Hi, I had posted a question a few weeks ago about the number of hours you wait between meals. Several of you posted you eat when you're hungry, like every 3 hours. My coach told me to eat every 4-5 hours as this is the time your body is burning fat. But, since I've listened to a lot of suggestions on this board I thought I would eat when I was hungry (you know ketosis "hungry") because 3 hours in between meals didn't seem like that much difference and it was nice to eat sooner rather than later. Well, it didn't work. The one week (last week) which I didn't eat every 4-5 hours was my worse weigh in at a loss of 1.6. My weigh in this week was 4.4 and I think it's because I was back to my 4-5 hours between meals. (I actually eat every 4 hours...only 5 if something comes up.)

I just wanted to post this in case someone is stuck and looking for things to tweak. If you're not stuck and losing well by eating every 2-3 hours than great, but for those who need to try a new strategy than this might work for you.

Just wanted to share what seemed to work for me.

Be well.

you just never know...but my coach always said 4-5 hours, but since the protocol is so rigid that is really all you can eat with just one snack.

I do breakfast shake around 8am

lunch salad and packet around noon

dinner meat and veggie around 5pm

I break the pattern by eating my bar around 6pm...I just crave it.

I eat breakfast at 9.. Lunch at 1.. dinner at 5.. and snack at 7:30-8 .. Not sure if it is right but works in my schedule...

During the week I eat breakfast at 8am,
Snack - coffee, 2 cups of veggies at 10am
Lunch - around 12:30
Snack - lettuce and hardboiled egg around 2:30
Supper - between 6 & 7
Snack - around 9

Don't think I can spread it out as I get lightheaded otherwise

3hrs works for me -

breakfast 730
snack 1030
lunch 130
snack 430
dinner 730
and if i'm up, snack at 1030

i don't eat more than 200cal per meal (and it's usually about 150) so it works for me. i use a timer because i just don't get hungry any more.

I have be TERRIBLY hungry the past two day! I'm starving right now! Normally I'm fine. I have coffee at 5am, breakfast between 7 or 8, lunch at 11, snack at 3 and supper around 6ish. I'm in bed by 8:30 so I don't have anything before bedtime usually. If I don't snack at 3, then I'll having something before bed. I've drank a TON of water already today. I drink usually 120 oz or more a day.

I did realize that I have been having my bar for either breakfast or lunch instead of my drink. That might be making a difference. Maybe I'll go back to my "normal" routine tomorrow.

What are you using for a morning and afternoon snack? Vegees? I'm in Phase 4 but am trying to figure out snacks because I can get peckish before my 4 hours are up between meals.

Interesting! I didn't know that about the time the body burns fat. So will eating anything at 3 hours cause a problem or is it just stuff with lots of carbs?

Thanks!! Great advice!

I think these are all phase 1 people....so not sure what they mean by snacks....as there are none to eat...but I do have an occasional pickle and definately a cup of coffee here and there.


In phase 4...where I spent 10 months...I would eat nuts nuts and more nuts...I ate them mid-morning and mid-afternoon

Greek yogurt after dinner I also snacked on cheese and olives alot.

I was doing great too the first week, I weighed in at 9.8 lb loss. Now today I can't keep my finger out of the walden farm peanut butter jar!

I just got home from the IP presentation and somebody asked about people who work long or odd shifts, where they can't stop and get meals at regular times, and he said that once you are in ketosis, the body uses ketones for energy, so it was okay to go for many hours before a meal, if that's what you had to do. It won't screw up the diet. You shouldn't eat all 3 meals at one time, though. You could carry baggies of vegees or bars or snacks with you to help you get through a hectic day, but you do need to make sure you somehow get those 4 cups of vegees and the animal protein in every day.

So what I took from it is that we should do what we can, what works for us, as long as we get all the foods in and stay on plan.

I go about 6 hours between lunch and dinner. It hasn't affected my losses.

My day ususally goes like this:
vanilla drink mix, make a shake and add coffee = breakfast around 8:30
salad and veggies + restricted food = lunch around 12:30
protein and veggies+salad = dinner around 6:30
drink or pudding (or sometimes I make the waffles) = snack/dessert 8:30-9:00

I am usually hungriest early in the day. The wait between lunch and dinner works okay for me, I've never been a 6-times-a-day-eater. If I do feel weak or hungry in between I have some herbal tea in the afternoon, sometimes with splenda.

We're all so different - I guess this diet works for every hunger-type since most of the time we're really not.

Thank you so much for sharing this! As a newbie I will try and incorporate the 4-5 hr timeline between meals, even though I do find myself hungry after about 3-4 hrs.