Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so the saying goes.
But a personal trainer, 27, who fasts every morning has revealed that the popular proverb may in fact be a myth.
London-based fitness guru Max Lowery, who only eats two meals a day and never has breakfast, says there is little scientific evidence for the maxim.
The former broker, who quit his finance job to become a personal trainer, told Business Insider about how the popular adage that breakfast is the most important meal of the day came to be.
Max Lowery spent four years as a professional sprinter and uses his athletic knowledge to teach people how to lose weight by training like a sportsman or woman
Max, who often posts pictures of his incredible toned physique on Instagram, never eats breakfast as he follows his own 2 Meal Day plan, which invites slimmers to eat just breakfast and lunch, or lunch and dinner
Max, who created the 2 Meal Day weight loss plan that requires you to skip breakfast or dinner, said: ‘This well-worn saying stems from cereal companies getting you to buy their degraded products back in the early 1900s.
‘Their strategies were so successful that almost everyone I speak to on the subject repeats the same two myths: that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and/or that skipping breakfast slows down your metabolism.’
However Max says there is little scientific evidence for this – and experts agree.
The 27-year-old has debunked the popular myth that breakfast is the most important meal of the day
Max often shows off his impressively sculpted abs on his Instagram, usually while working out
Dr James Betts, a senior lecturer in nutrition at the University of Bath, said that the so-called benefits reaped from eating a hearty breakfast don’t stand up to scrutiny.
He told New Scientist magazine: ‘The problem is that these benefits although logical sounding, are largely assumptions based on observational studies and had never actually been tested.
‘I was amazed when I started looking for evidence – I thought there would be a lot.’
He’s not alone either.
Professor Peter Rogers, a psychology professor at Bristol University specialising in nutrition, added: ‘Most of us could do with eating less.
‘Given that it’s probably the easiest meal to skip, maybe skipping breakfast occasionally could be that opportunity.’
Max never eats breakfast, as he fasts for a 16-hour period between dinner and lunch the next day.
But that doesn’t mean he never eats breakfast foods, and he often posts pictures of his meals of poached eggs and avocado and even pancakes on Instagram.