how many meals do YOU eat a day?

I have experimented with many different ways of eating in order to find out what works well for me, and I used to eat 5 meals a day. Well, some times even 6 but then I got sick of eating so often, and I hated that I never felt really hungry. I missed actually feeling like the food!

So then I stuck to 5 meals a day 3 - 4 larger meals and 2 snacks) and now I am have just 4 larger meals a day.

I am just interested to know other people’s meal patterns, how many meals do YOU have a day and what works best for you?

For me, I enjoy having 4 meals a day between 400 - 500 calories because I like to be able to leave 4 hours between meals to give my body a chance to digest and I like that less meals allows me to actually get hungry.

Throwing in a snack of fruit between my 4 meals sounds fine some times but I am really loving only having to eat 4 times a day! I have had to increase the size of my meals but I enjoy eating this way so much more!

Also with 5 - 6 meals a day I feel that your body does not get a break from constantly digesting things! I know our bodies get a chance to rest when we sleep, but I do feel better giving my body break from digesting food all day!

Depends on the day, but generally I eat 4 meals - breakfast, lunch, then when I get in from work (4pm), then something else later in the evening post workout or just whenever I get hungry again.

I like to eat most of my food in the morning and at lunch to give myself energy to work out in the evenings.

I was raised in a very '3 square meals a day' household, but find that living by myself is so much easier. I eat when my body gets hungry again, and don't have to eat by the clock or when everyone else is.

I go with three square meals... breakfast, lunch, supper... a mid-morning snack like a piece of fruit and usually a late snack such as a slice of toast or similar.   I really don't have the time or the inclination to be constantly making things to eat plus I think that three substantial meals are more satisfying than picking on bits and pieces.  

4-5 depending on the day and how much I feel like cooking.

Six. Three "meals", three "snacks" - although almost all of my meals are similar in calorie-count (anywhere from 400-550). I'm gaining, so that's why I eat so much, but either way, I just prefer to eat more often (about every three hours) since it keeps up the metabolism, helps keep blood sugar stable, and it keeps me from getting moody because of hunger.

Six for me too. Three meals, three snacks. Breakfast and lunch are about 600-700, snacks are 350, dinner is around 250-300 for me because I have a rather difficult time with it. So I try to maximize the calories I get earlier in the day, though its probably not the best thing. But with 2500 minimum, I prefer to be able to feel like I can relax in the evening as far as getting the rest of my calories in, don't have to worry about it if I've already had 1200-1300 between breakfast and lunch alone. I'm trying to work on balancing it out more, but it seems to be working out alright for me, especially since my first three meal/snacks are the ones with the most amount of time inbetween.

5. Breakfast-Lunch-Snack-Dinner-Snack

There's not that big a gap between my breakfast and lunch so I don't need a mid morning snack, between lunch and dinner I've got about 5 hours so a mid day snack of about 200 calories is necessary. I also usually work out between Snack and dinner so I need the fuel. I need to put something in my tummy before I go to bed.

7 small meals which equals out to about 1500 calories a day

3 meals, and 2-3 snacks, usually my snacks are small so it often ends up being 3 snacks.  I have the biggest snacks in the morning and afternoon and my after dinner snack is usually a slice of toaste or yogurt or SF pudding.

3 meals a day and sometimes 1-2 snacks depending on how I'm feeling.  I've never been a snacker so that is really unnatural and rather unenjoyable for me.  I listen to my body though.  If I need a snack, I'm going to eat!

i usually do breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, snack

but sometimes breakfast, lunch 1, lunch 2, dinner, snack

and sometimes breakfast, lunch, snack, snack, dinner, snack

basically 5 meals.. but what i eat after lunch / pre-dinner depends on how hungry i am or what i'm up to that day. 

depends. ive been known to have 8 mini meals a day. about every waking 3 hours with some protein & fat.  i can't eat large amounts of food during the day unless i can laze around. i usually save my largest meal for dinner after my workout.

edit: i have actually found that smaller more frequent meals has aided my digestion. i get less bloat from smaller meals. but it all depends on what & how you eat. i always try to relax when i am eating as that helps digestion. also enzymes are important in helping with digestion. thats why always eating processed & overcooked foods all the time, is not ideal. there is one thing i am bad at that doesn't help digestion, drinking liquids with my food. it dilutes the digestive 'juices' (enyzmes & all that ph/acid stuff).

3 standard meals (b, l, and d), and 3 snacks

I have found that for me, it is best to kind of "graze".  Like, I know that for breakfast, I am going to have yogurt, oatmeal, and fruit.  But, I don't sit and eat it all at once.  I will eat the yogurt, then about an hour later, eat the oatmeal, an hour later, eat the fruit.

I hate feeling hungry, and that is when I am at my weakest.  So I have learned that if I am "constantly" eating, I am never just starving hungry.

I stay between 1250-1300 calories a day, but pretty much plan what I am going to eat each day before I eat it.

3 meals a day plus 2 snacks. I tried the 5 to 6 meals a day but I felt "stuffed" all of the time. I was eating when I wasn't hungry at all. So, now I have a morning snack and an evening snack with my 3 squares a day.

I eat 6 times a day. 3 small 'main' meals, 2 decent snack-times in between and then one snack a while after dinner. Each meal/snack is spaced 3 hours apart (or as close to that as possible depending on my schedule). Sometimes it can be difficult to make time for all the meals but the extra thought and planning is worth it for me. I love how I am always more or less satisfied and never get that nasty bloated feeling since all my meals are small. 3 'square meals' just make me feel like a balloon and don't keep me fueled long enough. I have lost 26 pounds doing the 6-meals thing (just have 4 more to lose) so it definitely works for me and has sped up my metabolism (which comes in handy as a slip-up with food doesn't end up doing as much damage as it would have before).

I used to be the same B L D plus 2 snacks, but I got sick of planning and counting my food all day, especially if I'm hungry.  So I got into the habit of preparing my days food, put it in a big bag/bowl, then eat what ever I want from it during the day.  I know I'm within my calories, I can eat what ever I want and I only have to think about it once (I lost around 20 pds doing this!)

I have 3 meals...Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner, and I usually have a snack at some point in the day.  Sometimes I have two snacks if I'm hungrier than usual.

Two meals, 2 snacks and a protein shake.

Breakfast; snack; late, large lunch; snack (at dinner time, but only about 100-200 cal, can't call that a meal); and protein shake after workout.

Usually 3 to 5 a day.  I always eat breakfast before going to work.  After that I eat whenever I get hungry and have time.

I make sure to eat breakfast but after that, I eat when I'm hungry. This way I don't get overly hungry which leads to irrational eating.