Should dinner be the largest meal of the day?

[BreadFan]

fitbit says I am eating too much for dinner every night. I think I am averaging about 8-900 calories for dinner is that really too much?

[WendyB]

It should not matter as long as you within your daily Calorie range.

My dinners are larger then the other two

[Jami]

The addition of the dinner calories has put you over for the entire day, not just for that one meal. In order to eat a large dinner, you will need to cut back on meals and snacks earlier in the day to avoid going over in the evening. 

The calories in, calories out calculator can be deceptive. It shows how many calories you took in (based on your food log) and how many calories you worked off (based on your activity level). Another calculation, your calorie allowance which appears on your food log, takes into consideration whether your settings include a weight loss goal. If you wanted to lose 1 lb a week, it will remove 500 calories from your daily calorie allowance.

As a results your calorie in, calorie out icon may show you "under" for the day if you were short by 300 calories ... but the calorie allowance will show you over for the day since you were supposed to be 500 calories behind, not 300. At least this is how I understand it. If I'm wrong, maybe someone will correct.

As for whether dinner should be the largest meal of the day, it is commonly the largest meal in the U.S. but many other cultures favor the largest meal during the middle of the day or early afternoon, with a smaller meal at night. There are also many people who feel you should not go to bed with an overfilled stomach. I don't know of any research that sheds light on this, but I do think it helps to allow some time after your meal for some exercise, such as an evening stroll. This is the time when your bloodstream is filled with glucose from your recent meal, and a great time to put that glucose to work doing something positive, like moving muscles.

[BreadFan]

Hi Jami, I should have been more clear. I haven't been going over my daily calories. Just Dinner seems to be the most calorie dense meal

[disneybruin]

I get that dinner warning all the time. I really don't think it matters that much. Dinner is my favorite meal and I consume most of my calories then. As long as I'm at or below my target, I don't stress about it. 🙂

[bexstar]

Don't worry about it being the largest meal. Only if you go over your calories should it become a concern.

[TheSageMage]

I don't have references, but I've often read/heard that dinner should be lighter than other meals as we aren't often active after dinner, and so those calories don't get worked off often times. 

That being said, theoretically weight loss should just be calories in vs. calories out, so as long as you are within a range you should be okay. IME I tend to eat a bigger breakfast and a lighter dinner, or at least work out after a larger dinner and I've been losing weight consistently for the past few months. 

[ericakelly]

I try to follow this rule:

Eat breakfast like a king

Lunch like a princess

Dinner like a pauper

And of course, snacks in between!

Erica

[disneybruin]

Just to play devil's advocate, I should add that I am losing a lot of weight with dinner being my largest meal. I eat about 500 calories total for breakfast/lunch and "save" the remaining 900 calories for dinner. I also never snack. Different things work for different people!

[TheSageMage]

Agree'd. I hope I convayed that in my post, but you have to do what ever works for you. Mine works for me, so I thought I'd share. That's the one thing I hate about weight loss is that it's a learning experience and sometimes you can spend a while learning how to lose it, but once you stumble upon your formula, it's a great thing to see. 

[tieshask8]

I too love dinner and due to my work schedule, it is often late at night.  I read that if you like to eat more at night or you tend to eat/snack late, that 15 minutes of walking will jumpstart digestion so you are not going to bed on a full stomach.  I have lost over 50lbs and keep my daily calories to 1300-1350 calories with dinner being my biggest meal.  If I eat earlier, it also will include a healthy late snack.  As long as your total calories in are less than your total daily energy expediture....you will lose!  If you love a bigger dinner, keeping that consistent will also probably translate into a happier you that will stay on track.  Good luck.

[JenniLacey]

I eat 60% of my calories in the evening and lost 60 lbs in 8 months. I've been maintaining my weight for a year now. I eat a huge bowl of Greek yogurt, natural peanut butter, bananas and Kashi cereal (400 cals) right before I turn in for the night. I also don't eat breakfast until noon.

I think the eat breakfast like a king, conventional wisdom is bogus. Your body metabolizes the same way at night as it does during the day. Taking energy from *both* stored fat and the food you eat. Fitbit is going by a single study done on mice that does not disprove the mountains of evidence supporting the Calories in vs. Calories out theory.