Meal Timing and Consistency
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Eating at regular intervals is important for several reasons:
- Keeping your blood sugar levels consistent
- Preventing “hangry” eating (or making less favorable nutritional choices)
- Giving your body a consistent flow of energy to prevent dips throughout the day
- Maximizing meeting your nutritional needs for the day
Setting yourself up with a consistent pattern or eating style is important for achieving your health goals. Let’s review a few tips to help you establish a consistent pattern of eating:
- Eat three regular meals per day.
- For most people, eating three well-rounded meals per day helps to avoid surges in hunger that may lead to less favorable food choices or dips in energy.
- Eat generally at the same time each day.
- This helps you develop a routine and supports consistency.
- Not a big breakfast fan? Keep it small.
- You don’t have to eat a labor-intensive breakfast to meet your needs for this meal. Even a snack-sized meal (so something simple like Greek yogurt and fruit) can help meet your needs for breakfast.
- Keeping a food journal.
- Logging your food can help you grow accustomed to a new pattern of eating.
- Meal prep and planning help you avoid skipping meals.
- A little planning and prep can help ensure you don’t miss lunch, or make dinner in a hungry haste.
- Close the kitchen after dinner.
- Considering the kitchen closed after dinner cuts off opportunities for extra snacking