Eat Dinner for Breakfast and Lose Weight

As I walked into my local Barnes & Noble bookstore, I was confronted by the New Year assortment of diet books. They were all lined up on the front table, their covers bright and shiny. Being curious by nature, I decided to look through a few and see what the latest diet buzz was all about.

sketch of a woman eating a sandwich There were the usual over-hyped titles where you supposedly can lose a lot of weight in a short period of time. The big names in the fitness world were all displayed with toned bodies with before and after pictures. The diet industry giants like Weight-Watchers all had their new recipe books. But over to the side was a yellow book with an interesting title that caught my eye.

It was entitled, The Reverse Diet, and the premise was that you could lose weight by eating dinner for breakfast. This actually had a familiar ring to it. My grandmother used to say that you should always have a big breakfast and you won’t be hungry the rest of the day.

When I looked inside the front cover I found that the author, Tricia Cunningham, had lost over 150 pounds using this simple technique and had maintained her weight loss for over 6 years. This was a success story like Jared of Subway restaurants. It was simple and something most anyone could do.

I looked further into the book and perused the actual menu selections. The plan focused on non-processed foods and lean proteins. But the difference was in the portion sizes and meal combinations. You reverse your meal sizes, times, and content to better distribute your calories throughout the day.

You eat like a king in the morning, a prince at lunch, and a pauper at dinner.

The diet also includes a morning and afternoon snack to keep you fueled throughout the day. The diet choices are very similar to those presented in Eating for Life, and other well rounded menu plans. While exercise is recommended, this is primarily a diet book, with an extensive list of menu choices.

I like the simple premise of this book. It fits into a niche that works for me. As a morning person, focusing on a substantial breakfast will be easier than fixing a big dinner. The menu choices are easy to follow and prepare. This book will make a great addition to my diet library and along with a sensible exercise program should be a great tool to help me reach my fitness goals.

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Comments (14) Posted in Diet, Motivation

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24714 Responses2007-01-25+15%3A17%3A01John+Richardson to 'Eat Dinner for Breakfast and Lose Weight'

Steve Sherlock - January 25th, 2007 at 3:49 pm
I’ll agreee wholeheartedly with the king-prince-pauper approach. For a couple of years I was living in western NJ and commuting into the Wall St area of NYC. During that time, I did follow this diet as I really did not have much choice according to the demands of the schedule and I did very well. Since then, I have modified it a little but am still doing very well. Of course, exercise should be a significant component of any diet to create a healthy lifestyle.
Phil Gerbyshak - January 25th, 2007 at 4:01 pm
Very interesting John. I too am a morning person, so I should probably give this a shot. Thanks for sharing!
Alexander - January 29th, 2007 at 6:31 am
Want to lose weight? Then eat this diet

Breakfast – 1 bowl oats, semi skimmed milk small scoop of protein powder.

Mid morning – 5 egg whites 1 yoke omlette.

Lunch – Wholemeal bread with chicken or ham salad etc. A bowl of good soup if you want

Mid afternoon – 1 chicken breast wth some greens

Evening – 1 can oof tuna or salmon (or fresh) with salad and french dressing.

Before bed – protein shake, in the winter I like to have this with semi skimmed milk and heat it up in the microwave to make a hot chocolate.

Note how there are no carbs after lunch. Also if you can drink a few protein shakes throughout the day.

Do this for 3 days, then on the 4th add in some more carbs (but again not after lunch), so have a few more slices of bread or some potatoes with your lunch etc.

How much will you lose, at least 2lbs a week and it’s pretty easy to follow, you don’t feel that hungry. If I do then I always try and eat a few apples etc.
Cara Fletcher - July 4th, 2007 at 2:28 am
This statement has some truth in it.People don’t eat so much on breakfast as on dinner.If the dinner is eaten for breakfast people would be able to burn the calories of it .So this is one new approach in the resolving of the big problem of people-how to lose weight.
Laurie - Busy woman - September 13th, 2007 at 8:10 am
John, very interesting stuff, I will share this blog with my subscribers
Eat And Lose Weight. | 7Wins.eu - September 12th, 2008 at 8:52 am
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December Evening - September 24th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Oh yes, I have done this and still stick to the general idea. Here I am eating a bowlful of hot pasta, tuna, chickpea and capsicum (pepper) salad… it’s only 9am. I had some tomatoes on toast before but that doesn’t contain very much protein.

Even if you feel rather full after a big breakfast, don’t be alarmed – after all, don’t most poeple eat till “very full” at dinner time? Just reverse it, eat a moderate lunch with some protein, carbs and vitamin-rich vegies in it, and a little dinner of maybe some porridge oats or perhaps baked beans on toast. After a week or so you will really develop a taste for eating yummy “dinner-type” food in the mornings.

We have even had lamb chops for breakfast before!

And we are a very healthy weight!
amber - October 16th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
I am tryin to loose 2 stone atm and i think this will work for me.. i am also going to try and get up at 6am each day to i have mre time to burn callories through out the day.. obviously i wont keep this up forever (the 6am thing) but if the reverse diet works i will keep that up.. Also if u live with parents like i do eating the big dinners in the evening at 6pm is going to make you put on weight. coz what i seem to find my self doing after eating dinner is sitting on the couch watching tv and remain there till around 10 then go to bed.. i know people might think to them selves “go for a walk after dinner” but who realy can be bothered to do that ? and espcialy in the winter, id rather get in bed ! and also for people that dont know, being in the cold makes cellulite form and stay put of longer, so keep warm and drink water !!!
Majida - March 1st, 2009 at 7:39 pm
this really helps, thanks
Mark F - April 7th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
This makes a lot of sense if you think about it. The end of the day is really the wrong time to be loading up on calories. Eat a good breakfast to fuel up for the day. Eat a decent lunch. And keep dinner small and simple: a bowl of soup or a small salad with a glass of wine. Some fruit and cheese. A small piece of fish and some veggies. Just keep it light. My favorite dinner is a little cheese, some good bread, a glass of wine and a lot of conversation. Turn the television off while you eat. Eat slowly and enjoy the time with family or friends. You’ll lose weight and live longer.
Govindaya - July 26th, 2009 at 9:50 am
I always try to less 1-2 days a week to start , so I mentally trick myself into belive its not hard. then increase a day each week. I a month I have cut back my daily intake and on the road to healthy weight.
Ebony B. - August 21st, 2009 at 7:01 am
I have been hearing a lot about this eating change for a while now. I want to know if anyone has done this feels the urge to go back, also has anyone incorporated juicing. I HATE to eat veggies but am skeptical about the juicing. If anyone is thinking of starting this reverse eating, please blog back, maybe we could start together & encourage each other.
TheRoosterChick - October 1st, 2009 at 6:54 pm
Cool article. I’ve never thought about it from a weight loss perspective, but more of a mid-week dinner alternative.
how to lose weight in 2 weeks - October 19th, 2009 at 11:46 pm
Nice!
I totally agreed on this:
“You eat like a king in the morning, a prince at lunch, and a pauper at dinner.”