The Hobbit Diet: A Food Nerd Journey

OakMonster.com - Hobbit Meals

Alright. I’m doing it, kids. I’m going on the Hobbit Diet for a month starting May 1.

7 meals a day. For a month.

OakMonster.com - Hobbit Meals

Why are you doing this?

Curiosity.

I want to see if it’s possible to sustain the Hobbit Diet. That’s it. Pure and simple.

This is a chance to prove once and for all if all Thais are descendants of Hobbits! I mean, we’re tiny people who love food, love to eat and have a good time.

Okay. Maybe it’s just me.

OakMonster.com - Hobbit Diet

I set this as one of my 2014 goals. Before the summer gets crazy, leading into an even crazier fall, I’m going to embark on this quest NOW.

Are you trying to lose weight?

Nope. I don’t have anything to lose, really.

Besides, remember that whole thing about eating several small meals through out the day will help you lose weight? Once again the medical world flips on its head on this in March according to Time Magazine. Apparently, those small meals do nothing to your metabolism. None. And we’re back to the 3 square meals plus a snack, more or less every 4 hours, and watching your calorie intake.

You’ll be Jabba the Hutt by May 30!

Not if I can help it! It comes down to the thing I hate most: calorie counting. I’ve never counted calories for once in my life, so I’ve signed up for MyFitnessPal to help me keep track.

If I can stay within my daily calorie limit then I should be okay. However, finding that magic number has proven to be a bit of a challenge.

A 5 foot tall, 110-lb., 37-year-old woman with moderate activity level needs 1,625 calories according to Self Magazine. Fitness Magazine puts me at 1,924 calories. American Cancer Society won’t let me be 5 foot even in height so I need 1,865 calories at 4′ 11″ or 1,904 calories at 5″ 1′.  And finally, MyFitnessPal puts me at 1,550 calories.

All of those numbers average out to 1,773 calories per day. So, I’m going to allow myself anywhere between 1,550 – 1,773 calories per day. That’s 221-253 calories per meal.

For example, I can have 3 slices of bacon for breakfast for 132 calories. I can have 6 slices and still be within range…ish. This will work.

When will you eat?

I have to eat every 1.5-2 hours, more or less. Schedule would look a lot like this:

  • 8 a.m. Breakfast
  • 9:30 a.m. Second Breakfast
  • 11 a.m. Elevensies
  • 1 p.m Luncheon
  • 3 p.m. Afternoon Tea
  • 5:30 p.m. Supper
  • 8 p.m Dinner (aka late night snack)

I’m sure I can adjust this for the weekend. The problem isn’t eating 7 times a day but I have to remember to eat. I see a lot of calendar alerts in my future.

How are you keeping track of your journey?

Here, of course with the help of a few apps.  I’ll pop in for a quick note on my Facebook page too.

So, there you have it folks. Tomorrow we begin on this adventure. I hope you will come along for the ride!

OakMonster.com - Hobbit Diet

7 Comments

  1. Very interesting… I have a lot of ideas about this, having just read a TON of stuff about nutrition for my new way of eating. Email me!

  2. rashmi from yumkid.com   •  

    I am tracking this to see how it folds. When i had my kids, I had gestational diabetes and I had to eat in similar intervals like you are eating. The crazy part – I have never eaten more in my life and I was thinner after giving birth than I was getting into my pregnancy.

  3. OakMonster   •  

    Thanks, Rashmi. We’ll have to see. Weekly weigh in is tomorrow. I’m a little scared.

  4. OakMonster   •  

    Hi Stephanie! I’d appreciate any tips. Right now, I’m going with my usual main 3 meals with hopefully healthy snacks through out. Some days it work, some days I’m weak. 😉

  5. OakMonster   •  

    So far so good, Dorothy. It is tiring I have to say, trying to eat 7 times AND keeping track of the calories. Day 9 almost broke me on the calorie counting thing. lol

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