Friday, July 9, 2010

The Advantages of Eating Dinner Early


Being raised in a Latin environment my family seemed to have carried on certain traditions from dear old Spain. One of them was eating dinner late. 

Now I am not talking ten PM when people in Madrid start thinking of eating their last meal of the day, we had our dinner around 8pm. My friends were always amazed we ate so late as they had their meals six o'clock on the dot. Of course as a child you want to fit in with the other children and I often wished we would eat our meals earlier (especially since we were not allowed to leave the table until the food was all gone which kept my sister and I there till eleven o'clock at night).

Being an adult now and in charge of my own meal time clock I have found out that not only do I like having my dinner earlier but it helps me feel very trim the next day. I have noticed when I eat my dinner at 7pm (no later than 8pm) that the next day I am not bloated or lethargic. My face is less puffy and my stomach does not protrude as if I am four months pregnant. 

With this realization not only did I make a great effort to have my meals early (lets not forget I live in NYC and I am lucky if I get to eat early at least three times a week) but if I drank water for the rest of the evening I even had some weight lost the next morning.

I also changed my thinking of dinner being the biggest most important meal of the day. For me my breakfast is modest but my lunch is where I make sure I get the bulk of my nutrients for the day. Dinner is just a full meal for me and to be eaten in modest portions (again when I am in charge of it).

Other countries take longer with large meals like dinner, and as such, tend to actually be thinner than many Americans and Canadians. Eating dinner early may not be as important as what and how we eat. The main theory behind eating dinner early is that we tend to be less active as the day progresses. Our evenings may consist of TV watching, and our bodies slow down, as we get more tired.

For me I know if I am going to eat dinner early that I should make sure I go to bed early as when I work into the night (and when you are self-employed that is usually is the case) you can wind up having two dinners and a snack by the time your head hits the pillow. The number one way to lose weight is to eat healthfully and get some exercise. If you find that eating dinner early helps this process along, there’s nothing wrong with trying it. On the other hand, if you find that an early meal makes you much more inclined to crave foods or you feel incredibly hungry at bedtime, it may make sense to move your dinner hour to later or add a healthful snack toward the end of the day.

So if you find yourself having dinner later and later and your waistline is expanding try seeing what happens when you are done eating your meals in the early evening and if it has any effect on your weight. What works for one may not work for another and in the end what is most important is what is on your plate and how active your lifestyle is to remain healthy and fit.

Thanks! 

Posted by Cute at 4:31 AM

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