Are YOU skipping meals?
Many chronic ‘weight
watchers’ starve
themselves into obesity.
People who stick to
a nighttime eating
pattern typically eat
in excess of 2000
calories a day
Although many weight conscious individu
als contend skipping meals is the best way
to manage one’s weight, it may be one of
the worst.
A “fast-all-day, feast-all-night” eating pattern is
often seen in overweight individuals. Skipping
breakfast and/or lunch usually results in people being
so ravenously hungry when dinner rolls around
that they eat significantly more than they would
have if they had eaten during the day. Furthermore,
when overwhelming hunger strikes, people typically
grab whatever
food is available,
rather than preparing
a healthy,
well-balanced
meal. The cycle
continues the
following day
when these guilt
ridden calorie
counters wake up with fresh resolve and minimal
hunger, only to once again skip meals early in the
day, and stuff themselves later in the evening. Eating
regular, well timed meals (including breakfast) helps
stabilize blood sugar, which in turn quells hunger,
and helps people control their weight.
Breakfast is important for other reasons as well.
Many studies have shown that people
who eat breakfast are far ahead of those
who ship breakfast when it comes to
nutrient intake and maintaining a lean
physique. Those who ate breakfast are
also ahead in terms of mental and
physical performance thanks to a better
blood glucose (sugar) level. Your brain
and nerve cells require glucose for energy, so low
blood sugar impairs your ability to think and react.
For optimal energy and better weight control eat
more meals not fewer. If it has been over 3 hours
since your last meal, and your next one is at least an
hour away then opt for a healthy snack. (Snack food
doesn’t have to be junk food.) Use snacks to help
round out your diet by eating the foods your body
needs more of. Be a smart snacker: Combine fruit,
vegetables, or whole grains (pretzels, tortilla chips,
bread) with some lean protein..
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According to Barry Miller,
M.D., a nationally recognized
obesity specialist many chronic
weight watchers starve themselves
into obesity. Here’s why:
1.Skipping meals signals the
body that a famine is eminent.
Your body responds by decreasing
its calorie needs by 150 to
200 calories per day. (How many
pounds will you gain each month
if you cut your calorie needs by
200 calories per day,
but don’t change your
energy expenditure?) |
Concurrently, your
body produces more
lipase, a fat storage
enzyme, to ensure that
you don’t deplete
your fat reserves too quickly.
2. When people become physiologically
famished their body
craves calorie dense foods. People
who stick to a nighttime eating
many chronic ‘weight
watchers’ starve
themselves into obesity.
pattern typically eat in excess of 2000 calories a
day— far too much for the evening hours.
3. After denying themselves food all day, nighttime
eaters reward themselves for their resistance. Once
they get their minds into the reward mode it diminishes
their resistance to overeating.
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