OMAD means One Meal A Day - a concept where you eat only once per day as a minimalist or health enthusiast.
Here's why someone will adopt OMAD into their lifestyle:
- OMAD helps with intermittent fasting.
- You need to cook only once per day as you eat a single time in 24 hours.
- There's a habit formed with not eating multiple times a day; this includes avoiding snacks and small meals.
Intermittent fasting with one meal a day (OMAD)
With OMAD, you are able to limit the timeframe in which you eat. Normally, people suggest eating inside an 8 hour window but with OMAD it can be as low as a one hour window.
This approach helps with the minimalist's approach of achieving goals with the simplest steps possible.
You need to cook once per day as an OMAD enthusiast
If you are eating lunch at 12 PM as your only meal of the day, then you need to cook only once. This is true of course if you are living independently without someone being dependent on you to cook their breakfast or dinner.
In essence, for your meal, you are cooking once per day and that therefore saves you time that you can use elsewhere - another way minimalist make the best out of their time.
Avoiding multiple meals a day as an OMAD eater
Most of us struggle with the number of meals we eat in a day: breakfast, light snack, lunch, dessert, tea, binge snacking, dinner, ice cream thereafter. Boy that's a lot!
As an OMAD believer, you form a healthy habit where you do not eat multiple meals and a single meal is enough.
This coincides plenty with the r/1500isplenty sub-reddit where the goal is to eat 1500 or less calories each day.
1500 calories will put you at a deficit and intermittent fasting as discussed above will provide its own benefits. This can aid weight loss and ensure that you are getting your nutrition timely.
How to get started with OMAD as a minimalist
If you are looking to go full OMAD, then you need not worry about the intricacies surrounding your only meal of the day.
These are some of the approaches people use to ensure their only meal of the day is healthy, nourishing and of course fulfilling:
- Week long meal prep to cut down on daily preparation time.
- CERB method - chicken, eggs, broccoli and rice for meals.
- No cook - having meals that only include items that do not require any cooking time.
Week long meal prep for OMAD lovers
A week long meal prep can help those who love OMAD to follow their schedule religiously over time.
Most folks that practice OMAD love to meal prep on Saturday after their meal. This way, the cycle goes from Sunday to Saturday.
The benefit of this is that they do not need to cook during work days (or work hours, if they are working remotely).
CERB meals for OMAD methods
CERB stands for chickens, eggs, rice and broccoli. These are all relatively easy to cook and provide immense protein.
Such a method of daily cooking is usually done by those who want to meet their daily protein intake goal.
The meal can include cooked rice along with boiled/pan-fried/sautéed broccoli, boiled/pan-fried chicken and boiled or fried eggs.
This type of a meal can easily allow for 100 grams of protein per day and is pretty filling especially when you are eating only one meal per day.
No cook meals for your OMAD lifestyle
No cook meals are possibly the most difficult to pull off. To qualify as one, a meal must not require any cooking, frying, baking or boiling. Essentially something you can make in your living room away from kitchen appliances.
For example, a tuna sandwich with some mayonnaise or yoghurt works as the perfect example.
On the other hand, you can use some high protein or low sugar ice cream with bananas and other fruits to create a healthy meal.
This type of meal is not preferred by a majority of OMAD folks but can be a quick fix when you are too lazy or too busy to cook.
Common misconceptions around OMAD
Given that there are always multiple fads around diets and fat loss procedures, there are multiple misconceptions that arise.
Here are some common misconceptions people mention or hear when it comes to having one meal per day:
- OMAD is for fitness enthusiasts only.
- OMAD mocks underprivileged people.
- Juices and drinks do not count towards OMAD.
OMAD is used by fitness enthusiasts only.
This is not true; anyone looking to lose weight can use OMAD. Or they can stick to one meal a day because that's easier on their lifestyle and saves them time.
As a minimalist, if one meal can save 1-2 hours it can be reinvested towards other skills and areas.
OMAD mocks underprivileged folks
While it is true that a lot of people globally have 1 or no meals per day, OMAD is a lifestyle choice that does not intend to mock them.
Such a similar notion would also apply to fasting or water fasting but that has not been the case.
Do juices and drinks count as an extra meal?
Juices and drinks are where the technicalities are paper thin.
- If you want to do intermittent fasting with aid from OMAD it does not make sense to have any edible with calories in them.
- Alcohol and other drinks do not have enough calories to constitute a 'meal' but add to calories you may be looking to avoid.
- Juices, milkshakes and smoothies can creep up to have the same amount of calories and sugar as a meal.
Looking to get into minimalism? Check my recent blog posts to learn some concepts around minimalism that may help you.
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