Did you know that when you eat is just as important as what you eat? This is especially true for those trying to maintain or lose weight.
It’s likely that your mom told you “breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” Maybe she thought it was because the food would fuel your brain so you could be productive at school. As it turns out, mom was right. But eating breakfast is good for reasons other than firing up your brain engine.
According to a recent study in The Journal of Nutrition, those who ate a highly caloric breakfast and then less at lunch and dinner had a lower average body mass index than those who at a highly caloric dinner. This finding held true even when the calorie count between the two types of eaters was similar.
There are two other reasons to consider that when you eat is a factor in health markers:
First, those people who eat more calories at lunch than dinner report better maintenance of waistline measurements.
Second, the more time between your final bite of one day and breakfast the other day also helps maintain waistline measurements. This is an eating style known as intermittent fasting, which has gained a strong following in recent years.
The reasons you should consider when you eat in your overall healthy lifestyle is that frontloading your calories earlier in the day is best aligned with your body’s physiological processes. One of your body’s natural cortisol spikes is first thing in the morning. This means that eating a caloric meal allows your blood sugar to rise and balance cortisol levels within a natural range.
Eating more calories earlier in the day stimulates your metabolic rate. This allows more of those calories to burn throughout the day. Even better, when you start your day with a healthy breakfast, you’ll likely find that your cravings for junk food diminish. Who wants to sabotage a healthy day?!
There’s a bonus reason for women in perimenopause to consider when you eat the bulk of your calories. Eating a high-calorie meal late in the day can interfere with the body’s natural production of melatonin. This could contribute to sleep woes so common for women 40-55. (You can also check out my simple bedtime routines to help you sleep better!)
Do you consider when you eat as part of your healthy lifestyle? Give it a try and see how you feel!
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