Our ancestors worked hard manually and used to eat three ‘square’ hearty meals each day to fuel this physical labour. They could easily burn off thousands of calories when working in the fields, farming and other manual ‘work’. Women also worked hard doing housework cooking and washing without modern appliances.
Now-a-days we can get through the day without virtually ‘moving a muscle’ when pushing a pen or controlling a computer mouse and rarely get to exert ourselves physically. As many as 70 per cent of the modern workforce are involved in this type of non-intensive labour, therefore we have no need to eat big meals to fuel our activities.
The best way to fuel our body in today’s more sedentary world is to split and multiply our meals and snacks so we are eating more often during the day. This is the most efficient way to keep our metabolism (our body’s engine) stoked and our energy levels high. Big meals tend to weigh us down and end up expanding our waistline.
If you are concerned about your weight you probably know the importance of keeping an eye on the number of total calories you are eating, but you may not know that how many calories you eat at each meal or snack can make a big difference to your weight loss efforts too.
Small meals for the fastest fat loss
It’s no secret that eating 4-6 small meals per day is a much better weight loss strategy than the traditional ‘three squares’ a day which for many people tends to turn into two big meals each day as many skip breakfast.
Skipping meals may seem like a good idea to cut calories so you lose weight yet it is one of the worst things you can do and works against fat loss as missing meals and/or snacks can cause blood sugar levels to decrease. This sets us up for a binge as the body attempts to correct the dip in blood sugar.
There is plenty of evidence that people who make a habit of skipping breakfast and eat fewer but larger meals during the day tend to weigh more than people who each multiple small meals every 2-3 hours. One of the reasons why this strategy works so well is that not only does it boost metabolism (your body’s engine), keeps blood sugar levels stable, and also keeps you feeling full and satisfied.
One of the biggest diet busters is that skipping meals is likely to cause you to overeat somewhere during the day which is not going to help you lose weight. It will also cause you experience fatigue, slow the metabolic rate (the rate your body burns fuel) and increase food cravings.All of these things contribute to a greater food intake that can cause further weight gain.
Switch from two or three large meals to four to six small meals each containing around 300-400 calories is best for losing excess body fat. Each of these small meals should be balanced in the macro-nutrients (protein, carbohydrate and fats) for weight loss success. This means the center piece of each meal is a protein source (around 20-25 grams) and the balance of the meals vegetables.
Your small meals need to be healthy
If you are serious about losing weight then your small meals are going to work so much better with non-processed foods. Yes, this does mean having to get back into the kitchen and cook natural whole foods from scratch, but the chemicals in processed foods (stuff that comes in a box, package, tin or out of the freezer) are most likely to be what have contributed to you becoming overweight so ditching them is the very first thing you should do.
At first it does seem quite a lot of work to plan and prepare ahead these small meals but you will find that after the few weeks you will look forward to them and will feel so good with tons of energy so you can be more active. Soon your small meals will become a new habit and will replace the old eating ‘whatever, whenever’ scenario that got and kept you overweight. You will not want to ever go back there again as your new slim trim body starts to reveal itself.
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