Eating 6 Times a Day. Fact or Fiction?

Everyone is different, so just experiment and see what works best with you. As far as a general consensus it is healthier to eat throughout the day, but that means small meals. Since we are used to eating huge meals, 300 to 500 calorie meals seems tiny, so I assume most people who eat 5-6 meals are eating too much.

Meal frequency is totally irrelevant.

[quote]G87 wrote:
When I was travelling recently, I noticed that my body comp improved a lot when I was eating 3/4 times a day and doing a bunch of brisk walking. For some strange reason, I was also getting incredible pumps in the gym. Now that I think about it, obsessing about eating every 3 hours never did much for me except make me gain more fat than was necessary. I’m in a strength phase right now… and for a few weeks, I’m gonna eat bigger meals, while eating less often, and still meeting all my macro needs. At the end of the day, if intermittent fasting works, why would eating 3 times a day NOT?

What do you guys think?[/quote]

You’ve listed too many variables. You noticed a positive change in your physique when you changed your meal frequency and activity levels, but you also say that you are in a strength phase right now. Does this mean you changed from something else, like a mass phase? And would that mean that you were eating an excess of calories in the mass phase and the calories are now lower?

[quote]Headhunter wrote:
Airtruth wrote:

It was also an attempt to help people diet, because they would get hungry every 2 hours. But it backfired because many big people like to eat until they’re full.

To binge is a natural instinct. Take advantage of it – eat very little all day, fruit only, then have 2 or 3 huge meals at night. Humanity ate like this for most of our history and we are geared for just that style of eating. Its when we eat all day that fat cells get switched on.

Society likes it if you eat all day also, as it makes people docile. Lean hungry warriors who take no shit from anyone are much harder to control than satiated people lolling about in a sleepy stupor.

[/quote]

My point was that binge eating 6x a day will make you fat, but they didn’t mean for people to binge when they recommended 6 meals a day.

[quote]Headhunter wrote:
G87 wrote:
When I was travelling recently, I noticed that my body comp improved a lot when I was eating 3/4 times a day and doing a bunch of brisk walking. For some strange reason, I was also getting incredible pumps in the gym. Now that I think about it, obsessing about eating every 3 hours never did much for me except make me gain more fat than was necessary. I’m in a strength phase right now… and for a few weeks, I’m gonna eat bigger meals, while eating less often, and still meeting all my macro needs. At the end of the day, if intermittent fasting works, why would eating 3 times a day NOT?

What do you guys think?

The best results come from being active all day and eating very little, and that being fruit. Fruit is very easy to digest and minimizes the switching down of the sympathetic (active) nervous system and switching on of the parasympathetic (digestive) system. Workout late in the afternoon, then pig out on healthy foods.

www.warriordiet.com

[/quote]

I usually don’t count my calories anymore, but I also noticed the increase in energy and alertness from less food through out the day.

[quote]Headhunter wrote:
Airtruth wrote:
Eating 6 meals a day will make you fat.
Eating 6x a day may or may not make you fat depending on what your eating. People never looked at the details of eating 6x a day when this method became big. Originally 2 or 3 times were equivelent of snacks, and the 3 main meals were smaller. You would have things like a shake, or an apple and orange juice, this slowly turned into six complete meals. Of course overloading on food will make you fat.

It was also an attempt to help people diet, because they would get hungry every 2 hours. But it backfired because many big people like to eat until they’re full.

To binge is a natural instinct. Take advantage of it – eat very little all day, fruit only, then have 2 or 3 huge meals at night. Humanity ate like this for most of our history and we are geared for just that style of eating. Its when we eat all day that fat cells get switched on.

Society likes it if you eat all day also, as it makes people docile. Lean hungry warriors who take no shit from anyone are much harder to control than satiated people lolling about in a sleepy stupor.

[/quote]

You must also take into consideration that people back then didn’t care about having a great physique, just survival. Eating large meals infrequently stored more fat, which was conductive to long term survival.

[quote]forbes wrote:
Eating large meals infrequently stored more fat[/quote]

oh really? for the next month, eat ONE 1,500 calorie meal per day and see how much fat you store. (this is not an endorsement of the warrior diet, i’m just pointing out the stupidity of that statement.)

[quote]JMoUCF87 wrote:
forbes wrote:
Eating large meals infrequently stored more fat

oh really? for the next month, eat ONE 1,500 calorie meal per day and see how much fat you store. (this is not an endorsement of the warrior diet, i’m just pointing out the stupidity of that statement.)[/quote]

I meet many people that don’t eat often through the day, they’re usually rather overweight as well

I see it everday, skip breakfast a light lunch, and a normal dinner. These people could stand to lose some weight.

I eat 8 times a day and I’m not fat, it all depends on the person and their training. Personally, the problem with 3 big meals for me is that the body can’t possibly handle the amount of protein I would take in those three meals at one time. Therefore, I spread it out so the nutrients I am taking are not being wasted.

[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
JMoUCF87 wrote:
forbes wrote:
Eating large meals infrequently stored more fat

oh really? for the next month, eat ONE 1,500 calorie meal per day and see how much fat you store. (this is not an endorsement of the warrior diet, i’m just pointing out the stupidity of that statement.)

I meet many people that don’t eat often through the day, they’re usually rather overweight as well

I see it everday, skip breakfast a light lunch, and a normal dinner. These people could stand to lose some weight.[/quote]

they should probably reduce their calories then.

[quote]jb99 wrote:
I eat 8 times a day and I’m not fat, it all depends on the person and their training. Personally, the problem with 3 big meals for me is that the body can’t possibly handle the amount of protein I would take in those three meals at one time. Therefore, I spread it out so the nutrients I am taking are not being wasted.[/quote]

the body doesn’t “waste” calories that easily. if you are the same amount of food in fewer meals it simply takes longer to digest.

The body can only absorb so much protein at one time and when you are taking in around 400 or more grams a day like I am please explain to me how you can reasonably absorb that in 3 meals.

[quote]jb99 wrote:
The body can only absorb so much protein at one time and when you are taking in around 400 or more grams a day like I am please explain to me how you can reasonably absorb that in 3 meals.[/quote]

Show me the scientific data. I want a pubmed (or an analog) paper on healthy athletes (Do not give me the one on old women with kidney disease).

Here is all you need, take a look at my pictures and then take a stroll over to your mirror…

[quote]jb99 wrote:
Here is all you need, take a look at my pictures and then take a stroll over to your mirror…[/quote]

lol, good point.

But I had a trainer today trying to spout off that the body could only digest 30-50g protein at a time, I called him on it and let’s just say you can only argue with your boss for so long before you just give up.

The body would “absorb” it, but I’m sure taking in 130g protein per meal would prove to be quite difficult.

In that logic, if you ate 8,000 cals in 3 meals, since you wouldn’t “aborb”/“digest” that much protein then you wouldn’t gain any weight since it’s not utilized, sorry that protein per sitting limit just doesn’t hold water

[quote]The best results come from being active all day and eating very little, and that being fruit. Fruit is very easy to digest and minimizes the switching down of the sympathetic (active) nervous system and switching on of the parasympathetic (digestive) system. Workout late in the afternoon, then pig out on healthy foods.

www.warriordiet.com

[/quote]

X2 for the warrior diet. Ori Hofmekler did some good research on this one. I find less than 6 meals works better for me, but they do have to be bigger. If I eat when I am hungry I lean out. If I eat when it is “time to eat” I gain bodyfat (5-6+ meals/day). Clarence Bass’ theory of eating the same thing every day and then just tweaking amounts works really well too as long as your diet is sound and not missing anything.

[quote]jb99 wrote:
Here is all you need, take a look at my pictures and then take a stroll over to your mirror…[/quote]

Thanks for proving my point.

Here is my point, I get better results spreading my meals out during the day. So therefore my evidence would be my physique. At the end of the day that’s all anyone on this board is striving to achieve no? A better physique? So now can I see a picture of how your wealth of knowledge has helped you achieve results?