Alternative Health Blog

One of the most successful eating strategies—to lose weight or increase energy or both—is to eat what nutritionists like to call “mini-meals.” Rather than the traditional three-square of breakfast, lunch and dinner, you will hear dietitians recommend splitting up your breakfast (part of it in the first hour you are awake) and the other half at mid-morning, plus eating a smaller lunch with a plan to eat a snack by 3 p.m. or so. For dinner the idea is to eat moderately, then finish the night with healthy snack.

You can get creative with what constitutes a mini-meal, but one important part of the more frequent/smaller meal approach is making sure you include proteins and carbohydrates along with some healthy fat. For instance, don’t just grab an apple. Cut it up and use nut butter as a dip.

“Mini-meals get people to think more about healthy options than something out of a vending machine,” says Emily Edison, a Seattle nutritionist whose practice offers nutrition counseling, personal training and fitness consulting. “Mini-meals are more like half a turkey sandwich, a tortilla rolled up with ham and cheese or soup.”

Edison said variety is best for your soup choices. You can look for soups with beans or veggies, ones that are broth-based. Minestrone is a great choice.

She didn’t rule out clam chowder: “I’m a big fan myself, so I would never say don’t have some chowder. Just not every day.”

Other ideas: Nuts with dried fruit. Or cheese and fresh fruit, maybe cheese and crackers.. A hard-boiled egg, apple and bun.

Sometimes a half-lunch doesn’t seem like enough. Make it three-quarters, that’s reasonable, just stop short of feeling stuffed. Plus, check yourself. Your need to polish off a whole lunch might occur because you are skipping a mid-morning snack.

Contrary to what some people might think—and some of us remember that actress Jan Fonda popularized never eating after 7 p.m.—Edison said there is no evidence that eating at night puts on pounds.

“It’s more that we gain weight when eating at night even when we are not hungry,” she says. “That’s why I am a huge fan of TiVO [or similar TV/video recording systems]. You don’t get in the habit of going for a snack [during commercials].”

Edison says adding protein to your snacks can lead to more clear-headedness and less thinking about being hungry. She talks regularly to clients about eating three mini-meals between a hearty breakfast and dinner featuring lean protein, a whole grain and at least two vegetables dinner.

“You probably never want to go more than three hours without some food,” says Edison. “And skip the big lunch. Unfortunately, the siesta system doesn’t really work in this country.”

Bob Condor blogs for Alternative Health Journal every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.