Weight Loss Eating Schedule – The Best Time to Eat

A healthy detox plan can be ideal if you are recovering from the festive binge or need an extra push to meet your weight loss goal. But when we talk about weight loss, in addition to the food we eat, our meal timing plays a vital role. It’s a fact that what you are putting on your plate is as crucial as when you are putting it on your plate.

Many types of research prove that early dinner benefits in flattening your belly and slimming your waistline. Time-restricted eating plays a vital role in weight loss. These days, people are eating early as a form of intermittent fasting. In such diets, people eat their meals in the early morning and afternoon so that their bodies can digest them. It promotes fat burning and also gives them control over their diets. Here’s a weight loss eating schedule and how early eating gives you benefits.

Breakfast

Instead of asking about the perfect time for breakfast, people are willing to know they; should eat breakfast. First, there is no clear answer, but two things must be clear regarding it. Firstly all of us are doing this 8-hour fast during the night. And there are many benefits of this fast. Healthy individuals can make this gap as long as 12 hours to gain health and weight loss eating schedule benefits.

These two things have many benefits. For instance, you can eat your last meal at 7 and have the first meal of the day at 7, or if you are following intermittent fasting, you can have the first meal at 11 am.

The main benefit of scenario eating is that you can achieve your weight loss goals in the abovementioned ways. It doesn’t matter if you are the intermittent faster who skips breakfast or the person who can never skip breakfast. Regardless you are eating your first meal at 7 am or 11 am, make sure to take a nutrient-rich and substantial breakfast.

Lunch

The lunch timing doesn’t have a significant impact on weight loss. But what’s vital about lunch is that it should be your biggest meal. The discussion again goes to the circadian rhythms in which your body is more energetic in the earlier day, burns calories, regulate hormones, and digests food more effectively.

And when we know that food works as fuel for our body, it’s vital to take maximum calories in the early afternoon. All of this also makes sense from the biological point of view.

Dinner

All health professionals say eating dinner early, at least two hours before sleeping, benefits the body. Make it your habit to close your kitchen after that specific time. It will eliminate your late-night snacking habit and allow your body to burn off these calories before bedtime.

By eating your dinner two hours before sleeping, you are giving your body enough time for digestion. It allows a more restful sleep later. When you go to bed feeling full, you are less likely to have a quality sleep as it can cause hormonal changes and hinder your weight loss eating journey. Besides, there are some other reasons to dine early as well. First, our body’s circadian rhythms allow us to efficiently burn maximum calories, optimize digestion, and burn more calories.

Eating your dinner at 6 will be more beneficial than eating it at 8 pm. We are increasing the block time without food by eating our dinner early. This more significant gap will benefit weight loss and improve blood sugar levels and cravings and reduce your appetite.

Benefits of having early dinners

Benefits of having early dinners

Photo Credit: Robustalive.com

  • Good for digestion

Late-night sleep can seriously impact your health by interrupting your regular sleep patterns and causing indigestion. At the same time, early dinners benefit digestion, which is good for weight loss and improves digestion. Note that anything that helps your digestion will also benefit your weight loss.

A study published in cell metabolism shows that the mice eating their dinner early and fasting for the remaining hours didn’t gain weight compared to the mice eating the same calories but in later hours and snacking around.

  • Reduces appetite

To find out whether early eating has all those benefits, the researchers focused on 11 people who were healthy but considered overweight. In this study, all the people tried two different meal timings schedules for 4 days. But they had the same food with the same calories throughout the period.

Researchers found that people who ate all their meals between 8 am and 2 pm were burning more fat while consuming less than before. However, the researchers also noticed that the time restriction in eating is not a healthy approach for all people though it is helping many people.

What time should I eat dinner for weight loss?

It can be challenging to figure out the best eating time for weight maintenance. According to research, late lunch eaters who generally eat after 3 pm lose less weight than those who eat in the early hours.

Another study shows that restricting your eating time from 6 am to 7 pm can reduce your calorie count by 244. It also offers more extended overnight fast benefits in weight loss targets. Here is the result of the survey that shows the best time to eat your lunch, dinner, and breakfast.

Breakfast: After 7 to 7:30 was the ideal timing

Lunch: 12:30 to 1 pm is the best time to have your lunch

Dinner: In between 6 pm to 6:30 pm

It’s a common saying among fitness lovers that having dinner after 8 pm can add inches to your weight that will be difficult to lose. The above meal timings are suggested by dieters who are somewhere near their weight loss goals.

Conclusion

Imagine you are running a marathon. If you run too fast at the start, you will get exhausted early. Likewise, if you are storing your energy until the end, you may not make any progress. The main thing is to set up a pace you can maintain throughout the competition. Take the famous rabbit and tortoise story as an example.

Imagine this same situation with your calorie intake. Instead of having large chunks of the meal, try maintaining your energy levels throughout the day. By having a healthy diet and scheduling your meals and snacks, you will be able to benefit your overall digestive health and prevent cardiovascular disease development, obesity, diabetes, and many other health complications.

FAQs about Weight Loss Eating Schedule

What is the best eating schedule for weight loss?

According to the abovementioned survey eating meals at the following time improves digestive health and aids in weight loss.

Breakfast: 7 to 7:30 am

Lunch: 12:30 to 1pm

Dinner: 6pm to 6:30pm

How many times a day should I eat for weight loss?

Eating balanced but small meals every 3 hours benefits fat-burning procedures. But if you aren’t eating the proper amount, your body can go into the starvation protection mode that stores the fat, conserve the calories, and instead of fat, start burning the muscle for daily energy use.

Does eating every 4 hours benefit weight loss?

Yes, eating every 4 hours have many health benefits. It not only helps prevent weight loss but also prevents cancer. Research suggests that eating every 4 hours improves the metabolism rate, maintains blood sugar levels, and satisfies our hunger.

References

https://www.webmd.com/diet/obesity/features/plan-day-lose-weight

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/weight-loss/weight-loss-the-best-timings-for-your-meals-to-lose-weight-effectively/photostory/69163968.cms#:~:text=It%20is%20always%20good%20to,breakfast%20early%20in%20the%20morning.

https://www.eatingwell.com/article/7826585/best-times-to-eat-for-weight-loss/

https://chear.ucsd.edu/blog/scheduled-eating-why-its-beneficial-and-how-to-start

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/weight-loss-meal-plan

Rabia Sehar
Rabia Sehar

Hi! I’m Rabia Sehar, a motivated, passionate and sophisticated writer aspiring to make my dreams come true. Writing about health, wellness, mental health, and lifestyle is something I specialize in and am passionate about. I love traveling, reading, composing, and entertaining. As a health advocate, I am passionate about creating content that educates people on leading a healthy life. Health is the actual wealth so try your best to keep it.

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