Part of a fitness plan is incorporating a healthy diet which includes fruits and vegetables. We know that cutting out sugars and fat should also be part of our eating plan but there is some confusion as to how much to eat and when.
Some people stick by the three meals a day plan. I don’t know about you but that doesn’t work for me.
First of all, three meals a day might mean eating around 8 a.m., 12 p.m. and then not again until 6 p.m. If you think about it, that’s a lot of time in between to not eat. You are more likely to get hungry and in turn, more likely to eat something unhealthy or to overeat when you are eating just three meals a day.
Instead it’s better to eat several smaller meals. Your biggest meal should be your dinner but even then, it doesn’t mean overeating.
There are a few good reasons for this type of eating plan. First of all, your blood sugar levels will get confused when you are going six hours in between meals. It tends to fluctuate more when you do this and that can result in you feeling less sluggish at different points in the day. Also, during those moments when your blood sugar takes a dive it will store the food you did eat as fat.
What I enjoy about eating several smaller meals is that I feel like I get more variety in my diet. As an example, I may eat a banana and a cup of Special K around 8 a.m. Then at around 10:30 a.m. I will have a yogurt or a piece of fruit. At 12:30 p.m. I will eat a tuna sandwich and some carrot sticks. Around 3:00 p.m. I eat a handful of nuts. Then at 6 p.m. I eat dinner.
This is just an example of times and the variety of foods that I eat. It has worked well for me and prevents me from fighting hunger pains in between meals.
What eating plan do you follow that has worked well for you?
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