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Group: Specific Diets & Nutrition

5-6 small meals a day

bheath0805 Posts: 6 Joined: 2005/07/14	2005/07/16, 11:06 AM I see in a lot of posts involving diets--you should eat 5-6 small meals a day. Can someone describe what a "small meal" consists of. I know a person's individual fitness goals are important when listing the things to eat, but i am more interested in the portion size. thanks, any responses would be appreciated.
bb1fit Posts: 11,105 Joined: 2001/06/30	2005/07/16, 11:44 AM I think the idea of "small meals" is a good solid one, but does not have to actually be meals. Much depends on needed calorie intake.....as I alluded to in my diet thread, a person that is eating 1200 calories per day for instance is going to find it hard to divide that up in 6 meals, a measly 200 calories per meal...this is very unrealistic. Set eating times can be important, in fact, very important. To keep the hypothalamus from percieving starvation with the accompanying metabolic slowdown, if you have a structured eating plan, that is even if you eat only 3-4 meals per day, the body will know this and adjust if you do it regularly. A simple snack in between if the time frame is too long will suffice, this can be a simple protein drink, a yogurt and an apple, etc. A solid healthy snack. The idea at the end of the day is in the end calories. If you overeat one day, it will not harm you, but exceed your calorie intake on a continuous basis, and it will show. -------------- If you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything.... bb1fit@freetrainers.com
Soldierbone Posts: 43 Joined: 2004/02/02	2005/07/22, 08:14 PM As a rule of thumb... I try to eat 4- 6 meals (depending on how busy we are) daily, with at least three food groups each meal. I also try to keep the amount I eat down to about the size of both my fists. It might not seem enough at first; but if you eat healthy foods, high in nutrients, you will get full. Right now I am only taking in about 1500 calories daily. It is working fine for me. Depending on what segment of my workout I am on... the caloric intake ranges from 1500 - 3000 calories daily. I find it harder to eat more this way, and it keeps my type 1 diabetes in check. Chris