Thinking of cutting down to one meal a day during the week to save money - is it safe?

[silkydog]

I’m trying to see where we can cut costs and an obvious one is for me to go without breakfast and lunch on weekdays. I know some people deliberately diet this way to lose weight (admittedly I could do with losing a few lbs anyway) but what I’m struggling to find out is whether or not it’s safe to do this in terms of long term health?

There seems to be a lot of conflicting info out there and I’m struggling to find a straight answer.

I'm not sure if it's 'safe' but my partner did this for weight loss benefits. He would only drink water during the day till evening meal and then have one healthy but filling meal. He did loose about a stone quite quickly but once you stop doing it the weight does go back on quickly.

Is there no way you could find cheap alternative foods for breakfast & lunch? Fruit & yoghurt for breakfast and then pasta and a sauce for lunch? They can be very cheap meals if you buy supermarkets own brand.

I often do this inadvertently as I can't face eating breakfast but start work at 11.30 and work is so busy I miss lunch or only manage an apple at my desk. It's probably OK, but you'd need to make sure your dinner is nutritionally complete, otherwise long term it could be detrimental.

Porridge is your friend here. Not only is it cheap to buy porridge oats (not the Oatso style single pot things) it is very filling. A compromise might be to make porridge for breakfast, drink water or tea/coffee during the day and then have a proper meal in the evening.

The other cheap, filling and nutritious option would be bananas for keeping topped up during the day. Think a bunch is 75p where I shop atm.

No.
I personally wouldn’t go without eating anything during the morning, as doing so will set you up for the day. Some people have their main meal at lunchtime and then have a small snack later instead of dinner.

That is not a healthy way to ‘diet’.

Can you cook?
Do you plan your meals?
Do you have children?
Have you looked at cutting down your outgoings in other areas?
Do you already shop in the cheaper supermarkets/shops, eg. Aldi, Lidl, B&M, Home Bargains, etc?
Switched energy suppliers?

Sorry, so many questions, but I’m trying to ascertain if this is necessary at this stage, i.e., Have you already exhausted all other options?

It depends on whether you'll still get the calories you need over the day if you do this. Most people don't need three meals a day but down to one might be a hard adjust.
Oats are cheap as anything so porridge made with water for breakfast or lunch with an apple chopped in plus your evening meal would cut costs without leaving you hungry.
Look up Jack Monroe for cheap and nutritious meals to cut costs at dinner time.

I inadvertently did this as I work nights. It’s ok short term, but I found I quickly lost my ‘oomph’. So I don’t do a one big meal, but spilt it into two meals - banana for breakfast, then a light hot meal at work. (Taken from
home and reheated). Nothing else.
Can’t say I’ve lost any weight, but I don’t snack and it’s saved a ton of money.

A relative used to have just a simple breakfast (porridge or toast) and evening meal long term (bit not for reasons of cost). You need something that includes a variety and is nutritious, there are books that give you receipts that are healthy that have a really low cost per portion, but a reasonable amount of calories /energy and nutrition. I’ve got the jack monroe ones out of the library before.

How about doing a money makeover and looking where you can save money...mobile contract, utilities, credit card or other debt.
Where is money wasted.

Go to the saving money boards

We regularly have just 2 meals a day during weekends & holidays. DH, me & DD(9). Breakfast/brunch, then dinner. We've always done it that way. And no snacks, unnecessary. If DD asks for lunch she has it, but otherwise we don't bother. DH & I often don't bother with lunch at all, it depends if we had time to sort breakfast before taking DD to school. When I worked in an office & had no time for breakfast, lunch was usually leftovers plus some salad. Occasionally homemade soup, it's mostly water & a good way of using up veg that are past their best.

One easy swap you can make to save money, is to switch to whole milk. Assuming you drink milk. It's no more expensive, but richer so it goes further. If you make porridge, sauces etc with milk, you can use less & top up with some water.

Porridge is much quicker to cook in the morning if you soak the oats overnight. You can use whatever cheapest value oats, no need for the quick cook/instant type. Just tip into a pan or bowl in the morning, & heat for a couple of minutes on the hob or in the microwave.

Can you somehow split your one meal into two, so you can eat twice a day ?

It sounds like it would be very difficult to get the nutrients you need so no I wouldn’t have thought it would be safe in the long term. I second PP suggestion of porridge and Jack Monroe recipes. Rice and lentils/dried beans are also cheap, or basics beans on toast or cheap tinned/homemade soup.

Skip breakfast and have breakfast at lunch. As others have said, porridge, or overnight oats, is pretty cheap.
Or buy reduced veg in the supermarket and lentils and make yourself a veg soup for lunch.

As PP said porridge is definitely your best bet. Cheap as anything and easily done in the micro.
I used to sprinkle a little protein powder in to taste but anything will do if you don't like it plain

The simple answer is no, it's not safe. Numerous reasons including blood sugar levels, metabolism, concentration levels, energy.

If you're really struggling then you could do 2 meals a day. I would suggest porridge if you have breakfast, if you're looking for a cheap lunch there's loads of options, it's just about taking the time to batch it and prep. Things like soups (made from whatever veg is in season and is cheap, add in some dried lentils or pasta), Ben's on toast (Tesco have beans 25p a tin and wholemeal loaf at 55p which you could freeze and use as and when required to save it going off).

Dinner wise you should do big batches of things which can be transformed into variations so that you have variety. A big tomato Ragu, large cheap joints of meat such as pork shoulder or short rib. Look for frozen versions of meat as it's often cheaper and means you can only use what you need.

You will make yourself ill.

Try to find something cheaper or split the one meal into two. A tiny bit of something twice a day is better

You can afford porridge and a banana

I do this to keep my IBS under control after trying everything else, but I don't think it sounds like a good idea for you.
You need cheap food, not going without.

Fasting is actually good for you. I have a friend who eats like this for health reasons.

However. There are cheap foods you can have - if you’re choosing to do this due to money. You could easily buy 5kg of pasta and create your own sauce out of tinned tomatoes, garlic and herbs and batch cook a loaf for lunch. And make porridge (again plain rolled oats are very cheap).

As long as you ensure it’s a nutritionally complete meal then yes, and there’s emerging evidence that it would much much healthier to eat this way. We’ve all been super brainwashed into breakfast being essential and 3 meals etc. All created by marketing companies over the centuries when you look back. I agree though that porridge at lunch would also be good.

Totally safe unless you have other conditions that might be adversely affected.

You haven't said what you normally make for breakfast and lunch and how much this is costing you. So it's difficult to see where you might make savings.

But as others have said, porridge or home made muesli is cheap, filling and nutritious. Vegetable soup - carrots, onions, whatever veg is in season, with lentils, split green or yellow peas or butter beans thrown in for protein is easy to make and filling. Leek and potato soup is delicious and filling. You could make enough for two or three days and have some own brand cream crackers with it, or toast. Tesco's cheapest eggs are 8p each. A slice of toast, some baked beans and a poached egg on top for lunch, would cost much.

What are you currently eating and spending on breakfast and lunches?

*wouldn't cost much.

I would get a headache if I did that. Even just a banana or oatmeal or a boiled egg or a piece of toast with peanut butter in place of breakfast or lunch would be fine, but I would need something.

You say ‘we’ need to cut costs and then that only you would be cutting down to one meal a day. So who else are you feeding? What do your days involve? Personally, I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on my job with no food all day. There are posters on MN who really advocate for some intense fasting but my personal experience of fasting is linked to poor health and eating disorders. I would second the recommendation of Jack Monroe’s recipes, going on the budgeting page here and looking at other ways to cut costs and remembering that if you’re looking after children you can’t entirely sacrifice your own well-being - your energy and health is important too.

I have done this for years as I’m not hungry at breakfast and don’t have time during work to eat. Apparently your metabolism can slow down but you won’t get ill from it. But if you are someone who needs to eat more often then just buy cheaper foods like oats and potatoes which will fill you up.