Training & Nutrition - largest meal of the day: breakfast?

I'm pretty sure that dinner should not be the largest meal of the day, despite all of the restaurant advertising. I try to make that my lightest meal since I'm off to bed a few hours later. However, what do you think about breakfast, as opposed to lunch, being the largest meal of the day? I'm talking about steak and other "heavy" foods for breakfast. I work out in the late afternoon when I get home from work and don't want a full stomach when I'm exercising.

I've heard the saying "eat breakfast like a king, eat lunch like a prince, and eat dinner like a pauper." For what it's worth....

i get most kcals at breakfast works for me i trian about 3 hours later

According to some articles that appear periodically, they advised 25% of the daily calories in the morning, 50% at lunch and 25% for dinner. It's been claimed for years that dinner should never be the largest meal. The criteria was for the best energy level through out the day.

I tend to eat 5 times a day and lightly in the evening. Biggest meal is lunch. Keeps me more energetic and not hungry.

I tend to ride through normal lunch hour, so some times lunch comes a little late.

Al

I believe wholeheartedly that it doesn't matter when you eat the calories. They'll do the same thing regardless.

I believe wholeheartedly that it doesn't matter when you eat the calories. They'll do the same thing regardless.


you would be correct. for the most part it is about the number calories and not the timing of the calorie intake. meaning you can eat at 9pm if you are within a reasonable daily limit. just because one doesnt eat food past, say 7pm, doesnt make it ok to consume some 6000 calories before that. all things being equal. later.

I believe wholeheartedly that it doesn't matter when you eat the calories. They'll do the same thing regardless.

take two people. one person eats 3 times a day. the other person eats the exact same food but divides it up into smaller meals 5 times a day. studies show that the person eating smaller more frequent meals will lose more weight. same food, same calories, different results.

I believe wholeheartedly that it doesn't matter when you eat the calories. They'll do the same thing regardless.

It does matter for maintaining high energy level all day if you live a reasonably active life style. I personally don't sleep as well if I get too large a proportion at the evening meal.

Dogs now, they can get buy on one large meal.

Al

take two people. one person eats 3 times a day. the other person eats the exact same food but divides it up into smaller meals 5 times a day. studies show that the person eating smaller more frequent meals will lose more weight. same food, same calories, different results.

... IIRC this is because eating small meals more often increases your metabolic rate. Eating small amounts more frequently is supposed to make you feel less hungry and more energetic.

I know that if I eat something small every hour I don't get hungry at all. Whereas if I just eat a big breakfast and then don't eat anything until lunchtime, I am so hungry by lunchtime that I have to pig out on a massive plate of something fried.

If you eat small meals frequently, you won't feel as hungry as you would if you ate large meals infrequently, so you're less likely to binge on large amounts of food. Therefore you are more likely to lose weight.

It takes longer to digest a large meal than a small one. During digestion you have increased blood flow to your digestive system. Therefore decreased blood flow to the brain and muscles. So if you eat large meals, you're going to feel more tired, for longer.

So the moral of the story is, eat before you feel hungry, and eat less stuff, more often

In spending and cycling significant lengths of time in Italia, I concur with the benefits of lower numbers of consumed calories at dinnertime. A typical Italian breakfast leaves much to be desired. A good cappucino the exception.

Here in the States with the availability of large AM and lunch menus I would have to agree with consuming a larger number of calories coinciding with the number of hours remaining in the day (also considering the days activities).

More day = More food, and vice/versa.


http://www.bicitreregioni.com

take two people. one person eats 3 times a day. the other person eats the exact same food but divides it up into smaller meals 5 times a day. studies show that the person eating smaller more frequent meals will lose more weight. same food, same calories, different results.
Someone has to ask, but, do you have links to the studies or at least some abstracts?

A typical Italian breakfast leaves much to be desired. A good cappucino the exception.


In Italy is it a large breakfast or small?

largest meal of the day: breakfast?Thinking about eating in terms of whether or not some meal is the largest meal of the day demonstrates a warped perspective toward nutrition.

There's little use in discussing "meal sizing" with respect to overall nutrition. Normal healthy attitudes toward food and nutrition simply do not frame opportunities to eat by "meal size."

Human nutrition is a dynamic process. Meal selections should be a result of a host of many other factors, which "size" the meal should be doesn't correlate to a given time of day. Get help.

+1 on the small more frequent consumption - direct from the nutrition specialist helping me with my recovery!

Interestingly enough I recently read about the importance of a light "bedtime" snack to fuel the early morning rebuilding that goes on while you sleep. I am trying it with some weight loss and increased power on my rides. All anecdotal though.


I tend to eat 5 times a day and lightly in the evening. Biggest meal is lunch. Keeps me more energetic and not hungry.Al

Someone has to ask, but, do you have links to the studies or at least some abstracts?
do you really need links, this has been known for as long as i can remember...

i have a 20 min commute - its about 8.5 miles prob is gettign breakfast at work is hard but so is riding fast having eaten, any suggestions i would eat no breakfast but then i'll be starving by lunch and i reckon my afternoon ride will be crap.

i have a 20 min commute - its about 8.5 miles prob is gettign breakfast at work is hard but so is riding fast having eaten, any suggestions i would eat no breakfast but then i'll be starving by lunch and i reckon my afternoon ride will be crap.

So you are saying you are averaging 25.5 mph on your commute?
Have a post recovery drink. Maybe bring some chocolate milk along or have a ciff bar?

Eating a massive breakfast can throw your metabolism off balance. Inducing major spikes in blood sugar levels is unhealthy. It's like priming a gas engine: you need some to get it going, but if you flood the chamber, then you do more harm than good.

What I do is eat light throughout the day, tapering off as sleeptime approaches. Also I read about a study where men's postprandial (after the meal) blood sugars remained at high levels for prolonged periods if they didn't get enough sleep.