In this article, we are going to answer when is the best time to eat breakfast, when is the best time to eat lunch, when is the best time to eat dinner, and what is the best food to skip for weight loss.
When is the best time to eat breakfast?
Breakfast should be eaten between no more than 2 hours of getting up. It is best if it is consumed between 6 am and 10 am.
Breakfast is one of the most important meals of your day because it helps to start your metabolism, balance glucose levels, helps with weight management, promotes heart health, and improves overall cognitive function.
Skipping breakfast can lead to some health problems such as stress, fatigue, and an increased risk of obesity and diabetes but this is not for everyone. If you are in intermittent fasting and you feel better-skipping breakfast to achieve your fasting time, go for it.
When eating breakfast, try to stay away from sugar-loaded cereal, pancakes, waffles, juices, or anything that is not high in protein. Some ideas for a healthy breakfast include:
- Eggs
- Greek yogurt
- Coffee
- Oatmeal
- Chia seeds
- Berries with greek yogurt
- Cottage cheese
- Whole wheat toast
When is the best time to eat lunch?
Lunch should be a lighter meal and it is best if taken between 1 pm and 3 pm. To be more specific, lunch should be taken about 5 to 6 hours apart from breakfast. So, if you ate breakfast at 8, lunch should be at 1 pm or 2 pm but if you ate breakfast at 6 am lunch should be at 11 am or 12 pm.
Lunch is a meal that helps your body to keep running through the day. It is very important to make a balanced lunch with protein, fats, and whole carbohydrates to help you stay focused and with energy. Some healthy lunch ideas include
- Lentil soup with vegetables and a piece of toasted whole grain
- Veggie chickpea salad sandwich
- Veggie wraps with turkey breast
- Quinoa with black beans stuffed with sweet potatoes
- Salmon with a side of vegetables and whole rice
If you feel you can’t make it to lunch without more food, you can add a snack with protein and fat or whole carbohydrates and protein. Some healthy snack ideas include
- Mixed nuts
- Red pepper with guacamole
- Greek yogurt with fruit
- Cottage cheese with fruit
- Apple or pear with peanut butter
- Celery stick with hummus
- Carrots with cream cheese
- Dark chocolate with almonds
When is the best time to eat dinner?
The best time to eat dinner is before 7 pm. As the night arrives, your body starts to slow down your metabolism and it is best to leave it to rest as sleep times arrive. Dinner should be a light meal high in protein to keep you full until the next day.
If you can’t make it from lunch to dinner without feeling too hungry, you can add a snack between lunch and dinner. The mid-afternoon snack can be a little heavier than in the morning to prevent you from overeating.
What is the best meal to skip for weight loss?
According to the USDA, the best meal to skip for weight loss is dinner. In a study taken by the USDA, people that skip meals for a diet such as intermittent fasting reduce caloric intake by 252 calories if breakfast was skipped and 350 calories if dinner was skipped.
- When breakfast or lunch was skipped there was reduced consumption of fruit, whole grains, dairy, and empty calories.
- When lunch was skipped there was a lower consumption of vegetables, plant proteins, and seafood
- When dinner was skipped there was reduced consumption of greens, beans, dairy, protein food, seafood, plant proteins, and empty calories.
So bottom line, reducing dinner is when people reduce more calories but diet quality also is reduced.
If you need more information on intermittent fasting follow this link.
Conclusion
This article answered when is the best time to eat breakfast, when is the best time to eat lunch, when is the best time to eat dinner, and what is the best food to skip for weight loss.
