Eating 6-8 Small meals a day

Jimz

Jimz

Jimz

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Hi all,

As you know eating between 6-8 meals a day is the best way to go in terms of body building and weight loss.

However i cant seem to imagine what to eat for those small meals?

I'm used to having the set 3 meals a day.

Breakfast- Porridge(Oats) and Whey Shake

Lunch-Sandwich and fruit

Dinner-Chicken/Steak with rice

Another Whey shake few hours later


Now i cant get into my head how i can split that up into 6-8 meals in the day, I dont know how much i have to eat in those 6-8 meals etc.

Is there anyone out there who could take some pics of something of there 6 meals a day just so i can get some kind of idea how much you are eating.
 
I think most people would consider a protien shake as a "meal".
You could split your breakfast into porridge in the morning and the protien shake mid-morning then maybe have a snack mid-afternoon and a slightly smaller dinner so that you're eating something every 2-3 hours.
 
My eating habit, not advise just information:
Wake up 06:30
07:00 protein shake
Make my way to work
08:00+ wheat-bix and a fruit
11:00 1st lunch (small portion)
13:00 2nd lunch (small portion)
15:00 fruit
16:15 3rd lunch (small portion) (I leave at 16:30)
gym 17:30
protein shake when finished
dinner (no carbs) when get home

I make lunch every evening with lots of veggies 1 1/2 chicken breast (or equivalent of meat) and brown rice (boring I know but I make my dinners interesting).

That’s how I break up my meals in the day :)
 
Jimz said:
Hi all,

As you know eating between 6-8 meals a day is the best way to go in terms of body building and weight loss.
Click to expand...
This is incorrect. Read www.leangains.com

However, you will probably have to eat significantly more in order to put on weight, so if that means you eat 4/whatever meals then fine.

What is your weight and height? Any idea of how many calories your eating currently?
 
icecold said:
This is incorrect. Read www.leangains.com

However, you will probably have to eat significantly more in order to put on weight, so if that means you eat 4/whatever meals then fine.

What is your weight and height? Any idea of how many calories your eating currently?
Click to expand...

I'm about 6ft 1 and 13.7 stone. I must have around 2000 cals a day i think

i'm looking to loose weight, i should be about 12/12.5 i think because there is so much fat on me. I know i have a belly which needs to be gone!
 
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Your diet doesn't look terrible, what are you doing in terms of exercise?

Don't guess your calories, it's basically impossible for this to be useful. Either work them out or choose an eating plan that removes the need to count them.
 
icecold said:
Your diet doesn't look terrible, what are you doing in terms of exercise?

Don't guess your calories, it's basically impossible for this to be useful. Either work them out or choose an eating plan that removes the need to count them.
Click to expand...

I exercise almost every single day at the gym burning off 600 cals at the lowerst. Running, Crosstrainer, Rowing etc.

It's so hard to choose a eating plan though.

Like i have Porridge(Oats) in the morning.

Lunch, i have just a low cal Sandwich

Dinner, is pure chicken and rice which cant be bad for you.

I'm sure thats not a terrible diet from what i was eating before, its totally different as i was binging on Crisps and chocolate for lunch and just having it for snacks now i have cut all of that out.

I just dont know anything about the Nutrition at all, where do you learn it all
 
Jimz said:
I just dont know anything about the Nutrition at all, where do you learn it all
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That is an extremely difficult question to answer! :)

The leangains site isn't a bad place to start, it might be information overload at first but it's mostly reliable. Intermittent Fasting is only one of many good methods though, I'm not suggesting you try it unless you think you'll get on with it. I've forgotten where I got most of my nutritional knowledge, but reading the forums at myprotein (just google "myprotein forums") would be useful.

It's best to stick to the basics:

- cut out all junk
- try to reduce quick releasing carbs as much as possible. These include fruit, white bread/pasta/rice
- don't avoid fats, unless they put you over your calorie totals. Fats are very important in our diets
- eat as much protein as you can
- don't fall into the trap of eating too little
- drink lots of water

More often than not, most diets boil down to being in a calorie deficit. Very low carb diets (CKD, velocity diet, etc.) can do funky things and put you in a state of ketosis, but are generally quite hard to maintain in the long run. The best plan is the one you'll stick to, so put a little effort in early on and save some hassle later.

Try counting calories for a week and keeping a super detailed food log.

Also, when doing doing cardio, don't have "calories burnt" as your goal. Have times or distances that you want to achieve. Do you incorporate any weights training at all?
 
Thanks for all that info.

I dont even know what Carbs are! thats how much i dont know about it. I'm guessing its stuff like Bread, butter, crisps? Could you give me more examples of main food carbs which were most likely to eat everyday?

I really shouldnt go to the gym and just count my calories every single time as once i reach the 600 mark we just normally leave if were really tired or not.

I dont really do much weights at the moment and im trying to loose weight, would that still be a good idea?
 
:p no

Ok, even MORE basic. We eat to ingest macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients. Carbs, protein, fat and fibre are the macros. All food will contain one or more macro-nutrient. Vitamins and minerals are the micros.

Carbohydrates, or carbs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbohydrate (scroll down to "Nutrition")
Main sources: bread, pasta, grains, potatoes etc.

Fats: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fat
Main sources: oily fish, nuts, animal fat

Protein: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protein_(nutrient)
Main sources: meat, eggs, fish etc


Doing weights is great for fat loss, read here: T NATION | Hierarchy of Fat Loss
 
I only eat small meals a day because I just don't have time for a lunch break so it's convenient for me. It suits my lifestyle and my body reacts well to it - though I guess I've conditioned it to do so (but I also eat sensible foods). You don't HAVE to split your meals up, but it's just a question of what you eat - lots of carbs and I feel quite lethargic afterwards, so a big carby meal does me no favours if I'm at work.

You just have to see how your body reacts. IF is a good lifestyle to follow, only if however, your lifestyle allows it - it's just not convenient or feasible for everyone.

Personally, I hate feeling "hungry" - and that's usually what wakes me up in the mornings. However, I'm quite in tune with controlling my blood sugar levels, and it's something I do now through habit/instinct rather than anything else.

At your level, I'd follow icecold's advice as it's pretty much exactly what you need - you just need to start to understand how and what fuels your body, and start to realise how your body reacts to the foods you eat. :)
 
Find out what your BMR is for calories per day. Then subtract 500cals from that, for weight loss. You can eat it all in one lump, or spread it out throughout the day - your choice. I'd recommend spreading it out as you won't ever feel hungry. I'd also recommend eating clean, you'll be healthier and get to 'eat more'.
Drink water - gallons of it :)
 
1 trick i found was make a ham salad sandwich (wholemeal bread) and cut in half

then eat one half then 2 hours later eat other half, basically splitting the meal up helps you keep the metabolism up and feel less hungry,
 
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