All slimmers want to maximise their potential weight loss by eating the right foods and avoiding the wrong ones.
According to research, however, the key to success lies in the timing of meals.
The optimum time to have breakfast is shortly after 07:00, with 07:11 picked as ideal. Lunch is best enjoyed earlier rather than later with the key time between 12:30 and 13:00 with 12:38 being spot on.
Leaving dinner later than 19:00 can be ruinous for diets – the recommended time is between 18:00 and 18:30, with 18:14 the best. The timings came from a survey of 1 000 slimmers, 84% of whom said sticking to regular meal times was crucial in losing weight.
A further 76% said breakfast was the most important meal of the day – and eating it daily had helped them cut calories. The same number also said they had benefited by having a light lunch and never skipping a midday meal.
Dinner must be eaten early to maximise weight loss because we are less active in the evening and extra calories are more likely to turn to fat. Two-thirds of slimmers recommended eating dinner before 19:00. Most dieters said the key was an even calorie intake throughout the day.
The research, for diet company Forza Supplements, supports the dieting mantra: Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like pauper.
The findings showed that the four hours between 18:00 and 22:00 was when most diets go wrong. What scuppered many slimming regimes was snacking past 20:00 - a lapse suffered by 62% of those polled.
Lee Smith, of Forza Supplements, said: “The results show that breakfast really is the most important meal of the day for successful dieters. Skipping it just makes you hungrier and more likely to over-indulge in later meals.”
LONDON DAILY MAIL
Category: