I am a proponent of eating when you are hungry and also recommend planning your meals in advance. Intuitive eating and some solid planning really can enhance each other. When I lost weight, I snacked when I felt the need, but did not generally have a morning snack. Apparently that may have helped me lose my weight.
A study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found that overweight and obese women who were trying to lose weight lost 4 percent more weight if they avoided morning snacks. I did not snack in the morning because I found it easier to control my food intake if I just ate breakfast and lunch rather than breakfast, snack, and lunch.
The researchers found that the women who ate morning snacks tended to consume more calories on a daily basis than the “non-morning snacker” group. That makes sense because if one person has a morning snack and another person does not, then the person who has the extra snack also consumes extra calories. This may come into play in a big way as you get closer to your goal and find it difficult to lose those last pounds. An additional 100 calories in snacks can push you into maintenance rather than keeping you in the weight loss mode.
Afternoon snacks in the study were generally higher in fiber, and often included fruits and vegetables.
I honestly believe that snacking can be a detriment or a help to you, depending on your unique makeup. Sometimes snacks help you get through the afternoon, while other times you may be snacking just to fill a bored moment or fill an emotional need. Only you know that.
What’s your take on snacks? Helpful or hurtful? Morning, afternoon, evening or all three? Diane
Did you write this blog just for me?!?!?! LOL!
As you know I am trying to lose those last pounds. My instinct tells me the reasons I am not getting them off is too many calories. Even though the foods I am eating are good, healthy foods- they are still calories. I don’t snack in the morning- but I snack in the afternoon. I think I have 2 choices here- if I want to snack in the afternoon then I need to cut some calories off of breakfast and lunch. If I like having bigger meals- then I need to cut out the snacking. I like both- but I like being healthier and fitter more!
Jill´s last fabulous musings ..Stubborn 10 Update
Ha! I remember that you are fighting that last 10! It sounds like you know what your choices are – you just have to find what works for you. You can also amp up your exercise too.
I found a morning snack was helpful for awhile and then I let go because I needed to cut a few calories. Now what I do is move a fruit from bkfast or lunch into a snack. No extra calories and I can have it as a snack or have it with the meal. If I eat Bkfast before 8am I have the fruit as morning snack. After 8am I have it with bkfast or at lunch or not at all.
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I tended to eat a later breakfast because I just wasn’t super hungry in the morning. I’m still that way.
The CDC defines “successful” weight loss as having lost 30 pounds or more, and having kept if off for more than one year. By that criteria, every successful weight loss client I have worked with, and there have been dozens, have several things in common. Among those things is eating a light mid-morning and mid-afternoon snack to establish rhythm in the metabolism.
Most often I have recommended a handful of almonds, or a cheese stick and a small apple. With respect to this post, I think it matters much more, WHAT one eats as a snack, than IF they eat.
It is so individual isn’t it Roy? I wonder if your clients also burn more calories than other successful losers because of your instruction and example? That could give them a definite advantage in the weight loss world.
Oooooooow, I shall have to chew on that. Could be a future post for me… Thanks for feeding the brain
I’ll look forward to your thoughts if you decide to write about it!
I think it all comes down to overall calories of food, whether they are snacks or meals, and the quality of the food. I don’t eat large meals and am a bit fan of snacking. But I will say that I have significantly changed what I eat for snacks over the past years. Given my druthers it would always be something carby, like muffins or bread or crackers. Now though, I typically go for veggies and lean protein (like cheese or eggs) and sometimes fruit. I will sometimes eat a morning snack but not always. It depends on when I eat breakfast and what I’m doing. I’ve worked hard to figure out a morning meal that last longer for me, as well.
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You are right that the caloric balance is king when it comes to weight control. Whether the balance comes from food or exercise or a combination of both makes the difference between weight gain and loss.
I’m one who has to remind myself to have breakfast and often find I don’t eat lunch until well into the afternoon because I’m so busy I just don’t think about it, so I definitely don’t have morning snacks. But come evening time, I want to eat everything in the house. And I’ve heard if you eat a good breakfast, you’ll be less tempted to eat in the evening but that’s just not true for me. Evening is what I’m hungry and when I want to eat, whether I ate breakfast/lunch or not. Not just dinner, but I’ll be snacking all evening up until bedtime, if I let myself. So in my case, that morning snack is really irrelevant.
That’s really true – it depends on when your snacking urge hits. So many people have trouble in the evening, but it sounds like you have good control and awareness of the calories/types of snacks you eat in the evening. Very, very smart. My favorite “snack” when I was obese was tortilla chips smothered with cheddar cheese and ice cream. Not a formula for weight loss!! (It was hard to break that habit.)
I think people who morning snack tend to have things that are more along the lines of muffins or something sweet like that. That’s not scientific or anything, but something I notice.
I actually eat a very big breakfast because I work out in the mornings, and that holds me until lunch time. I do have an afternoon snack and usually an evening one – but that one depends on how big/late my dinner was.
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I’ve noticed the same thing Lori. In fact, if I get the urge to eat in the morning, it is most often for something sweet rather than something salty or crunchy.
I can’t disagree with Emergefit as to what one snacks being the important issue, but generally, I do not advocate snacking. The main reason is that unless you really understand quality and quantity of food, the more times you eat a day the more chances for excessive error in calorie consumption.
I’ve seen a lot of people get tripped up by thinking they had to have two snacks a day, when they really didn’t need or want them.
Morning snacking always seems to set me up for a hungrier afternoon, so, I try to wait until lunch. This is a very good post, Diane. We need all the information that we can get, as we deal with our weight loss issues.
Thanks Jane – I too find that even with all my years of maintenance that I have to be careful. Large morning meals/snacks often lead me to a day of grazing and snacking. I wonder if part of it is because I set off an old “eating habit mechanism” of mine?
I think for me it depends on what the snack is. At uni I’m often forced to take a late lunch because of my classes, and then a carrot or an apple is a great snack. But when I don’t have classes, I never snack between breakfast and lunch.
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You are so disciplined! Good for you in planning your snacks based on your schedule. That is so smart.
Everyone’s different but what works for me is eating lots of protein for breakfast (not a fan of eggs so I add a ton of liquid eggs to a small portion of oats), and then I eat lunch at noon or 12:30.
Then I have a mini meal around 3 of greek yogurt and fruit. If I don’t have the 3pm snack, I will inevitably eat cookies or crackers so the snack is good for me. Also it means I am not ravenous at dinner.
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That sounds like a smart plan, and by reading your blog and seeing your pictures – it obviously works for you! The healthy snacks/foods you choose probably make it less likely for you to eat junk later.
I almost NEVER have a morning snack. Unless I have a super hard cardio workout I top it with a banana if my tummy feels empty or I begin feeling sick. For me snacking is usually because I’m obsessing and I tell myself that I will feel better if I eat. Food is so weird in that way. It NEVER helps..
I like bananas in the morning too! With you being pregnant, you probably need to constantly adjust your patterns depending on how you feel that minute.
I eat snacks. For example, my morning snack today is 2 satsuma oranges. Yesterday my snack was an apple. The day before that some cheese. I try to keep the snacks under 150 calories.
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Yum to satsuma oranges. Now I’ve got the craving for those!
I am with Roy on what you eat matter most & with DR. J on understanding & KNOWING & BEING MINDFUL of how much one is eating & the portion control. I am a mini meal eater but I know what is going in me & I actually tend to eat less later in the day vs earlier just because of my energy levels…. It is true that people underestimate what they eat so portion control is key and of course “what” you are eating!
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They are both awfully smart aren’t they? As are you. Portion control is a huge factor in weight, and it can be really hard to know how much you should be eating to keep your weight where you want it to be.
My meals tend to be 6 am, noon, and 8 pm, so I do snack a lot. It used to be granola or whatever these free at work bars are, but the scale started inching up, so now it’s apples, mandarins, bananas, pistachios, maybe a bit of jerky, if I have it. I try to eat a big enough lunch (volume-wise, not calories necessarily) that I don’t munch too often on the cookies and sandwiches and pizza that always seem to be sitting around leftover from meetings at work.
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Those leftovers from meetings get my husband every time. He comes home and tells me how it seems so wasteful to let it all sit there! You are smart to cut back on the caloric values in your snacks if you see the scale start moving in the wrong direction.
I don’t need a mid morning snack as I actually eat breakfast midmorning (I have allergies–there’s nothing like a little overnight postnasal drip to make one queasy for a few hours…)
I AM a snacker… I’ve also always (since childhood) had blood sugar swings so I’m actually NOT a proponent of “eating when hungry” because if I feel hungry, I’ve planned wrong–and I also tend to just dive into food and eat and eat past what I should because my blood sugar has dropped if I actually have gotten hungry. So I’m a person who eats every few hours and tries to stay in the satisfied/less satisfied appetite zone, neither wholly hungry nor completely full zone. So if you use a scale of 1-10 for hunger with 1 for fainting and 10 for Thanksgiving or binge coma, I try to stay in the 4.5 to 7.5 zone.
Also they’re really right about fiber. If you eat protein and/or fiber, it’s really filling. One of my favorite snacks is an apple with string cheese.
Sounds like a great way to plan your food intake by rating your hunger scale – especially with a blood sugar issue as you have. The combo of protein and fiber is so filling and makes for great snacks.
I generally am not a snacker although will occasionally have some nuts while dinner is cooking. Other than that, I try to stick to celery. I admit I eat a whole package of celery a week!
I am not a snacker for two reason. 1) if I eat a good, filling and balanced meal every 4-5 hours, snacking shouldn’t be necessary, and 2) for me (and YES, this is all very personal), I’m trying everything in the book to teach myself NOT to think about food every waking minute of the day. When I eat a meal, I want to feel satisfied, leave the table and not think about food until time to prepare the NEXT meal. Like you, it helps that I do not wake up hungry and really don’t want breakfast until around 9. I eat at roughly 9,1 and 6. If those are good, protein rich meals, there’s no need for anything in-between. If I happen to catch myself thinking about snacking in-between, I’d best be evaluating what my meal was missing or what emotion I’m trying to feed!
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I’ve had a morning snack since starting Nutrisystem in 2008. It consists of 1 Greek yogurt with 3/4 cup fruit.
I believe if you have a morning snack make sure its planned as well with all your meals. I do not believe 1 snack will make you overweight, its all in the planning out your meals and portion control.
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I have snacks on a as needed basis. If I need it I have one and if I don’t get hungry in between meals I don’t snack.
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I think snacking can be very beneficial if you are smart about it. It can be a great way to get added nutrients into your day and help you to avoid overeating on less nutritious foods later on. Of course, choosing nutrient-rich options, watching portions, and listening to your own hunger cues are all important when it comes to determining whether a snack is truly needed or not.
I can’t say that I agree with the study. I eat a snack in the morning as well as in the afternoon. I believe that you can eat 3 snacks a day with 3 small meals and still lose the weight. It all have do to with what your meals and snacks are made of. If it is healthy and portion controlled, then there should be no problem with snacking at all.
I think that people should educate themselves with more knowledge regarding healthy eating and then they would not fall for every study out there.
I have 3 meals with 2 snacks daily and still lost 88lbs.
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