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.

Porridge oats are so cheap. You would be daft not to eat them in order to save money.
Similarly, loaves of bread knocked down in price at the end of the day (20p each in our local garage last night). If you have a freezer and can afford to run it, you can buy cheap things like that in bulk when you see them.
You could dramatically cut down on the cost of food without cutting out whole meals.

As long as you have your required nutrients and calories in that one meal theres no reason why you can't (assuming you don't have any pre-existing conditions that you need specific regular meals to control).

I've done it myself for weight loss known as OMAD, a very big lunch at around 2 so not super late in the day but late enough to keep me full until bed time.

I would struggle to wait until 6/7 to eat each day if you plan to keep your evening meal at the same time, but many people are fine with it so you may be as well

You can get own brand oats for about 85 pence for a large sack. Add milk which at a quarter of a pint is about 12p. So your breakfast is about 20p.

This is ludicrous. Why would you cut out 2/3 of your meals rather than just spend pennies on alternatives? Porridge brekkie, could even be made with water if you don’t want to buy milk. 3.75p per portion (Asda smart price).

Homemade soup is prob the cheapest lunch I’ve made. Especially as you can pretty much make it with whatever is on sale. Carrots are so cheap.

I don't see why it would be dangerous but that's beside the point.

Are you in the UK op?
If so, this is beyond shameful (for the country, not you) 21st century and people can't afford to eat.

To all those saying it’s not healthy ummm yes it actually can be super healthy. People have reversed type 2 diabetes and returned to a healthy BMI by eating one meal a day. There’s also something called autophagy. Which is about cell regeneration and can actually be helpful in cancer prevention. The whole brain washing of three meals a day plus snacks is perpetuated by the food industry. Who don’t care if we stay fat as long as we keep on eating…..

I eat 2 meals a day. Don't think I could drop to one as I feel really weird (sort of faint) if I don't eat twice.

Have something very cheap for breakfast.

Sorry if it's been mentioned already, but Jack Monroe's receives are healthy, filling, and VERY budget friendly.

Recipes, even...

I do this but wfh so I'm not that active during the day. I still need to watch out for energy crashes if I forget to eat til late in the day and definitely need more fuel when I'm out for longer days.

I wouldn't recommend it if you can help it.

You might be better off with a smoothie in the mornings made with whey and protein powder to help keep you going. You could also look to foods which traditionally used to fill you up- so veg and potatoes, Yorkshire puddings with meal, oats.

Also it's entirely dependent on your individual state of health.

Are you struggling that much financial you can't afford 3 meals a day?

How does this same money (beyond pennies needed to cook) unless OP is consuming cheaper or fewer calories?

@lljkk

Buying ingredients for 3 different meals throughout the week can add up quickly, if you only need to buy a handful of ingredients for each day (just one meal) you can bulk buy to save money. And if you use those ingredients in some form everyday that week then even cheaper overall.

Not the most exciting or varied diet but can be nutritious and healthy if you buy the right things

@Skiptheheartsandflowers

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.

THIS ^

Porridge
Bananas
Tea
Coffee
Lots of water

I'd add carrots, which are very cheap and can be eaten in so many ways.
Plus potatoes. I love potatoes...

I’ve not eaten breakfast for years, and might only have something very small at lunch too. It’s not done me any harm so far!

I ate like that for decades. The only reason I have stopped is I am pregnant and it doesn't work if your pregnant!

Previously weight, bloods, blood pressure. Everything always bang on perfect. So it was healthy for me.

What I will say is its unlikely to be something you can do overnight. I always ate like this so its not difficult for me. My partner on the other hand CANNOT do it.

And I will also say I don't think it will save you any money.

The one main meal a day you have to break a fast is not the same as the main meal you have if you eat 3 times a day. You need to eat every food group in one go, 2000+ calories in one meal in a quantity that you can eat. Thats not easy - you need full fat everything, fibre, carbs, meat, dairy, your 5 a day (or 10 nowadays).

As an example - if I were to have a Lasagne, it would need to be half a family lasagne, one full bag of salad with grated beetroots, one/or two tomatoes, one thinnly sliced pepper, quarter of a cucumber, lots of full fat salad dressing, a handful of chips and half a garlic ciabatta.
Thats not a cheap meal by the time you buy all the extras and thats probably one of the less expensive ones.

Well, how much are you spending on good right now?

Unless you're already extremely frugal, I'll guarantee you will be able to spend much less and eat well.

The risk will be your body going into starvation mode, you'd need a pretty sizeable meal to prevent this.

I dont have breakfast but always have lunch. A couple of slices of toast with butter will cost pence per day & is a reasonable lunch. Add a banana or apple to it as well.

I used to buy a big sack of potatoes from a farm shop- cheap and you can have different toppings.

For example, 1kg of porridge is 75p. Cool that with water. Add a banana if you like they're c. 13p, so 7 bananas will be around 90p

Breakfast sorted for the week for under £1.80.

Minority ingredients are only going to make bill heftier if one cooks in an elaborate way or with waste: adding spices and expensive ingredients.

Potatoes+butter or porridge+milk or brocoli with sausages -- these don't work out cheaper if eaten once/day or 3x/day assuming the same amount of calories is eaten.

Do most people add lots of spices to any meal they make?
it's not how me & DH cook but I notice adult DD wants to try all sorts of obscure spices.

In Sainsbury’s you could get a large tin of baked beans for 21p and a load of bread for 36p. That would do three lots of lunches, with bread left over.
I’d think about things like that

But it won't save you money unless you're intending to only eat a 1/3 of your recommended calories too, which would be very unhealthy. One meal a day of 1200 calories (for example) that is nutritionally balanced is ok, people do this, not me I feel sick, dizzy and lose concentration if I skip meals, but no cheaper than splitting it into 3 meals of 400 calories.

No, that's not a good idea.

But porridge for breakfast made with water and with sultanas on top would cost you about 5p, keeps you full for a long time and is very healthy.

While I was unemployed last year and money was really tight, I had salads of cheap supermarket feta, cheap bottled black olives and whatever salad was on offer, with some wholemeal bread. Or a carrot and walnut salad with olive oil. Both filling and reasonably healthy. Or make home made soup with veggies from the reduced rack, and eat that.

Don't allow yourself to get run down, this winter isn't going to be the easiest health-wise.

If you're that tight for cash that buying food is a struggle then can you get a referral to a food Bank?

I go through phases doing this, eating one evening meal. I tend to find I eat better, have more energy, and range of other benefits. It depends what you eat for the one meal of course, and overall lifestyle matters as always.