Galahad's

     I would not doubt if some of you read the title of this link and jumped to it first, just to see what this whack-job author meant by it. It may sound pleasant, but this is the one of the hardest parts.

 

     As I got older and busier, I grew to have this terrible feeling and developed a nasty habit out of it. I would only eat when I was hungry, which wasn’t very often, or I would feel nauseous. That led to about one meal a day where I would gorge. Sometimes, there would be unhealthy snacks thrown into the mix that day, as well. It took about two weeks of eating to a better schedule to train my body to eat. I had to eat more frequently to lose weight, and yes, that did mean eating more food, too.

 

     Whether you only eat once a day, or if you are one of those people who eat all of the time, a healthy body needs you to do a better job of fueling it. You want to maintain your metabolism throughout the day and keep those insulin spikes and drops from happening.

 

     Eat at least your three meals a day. Only three meals you say? To be honest, a lot of us do not eat three meals a day, be it a lot more or less than three, we’re not hitting that number.

 

     Want some more? Once we start getting a little physical, and I do mean just a little, we’re going to add more to that. Three meals is just the minimum requirement for a day.

 

     We’re going to build up to eating four or five times a day, especially if you choose to start working out.

 

     Your three meals a day should be just that, meals. They will be your breakfast, lunch and dinner. Times may vary, but there are some rules that you should follow.

 

     Breakfast should be eaten within your first hour of being awake. The sooner you get some fuel in you, the quicker your metabolism speeds up and the more awake and energized you become.

 

     People are busy and specific times to eat cannot always be met. That is fine, but eating late does not bode well for losing pounds. When we sleep, our metabolic rate drops drastically and, although we are burning calories and food is being digested, those processes slow dramatically. Plus, aside from holidays where lots of turkey is eaten, who really feels like sleeping right after a decent meal? With that said, dinner should not be consumed any later than 7pm.

 

     So, now you are eating your three meals a day. It’s nothing you haven’t heard before, but have you actually done it on a regular basis? Where is the fun eating more part? That comes once you’ve got the three meals down. If you’re one of those who eat all of the time, you can cut to eating your three and the next part, snacking.

 

     On top of your three meals a day, minimum, you should also snack a bit, adding one or two snacks into your eating schedule. Snacks should be lighter, healthy alternatives from the junky chips and buttery popcorn of your past. The snacks may be spread between your meals, but if you choose to munch a little after 7pm, make sure it is light and no later than 9pm.

 

     I am not a calorie counter. I am cautious and aware of the calories that a food contains, but I don’t do all of the math and make sure that I eat X-amount of calories. I have learned the better foods for the body and try to stick to them, just ballparking. Even when partaking in a little indulgence, I am still aware. I will help with that later on.

 

     For those who do count calories, the breakdown of all you should eat for your meals and snacks is simple to write for you. Your meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) should consist of 200-500 calories each. Your snacks should be 80-300 calories. Of course, the more calories you eat in a meal, the fewer calories allowed for your snacks. If you eat a snack after 7pm, it should be no more than 80-150 calories. Even if you are restricting your caloric intake, you should still eat just as many times as described.

 

     Make sure you are eating protein with every meal and getting in at least 3 good servings or more of fruits and vegetables a day. Fruits and veggies are great to snack on, as are nuts, like almonds.