How Important is Breakfast?
Last week someone asked me how important is it to eat breakfast, pointing to a study that said those who ate breakfast weighed less and that eating breakfast within 30 minutes was critical for weight-loss.
Before I continue, let me preface that I do think it's important to eat, and eat well, which is why we lay out a breakfast, lunch and dinner schedule (plus snacks and desserts!) on the meal plans. Still, I'm not sure I buy into the notion that specific times are better (or worse) for everyone unanimously.
I've worked with enough clients over the years to have clear examples of people who eat after 7pm, or 9pm, or that skip breakfast, or lunch, etc. and yet they still lost weight or maintained a healthy weight.
For example, I had one client who, despite her best efforts, could not eat first thing in the morning without feeling queasy. We spent months trying different foods, at different times, but nothing worked. She couldn't do anything but sip tea for the first few hours she was up. Was her goal to lose weight hopeless? Absolutely not! She still lost 34lbs and she still doesn't eat breakfast. She has larger meals than most of us for lunch and dinner, but her total food for the day is comparable.
Here's the real problem with skipping meals (i.e. breakfast): Most people who skip a meal are so hungry by the time the next meal comes that they'll eat anything in sight, often picking the food that will come to them the quickest rather than picking whatever is healthiest. Skipping meals also makes it more likely that you will overeat. For example, every time I've missed a meal and found myself starving, I ordered way too much food, ate the food feverishly with abandon to quell the hunger pains, and then felt uncomfortably stuffed afterward. Happens every time.
It's not so much about the time, as the practice.
Same with midnight or late night snacking. It's usually not the time you're eating that's the problem -- it's what. Most people aren't getting up for celery sticks, they're getting up for cookies and ice cream. That's the problem, not the time of day.
Over the years I've found every body seems to have it's own food time preferences. For example, I can't eat first thing in the morning if I plan to exercise. I have to exercise on an empty stomach (or several hours after I've eaten) or I'll want to puke. My husband, meanwhile, has to eat as soon as he rolls out of bed, especially if he plans to exercise.
Remember, 98% of the time it's about the food you're choosing and whether you are setting yourself up for success or failure by skipping a meal or snacking.
Having a plan in place (and prepared healthy food) helps you make better choices and avoid these traps.