Skipping Dinner to Lose Weight?
Written by Fritz
I recently received this question from one of my Invictus Nutrition clients about skipping dinner to lose weight and wanted to address that to a larger audience as I think it’s something many have either toyed with or considered.
“I did an experiment with loading up on protein during the day and then skipping dinner. Thought it might be a way to drop a quick 3-4 pounds. Didn’t see a difference so not sure it is worth it. Thoughts?”
My Response:
We don’t lose 3-4 pounds of body fat overnight. You might shit out 3-4 pounds of gunk from your intestines if you get sick (I think this happened to you at the very beginning of your nutritional journey). However, once you begin eating again, we fill back up. That’s because you simply emptied the tube that flows through you, and you didn’t lose weight from the mass around the tube which makes YOU up (muscle, fat, bone, connective tissues, organs, etc.).
So let this lesson hit – if you move your calories from the evening to the middle of the day, your total daily calories stays the same, and there is no change in body weight. No, you won’t lose extra weight from skipping dinner.
Now if moving your protein from PM to daytime decreased your total daily calories by 300 and you kept this up for two weeks, every day, then yes, this would induce body weight loss. However, how sustainable is this? And what sources did you get your protein during the day from? And how did your new eating strategy affect how you work, train, and feel?
There is always a lot to consider when making nutritional changes, so ensure that the way you choose to eat aligns well with how you live your best life. If you need help with your nutrition leading into this holiday season, reach out to Coach Fritz or one of our other Invictus Nutrition coaches and set up a free consultation to see how we can help.
