Bariatric Diet; The King and Peasant Strategy
I wake up and barely have time to grab a quick bite to eat before heading out the door for work in the morning. Sometimes I forego breakfast altogether because I just don’t have the time or the appetite. At work, I often find myself too busy to take a lunch so I eat a quick small meal and get back to it so I can meet my boss’s deadline. When I get home, I am starving and eat a giant meal then sit on the couch and snack until bedtime. Sound familiar?
In today’s fast-paced society we place entirely too much emphasis on our late-night meals and do not pay enough attention to our morning diet. This is the ultimate recipe for gaining weight and reversing this trend is the topic of today’s bariatric diet blog. We will be discussing what we call The King and Peasant Strategy and how managing your caloric intake based on this strategy is an excellent tool for bariatric patients and overweight individuals to lose weight. The general concept of this strategy is to eat like a king in the morning, middle-class mid-day, and a peasant in the evening.
Break Your Fast Like a King
Envision a king sitting at the head of a huge table that is filled with delicious food. That is how we want you to start thinking about breakfast. There is a reason breakfast is known as the most important meal of the day. Not only does a good breakfast improve your mood, energy, and concentration, but it will actually help you lose weight. During the evening our metabolism slows down dramatically. According to a 2009 study published in “Metabolism” our metabolic rate drops as much as 35% during sleep. Our bodies naturally conserve energy as we rest and store it for our calorie burning daytime activities. The best way to kickstart the metabolism is to consume a large amount of your daily caloric intake in the morning. Without breakfast, the metabolism will run slowly throughout the day which leads to weight gain. A large breakfast also staves off cravings for sweets and junk food and prevents overeating later in the day. This isn’t an excuse to binge on sugary donuts in the morning, we still need to provide our bodies with high quality, nutritious food.
Nibble Like a Noble
Nobles, or middle-class citizens, weren’t starving nor pigging out like a king and neither should you at lunchtime. Lunch is important to keep the metabolism running for the remainder of the day and to help prevent overeating in the evening. If you had a large breakfast, you won’t feel as hungry in the middle of the day so a solid meal and some healthy snacks should be sufficient to maintain energy levels and prevent hunger. Snacking throughout the day on healthy food like vegetables, fruits, and nuts is an excellent way to keep the metabolic rate up and help the body burn fat.
End of Day Peasantry
As explained above, the body dramatically reduces metabolic activity at night. When we eat a large dinner and snack in the evening, the energy from that food is not burned like it is at breakfast because we are less active in the evening. The energy is not used and the body stores this energy by converting it to fat while we sleep. This is why it is important to not overeat in the evening (eat like a peasant). This doesn’t mean you need to starve yourself or not eat dinner, it just means to be mindful that what you are eating at night will not burn off as quickly so keep the proportions light and nutritious.
Future blogs will provide excellent breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack options that are healthy and nutritious. For bariatric patients, following the King and Peasant Strategy with healthy and nutritious meals, along with supplementation and exercise, is the best way to fast track your weight loss journey. Now break the poor dieting habits this fast-paced lifestyle has created and start dieting smarter, not harder!