Does the number of times we eat a day influence weight loss? No. So the experts say. At the time of lose weight, the question arises as to how many foods must be performed for best results. And the answer is simpler than it seems, since there is no ideal number of meals valid for everyone.
“The key is that the feeding that you continue throughout the day to be of quality and adapted to your needs and objectives, always accompanied by a healthy lifestyle ”. This is explained by Ana Sánchez Morillas, Dietitian-Nutritionist of Paso de Dietas.
In recent decades, it was thought that eating five meals a day accelerated metabolism, since eating every 3 or 4 hours kept blood sugar levels stable and thus avoided possible hypoglycemia. But this theory has lost steam in recent years, since there is no scientific evidence to support that this guideline serves to control hunger and fat loss.
According to the creator of Paso de Dietas, “sometimes, making a greater number of intakes per day is a good strategy for those with a very active metabolism, athletes, or even for those who suffer from stress or anxiety, with the intention from arriving at the next meal with less appetite and getting a better choice of food. For this reason, it is necessary to personalize the nutrition guideline, the number of meals that suit each person and of course, choose healthy options at all times.
It doesn’t matter so much how many times a day you eat
Eating three meals a day, breakfast, lunch and dinner, for many people is more than enough, since each person has their own energy and nutritional requirements. In reality, it does not matter so much how many times a day is eaten, but the quality and quantity of what is eaten.
In consultation, a very common question, says Sánchez Morillas, is whether breakfast is mandatory. “There are people who just get up need to fill the energy stores and others, on the other hand, who spend a few hours to be able to eat some food. And either of the two options is valid. Delaying breakfast is no problem, it’s just one more meal. The important thing is to have a healthy and adequate breakfast, regardless of the time it is done ”.
Circardian rhythms
It is known that the timing and composition of food is the great synchronizer of our rhythms, and also that the alteration of circadian rhythms favors diabetes and obesity.
Maintaining regular schedules and controlling the hours in which we eat meals can help us lose fat, since it intervenes in circadian regulation. That is, the light and dark cycles that naturally control our biological clock, and the activation or deactivation of our light-dependent hormones, which will determine the best time for us to eat or fast.
In the daylight hours the metabolism speeds up and it is convenient to consume most of the calories consumed in the total day, and in the dark hours the metabolism slows down, it is a good time to stop eating and start fasting until the next day.
The current trend is not to guide a specific number of meals a day. To be successful in losing weight, it is essential that the person adhere to their eating plan so that it is easier for them to carry it out. It is not so much the number of meals that are eaten, but the total daily calorie balance and the quality of the food consumed.
