Why would you want to learn how to eat five small meals a day to lose weight? Because eating more frequently can reduce your risk of obesity by decreasing the blood insulin response to long fasts. These fasts can increase fat storage and weight gain.
Grazing, or eating more often during the day, should be pre-planned to ensure you eat the right amount of calories and get the vitamins and minerals you need. Learning how to eat five small meals a day to lose weight will help you take the weight off – and keep it off.
While there’s no research to support that grazing improves weight loss more than structured eating, it might work for you if it helps you reduce the amount of calories you eat each day.
It’s important to plan grazing, or eating more often during the day, to ensure you eat the right amount of calories and get the vitamins and minerals you need.
Plan your meal times, locations and calories for grazing success.
Write down the times you will eat your five meals per day. Start with breakfast to avoid a long fast that starts the evening before. Include a mid-morning snack, lunch, mid-afternoon meal and dinner.
Divide the number of calories you want to eat during the day into your five meals and snacks. You will need to burn 500 calories more per day than you eat to lose one pound of weight per week.
You may not want to divide calories evenly if that means that none of your meals will feel satisfying. If you want to eat 2,000 calories during the day, consider having 500 calories for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and two, 250-calorie snacks. Include the calories in any medication or supplements you take into your calculations.
Create Grazing Menus
Create specific menus and snacks that provide you with the proper amount of carbohydrates, proteins and fat for good health. Use the United States Department of Agriculture MyPlate guide to eat the suggested number of servings of grains, fruits, vegetables and protein for a healthy diet.
Write down specific daily meal menus and snacks that provide you with the proper amount of carbohydrates, proteins and fat for good health. Include foods that provide vitamins and minerals you may especially need, such as iron, Omega 3 fatty acids, potassium or calcium.
Write down where you will eat each meal or snack during the day. If you will eat mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks at your work desk, put an energy bar, cup of yogurt or piece of fruit in your menu plan instead of a bowl of oatmeal or soup.
Eat When You’re Not Hungry
If it’s time for a meal or snack and you’re not hungry, don’t think you’ll lose more weight by skipping this nosh. You’ll only be hungrier later, and might be tempted to overeat.
