We have a saying where I come from "Breakfast like a King, Lunch like a Prince and Dine like a Pauper". Which translates to "eat a large breakfast, a good lunch and a small dinner".
Skipping meals does NOT promote weight loss and studies have shown people who eat breakfast are more likely to maintain a healthy weight. Children who eat breakfast have been shown to do better at school as their bodies and brains have energy readily available.
After hours without food our body needs to re-fuel and eating breakfast will in fact help get your metabolism going for the day. Missing breakfast will make your body think it's being starved. It will conserve it's energy stores by making you feel tired in order to get you to slow down therefore burn less calories.
Make sure your lunch is satisfying and don't just 'grab a quick bite to eat'. We are most active during the day and we need to give our bodies a regular supply of energy. Include a healthy mid-morning snack such as fruit, nuts, yogurt then a satisfying lunch followed by a mid-afternoon snack. Many people feel they are too busy to make time for lunch then suffer from that dreaded mid-afternoon energy slump.
Make sure you are eating enough to keep your productivity up and your hunger down! Plan ahead and take lunch with you so you don't have to waste time going out to eat if time is short.
We are generally less active in the evening so don't need a big meal at dinner. However, this tends to be when many people have their largest intake of food. Think about the portion size of this meal - can you reduce it? Do you
really need to eat dessert after it? Could you bake or grill instead of frying to cut the calories?
It
is a lifestyle change and takes thought and planning but using the King, Prince and Pauper scenario will remind you of how much food your body actually needs at each mealtime.
