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Suppose I tell you that you can lose weight by just simply eating one meal per day. Would you believe me? The fact is that most people would think that only eating one meal on a daily basis would be just crazy. The most common belief regarding losing weight is that you need to eat smaller meals while exercising more. However whilst this approach may work, this may not be the quickest or the most effective way to achieve weight loss according to several fitness experts.
For weight loss, a person simply needs to eat fewer calories than their body burns for fuel until they start losing weight. Like this example; if you need 2000 calories and only drink water for most of the day until you get home and have a nice 1000 calorie meal you will put your body in a caloric deficiency. If you eat one meal per day at roughly 1000 calories and you need 2000 to maintain your current body weight in a week you will be at a 7000 calorie deficiency from just one meal per day. That is a 2 lb fat loss without exercising. Lets take a look at examples of those who went on the one meal a day diet.
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One Meal A Day Success Stories
David Fowler, 46, one of the most visible practitioners of the one meal a day diet, started the diet while a stay-at-home dad in 2011.
“Being the full-time carer to four kids under six years old is demanding and stressful, and being around food all day makes comfort eating all too easy. I felt fat and miserable and it was affecting my relationship with my wife and kids. I knew I had to take control of my eating so I decided to give the diet a try. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made” says Fowler.
Eating most of his calories in the evening meal meant he could fit his diet to the family’s routine while continuing to eat the food he enjoyed. He lost 13.5kg in five months.
“When I reached my target weight, I felt good about myself and good about life,” he says.
Since then, the emergency services worker has managed to maintain his weight within about 4.5kg by dipping back into the diet when the need arises.
“I love eating this way because it means I get to eat what I want on a daily basis and still lose weight. No food is off limits and I rarely feel like I’m missing out” he says. You can follow David’s progress and look back at his trials and tribulations with his diet approach at his website here…
The theory goes that nobody needs to consume the standard 2500 calories a day across several sittings. Allegedly, most people, especially those leading sedentary lives, only need a third as many which can be downed in one session.
The British aristo, Lord Falconer, once lost 35kg over two years on the diet. He went without breakfast and lunch, munched on apples during the day and then ha a normal dinner.
Likewise, the famously fit America general Stanley McChrystal reportedly eats just dinner. According to The Telegraph newspaper in Britain, McChrystal runs daily at “a ferocious pace”, covering some 13 kilometres in an hour.
Potential Drawbacks
For such an extreme form of diet you would expect some drawbacks, and there are some. If you are used to eating three meals a day and snacking in between you have got a hard habit to break. Going to one meal a day can feel like going cold turkey. You will get hunger pangs – but it is important not to give in…..consider pangs to be signals rather than demands. If pangs get to much to bear you can drink water or eat an apple to reduce the pangs without damaging your diet to much.
Initially many people report brain fog and reduced concentration. This is probably due to withdrawl of regular carbs and the ensuing cravings, but should pass after a few days.
David recalls times when he suffered from moments of weakness and periods of light headedness. Beware these moments can happen especially if you are driving or doing demanding work. If necessary eat something – a diet isn’t worth putting yourself a risk of physical harm.
Eating One Meal A Day Benefits
Apart from losing weight many people report additional benefits to this type of diet. Practical benefits are that the diet is extremely easy to follow and very self explanatory. Additionally it fits well with family life – you can miss a breakfast and save time, diet at work and then enjoy a family meal in the evening. Additionally the diet is flexible so if you have an important lunch meeting you can partake and miss a later meal without coming off your diet.
One of the top benefits of this diet is that it is easy to stay motivated. You don’t have to cut food types or count calories. When it comes to your meal you can indulge – it is incredibly difficult to intake all your calories in one meal so desert is on!
Many people report feeling sluggish after a lunch. This is usually due to a rush of refined carbs and the corresponding crash an hour later. With this diet you can miss lunch everyday and maintain consistent energy levels and productivity.
This diet is so simple you can duck in and out of it at will. As David suggests, if you go back to normal eating and put weight on again you can easily dip back into one meal a day mode.
Who Shouldn’t Contemplate This Diet
It would be foolish to expect everyone can do this diet without risk. Children, pregnant women and the aged should stay clear of this diet. Additionally strength training athletes are likely to see their performance deteriorate on a diet of this type.
One Meal A Day Diet Tips
To achieve success with this diet you need to set a few rules to help you stay on target. Try to limit the time duration of your allowed meal to an hour. Without a limit it is easy to binge in a long session thinking your not breaking the rules. This way leads to failure. Have discipline and set a duration to ensure success.
Don’t be completely rigid in your thinking – if you are having a tough time snack on apples and drink plenty of water. Apples have fibre that will help the hunger pangs and some sugar to reduce urges. Water will help feel fuller longer and will blunt your appetite.
Cheat on the weekend. Have a cheat day to prevent weight loss plateauing and maintain your motivation. A day of eating what you want when you want will not eliminate the progress you have made throughout the week.
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