Eating and Workout: in the ERE perspective

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lillo9546
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Joined: Sun May 22, 2022 12:17 pm
Location: Italy

Eating and Workout: in the ERE perspective

Post by lillo9546 »

Would it be possible to eat 4, or less, times a day, consume few calories and sugars, but still workout at least 3 times a week with weights, and using bike for 10km a day?
This is to keep everything in the ERE perspective, but not to say "I'd like to spend less money on food", because food is our primary fuel, but instead, Did you ever felt a very good sensation when you eat less, or less frequently?

mathiverse
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Re: Eating and Workout: in the ERE perspective

Post by mathiverse »

One of the books in the reading list at the end of the ERE book is called "The Warrior Diet" by Ori Hofmekler. That books recommends eating once a day. There are several adherents on the forum. Several of them exercise intensely and regularly while eating only once a day.

white belt
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Re: Eating and Workout: in the ERE perspective

Post by white belt »

lillo9546 wrote:
Wed May 31, 2023 4:01 am
Would it be possible to eat 4, or less, times a day, consume few calories and sugars, but still workout at least 3 times a week with weights, and using bike for 10km a day?
Yes, you can eat anything from 1 meal a day all the way up to 6+ meals. Personally, I’ve eaten everything from 2 to 5 meals a day but I prefer 3-4. It comes down to personal preference and what fits with your lifestyle.

If you eat low carb and are very active, you will have a very hard time eating enough calories to meet your daily expenditure. This is a benefit if you’re trying to lose weight, but not so much if you are trying to maintain the same bodyweight. Of course, everyone’s body is different so some people do better with higher/lower carbs and higher/lower fats. If you are very active, I think sufficient protein intake is the most important (up to 1 gram per pound of bodyweight if you’re lifting frequently).

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Lemur
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Re: Eating and Workout: in the ERE perspective

Post by Lemur »

One of the greatest "it depends" topics here I think. Diet is highly individual given a persons dietary preferences, current health status, ethical concerns, location, etc.

Personal anecdote - I eat 2-3 times a day (with some snacks) and weight lift 2x a week with 3-4x zone 2 cardio. Plenty of activity and I'm having no problems handling that. The human body is meant to move and be active...and food wasn't always plentiful to our ancestors. Calories should not be a problem acquiring for 99% of humans on the planet today. Protein might be for some as its on the higher end of costs. Though plant-based proteins like lentils are really cost-effective and healthy. Up to 1 gram of protein per day of bodyweight is good target for an active person. 0.7-1 gram per pound is the standard recommendation to optimize health and if cost is a challenge, the lower end range should be fine.

Also its helpful to know that exercise really doesn't burn all that many calories. And when it does from long bouts of activity, non-activity thermogenesis decreases to make up for it. We're naturally wired this way. In other words, if you jog for 90 minutes in the morning, you'll make it for this by being less active and lethargic throughout the rest of the day without really knowing it. You won't be bouncing your leg as much sitting in a chair for instance. Herman Pontzer has an interesting book about this but the gist of that note is here: https://gsas.harvard.edu/news/colloquy- ... ose-weight

I always likened the eating/workout problem to the systems theory presented in the ERE book...living within a distance where one can walk/job/bicycle to work and grocery store is cardio exercise + cost savings.

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