I'm fasting. Help!

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  • SnuggleSmacks
    SnuggleSmacks Posts: 3,731 Member
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    Is your lifestyle/family situation conducive to altering your sleeping schedule? As in, perhaps you could go to bed earlier so that you can get up before sunrise and have a hearty breakfast to get you through the day, and then have a good dinner after 7 p.m....then early to bed again. I know it's a pain, but it's better to get a reasonable number of calories in if at all possible.

    The other option is to eat it all at one meal (or dinner plus a before-bed snack). As has been mentioned, intermittent fasting, or IF, calls for compacting all food consumption in a smaller window of time...so, for example, an IF-er might not eat all day, and then have a really large dinner. Or they might have a late lunch, plus dinner, and maybe a snack or two in between. But they do all their eating within an 8 or 6 or whatever hour window (it differs from various programs and personal preferences). It can take getting used to, but it works for a lot of people.

    Good luck!
  • Aemely
    Aemely Posts: 694 Member
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    Sadly, I could easily eat 1,200 cals. in a single meal. Fortunately, I'm not allowing myself to do that, but...

    A chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, fried okra, green beans, a cornbread muffin with butter, coffee with cream... Hmm, am I there yet? :yum:
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    Is there any reason you can't eat more calories after 7pm? Many people do intermittent fasting as a lifestyle choice, and choose to eat all their calories in one meal. Is there any restriction on the type of food you can eat? If you are finding it hard to fit in all those calories, maybe you should look at more calorie-dense foods. If I found myself at the end of the day with 1200 calories left, I reckon I could be satisfied with a meal of around 6-700 calories, then I'd blow the rest on chocolate and ice-cream :D

    It's not that I can't. It's just by the time 7 hits, I eat and am not hungry enough to eat more. So it's not a restriction on what I can eat. I just have to make a better effort to getting all my calories in. Ahhh Ice cream. I love some ice cream sandwiches. :smile:
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    lalepepper wrote: »
    I do IF and often don't eat until about 7. Drinking plenty of water helps - 2C is very low, and I'd definitely recommend more. I spread my calories over 2 bigger meals and plenty of interspersed snacks in my eating window. You might want to add some more calorically dense foods like nuts or vegetable oils to help boost calories. 700 cal/day over the month is going to make you miserable!

    Exercise wise you could consider some light walking, or not exercise much if you're having difficulty fitting in calories.

    Thanks! I know I need to eat more (that's def not a bad thing). Who doesn't love food. :smiley:
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    mwapem wrote: »
    YanmiYann wrote: »
    I'm fasting for the month (for religious purposes) and I can't for the life of me figure out how to eat and exercise. Today was day 1 and I only consumed 700 calories and 2 cups of water. Didn't workout as I wasn't feeling up to it and wasn't even sure I should.

    How do you eat and workout during a fast and not stop your weight loss goal?

    I have done a religious fast as well and I think during that time it's not good to focus on other things other than your purpose in fasting otherwise good eating and weight loss can easily make a fast a diet. Naturally as you fast you make lose weight because of changes in eating and exercise patterns.

    You're definitely right! I've sent so much time figuring out how I'm going to eat right and exercise during. thanks!
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    You're going to lose a ton of weight eating 700ish calories everyday for month, not to mention you'll be struggling to hit your macros. Is weight loss also one of your goals?
    As the others have said, wouldn't be exercising

    Weight loss is a goal of mine, but not for the fast. It just so happened to fall during the time I really have been turning up my workout and good diet.
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    If I were doing something like this, I might try very gentle exercise (walking, swimming) in the early morning.

    You kind of have to see how you feel and go from there.

    Some religious fasts exclude water during the day and even things like gum.

    Yeah, I will have to see how I feel on a day to day basis. Day two is not feeling like a workout day, even if it is light.
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    SLLRunner wrote: »
    YanmiYann wrote: »
    I'm not eating and drinking from waking up until after 7 at night daily. Does that help?

    But, do you eat your maintenance calories during a certain time then? I hope I don't come across as offensive, but it seems to me religious fasting would not entail being on a very low calorie diet for an entire month because it would be dangerous to anyone's health.

    No offense taken, it's not that I can't eat more than that due to the fast "rules" so to say. But by the time I'm eating and getting ready for bed, that just happens to be what I ended up with at the end of the day.
    SLLRunner wrote: »
    YanmiYann wrote: »
    At big meal to get me around 1200 calories? Sometimes I struggle to get there on a regular day.

    Are you also on a weight loss journey? I ask because 1200 is low, and I can't imagine that being maintenance calories.

    I'm am trying to lose some weight. And with what I entered int MFP, I am supposed to be eating about 1290 calories a day, which I thought was actually pretty low! But seems to be okay, I guess.
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    kramrn77 wrote: »
    As said, up your calories during early morning or evening meals and for the love of your body get more then 2c of water a day! For a month you are risking, at the very least, kidney stones. Not to mention acute kidney failure if that's all the water your going to be getting for a month coupled with low caloric intakes. Seriously, I passed a 7cm kidney stone. Took a week. I don't recommend it.

    Ouch! That must have been miserable. I will try my best, will have to make a more conscious effort. I usually have at least 7-9 cups a day. So 2 is low even for me.
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    Is your lifestyle/family situation conducive to altering your sleeping schedule? As in, perhaps you could go to bed earlier so that you can get up before sunrise and have a hearty breakfast to get you through the day, and then have a good dinner after 7 p.m....then early to bed again. I know it's a pain, but it's better to get a reasonable number of calories in if at all possible.

    The other option is to eat it all at one meal (or dinner plus a before-bed snack). As has been mentioned, intermittent fasting, or IF, calls for compacting all food consumption in a smaller window of time...so, for example, an IF-er might not eat all day, and then have a really large dinner. Or they might have a late lunch, plus dinner, and maybe a snack or two in between. But they do all their eating within an 8 or 6 or whatever hour window (it differs from various programs and personal preferences). It can take getting used to, but it works for a lot of people.

    Good luck!

    I will have to make an eating schedule hopefully to get in all the calories, making an effort, to try to stay as close to it as possible.

    Thanks
  • YanmiYann
    YanmiYann Posts: 33 Member
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    Aemely wrote: »
    Sadly, I could easily eat 1,200 cals. in a single meal. Fortunately, I'm not allowing myself to do that, but...

    A chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, fried okra, green beans, a cornbread muffin with butter, coffee with cream... Hmm, am I there yet? :yum:

    :smiley: All that sounds so good!
  • 0somuchbetter0
    0somuchbetter0 Posts: 1,335 Member
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    I'm just curious what religion do you practice? Lent hasn't started yet...Ramadan isn't until June this year...?

    If your schedule allows, eat and work out during the night and sleep during the day. :)
  • butterfli7o
    butterfli7o Posts: 1,319 Member
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    Just personal preference, but I would not be working out during this time.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
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    I would bag the working out for the month and focus on getting that meal to 1200 calories.
  • kmash32
    kmash32 Posts: 275 Member
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    Are you also on a weight loss journey? I ask because 1200 is low, and I can't imagine that being maintenance calories. [/quote]

    I'm am trying to lose some weight. And with what I entered int MFP, I am supposed to be eating about 1290 calories a day, which I thought was actually pretty low! But seems to be okay, I guess. [/quote]

    Are you eating any of your exercise calories back when you do workout? MFP gives you the lowest calorie amount you should be eating, you should still eat at least half your exercise calories back as well.

    When your not fasting of course. Right now I would just concentrate on eating as much as you can manage. 1200 would be better than 700 in a day.

  • kmash32
    kmash32 Posts: 275 Member
    edited February 2015
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    deleted


  • tibby531
    tibby531 Posts: 717 Member
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    Aemely wrote: »
    Sadly, I could easily eat 1,200 cals. in a single meal. Fortunately, I'm not allowing myself to do that, but...

    A chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, fried okra, green beans, a cornbread muffin with butter, coffee with cream... Hmm, am I there yet? :yum:

    you forgot the oreos. ;)
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
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    Aemely wrote: »
    Sadly, I could easily eat 1,200 cals. in a single meal. Fortunately, I'm not allowing myself to do that, but...

    A chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, fried okra, green beans, a cornbread muffin with butter, coffee with cream... Hmm, am I there yet? :yum:

    Chocolate?
  • tibby531
    tibby531 Posts: 717 Member
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    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    Aemely wrote: »
    Sadly, I could easily eat 1,200 cals. in a single meal. Fortunately, I'm not allowing myself to do that, but...

    A chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, fried okra, green beans, a cornbread muffin with butter, coffee with cream... Hmm, am I there yet? :yum:

    Chocolate?

    YES!