▶️ An eating plan that works for one person will not necessarily work for another. Also, the eating strategy that works for you in one season may not necessarily work for you in another season.
▶️ The best thing to do is to have strategies to implement and not be married to an all or nothing approach.
▶️ I am asked frequently about different protocols, how to structure meals, and what is the “best approach.”
▶️ For most of these things, you can pull research that supports either side of the spectrum.
▶️ There are benefits and drawbacks to any way of eating and multiple factors at play that will make a difference in light of individual context.
▶️ For instance, if you’re hungry for breakfast, listen to your body and eat. If you’re not hungry, then there’s no reason to force yourself. On days where you wake up earlier or later your body may have a different preference. If so, honor it.
▶️ The last thing that you want to do is to work against what your body is telling you it needs. To the degree that you restrict, you will eventually rebound in the opposite direction at some point. Willpower will be drained and hunger, energy, and craving feedback will move in a negative direction.
▶️ Whether you have larger meals less frequently or smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day, again is personal preference. It will depend on your ability to schedule your meals based on how busy you are throughout your day. It will depend on how you feel the most satisfied; do you like frequent eating if it’s smaller portions or would you prefer larger potions but only 2-3 meals a day?
▶️ Some people do not have the time to prep multiple small meals. Some people do not like thinking about eating that many times per day. Others who may be recovering from ED might need more structured and frequently scheduled meals. It just depends on the person.
▶️ How many snacks you need will depend on how frequently you’re eating meals and how large your meals are. It will also depend on your activity levels and exercise timing.

▶️ No meal happens in isolation. What you eat throughout your day directly impacts your hunger, energy, and cravings and food choices as the day progresses.
▶️ Prioritizing protein and then structuring your meals (and the timing of the macros within those meals) in such a way as to balance blood sugar is critical regardless of the eating style you adopt.
▶️ Bottom line: Design your own protocol which sets you up for success in terms of results AND which is also sustainable in terms of being enjoyable. If you only think through the filter of what will get you results and neglect taking an avenue that you will also enjoy, it won’t be sustainable and you won’t actually get results in the long run.