaker Oats Muffin bars instead of the smoothies & shakes...seems like my body in the morning wants a little more than a liquid now lol! The shakes & Smoothies have a decent amount of calories to start the day & good daily values of protein, fiber etc. Its a good start to get used to eating breakfast. Give it a try, it worked for me!

 

[Saber]

Hi there,

First of all calories are of course calories but it does matter when you eat them. I would always recommend when you are trying to lose weight that your breakfast should be your biggest meal of the day, the reason is simply that your body will have all day to burn those calories and you will be speeding up the process by doing your daily activities. I'm actually similar to you in that I don't get hungry until I've been up for a couple of hours, but its fine to just have a small bowl of cereal or some fruit just to get your metabolism working.

And then when you are hungry 2-3 hours later try to make that quite a big portion. But you will only eat as much as you want to without bloating yourself. The what time should I eat thing is quite a tricky question and to be honest in my opinion as long as you eat your meal 3 hours before you go to sleep then that should be fine.

Hope that helps!