That seemed like a shame, since there are reportedly lots of health benefits to making lunch the biggest meal of the day, from regulating hormones and blood sugar (hello, energy boost!) to helping with weight loss. Plus, it made sense to me. Why not take in the most kilojoules during the middle of the day (when I'm more likely to burn them off) instead of in the evening, when I'm more apt to be sedentary?
So I decided to start the year with an experiment: make lunch my biggest meal and let dinner take a backseat for a month. Here are 8 things that happened.
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I was forced to pause in the middle of the day
Making and eating a decent-sized meal requires more time and effort than grabbing a sandwich. Because of this, I was forced to actually take advantage of my lunch hour. Taking some time off in the middle of the day when I was not thinking about work or trying to multitask meant that I was actually concentrating on my meal, not just gobbling it down with one hand on the keyboard. It also gave me time to recharge so I could return to work with more energy for the rest of the afternoon.
I ate less
My lunches used to be leftovers from the night before or a salad with prawns —whatever was quick and easy. For dinner, on the other hand, I felt the need to cook a big meal: anything from stir-fry to curry to chicken with roasted vegetables and potatoes.
Flipping my meals, however, didn't change the reality of my schedule, and even cooking something simple took up a significant chunk of my lunch hour. So while I started taking the time to make a protein (like fish) with vegetables, I rarely bothered to make a second side like potatoes. The result was that my new biggest meal of the day (lunch) was smaller than my old one (dinner)—but I didn't miss the extra food at all.
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I avoided the afternoon slump
We all know the feeling that creeps in right around three o'clock in the afternoon: the fatigue, endless yawns, and a burning desire for a nap. Making it through the rest of the workday is a struggle. When I started eating bigger lunches, this was one of the first things to disappear. I would be working full-steam-ahead in my office and suddenly realise that it was 4 or 4:30 pm. I was even able to ditch my normal afternoon coffee.
I slept better
I never realised that my dinners were having an effect on my sleep. I typically have dinner by 6 pm and don't go to bed until about 10 pm, so I thought I was giving myself plenty of time to digest. But once I started eating lighter dinners, I started sleeping like a dream. Going to bed with just the tiniest edge of hunger meant there were no upset stomachs or feelings of over-fullness to keep me awake.
I ate bigger breakfasts
Because I wasn't eating much in the evenings, I was waking up hungry at the beginning of the day. This meant that I started eating bigger breakfasts—but that wasn't a bad thing. Instead of having a quick slice of toast, I was making eggs or a smoothie, meaning that my morning meal was much more balanced than it normally would be. That kept me full longer, which reduced snacking.
I let go of the traditional idea of dinner
In our culture, dinner is without a doubt seen as the most important meal of the day. It's the one we share with our families, and the meal we put the most time and effort into preparing. Over the course of the month I had to decide what was really important to me about dinner. I realised that sitting down for a family meal was still something I wanted to do, but I didn't need to do it over a roast or lasagne; we could just as easily share quality time over soup or sandwiches.
The timing of my experiment happened to be perfect for my family. My husband was gone for work Monday through Friday during the month, so he didn't need to adjust his eating habits (although he has always tended to eat larger midday meals, anyway). My toddler eats whatever she is served and doesn't have any emotional attachment to dinner, so the change was no big deal for her. On the weekends we started dining out for lunch instead of dinner, when it was cheaper and the restaurants were less crowded.
I had more time in the evenings
As a working mum, evenings are typically a chaotic time in my house. I only have a few hours to pick up my daughter from childcare, make dinner, feed her, and get her into bed. With the pressure to make a big dinner gone, I felt less stressed and had more time to play before bedtime.
MORE: What Really Happens When You Skip Breakfast
I started a lasting habit.
I'm someone who doesn't lose weight easily, so I was determined not to measure the success of this experiment based on kilos lost. As I expected, I didn't lose weight during the month. Despite that, I was surprised at how dramatic the non-scale changes were. I felt better, lighter, and more energised. Eating a bigger meal in the middle of the day just felt healthier than having a heaping plate of food a few hours before bed. That combined with the benefits to my work productivity and evening routine means that eating a larger lunch and lighter dinner is definitely a habit I will keep.
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