LEG Health Tips from WebMD: 8 Ways to Burn Calories and Fight Fat

Tip Number 4: Eat Smaller, More Frequent Meals

Every time you eat a meal or snack, your gastrointestinal tract turns on, so to speak, and starts digesting food and absorbing nutrients. It costs calories to fire up the human digestion machine, so it makes sense that the more small meals or snacks you eat through the day, the more calories you'd burn.

There isn't much solid evidence for this effect, WebMD's expert notes in an email interview. But many experts believe that, compared to eating one or two very large meals, this is a more healthful way of eating anyway. And if it leads to even a few extra calories being burned, even better!