As an adult, should I eat when I'm hungry or should I eat on schedule. Which is healthier?

Question

I was told that it is healthy to eat on schedule! I believe that you should eat when you are hungry. Who is right?

Answer 1

depends upon the individual...

Many advocate eating on a schedule instead of eating hungry.
When eating hungry, people tend to overeat and devour anything in sight.

If you're pretty good at controlling yourself, then eat when you're hungry.

Answer 2

Eat on schedule until ur not hungry! You do not have to follow a specific time for the meals, but you should have 3 good meals a day, with 1 or 2 healthy snacks.

Answer 3

Eat on schedule. Eating when you are hungry causes you to over eat and lowers your metabolism so you gain weight rather than loose or maintain it. Try eating small meals through out the day instead of three large meals. I eat two servings of fruits for brunch, one raw veggie or an afternoon snack, and drink a glass of soy milk and eat a sweet snack such as a granola bar or fruit bar after dinner. This way I'm never hungry and I don't binge eat.

Answer 4

Really, if you eat on a schedual you get used to eating at those times, and you are only hungry if you miss eating at those times for some reason. So really, even if you ate on a schedual, you wouldnt be hungry because your body would know when your food is coming, and you would only be hungry right before eating your meal.


Hope that helps!

Answer 5

I always eat when I'm hungry. Now, there's nothing wrong about that. I also believe, eating bits here and there improves metabolism rather than eating on schedule - accumulated hunger means you eat double! And that's no good if you think about it... Don't forget to drink liquid as well. HAPPY EATING!!

Answer 6

It's best to eat 6 smaller meals a day then 3 larger ones. I say eat when you are hungry but make it healthy. After all..hunger is telling your body to eat!

Answer 7

well, it's healthier to eat 3 meals and 3 snacks a day. and it's better to eat on a schedule but you should still eat when you're hungry, of course.

Answer 8

I believe the best bet is to listen to your body, but know what it is saying to you ahead of time. Never eat when you are revenous, but don't eat on a schedule incase you aren't actually hungry when the time rolls around. Your body is intelligent and trying to tell you , listen closely

Answer 9

Eat when you are hungry, rate your hunger on a scale of 1-10. If you are really hungry than eat. Most people that are on a schedule tend to get hungry at the same time(so if they are used to eating a 8:00am, 12:30pm, and 6:00pm than that is when they get hungry.

If you are eating when you are not hungry than you are ignoring your bodies natural mechanism that tells you when you need to eat. Many people will eat too much and throw off this mechanism as well. You tend to overeat when you body can no longer regulate and recognize feelings of hunger and fullness. As babies we are designed to know when we are hungry and full. Most infants will refuse their bottles when they are not hungry and will only eat a certain amount and then stop. Learning to ignore when we are full starts in childhood when parents make their children finish their peas, or take just two more bites.

In my opinion eating when not hungry goes against what the body naturally method of telling us that we need to eat leading to over eating and ignoring feelings of satisfaction. If you really want to learn about it than read "intuitive eating"

Answer 10

Eat when you're hungry. Ideally this should start in childhood, but most people grew up with "eat dinner when it's served and clean your plate." Eating automatically just because it's noon or it's 6:00 amounts to compulsive eating in my opinion.

If you're not used to listening to your body, you need to make sure you're actually hungry when you think you are and not just bored. When you feel hungry, have a drink of water and wait 20 minutes...if you're still hungry then eat.