Everything you hear says if you consume less calories than you burn you will lose weight. I understand that and it makes complete sense.

Does it then matter when you consume the calories or what kinds of foods you eat when? I've heard that you should eat your carbs in the morning and slowly taper off carb intake as the day gets later and many other recommendations, but how does that matter when it is calories consumed versus calories burned?

Does your body handle foods differently based on the time of day and your activities of your waking/sleeping time?

This is a grey area.

The old advice is always eat brekkie like a king, lunch like a prince and dine like a pauper. Then that moved on to 5-6 meals a day, preferrably of equal size with a portion of protein and carbs at each sitting and your 5 a day.

Yes, there is some truth in all of the advice and yes there is some truth about eating carbs early and tapering off. However in my view a lot of it is over rated and doesn't make the difference that people always think.

The body gets good at what it is used to doing and adapts to your routine, so long as you have a routine. I am well read on all of these tricks and I do see the value in them, and the science behind it. My attitude now though is that:

'If you fill your car up in the morning, or fill it up in the afternoon it will have the same amount of fuel in it'

Don't worry too much and just feed your body when it demands to be fed. Notice the patterns and develop a routine around it. My only rules for myself are eat brekkie (stops me fancying something I shouldn't and ties me up till my next planned feed) and post-workout meal (the most important meal ever!). Apart from that I don't have any rules except that it becomes routine and is convenient so I have no excuse not to stick with it.

I know there are lots of texts telling you to eat at certain times and in certain ways, but I believe it is these kinds of distractions that steer people way from their goals.

'Just eat the right stuff, then just do it'

My simple advice

I agree that THEEE most important part of the equation is WHAT'S going in the tank.

I've messed with a number of different eating plans, some that included breaky, some that didn't, some that even only allowed chowing down within a 5 hour window each day. I lost weight on all of them, as I was careful to eat nutrient-rich, as-natural-as-possible foods, plus tons of H20, of course.

Experiment, see what feels best for you while giving the results you are after.

We're all about the tweaking, IMNSHO.

Here's the thing, people are different. Some people can't consumer dairy. Some people have wild blood sugar levels if they over-carb. Some people will store more fat if they eat before going to bed.

I agree that you need to experiment and record and monitor results. It certainly does matter WHAT you eat, to an extent. If you drank nothing but sugar-water you wouldn't get very fit, although you could certainly reach your allotted calories for the day.

Me, I like to eat about 50% carbs, 25% protein, 25% fat. I try to get good carbs and good fats as a majority of those but I also occasionaly have a few Twizzlers or a piece of homemade pie and I usually eat that as a snack before bed. That's a big no-no for some people. But I've lost weight following that so I haven't seen the need to modify it. If I didn't lose weight, I might have to change that up, eliminate the night-time snack, eliminate thos sugary carbs.

FWIW, I think a small nutritious snack before bed is generally speaking, fine--provided the snacker hasn't over eaten that day and the intake has been quality.

And now, I want a snack.

And generally, your body can only process up to about 700 calories at a time, so more than that is a waste and can be converted to excess fat. Which is why it is more efficient to spread your calories out throughout the day.

The reason a lot of general rules come out is that it has to be simplified for people. Do you want to read a few books to learn enough science behind nutrition to come to the same conclusion? Most people don't/won't/can't.

I agree with the thought that the kind of food you eat matters more in practice than how much or when you eat.

However, I also think that spacing food intake out has some mild benefits. I almost always skip breakfast, for one. Back when I was faithfully eating oatmeal every morning, that helped me curb my appetite come lunch time *and* displaced unhealthy choices (bagel, hotdog, cheese-filled pretzel -- whatever the local convenience store pandered that morning). My lifestyle makes it very difficult to do 5-6 meals, but at the very least I shouldn't be skipping breakfast.

honestly, i don't know what to say. i was told by a veteran body builder, who is also a nutritionist and a physical therapist, that it doesn't matter when you eat your calories, as long as you got the right amount in by the end of the day.

buttt... i heard from another nutritionist that you should eat breakfast early, and spread out small meals throughout the day.

i think overall it is preference. if you're more likely to be zapped of energy during the day, then start eating earlier, and continue throughout the day, to keep your energy up. if you enjoy eating everything at once and at night, then try that.
just remember that it's what you eat that counts too, and how much

I work out in the morning, should I eat both before and after the work out?

Depends on how stressful or long your workout is.

When I started running last summer holidays I had no stamina, so i ran only half an hour at the most - so for me it was enough to eat after the workout. (it even felt better to run with an empty stomach)

But over night you "starve out", so if you work out hard it might be better to eat a bit before.

As a general rule, I do not eat after 10 hours before I wake up the next morning. It keeps my weigh ins in the morning consistent and keeps me from feeling bad OR keeping me up at night. Sleep is unbelievably important when losing weight or burning anything from the time to go to bed until the time you wake up.

The benefits of grazing throughout the day are many, not least among them increased metabolism and more stable blood sugar (reduced cravings).

I've gone back to grazeland.

My lame-o humor is outta control today!

But, yes, I have returned to smaller, frequent feedings and I do believe that I'm getting more meal-age out of it.

*incredibley underwhelming rimshot*

Ladies and Gentlemen, clever humor has left the building!

:P

And HUMOR CLEAVER has just entered!

tee hee