Eating Only 1 Meal a Day and Feeling Better for it

In the last month or so I have had to reduce my meal intake to just 1 meal a day on average due to financial constraints. But this sacrfice for me has come with some suprising results. First the not so supprising result is that I have lost 15kg (33lbs) in weight in the past few weeks. But the biggest suprising result for me is that instead of starting to feel hungrier like I expected to, my apitite has gone into serious decline and I rarely feel hungry at all, sometimes I have to force myself to eat a meal because I know my body needs some sustinance. I have also become less lethargic and have started sleeping less.

I am left wondering if my results are unique or if we all would react in the same way? I estimate that my daily calorie intake averages between 1200 and 1500 Kcal and I never feel hungry for more. We have obviously been programmed by society that we must have 3 square meals a day and my recent findings have led me to question if this is really wise or not. Not only is it an aweful waste of food if we do not really need those 3 meals and 2500 Kcal a day as reccomended by our government, but it is also a great strain on the enviroment to support this too.

I'd really like to hear from any others that have tried reduced meal diets like I have to see if you got the same results?

My father did this everyday for 30 years.

He is 150 pounds overweight, has diabetes and a host of health problems.
He drank coca-cola by the 2 liter for "breakfast" "Lunch" and dinner.

I was doing this same thing you are doing but felt like crap 24/7.
I started eating something for breakfast, even if it is very small, and feel much better.
Breakfast gets your body working after a good sleep.

If you continue this, may I suggest not drinking sugar all day to replace food.

Eat something even if its a granola bar or something.

Sorry to hear about your situation.

I did a thread ,one of my first,about starving yourself to ready yourself for a survival situation and getting accustom to it.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

I usually eat a decent breakfast,so you have energy to carry you through the day,a small lunch and no supper.
At times I do a mini fasting where I do not eat for a day or so.
I feel great.

reply to post by bjax9er


I do not drink sugary drinks, that would obviously defeat the object of the point I was trying to make. If I could afford to buy coca cola, I could afford to have an extra bowl of porridge a day.

Good for you, OP. I started taking some supplements (CoQ10 and L-carnitine) and I've noticed that my calorie intake dropped to about 1500-2000 daily as well...usually derived from a single meal or several small snacks throughout the day.

Although the supplements probably artificially reduced my appetite, I never felt better in my life: more energy, better sleep etc. I had to eat some fresh fruit every now and then just because my stomach would start to grumble if I didn't snack.

I did lose a lot of weight very quick as well (did gain some of it back because I like to indulge from time to time. Heck, I'm sure most people like me just eat when we're bored...a cultural practice, to be sure.)

I am happy that you found a practical lifestyle solution and are benefiting from it!

reply to post by michael1983l


I have eaten this way for quite some time because I have stomach problems. I do usually eat a small amount of fruit for breakfast and then I have some sort of protein and vegetables around dinner time.

Before I would eat three large meals a day plus snacks. I was very overweight, lethargic and I had poly-cystic ovaries. In a way I think my stomach problems may have prolonged my life and definitely increased the quality of my life. I am now on the lower end of a healthy weight, I have energy and my female troubles have really cleared up.

I have often thought that food guidelines are a sort of conspiracy in themselves.

reply to post by michael1983l


Do not eat one meal per day. Eat several small meals during the day and do not eat after 6-7PM depending on your schedule. It sounds like you are obese and in need of a hand. Eating like a python is no good. Bangers n' mash are not a good way to go either. Eat like a stoplight, green = good.

I read about an experiment with rats, there were 3 groups, each group was fed either too much, too little or the right amount of food.

Too everyones surprise the underfed rats not only performed better in maze and other cognitive tests but even lived longer.

Im like you and normally eat 1 meal a day and usual just snack if I get hungry

I must admit personally when I skip dinner and take it to work for smoko the next day I feel ten times better than if I had that meal with my family the night before. I also find I can stretch that meal out to lunch as well.

I think we just need to get more in touch with our own rhythms, 3 squares a day is definitely not for me.

reply to post by michael1983l


So...you only eat once a day...and your meal consists of 1200 to 1500 calories. Please give an example of what you eat at that one meal and the portion sizes of the food.