Few people have yet to experience the glory that is eating one meal a day.
- No, eating one meal per day won’t make you fat.
- It won’t make you lose all your muscle.
- And it won’t screw your metabolism into the ground.
But it does allow you to feast like a fucking king every single night while eating your favorite foods.
And no, this isn’t a scam and there isn’t even any secret “guru” magic behind it.
It’s really just common sense.
But fitness and common sense is a lost art these days.
If you follow it, eating once per day JUST WORKS.
And if you’ve struggled with more traditional diets that make you eat 3-6 meals per day, then this may be the most stupidly simple way for you to successfully lose weight, ever!
If you’ve dreamed of eating 24 ounce steaks, with a mountain fries and ice cream, EVERY SINGLE night while still losing fat and building muscle then read on.
Eating one meal per day in a nutshell
The basic idea behind eating one meal per day is simple.
Every day, you eat one big ass meal (preferably at night). The basic idea is to get the majority of your calories in a single meal.
And during the day, you don’t eat anything.
However during the day you can eat 1-2 pieces of fruit or some protein after you workout.
This allows you to eat much more, feel fuller, and better adhere to your diet.
Remember, eating one meal a day is NOT magic
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When I first started eating one meal per day, I had this weird belief that eating once per day gave me the power to lose more weight than traditional diets.
While this might seem like the case, nothing could be further from the truth.
It might be nice to believe that eating once per day causes all these different hormones to change in my body that helps me to burn “more” body fat.
But that’s just not the case.
And insulin levels – everyone always brings up fucking insulin levels.
Don’t worry about your damn insulin levels.
Just focus on creating a calorie deficit – that’s the only way to lose weight and always will be.
Eating once per day just happens to be a great way to create a deficit that many people can actually stick with.
For example, let’s say you need to eat 2000 calories per day to lose weight.
Diet #1 has you eating 3 meals and 2 snacks.
Diet #2 has you eating one meal.
In the end of the day, calories are exactly the same.
You’re just splitting your calories up a lot more in Diet #1.
That’s it. There is no magic. Just simple math.
5 reasons why you should eat one meal per day
I originally came across the idea of eating one meal per day from the Warrior Diet back around 2008.
At that time I was brainwashed by all the “eat 6 meals per day or die” BS and the Warrior Diet was my first foray into intermittent fasting.
Hell, even Terry Crews does intermittent fasting.
I’m not saying it works for everyone, but if you love to feast every single day, have more energy, and potentially be 200x more productive during the day, then maybe this something you should give a shot.
Here are 5 reasons I recommend eating once per day:
Reason #1: Increased energy
How many times have you eaten lunch only to feel super tired 2 hours later? It sucks.
We’re all told lunch is supposed to give us this magic boost of energy, and maybe it does for some people, but I’ve found that most people just fall into a 2 pm slump where they eat lunch and their productivity shoots down the drain.
When you fast throughout the entire day, you experience this amazing surge of energy that lasts the entire day.
Reason #2: Never feel deprived when dieting
One of the many reasons people fail at diets is because they don’t get this sense of satisfaction with what they’re eating and how much they’re eating.
When you follow the conventional 6 meals per day model, you have survived on a couple of hundred calories every few hours.
At the end of the day, you just never feel satisfied.
You feel like something is missing…
Ironically, eating once per day solves this problem for most people.
The act of fasting throughout the day is a very powerful appetite suppressant, so when you have your massive feast at the end of the day, you practically feel “stuffed” every night.
Reason #3: More time & more productivity
Imagine how much more work you could get done if you didn’t have to worry about eating during the day.
No more worrying about that mid-morning snack, no more stopping at subway during lunch, and no more 2 pm energy slumps.
All this time you save can now be used to do more productive things that truly matter (like looking at pictures of cats online).
Reason #4: EVERYTHING tastes better
Fast the entire day, then eat a grape.
Just one grape.
I guarantee that grape will be the best tasting grape you’ve ever had in your entire fucking life.
Look, I don’t know the scientific reason for why food tastes so much better after a fast, and frankly, I don’t care.
But some of the best meals in my life have been after a long fast.
Reason #5: Because eating cake every night is awesome
Do you know what’s awesome? Cake.
Do you know what’s not awesome? Not eating cake.
Cake makes everything in life better but with traditional dieting, you aren’t allowed to eat cake, which sucks.
Everyone needs more cake in their life (scientifically proven), so why not have a slice…or two, every night.
When you only eat one meal per day, you can afford to have some cake every night since your calorie budget is so much bigger.
Is coffee, water, tea, or diet soda okay during the fast?
Yes, as long as it’s zero calories, it’s fine.
Coffee and tea is actually a great appetite suppressant.
Eat 1-2 pieces of fruit during the day
While it’s totally fine if you can go the full day without eating anything, a lot of people do get hunger pangs no matter how much experience they have with intermittent fasting.
In this case, you can have 1-2 pieces of fruit throughout the day. This shouldn’t add up to any more than 200 calories plus you won’t feel a huge drain in energy compared to eating something high in carbs like a granola bar or a sandwich.
I recommend 2 large apples due to the large fiber and water content to keep you full
Supplement with some whey protein after you workout
If you train hard with weights 3-4 times per week while fasting (and you should) and follow the 1 meal per day diet then you should consume some 100% whey protein powder after working out so you don’t go half the day without any protein in your system.
I’m not really anal about the post-workout “window of opportunity,” but it’s best to get some protein in within 2-3 hours after your workout.
Why 100% whey protein? Because it has the most complete amino acid profile which is great for muscle growth and recovery.
As for which protein powder is best? Try Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard.
The one meal per day approach might not work great for muscle building
You can absolutely build quality, lean muscle by eating once per day.
BUT…some people need A LOT of calories to put on muscle and if you’re supposed to eat 4000 calories per day, it’s going to be pretty hard for some to get that in one meal.
So unless you have a huge appetite, I would probably be better off splitting it up into 3-6 meals.
For more info on gaining weight and building muscle, check out these posts:
Eating one meal per day vs. other intermittent fasting protocols
Eating once per day is just one version of intermittent fasting.
And there are dozens of other fasting/feasting protocols out there that play with different fasting and eating windows.
But after looking at all of them, you’ll notice that the majority of them have the same underlying concept – fast for an extended period of time and get the majority of your calories in a small eating window.
Let’s look at some of the other intermittent fasting systems and how they compare to eating once per day.
One meal per day vs. 16/8 Leangains
If you follow Leangains, this means you’ll be fasting for 16 hours per day and eating for the other 8 hours.
During the 8-hour eating window, you’ll typically be eating 2-3 main meals.
There really isn’t a big difference between a Leangains style fast and eating once per day. The main difference is in the eating window and that all boils down to personal preference.
One meal per day vs. Eat Stop Eat
Eating once per day and Eat Stop Eat are not the same thing.
Many people confuse the two since they both involve 24-hour fasts.
Here’s the difference:
Eating once per day – Fast for 24 hours, under eat during the day, and get your entire daily calorie intake in one meal, every day.
Eat Stop Eat – Completely fast for 24 hours 1-2 times per week (no calories at all), eat a “normal sized” meal at the end of the 24 hour fast.
The problem some people might face is defining what “normal sized” means. It’s basically telling you to not eat until you’re stuffed and make sensible food choices.
But if you want to get more technical, your meal after an ESE style fast should be no more than 40% of your daily calorie intake.
Read my Eat Stop Eat review here.
ESE forces you to create a massive calorie deficit on your fasting days while the one meal per day approach simply changes up your meal frequency but you still get the same amount of calories every day.
One meal per day vs. 2 meals per day
Nothing different here besides meal frequency. If you want to eat 2 meals per day, that’s fine, just make sure your overall calories are the same by the end of the day.
Can you mix and match different diet & fasting approaches
Absolutely!
I am all about diet flexibility.
If you want to follow the one meal per day approach one day and do 2-3 meals per day the next, that’s totally fine.
For example, you can structure your diet to look something like this:
- Monday: 1 meal
- Tuesday: 2 meals
- Wednesday: Eat Stop Eat
- Thursday: 1 meal
- Friday: 1 meal
- Saturday: 4 meals
- Sunday: 1 meal
Remember, a calorie deficit is the most important thing to create when dieting.
So just because you’re following a one meal per day diet doesn’t mean you literally have to eat one meal per day, EVERY SINGLE DAY.
If you want to go out and have brunch on Sunday, then screw it, have 2 meals that day. Don’t be obsessive about this stuff.
Recommended Reading: The 1000 calorie diet
The one meal per day FAQ
I’ve compiled a list of commonly asked questions from readers about eating one meal per day.
Hopefully, this answers all your questions and gets you on the right path.
What kind of foods should you eat?
There isn’t any single food that you should or shouldn’t eat.
If you have specific macro/calorie goals, you still need to hit them. The only difference is you have the luxury of hitting them in a single meal so for those that like to eat a ton of food in one sitting, you’re going to love this way of eating.
But obviously, you need to get a hefty amount of protein, a good amount of carbs, and some fat.
So something like a massive steak, some roasted potatoes, a big ass salad, plus some cookies and ice cream would make for a pretty epic feast.
Recommended reading: “What Are The Best Foods To Eat?” Here’s Your Answer, Now Stop Asking Me
How many calories per day should you eat in my one meal?
I recommend multiplying your bodyweight in pounds by 10-12 to get your daily calorie intake.
Use 10 if you have 50+ pounds to lose or if you’re a woman. Everyone else can start with 12.
This is just an estimate. It’s impossible for any formula to accurately tell you your daily calorie needs.
How many hours should you wait before going to sleep after you have your big meal?
Doesn’t matter. Sleep whenever you want.
What does this do to the metabolism?
Nothing bad. Read this article on metabolism myths for more info.
How long can you eat one meal per day for?
As long as you want. This isn’t a quick fix diet.
Eating once per day is a real, long-term approach to dieting that can work for as long as you want.
Does it matter whether you eat your one meal in the morning or at night?
Nope doesn’t matter at all.
It’s a matter of personal preference. Most people do it at night.
If you eat your one meal for breakfast or lunch, you might feel sluggish and tired the rest of the day since you have so much food in your system.
Could eating one meal per day be bad for you? I keep reading other articles online that say it’s bad for you.
No it’s not.
Most people criticizing eating once per day are just woefully ignorant. Read those articles, and you’ll find it’s just people making assumptions without any real-world data.
Can I eat McDonalds for my one meal?
Sure, but I wouldn’t eat fries and Big Macs every night.
Use some common sense here.
You can still eat the foods you love, but you should still be eating mostly whole, nutritious foods for maximize your health and performance.
I love to drink coffee. Can I drink coffee during the fast?
Yup, coffee is a great appetite suppressant to use while fasting.
Can I add milk and sugar to the coffee?
I would stick with zero calorie sweeteners if possible. A splash of milk is fine, but don’t go overboard.
Is eating one meal per day guaranteed to help you lose weight?
Of course not.
It will only work if you put in the work.
I know the majority of you reading this are looking for some magic fat loss hack but eating one meal per day is not that.
You still need to make sensible food choices and you still need to be consistent like any other diet.
Nothing is guaranteed in life.
I tried this diet and it doesn’t work for me? What do I do?
Impossible to say. Maybe you’re eating too many calories. Maybe you’re not tracking your calories correctly.
It’s usually one of those two problems.
Why do you recommend the main meal to be eaten at night?
Whatever you want but try to make it sensibly healthy.
That means something like grilled meat, a carb source like rice/pasta, some veggies, and maybe some ice cream at the end is great.
Obviously food choices vary from person and culture, but use some common sense.
Can you drink alcohol while doing this?
Having one drink per night is fine.
Everything in moderation.
Should you exercise before or after your meal?
Again, it doesn’t matter.
It’s all up to you. Find what works best with your schedule and lifestyle.
Do you need to count calories while eating one meal per day?
I personally recommend tracking calories when starting out, only because it gives you an unprecedented level of tracking.
If you’re not losing weight, then you know exactly why and you can adjust calories accordingly.
I never want people to become obsessed with tracking calories, but it does give you a level of precision that you can’t get anywhere else.
But as you become more advanced and can recognize/estimate portion sizes more accurately, then you can back off from the calorie counting.
What if you get hungry when fasting?
Here are some tips:
- Drink plenty of water, black coffee, and tea.
- Chew sugarless gum.
- Stay busy and productive. People eat more out of boredom than anything else.
How much water should you drink?
At a minimum, enough to stay hydrated.
Also, if you’re pissing green, then you probably need to drink more water (and see a doctor).
The “8 glasses per day” recommendation is pretty solid.
I will say that drinking more water can help ward off hunger pangs.
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Have you tried the one meal per day diet? Let me know what you’re experience was in the comments.
I’m on day 8 of this diet and I haven’t seen nearly the weight loss people are claiming to see. I weighed 177 when I started, 5′-5”, sedentary during the day (office job at a construction firm) and do light cardio 5-6 days a week before my feast. I’m not lifting weights because I wanted to get down to 160 before I started trying to put on muscle. I’ve controlled the hunger pangs, eat an apple about midday and nothing but black coffee and water (besides the apple) throughout the day. I eat a big fucking salad (lettuce, onions, tomatoes, carrots, spinach, bell peppers) before anything else followed by steamed veggies (asparagus, broccoli, etc). From there I move on to my proteins (chicken, fish, etc) and then if I feel like it a couple hours later I’ll have some cards (bread in my soup). I don’t eat candy, I don’t drink soda, I try to keep my food healthy and “organic”. I don’t eat pizza, or cake, or any of that crap.
Seems like I’m doing something wrong or maybe this isn’t for me. However, my energy is through the roof, my mental clarity is there, everything else people have talked about I’ve experienced.
My cardio is based on interval sprinting and light jogging. No weights.
Not sure what gives.
thanks but you shouldn’t use illness as a way to lose weight on purpose.
No I wasn’t, as I said I couldn’t face food I was really sick. Today I will be sticking to the diet and have a good feed at tea time.
Ive been eating one meal a day at night for at least a month now (and at previous stages of my life) and actually thought I’m making a mistake by doing this. It’s just a routine I got myself into because I’m too busy to eat during the day. And I love the energy! You’ve set my mind at ease that its okay to carry on as I’ve been doing. Thank you!
Hey Keith i like your simple no nonsense facts and freedom about all this. Im skinny and actually would like to gain some weight, but not in a rush. I have delt with a lotta anxiety at work and such, and ive been fastibg during the day and doing big meals at night and feeling great! Im relaxed at work during the day, im focused, and getting tons more done. My question is if i keep this up will i start losing muscle? Im at 155 and ive never been over 160 in my life im 6 ft tall 30 yrs old. Thanks
if u want to gain weight, i don’t recommend 1 meal per day since it’s hard for a lot of people to eat so much in one meal. Give it a shot but from what I notice, most people who want to gain weight do best on at least 2 meals.
When you eat your last meal of the day…can you still have tea or coffee afterwards?
yeah
I used to weigh 250 lbs and am now down to my new low yesterday of 171 lbs. I owe my success to the one meal a day diet and to working my ass off. Here’s what I do and IT WORKS: I don’t eat breakfast or lunch, then, make sure I exercise BEFORE I eat dinner every night, so I am running on an empty stomach.(Body has no choice but to burn fat instead of food sources) I run 5k’s 3-4 times a week. I have horrible eating habits so this is the only diet that works for me. Let me say this, starting out, it is VERY difficult to do. (Stomach Cramps, Hunger Pains, etc.) But once your body gets used to it, it’s a piece of CAKE. Pun-intended*
yeah hunger pangs are pretty much guaranteed, but they get better over time.
Im in my first week of this diet and I love it. I drink McDonald coffee in the morning, drink lots of water and eat my mine meal around 3:00 and nothing for the rest of the day. I eat whatever I want at the 3:00 meal. My friend who is African told me this is how she eats to stay skinny. I feel lifhter without the early lunch which makes ne sluggish in the afternoon. By waiting till 3:00, Im hungry yet not starved. I may have a fruit in the evening. BTW..this is how they eat in Europe.
Hey Keith, I am currently on a cut, 5 11 180 pounds. I’ve been following a modification of this idea for about a few months now. I started off at 185 pounds and have been losing weight and lifting four times a week. I have been gaining some nice strength gains while still slowly losing weight. I was wondering if you can assess my diet. I drink a protein shake in the morning for hunger purposes and around 1 o clock pm I eat a big meal, usually a burrito with a lot of meat. I then have my next meal after working out around 8 pm but very small, no more than 300 calories usually. I also drink chocolate milk before sleep. This is my usual diet so one big meal middle of the day, and very little food rest of the day. Is this an acceptable diet for my goals, My caloric intake is probably around 2000 calories. I have enough energy for my workout due to my meal at middle of the day and my hardest phase hunger wise is in the morning before that meal. I want to get somewhere around 170, can this current diet keep up with my goals. It’s been nice so far
calorie wise, sounds fine. But you also need to make sure you get enough protein, not sure how much you’re getting just based on your sample meal plan.
Hey, Yeah so I wasn’t specific but for dinner I eat straight up meat and then my milk. Anyways I’m estimating around 130 grams of protein a day, Is that too little or good enough for my weight? It’s interesting that I’ve actually hit new strength benchmarks even on a small deficit. I never have been able to bench for more than a plate on each side, but now I can do more and it was all about training harder, even though I’m not on a surplus of food.
aim for at least 0.8 grams per lb of BW so in your case that will be 144 grams.
Oh my gosh. This is the best way to lose weight and maintain. Actually it’s the only thing that has worked for me. I swear by it. People think I work out all the time. I am probably in the best shape of my life. And I can pig out when I eat. And I love the fruits anytime.. The fat on my belly has melted away. I look slim and trim.
Awesome! When did you start?
How many calories should that one meal be?
use 10-12x your bodyweight in pounds.
I am on day 6! I am doing a version I read more than 10 yrs ago, eat all your food for the day within 1 hr. I am doing around 1200 calories. I get my first 250 by getting a McDonalds grilled snack wrap, no cheese and no dressing. I eat this on my way home after I get off work at 7 pm. I then make dinner for myself and family and without any guilt I live it up by indulging in around 1000 calories. I like to have a huge Idaho potato with cheese. I am stuffed by the time I finish. So from 8 pm until 7 pm the next day, the only thing I consume is Diet Coke in the morning and ice water in the afteroon through out the night. I love water, and have noticed it relieves hunger pain. I did not weigh myself 6 days ago, bc weighing myself never works. I also have not told my husband or kids what I am doing, because announcing I am going on or am on a diet never works. I am 5’7″ and my weight within the past 5 years has fluctuated between 195 and 205. I am 46. Prior to a quick 60 pound weight gain I fluctuated between 145 and 155, even shortly after the birth of my 2 kids. Ev1 who knew me were always shocked how quickly I lost my baby weight. I only mention that because a lot of weight gain is from child birth. I gained mine within 1 year after my youngest son turned 4. I have tried adkins, I lost 3 pounds in 3 months, hubby lost 33. Other sensible diets I have began, failed by day 3. Doing this all calorie intake within one hour is so easy and I can tell I have lost weight in my face. Plus i have received compliments on my outfits the last few days! Lot’s of them!! Feel free to ask me any questions.
Hi! You sound a lot like me. Are you talking about the carb addict diet where you eat everything within 1 hour? I did that several years ago, and I pigged out like crazy every night. After a few weeks, I was sure I was gonna be at least 5 pds heavier, but I didn’t even gain. I didn’t lose either, but I’m sure it’s because I went way over on calories. I can do this, just like you, as long as I keep within 1200-1500 calories. In that one meal, I can still fit in some sweets that I love. Is this what you are doing? What do your meals look like. I would love to chat with you. Amy
At first I lost weight, I lost about 10 pounds. Now several weeks later, I’m stuck at the same weight. What could I be doing wrong?
weight loss slows down as you get closer and closer to your goal weight. You’re not doing anything wrong, just stay consistnet.
I discovered intermittent fasting by accident. I was looking for a way to reduce my sodium intake so I decided to start eating only dinner at the same time every night. I also limited all food high in salt but I ate plenty of fried foods, carbs & some sweets. Not only did it control BP spikes I loss a ton of weight and did it without any exercise. Now my body is use to me eating like this so if I graze or snack all day I get constipated and or super gassy.
Although i am 120 pounds overweight I never attempted a diet before because i gained weight so rapidly and was always thin i couldnt get used to the idea of the word “diet”. After researching and finding out 3500 calorie loss takes away a pound i figured this was the best way to do it. One nice meal to look forward to in the evening. I will munch on some carrots or celery or a yogurt mid day and then eat what i like for dinner. However I do not usually eat dessert. If i do its an Italian ice or something with under 100 calories. So its been 7 1/2 weeks of doing this and I am down 21 pounds. I have not had to give up anything that I really like. Some days i eat a healthy dinner and some days i just crave a juicy cheeseburger so i eat it. I never thought losing weight could be this easy. I say DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
“diet” is what it is.
Some people hate the word and want to use “lifestyle.”
I frankly don’t care too much.
I’ve been doing this for about a week now and it makes me feel really bloated during the day when I don’t have anything in my stomach I drink a lot of water and I drink a lot of coffee in the early hours how long will it take for me to actually see results
it’s no faster than eating 6 meals per day or 3 meals per day. Assuming you’re in a standard 500 cal per day deficit, you’ll lose 1-1.5 pounds per week.
So is the catch kind of that then you don’t get the proper vitamins? When i eat normally throughout the day, I eat a lot but try to make them healthy low calorie foods. I feel like people who follow this 1 meal diet will just freak out and eat junk food…. loosing weight but not necessarily being healthy.
then you’re not doing it right, you’re just eating crap. this “diet” is used just to help you feel more satisfied which in turn leads to weight loss.