The Best Eating Schedule for Losing Weight
What if I told you that there’s an eating schedule that, above all else, will insure that you not only eat at the right times, but in the right amounts?
It’s a cool, sunny day here on Long Island, and after a late morning-early afternoon juggling of a few clients, I’m heading up to Westchester for my buddy’s housewarming party. He just moved in with his girlfriend, so happy times abound!
Now then, back to eating schedules and whatnot…
We’ve been taught from inception that we must eat on a regimented schedule: We must eat breakfast within an hour of waking, then have a mid-morning snack, followed by lunch, then a mid-afternoon snack, and finally, dinner. We must eat and graze every few hours in order to keep our metabolisms revving and to stimulate fat loss.
While this may be true for competitive bodybuilders and Olympic endurance athletes, this really isn’t true for the vast majority of the population…
For most of us, let’s be honest: We’re pretty damn sedentary! Most folks have some form of desk job that they spend at least eight hours a day at. Throw in your commute, then needing to decompress on the couch at home after work, and yeah — LOTS of sitting!
Since we’re not moving very frequently during the week, we’re not expending much energy. If we’re not expending energy, then why do we need to force feed ourselves on this archaic schedule that was originally meant for enlisted military folk who actually are on their feet and moving around all day?
If you haven’t picked up on it to this point, then I’ll spell it out for ya: Grazing and/or eating every few hours is NOT the way to lose weight! While I’m not a proponent of counting calories or points, or of watching your portions, either, I am a proponent of not stuffing your face…
How do I know when to eat? Simple! I LISTEN to my body…
Usually, I’ll eat a large breakfast within an hour of waking because I’m HUNGRY. Then, I won’t eat for 7–8 hours, before I may indulge in an afternoon snack — Again, I won’t eat within that time frame because I’m NOT hungry. Sometimes, I’m not hungry at ‘snack time,’ either, so the snack sometimes doesn’t happen. Then, in the evening, normally at 7 or 8 PM, I’ll eat another large meal because I’m hungry, and I’ll be in bed between 10 and 11 PM.
My natural eating schedule may differ drastically from your’s, and that’s OK! Good nutrition can be summed up in two sentences, and notice that these two sentences don’t have a time stamp on them: “Eat meats, vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no (added) sugar. Eat ONLY when hungry, and just to satisfy — NOT to stuff your face.”
So, if you’re not hungry for breakfast, don’t eat breakfast! If you don’t want lunch, then don’t eat it! Get it?
And FYI, contrary to what most conventional doctors or nutritionists will tell you, relying on your body to let you know when you’re hungry is NOT unhealthy! Our ancestors got by on this model (and even endured days of hunger during periods of drought, famine or starvation) for thousands of years, and being that the human race hasn’t evolved from a dietary needs perspective within that short amount of evolutionary time, you’ll be fine ;-)
Enjoy your weekend!
Sincerely,
Pete Weintraub
pete@weightlossbypete.com
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