Contents
In this article you will learn, among others:
- How many meals do you need to eat per day?
- Are three meals a day enough?
- How many meals should you eat to lose weight?
- Is eating three meals healthy?
How many meals do you need to eat per day?
What is science saying about the effects of eating frequency on our figure and health? I warn you in advance: neither five nor three meals are part of the general recommendation.
If you want to lose weight or stay in shape, eat 5-6 meals a day. And remember – every 3 hours, preferably with a watch in hand! Otherwise, your metabolism will slow down and you will start to put on fat!
Are three meals a day enough?
You may not be able to convince your mind and believe this myth, but your body is such a clever machine that it will not allow itself to do such numbers. The theory of 5 or more meals is more or less that a larger number, but smaller portions of meals will allow you to feel full almost all the time.
It is true that eating a meal increases your metabolic rate in some way – a phenomenon known as the thermal effect of food. However, it is the total amount of food consumed during the day that determines how much energy your body will use for digestion. In other words, if we eat three meals of 800 kcal or four meals of 600 kcal or six dishes of 400 kcal – for the processes related to the processing of this food, the body will still need the same amount of energy! Research confirms that the frequency of meals does not increase the daily energy requirement or the basic metabolism. It also does not improve body composition, i.e. the percentage of adipose tissue or the share of muscle tissue in the body.
How many meals should you eat to lose weight?
The case is slightly different in the case of people on a reducing diet, i.e. slimming.
Here, it is not the frequency of meals that is important, but the proper supply of protein. If your daily protein requirements are covered by eating five meals, that’s fine. And if the requirement of these several dozen (or more) grams of protein is spread over only three meals, but the daily amount is still adequate – that’s also great. On the other hand, reduction diets are characterized by the fact that when we are on them, the level of the ghrelin hormone increases, which is responsible for the feeling of hunger. It has been proven (and it seems quite obvious) that in a reduction diet, more frequent meals work better than spreading the food ration into fewer dishes during the day. The right amount of protein is designed to increase the feeling of fullness after these few, but not too large meals, and on the other hand, prevents the loss of lean body mass, i.e. muscles. At the same time, however, it should be noted that spreading your meals over five or more will not increase fat loss. It is true that postprandial thermogenesis is slightly increased in such a situation, but it does not significantly affect the weight loss process.
More than three meals will also work for physically active people, especially those training more than once a day. By adding snacks to the main meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner), it’s easier for these people to synchronize their food with their training. As a result, we introduce ourselves the opportunity to eat before physical activity and provide nutrients after it, when the body particularly needs regeneration from the nutritional side.
Is eating three meals healthy?
Interestingly, studies show that eating more than three meals a day has a beneficial effect on health markers tested in the blood. It has been shown that eating more meals is associated with an improvement in LDL cholesterol and overall cholesterol, as well as blood insulin levels. Frequent eating also improves glucose tolerance, which researchers associate with smaller fluctuations in the value of this marker. In other words, when we eat less often, our blood glucose value drops significantly over the long periods between meals. So when we increase the frequency of eating, we keep glucose levels more constant.
Summarizing what I described above:
- Increasing the frequency of meals does not have a positive effect on the change in body composition in people characterized by a sedentary lifestyle.
- If the protein intake meets the requirements for this nutrient, increasing the frequency of meals during periods of weight loss can preserve lean body mass, especially in athletes.
- Increased meal frequency appears to have a positive effect on various blood markers, in particular LDL cholesterol, total cholesterol and insulin levels.
- Increased meal frequency does not appear to significantly increase diet-induced thermogenesis, total energy expenditure, or resting metabolic rate.
- Increasing the frequency of meals helps reduce hunger and improves appetite control.
And how many meals do you eat daily? How many meals a day bring you the best weight loss results?
Bibliography:
La Bounty PM et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: meal frequency. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2011; 8(4)
Bellisse F. et al. Meal frequency and Energy balance. British Journal of Nutrition. 1997; 77: 57-70
Jameason D. et al. Increased meal frequency does not promote greater weight loss in subjects who were prescribed an 8-week equi-energetic energy-restricted diet.
Garrow JS. Et al. The effect of meal frequency and protein concentration on the composition of the weight lost by obese subjects. Br J Nutr. 1981; 45(1): 5-15
Photos:
Picture 1 https://www.pexels.com/photo/five-white-plates-with-different-kinds-of-dishes-54455/
Zdjęcie 2 Photo by Kaboompics // Karolina from Pexelshttps://www.pexels.com/photo/leek-and-potato-soup-5794/
Photo 3 Photo by Flo Dahm from Pexels https://www.pexels.com/photo/alcoholic-beverages-close-up-cuisine-cutlery-541216/