As it turns out, all of that is probably wrong.

Breakfast and I have a long, fickle history.

When Iwas a chubby kid, I couldn’t be bothered to eat it.

But come 2010, a breakfast of oats and whey became the hallmark of my mornings.

On IF, practitioners only eat during a small window every day and fasted during the rest.

Typically, this meant skipping breakfast.

But a deeper look at most of these studies show that they are mostlyobservational.

This means instead of applying certain conditions to a controlled test group (i.e.

an experimental study), they look at data and then make a run at draw inferences.

Over time, this evolved into the belief that breakfast is the central pillar to any healthful diet.

But in reality, there’sno real evidenceto support the preceding argument.

This way, some continued with their current eating habits and others changed them.

Sixteen weeks later, no one had lost any significant weightaround a pound or so among them on average.

Rather, those who lost the most weight were in groups that were instructed to change their habits.

In short: there really isn’t any special significance to breakfast.

Other than the fact that pancakes are the best.

(Waffle lovers, are you that greedy for syrup as to need extra pockets?)

are based on faulty observational studies.

After that, I found that my mornings are more productive.

I had one less thing to worry about in the morning.

I could train, read, or hit snooze instead of cracking open eggs or cooking oatmeal because Ihadto.

This holds true for most of my clients.

I’ve encouraged many of my trainees to experiment with IF.

Sure, it’s not the universal answer to weight loss.

But allows them to find an eating pattern based on their preference, rather than dogma.

Most actually continue with the protocol, but some don’t.

It comes down to being consistent.

So should you skip breakfast?

Do what works for you.

If you like breakfast, eat it.

So whatisthe most important meal of the day?

Any meal that you want it to be.

Images byAlvaro Tapia,Carmen Eisbar, andPolandeze.