Friday, February 1, 2013

Food for Thought: Eat Your Biggest Meal Early in the Day

As I was listening to the radio on the way to work, I heard a new study came out stating that To Maximize Weight Loss, Eat Early in the Day, Not Late (from NPR).  The study was small, only 420 people, who saw more weight loss (exercise and sleep held fairly constant) than those who ate a majority of their calories later in the day.  The article does discuss the opposite point of view--that weight loss is much more complicated than that, and the only sure way to loose weight is to restrict calorie intake and exercise. 

Some scientists are testing this on animals and are seeing that the timing of eating has an influence on metabolism; they are saying that this influence can be translated to humans.  I think this experiment/study needs to be done on a much larger scale to prove anything conclusive.

This got me thinking--we've heard sooooo many weightloss tips, it's hard to know what actually works.  However, I do think that this idea does have merit--the body has longer to digest big breakfast than it would big dinner.  It makes sense.  Personally, I eat the majority of my calories by 3 PM; after that I usually have a Greek yogurt then dinner which is, typically, lighter than my lunch. 

What do you think?  Do you eat a majority of your calories before 3 PM?Pin It

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