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I used to read many health and fitness-related articles that were saying to start the day with a healthy breakfast within the first hour after you wake up. But let me tell you why I prefer brunch over breakfast when it comes to quick weight-loss.

First of all, I agree with the fact that starting your day in a healthy way is important for your body, mind, and soul.  However, I haven’t necessarily experienced that starting the day with breakfast within the first hour was the best choice for my health and fitness, especially WHEN I AM WORKING FROM HOME.

When I started to lose weight 2 years ago I ate my first meal after 11 am. This has been the longest-lasting weight-loss journey for me. I am not saying that eating a healthy breakfast in the morning is not good. Actually, if you work at a busy 9 to 5 job, you wake up at 7 am and your only chance to eat at the office is after 12 pm, I would definitely recommend eating a healthy breakfast in the morning at home.

However, if you not in this situation eating later could be a great option for losing weight.

Since we are talking about a meal that is happening right around 11 am we can call it to brunch instead of breakfast. I was wondering what was the reason for my weight-loss success when I often involved brunches instead of breakfast in my daily routine.

So today I am sharing with you as a fitness instructor why I prefer brunch over breakfast when it comes to weight-loss.

LONGER FASTING…

It has been already discussed that intermittent fasting is a great option for both weight loss and belly fat loss.

Basically, if you choose brunch over breakfast you can tick the ’intermittent fasting’ box since you are likely to eat at 11 am instead of 8 am which will give you an extra 3 hours without eating.

However, I have to add one note here: If you chose to eat at 11 am when you wake up at 8 or 9 o’clock I would definitely suggest drinking water right after you wake up. Besides drinking purified water with lemon I also drink a cup of unsweetened coffee with a bit of almond milk in it.

Homemade lemonade is a great option, but there are other detox drinks that are made with purified water. However, I would not drink calorie-rich smoothies with fruits and any kind of milk in the morning. One of the biggest benefits of intermittent fasting is that you consume fewer calories.

Talking about calories we get to the second reason why I prefer brunch over breakfast.

YOU END UP EATING LESS CALORIES…

Since you are fasting longer you should be eating less calories. Why?

As I have already mentioned you will end up having your first meal around 11 am which IS A HEALTHY BRUNCH that includes all the necessary ingredients.

If you make sure that you drink water the right way you shouldn’t get hungry until 11 am. However, if you eat breakfast at 8 am, eat lunch at 12 pm and a snack at 3 pm it would definitely be more calorie-rich since you eat more meals than if you have brunch. Now we go to the next reason why I would choose brunch over breakfast.

HAVING THE PRE AND POST WORKOUT MEAL AT THE RIGHT TIME…

You will end up having the pre and post workout meal at the right time if you eat brunch.

If you want to exercise around 3 pm then you should eat a pre-workout meal 30 minutes before you start exercising which gives you the option to eat something rich in carbs.

When you finish the exercise around 5 pm you should eat a protein-rich meal which gives you the option to have the next bigger meal at 6 pm.

IT MEANS YOU WILL HAVE THE LAST MEAL AT 6 PM

Having your healthy dinner at 6 pm is the number 4 reason why I prefer brunch over breakfast when it comes to weight loss. And why? Again it is a lot to do with tracking the calorie intake.

If you have your last meal between 6 pm and 7 pm you are less likely to consume more calories than is needed and it is better for your digestion (1.).

And the better your digestion, the better you will sleep.

HAVING A GOOD NIGHT SLEEP IS IMPORTANT FOR WEIGHT LOSS

Now we get to the last reason why I prefer brunch over breakfast…

Because of the previously mentioned habits, you will end up having a better sleep. You will also be more likely to go to sleep earlier if you don’t eat after 8 pm. Having a late dinner makes it harder to fall asleep.

So bottom line…A healthy early dinner makes your sleeping cycle better (2.). If you consume your meal at 6 pm and you fall asleep at 11 pm it should not be a problem having a snack at 8 pm.

Another option I often do is that I eat 70% of my dinner at 6 pm and 30% at 7 pm. With this habit, you still satisfy the intermittent fasting rule, since you won’t eat until the next day at 11 is which is actually a 16-hour window.

So this is my explanation of why I choose brunch over breakfast when it comes to weight loss, especially at home.

If you want to follow through with these steps make sure it is safe for you to do so, and consult with your doctor beforehand if you have any concerns. Please let me know in the comment section below what your experience was with it.

If you want to check out a few quick healthy brunch recipes, click here.

Stay safe and healthy,

Eszter

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