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So what is a better meal schedule to follow? Intermittent Fasting or High Small-Meal Frequency? Unfortunately, there is no simple answer for which is better, and depends on several circumstances. Athletic ability and performance do not appear to be largely affected by either of the two schedules, so we are left with how the two schedules affect weight loss. Again, it depends. Intermittent Fasting has greater margins of potential for weight loss and BMI reduction than its counterpart, but it also has a very high barrier of entry in the form of proper meal timing. That Intermittent Fasting works the best when the fasting period is in the evening, makes it difficult to adhere to for people whose schedules do not allow for easy access to healthy meals during the morning. It requires a good understanding of the body’s circadian rhythm, and an acknowledgement that eating in the evening has less of a beneficial effect than eating in the morning.
High Small-Meal Frequency, in contrast, is an easier meal schedule for people to follow because it is less restrictive in terms of meal timing. It is a good potential schedule to follow for people with low motivation to diet or follow stricter plans. However, weight loss results appear to be of a lower margin of potential than Intermittent Fasting. It is also much easier to ruin a diet under this meal schedule, as smaller meals can often come as easy to access and easy to consume snacks that are not good for you. Adherence to this meal schedule is a challenge in its own way as it will heavily depend on you to plan the snacks and meals you are to consume without going into a hyper-caloric and excess energy state.
Which meal schedule is better than the other? It depends on which one will be more accessible to you. For total success with either plan, different conditions, including age, work schedule, and accessibility to a sustainable source of healthy nutrients, will have to be considered. You may find that one meal schedule will overall be more accessible to you than the other, and sustainable. While the research that we have now does not provide a definitive answer, we hope this information can help you make an informed decision on which meal schedule is right for you.
ReferencesKerndt, P. R., Naughton, J. L., Driscoll, C. E., & Loxterkamp, D. A. (1982). Fasting: The History, Pathophysiology and Complications. The Western Journal of Medicine, 137(5), 379–399. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1274154/Tello, M., M.D., M.P.H., (2021). Intermittent Fasting: Surprising Update. Harvard Health Publishing. Retrieved from https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/intermittent-fasting-surprising-update-2018062914156Paoli, A., Tinsley, G., Bianco, A., & Moro, T. (2019). The Influence of Meal Frequency and Timing on Health in Humans: The Role of Fasting. Nutrients, 11(4). doi: 10.3390/nu11040719Dashti, H. (2015) Small, Frequent Meals. American Society of Nutrition. Retrieved from https://nutrition.org/small-frequent-meals/Papakonstantinou, E., Kontogianni, M.D., Mitrou, P., et al. (2018). Effects of 6 vs 3 eucaloric meal patterns on glycaemic control and satiety in people with impaired glucose tolerance or overt type 2 diabetes: A randomized trial. Diabetes and Metabolism 44(3) 226–234. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diabet.2018.03.008.Kahleova, H., Lloren J.I., Mashchak, A., Hill, M., & Fraser, G.E. (2017). Meal Frequency and Timing Are Associated with Changes in Body Mass Index in Adventist Health Study 2. The Journal of Nutrition (147)9, 1722–1728. doi: https://doi.org/10.3945/jn.116.244749Hutchison, A.T., Heilbronn, L.K. (2015). Metabolic impact of altering meal frequency and timing — Does when we eat matter? Biochimie 124. 187–197. doi: 10.1016/j.biochi.2015.07.025Ormsbee, M.J., Bach, C.W., Baur, D.A. (2014). Pre-Exercise Nutrition: The Role of Macronutrients, Modified Starches and Supplements on Metabolism and Endurance Performance. Nutrients 6. 1782–1808. doi:10.3390/nu6051782
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