eat small meals throughout the day, or eat 3 meals a day

[Fitjoy]

Which is the best for fat burning? It seems you cant get to the actual burning of fat with something in your stomach every 2-3 hours.  You are burning the food you ate instead of fat.  Which has been more successful for you?

[USAF-Larry]

@Fitjoy, it doesn't really matter how you spread out the food, but the total amount matters greatly.  Weight loss is accomplished when calories in are less than calories out.  Balanced meals with portion control can  result in reduced caloric intake day after day after day.

[glitterNfunk]

I've found that I have better results since I switched my calories around a bit.  I now eat a bigger breakfast and a smaller dinner.  I'm assuming its because I have the whole day to burn off what I eat in the morning.

I do a big breakfast, moderate lunch, small dinner in addition to a snack in the morning and a snack in the afternoon.  It is basically an upside down triangle.....decreasing the amount of calories as I go through the day.

I will say that I've found that this work for me by trying different combinations until I found what worked best.  My suggestion would be to play around with how and when you eat and find what works for you.

[Fitjoy]

Thank you for responding

Sent from my iPhone

[Fitjoy]

Thank you for responding

Sent from my iPhone

[Dominique]

Fat loss is determined primarily by energy balance (calories in vs. calories out). Nutrient timing (for instance, meal frequency) only plays a minor role and comes far behind. As long as you are in a caloric deficit, you will lose fat, regardless of how you split your calories during the day, or even during the week (it’s perfectly fine not to have the same deficit every day: for instance, you can have a slightly higher deficit during weekdays, in order to be able to eat out with friends or family during weekends). Choose whatever meal frequency best suits your lifestyle and your personal preferences. 

[Dominique]

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@glitterNfunk wrote:

My suggestion would be to play around with how and when you eat and find what works for you.

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This is a very good suggestion: whatever approach floats your boat, and it’s not necessarily the same for everyone.

[wshaikh]

I would like to hear more about it. Can you please share with us?

[Fitjoy]

See Wikipedia's explanation for starvation mode, it may help you understand why burning glycogen stores in your body must occur before fat is used for fuel. 

[Dominique]

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@Fitjoy wrote:

burning glycogen stores in your body must occur before fat is used for fuel. 

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If it were so, it would be impossible to lose fat if/when eating carbs, unless you were constantly depleting your glycogen stores through activity (and consequently, a ketogenic/low-carb diet would be the only way to lose fat). The truth is it’s perfectly possible to lose fat while still having fuel left in your glycogen stores. As long as you are in a caloric deficit over the course of the day, or of the week, some fat from your fat stores will be used as fuel. The "fat burning zone" is just that: when your heart rate is in that zone, most of the energy used to fuel activity comes from fat (but some carbs are used as well); when it further increases (aerobic activities), a larger part comes from carbs (but some fat is used as well). It’s not like you have an on/off switch somewhere that will let you burn either fat or carbs (and let’s not talk about protein here), or fat only after all carbs have been exhausted.

And "starvation mode" doesn’t occur before several days of not eating anything at all.

[LilLash]

Eat when you're hungry and until you are satisfied. I find if I do it right, I tend to eat a small breakfast, an AM snack, lunch and dinner. If my lunch is too small, I'll need a PM snack, but if my dinner is too big, I'll feel gross at bedtime. But, I need the AM snack because the only way I don't get hungry around 10 is if I eat a traditional English breakfast, and that is not something I want to do every day, so I eat a small breakfast and an AM snack.

Do what works best for you for when you're hungry.

[A_Lurker]

Certain foods may make people feel more full (fat, protein) which means they eat less overall.  Some people eat almost nothing for 16 hours, then eat all their calories within 8.  Like others have said, it's mostly about taking in fewer calories than you burn.  It can be spread around in 6 small meals, 3 larger meals, whatever suits you.  I'm proof that eating after 8pm and evening snacking doesn't inhibit weight loss (in fact as a rule I plan for an evening snack).  Most suggestions about late night snacking are based on the fact that people eat extra calories at those hours.

Losing weight, for most people, is about eventually finding a new way of eating.  Something that you feel you can maintain forever is a good start.  Doing something 'until you lose the weight' and cannot continue with could cause the yo yo effect if you go back to your original way of eating.