3 Meals a Day

It started in elementary school.  I learned from a presentation that I was supposed to have 3 meals a day and I was convinced. I began fighting for that normal rhythm as a child.  In my mind, my mom was obligated to provide me with 3 square meals a day and I even argued that a sandwich counted as a snack, not a meal.  25 years later, not much had changed.

I remember when Matt (my husband) first brought up intermittent fasting to me.  He was sharing his YouTube education, and I was NOT impressed.  I dismissed it quickly with confidence that I was supposed to have three meals a day.   That is what is “healthy.”

The average American has 11 eating events in a day, stretched over the course of 15 hours.

Think that over.  That’s one hour a day that you’re not eating, and about 8 snacks a day.  Maybe you don’t look like the average American.  But the statistic alone, should be alarming for all of us, because this IS impacting our definition of “normal.”

Think about the volume of advertisements and commercials you see every day related to food consumption.  Most of us think about food more often than we think about sex!  How much money does your household spend on food?  Food is a HUGE economic driver in our country.    

Food is an important part of every culture, but where is the boundary between important role and obsession?  At some point, we have to halt this spiral and evaluate what should be normal?

A few years ago, I unintentionally hit a rhythm of intermittent fasting because of my workout schedule.  I organically fell into a 6-hour eating window on gym days and I noticed a difference.  I felt better.  I also noticed that foods that historically made me gain weight didn’t have that same effect when I was doing intermittent fasting.  I had more freedom to eat what I wanted.  

I learned more from Matt’s YouTube education, listened to podcasts, and read books advocating for intermittent fasting.  I began to get more intentional about it and continued to reap benefits from it.  There is tons of data and research supporting intermittent fasting, but for me, nothing is more convincing than my own personal experiences.  With foods and diets, my method of operation is always try it and see what works. 

For many others that I know and me, intermittent fasting works.  I feel my best when I consistently maintain a restricted eating window.

My favorite benefit of intermittent fasting is that I think about food less.  Before intermittent fasting, food was consistently one of my first thoughts of the day.  I would wake up and before ever getting out of bed, I would be thinking about what I was going to have to eat that day.  Even after I lost weight and was eating clean and healthy foods, this was still dominating my thought life first thing in the morning.   About 2 years ago, I noticed a change in that pattern.  Because of intermittent fasting, I think about food less.  For me, that is a MAJOR victory!

I’ve heard others give similar accounts and there are studies and data to support this as well:  The more we eat, the more we think about food.  The less time we spend eating, the less time we spend thinking about food.  That’s how our brains work.  We are constantly feeding into that cycle, one way or the other.

Most also report having more energy while practicing intermittent fasting.  That makes sense.  If your body is spending less time and energy in digestion, then you have more time and energy for other things. 

Maybe you’re not convinced, and that’s okay.  But the only way to know for sure is to give it a try!

Start with something that you can be successful with.  Maybe cut out one meal or reduce your eating window to 12 hours.  Progressively reduce your eating window over time.  Honestly, you could still fit three meals into an 8-hour window, if you wanted.  Try it for yourself and see what works.  Give it at least 2 weeks before you draw your conclusions.

I’d love to hear about your experiences!

Let me know if there is anything I can do to encourage you in pursuit of your health. <3