We often come to hear about the suggestion of having small meals instead of three large meals in a day. It is still a matter of debate and under scrutiny, whether small meals can satisfy your requirement completely or not. However, people who are looking for some athletic edge, for them small meals are quite beneficial. Generally, three square meals are the traditional way of having food. However, it can sometimes leave your tummy bloated, create digestive issues and other issues. Besides, sometimes we don’t have sufficient time to eat the meals properly, which leaves us with a lack of nutrition and energy. In such cases, small meals are quite useful. There are many health benefits of small meals that you can gain. Here are some of the benefits of small meals that you can get.
Maintains energy level
Eating small meals throughout the day can provide your body with a constant energy dose during the day. Athletic people can mainly benefit from the small meals, as carbohydrate is the larger portion of these small meals. The carbs that you consume gets converted into glucose, which is used for energy. When you consume large meals, it leads to an insulin spike that can send your energy level on a roller coaster ride. By consuming small meals at frequent intervals, the insulin level stays stable and provides a steady energy level rather than crashing it.
Easy digestion
When you eat food, the blood flow gets redirected from other parts of the body to the stomach for digestion. However, when you consume large meals, it takes more blood to work through the food, and there is less blood available for other extremities and brain. Hence, you tend to feel sluggish after a large meal. On having small meals, the digestion becomes manageable, and it increases the body’s ability to absorb and use the food’s nutrients properly. Small meals cause less stress on the gastric system, which leads to a happy and healthy overall wellbeing.
Promotes metabolism
Large meals can lead to a negative impact on weight and cause fatigue by promoting sugar cravings. On the other hand, small meals keep the metabolic action high and keep you energetic all day. You don’t feel heavy like the large meals, and your movements remain swift. Thus, you can burn more calories. Studies show that frequent eaters who eat more than six meals a day have lower BMI and increased diet quality.
Improves performance
If you are an active person and have to perform at a high level, then your body needs to be fueled in that manner. Consuming small foods throughout the day helps target the nutrient timing around exercise sessions, like your pre-workout carbohydrate and post-workout protein requirements.
Saves time
Today’s life is relatively fast-paced, and nobody has the time to cook and enjoy large meals with relish. It especially goes for professionals and people who have a tight and busy schedule. Small meals are a boon as they can fill their energy needs by eating frequent small meals rather than taking out time for a large meal.
