Intermittent Fasting experience

sunnyeuphoria

I am not wanting to start a debate, I am just wanting to know personal experience with intermittent fasting. Have you been able to stick with it? What protocol are you following? Are you losing weight and noticing other health benefits? How much have you lost over what time period? I have been eating this way off and on for years without realizing it had a name. Thanks!

TeaBea

I tried 5:2. 2 days at 500 / 5 days at maintenance. I was not able to make that work. Now I zig-zag my calories differently, still leaving a decent number of calories for the weekend.

I read the book by Dr Mosley. Not buying the so called medical benefits. All the evidence is anecdotal. "I went on this diet, my blood tests before, my blood tests after....I wrote a book and made tons of money"

The real benefit of eating windows, or zig-zagging calories (not a new concept.....look up Rotation Diet).....is that it helps some people stay consistent.

Here are links to a couple of groups: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/100058-5-2-fasting

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/49-intermittent-fasting

brb_2013

I do a 16:8 fast daily, and on weekends I adjust the window. Weekdays I eat between hrs of noon and 8pm, weekends it's more like 10-6.

I haven't been successful at weight loss but that's due to everything else I do. I overeat and I haven't exercised as much as I need to.

Maxematics

I do a range of 14:10 to 16:8 IF. 14:10 is recommended for women but I do 16:8 just fine on most days. I feel like IF controls my hunger a lot better because the whole small meals throughout the day just kept me hungry for the most part. I'm now less food focused and can enjoy a bigger meal at night which helps me sleep better. I started at 139 pounds and got down to 119. After IF, I got down to 109. Now I'm bulking so weight loss no longer applies.

murp4069

I've been doing 16:8 apparently just about my whole life lol. I also didn't know there was a name for it until I started on MFP. I eat from 1-9pm and only have coffee for breakfast. Since I started counting calories in December I've lost 18 lbs (170 to 152). IF fits my lifestyle and my natural hunger patterns, and it allows me to have a larger meal at night, when I most enjoy it. My weekends are a bit different, I tend to eat lunch earlier and very occasionally I have brunch. But for me it's a great way to keep a deficit particularly during the week.

plusnomore

I'm on day 31 of IF and have lost 14 pounds so far. I fast from 5pm til 9 am (16:8) and eat low carb, low sugar, lots of fresh fruit and veggies, fish, very little meat. I consume around 1400 cals a day. I do 16:8 daily, not exercising yet. This has worked great for me, wasn't very hard to do at all. Haven't lost my period.

CollieFit

I do 16/8 (11am-7pm). I've never been much or a breakfast person and find that if I delay my first meal I am generally less hungry during the day. It generally also stops me from pointless after-dinner snacking while watching TV. I do one 24h fast a week and on that day I always have heaps of energy.

Generally though I don't think my weight loss (15lb since 10th Jan) is the result of fasting or how/when I eat but the result of calorie reduction making different food choices and more activity.

I know the jury is out about the medical benefits to humans as all the studies I am aware of are based on animal studies and the effects can't necessarily be inferred, but I know it makes me feel good and gives me energy.

Phrick

plusnomore wrote: »

I'm on day 31 of IF and have lost 14 pounds so far. I fast from 5pm til 9 am (16:8) and eat low carb, low sugar, lots of fresh fruit and veggies, fish, very little meat. I consume around 1400 cals a day. I do 16:8 daily, not exercising yet. This has worked great for me, wasn't very hard to do at all. Haven't lost my period.

Um if you eat lots of fruit you're probably referring to low ADDED sugar - fruit is chock full of sugar. Fool yourself however you want, "natural sugar is good for you" but sugar is sugar is sugar.

thankyou4thevenom

I use the 5:2 diet and I love it.
It suits my lifestyle right now. I have a few very busy days where finding time to eat can be hard. So I fast on two of those and eat sensibly on the others.

I've lost 40lbs this way and its not been too hard. Some fasting days are harder than others. It's taken me with slip ups and weeks off (holiday etc) a year to do it.

dollydiva2

I'm doing one 500 cal fast day a week to give me more leeway with my calories at the weekend. I tend to 16:8 most days anyway.
I've lost weight well before with 5:2 though I just haven't been able to keep it up long term.

JagZag

I started out with the 16:8 January 1st this year. I lost 7 lbs. in that month. The 16:8 was so easy for me I decided to add 2 days of 24. So now I rotate 16:8 and 24 hr. I've lost 11 lbs. so far. At first I was walking 5 miles a day, just to get in the habit of moving around again. Now, I walk (not 5 miles), do 30 minutes at 17mph on my stationary bike at max resistance, 30 minutes on the treadmill at 3/4 max incline, and just started lifting 3 days a week. I really like IF, it fits my natural inclinations for eating. I have much more energy through the day (I exercise fasted and it doesn't bother me at all). IF takes a lot of the focus off of food. It's amazing how much more time I have to do other things now that I don't have to think about what I'm going to eat every few hours. Just plan what to have for dinner in the am and forget about it til time to cook. It's so relaxing it's not like DIETING at all. I have found that even on my 16:8 days I push my fast further out so it's more like 18:6. I'll most likely stick with IF from now on. It just fits for me.

100df

sunnyeuphoria wrote: »

I am not wanting to start a debate, I am just wanting to know personal experience with intermittent fasting. Have you been able to stick with it? What protocol are you following? Are you losing weight and noticing other health benefits? How much have you lost over what time period? I have been eating this way off and on for years without realizing it had a name. Thanks!

I do follow a IF schedule. I can stick to it 95% of the time. I usually follow 16:8. The time of day changes depending on what is going on. I am losing weight. I have not noticed any other health benefits. I have lost almost 60 pounds in 7 months. I too have been eating this way for years. I have gained, maintained and lost weight eating this way.

DivaDog01

I've been following a 16-8 schedule for the past 6 months and am very happy with it - it seems to be a natural fit for my metabolism. My goal was to maintain 20 lbs. I had lost over 1 1/2 years and IF has been perfect for that (maintenance). I'm not sure if I would be able to actually lose weight on it because at the end of the 16 hour fast, I'm really hungry. It also works best for me Mon-Fri when I'm at work and the options for snacking are not around. Like JagZag above, I do my cardio (running, spinning) in the morning. One downside is that I feel like I can't really tell people about it - it seems to evoke negative reactions. So I just keep quiet even when I'm asked about my weight-loss success. I don't like having to justify something that works for me but definitely isn't for everyone.

tiffkittyw

I've been doing a 16:8 schedule ever since I started taking thyroid medication so nothing would interact with the meds. I stop eating at 7:00pm and start eating again at 11:00 am M-F and 12:00 on weekends. Sometimes during the week I only make it until 10:30 because I workout at 5 am and get hungry. I like being able to eat the majority of my calories later in the day. It works for me. I'm like a lot of other people that once I start eating I get more hungry and want to eat all day.

VeryKatie

I did 5:2 for a while - I got ridiculously close to my goal weight (which is actually 3 lbs under my new goal weight) - it was amazing. I felt great. I looked great.
Until I couldn't make myself do it (mental aspect).
And until my period totally got screwed up (again. that seems to happen to me a lot. Too low fat? period all the time. 5:2? Period all the time. So clearly my hormones are picky).

I read a study later on the effects this type of diet had on rats. Interestingly, male rats lost weight and reacted fairly well. Female rats became more nervous/hyper almost, thin and had reproductive issues. I know rats are not human, but it was still interesting.

So basically - I would think if it's working for you, then it's working for you. It worked for me but also didn't. Different people will "react" differently to it.

ASKyle

16:8 comes naturally to me because I never really eat breakfast anyway. If it comes naturally to you it may be a good way to control your intake.

ew_david

I do something like 16:8. I don't think there's anything magical about it though; it's just a way to help me stick to my calorie goal. I'm not a breakfast eater, so waiting until 11-12 to eat isn't a huge deal for me. I prefer to have 2 large meals with a snack in between than eat small meals over the course of the day. I lost the bulk of my weight eating this way.

5:2 was a different beast entirely. I couldn't do it.

filovirus76

Been doing the 5:2 now for six weeks. Down 19 lbs. Started at 223. Am a 5'10" male. Been also doing cardio 3x weekly and weights 3x weekly. Thought I may have side affects (dizziness, tiredness, weakness) and I was willing to adjust, but instead feeling better than ever. Fast days 600 cals. Maintenance days 2000 cals.

oolou

16:8 It works for me as it fits my natural hunger pattern to eat in a shorter space of hours near the end of the day. I find if I start to eat early on, that wakes up my appetite and I end up eating more overall by the end of the day. I didn't realise this way of eating had a name either until I joined MFP (and I was relieved to know I wasn't messing my body up by skipping breakfast)!

canadianmom1975

I do 16/8 ..my goals right now is to loose weight and its helping..i lose 1.5 to 2 pounds a week...the reason because IF helps me control my eating...i staynunder my aloud 1800 cals a day...iam not as strict on weekends but i naturally still follow noon to 8pm eating...ive been doing it since feb 1st..and LOVE IT

nlashb

I've been doing what's typically called 16/8, but it's really more of me skipping lunch and breakfast and eating one large meal at a caloric deficit around 6pm for dinner.

So far so good, just making sure it fits my macros. Down 8 pounds in 3 weeks (from 175lbs at 5'11"), looking to lose only maybe 8 more or so.

I definitely recommend it if you're an over-eater, like I was. It really trains you mentally, and if you drink green tea/black coffee, you won't feel the hunger much. I switched from coffee to green tea, barely feel any hunger. I usually do a 3 mile run on my lunch break, too.