Thursday, January 29, 2009

The Myth of 6 Meals A Day

By Caleb Lee

Do you really need to eat 6-8 small meals to keep your metabolism revved up so you burn fat all day and keep a steady stream of nutrients flowing to build lean muscle?

If you've been around the fitness scene for any amount of time, or have read a few diet books or articles, you would think the key to this one is a plain why not? " but the fact is

The 6-8 meals a day Advice Is A False Report!

The advice is based on studies completed around the thermic effect of food (TEF). You see, each time you eat, your body uses more or less 10% of those calories (total) to give power just to digest the food...

When this was discovered, people misconstrued the research by saying the more you eat (frequency) the more calories you'll burn all day but then this was a slip since the math doesn't work out.

* Six little meals of 300 calories (6-300) = 1800 calories total.

* Every single meal you burn 10% of calories = 30 calories burned with every 300 cal meal

* Total cals burned due to TEF = 180

Thus differentiate that to a normal diet of 3 large meals:

* 3 Heavy Meals of 600 calories (3-600) = 1800 calories total.

* Each meal you burn 10% of calories = 60 calories burned with each 600 cal meal

* Total cals burned due to TEF = 180

So you see, if the calories are the same, it doesn't matter how you break them up " you're still burning the same amount of calories and affecting your metabolism the exact same way no matter how often you eat.

Will Eating More Often Lead To More Lean Muscle Gain?

The brief answer is certainly not. Eating protein continually in point of fact initiates your body not to make it as much. Eating more total calories WILL bring about building additional muscle but the meal frequency has barely to do with it.

More crucial for lean muscle gain is the timing of your meals, particularly the post workout meal needs to be excellent to make a big thing that you're getting superior nutrients into your body when it needs them the most.

Will Eating Less Meals Produce Muscle Loss?

Several guys who lift weights accept as true (and I used to) that not eating 6-8 meals each day will put your body into a catabolic state. Which means since you're not eating lots of food and keeping the levels of amino acids in your blood above average your body will make use of your muscle tissue as fat.

This is not true either at least not to the extent that you've heard. Because even if you just eat one big meal per day, it can take up to 12 hours to digest" steadily releasing amino acids into your bloodstream the whole time.

When Should You Eat 6-8 Meals

So as to achieve a LOT of weight " you need to boost your calorie intake to gain weight and put on muscle, thus if you're an extra-large guy and you have to eat 5,000 calories a day to put on mass it might be easier on your stomach and digestive system to consume 5,000 calories broken up into a set of lesser meals.

If you're using a ton of energy " If you're a high level athlete who burns a ton of energy like Michael Phelps who eats up to 12,000 calories per DAY and eats like an elephant. Also guys in the military in boot camp often eat as much as possible when they get the chance but still end up losing weight

If you love it - A number of people may possibly feel more satisfied 6-8 eating lesser meals each day grazing for their food intake. I'm not one of those people but more power to you if you are.

I believe being aware of this will surely help you feel improved in your search for better fitness, I know I believed this cock-and-bull story for a LONG time because nearly each and every one suggests it.

What Do I Do Personally?

I do intermittent fasting. And I LOVE it. I vary between a warrior diet style eating schedule (when I'm maintaining my weight) and the lean gains eating style when I'm focusing on putting on muscle mass. - 15343

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