It’s easy to say that the most popular question dietitian’s get is “should I eat three meals a day or many small meals throughout the day?” Although people typically look for a lengthy and twisted answer, I’m happy to say, it’s pretty simple. Unless you have a medical condition requiring special dietary needs, whichever method makes you feel the best is what you should do.

My only recommendation is to stick to a somewhat consistent schedule daily. This will help your body to know what to expect and not go into starvation mode or cause uncontrollable hunger hours later. When your digestive system is functioning normally, you should intuitively feel hungry every three to four hours. If you feel hungry enough to eat an apple, you should probably at least have a snack. Pairing a carbohydrate with a protein will help with satiety and blood sugar stability. This can be as simple as a piece of fruit with nuts or nut butter or hummus with vegetables. So, for my long and twisty answer, listen to your hunger cues.