Intermittent fasting

nabila_rahman94

I've been doing IF for about a week now and I've lost a couple pounds already but it also fluctuates daily...is that normal? Should I not weigh myself everyday? It's a bit discouraging.

leanjogreen18

I'm not doing IF but yes your weight will fluctuate daily depending on food in/poo out and water retain age if you ate something salty etc.

TeaBea

nabila_rahman94 wrote: »

I've been doing IF for about a week now and I've lost a couple pounds already but it also fluctuates daily...is that normal? Should I not weigh myself everyday? It's a bit discouraging.

Water weight can fluctuate daily. Sore muscles - water weight. Time of month - water weight. Higher sodium - water weight.

You can weigh daily if the fluctuations don't bother you. Track downward trends. Weight loss won't be linear. 2 pounds a week can be expected (fairly regularly) if you have lots of weight to lose (> 75 pounds). Otherwise expect to lose a bit slower.

memickee

I do IF too. 5:2 with 18:6 (eating window is from 5-11pm). Love my fast days. 18:6 is not necessary though; I use it as a tool to control calories.

nabila_rahman94

sijomial wrote: »

Have you read the research by Dr Krista Varady?
She seems to have done the best scientific research and trials on alternate day fasting.

Just ordered the book. Thanks!!

nabila_rahman94

Also, what do you guys eat on eat days? Some people may say just eat anything you want but that doesn't seem right. What are you guys eating? I'm working out 3/4 of my eat days so I can just eat anything or I feel gross at the gym.

JC1459

I'm a 56 year old post menopausal woman with 75 pounds to lose and I've been doing
IF for 12 weeks and have lost 38 lbs -
never felt better - 37 more lbs to go
2 - 24 hr fasts per week
I Eat 2 meals per day within 7 hr window - no snacks in between - no processed food at all - low carbs
I read everything I can get my hands on to better understand the science behind IF and
why this lifestyle choice is more effective
and better for me than any other program I have ever done.
I sleep better - my stomach problems are gone - my mind is sharper - I have more energy -
no mood swings - diminished hot flashes - and I'm spending less $$ on food.

Works for me !!

JC1459

@AmmeLynn the book "The Obesity Code" is what got me started.

amusedmonkey

nabila_rahman94 wrote: »

Also, what do you guys eat on eat days? Some people may say just eat anything you want but that doesn't seem right. What are you guys eating? I'm working out 3/4 of my eat days so I can just eat anything or I feel gross at the gym.

I do eat anything I want on eat days. My focus on these days is not what I'm eating, or how it relates to my dieting, but I use it more as training wheels for maintenance. How do I imagine myself eating when I'm at goal weight maintaining? Do I see myself giving up all the foods I like or eating it in microscopic portions? The answer is no. Do I see myself gorging until I burst? I don't think I would maintain for long if I do that often. The way I see myself is eating normally, not overeating, but not overly stressing about my intake. I see myself indulging my senses, but not mindlessly eating whatever I see in front of me without thought. On eat days I try to replicate that balanced mix of indulgence and caution.

nabila_rahman94

JC1459 wrote: »

I'm a 56 year old post menopausal woman with 75 pounds to lose and I've been doing
IF for 12 weeks and have lost 38 lbs -
never felt better - 37 more lbs to go
2 - 24 hr fasts per week
I Eat 2 meals per day within 7 hr window - no snacks in between - no processed food at all - low carbs
I read everything I can get my hands on to better understand the science behind IF and
why this lifestyle choice is more effective
and better for me than any other program I have ever done.
I sleep better - my stomach problems are gone - my mind is sharper - I have more energy -
no mood swings - diminished hot flashes - and I'm spending less $$ on food.

Works for me !!

That's amazing!! I hope it works out that well for me! So on fast days do you eat the 500 cals as well?

The 2 meals within 7 hrs on eat days sounds great but it's difficult when I'm around family and friends. We tend to go out and I indulge a bit or eat later in the day then when I was hoping.

It's lost about 3-4 in the week that I've been doing it but I think I should just stick to it and see how it goes.

nabila_rahman94

amusedmonkey wrote: »

nabila_rahman94 wrote: »

Also, what do you guys eat on eat days? Some people may say just eat anything you want but that doesn't seem right. What are you guys eating? I'm working out 3/4 of my eat days so I can just eat anything or I feel gross at the gym.

I do eat anything I want on eat days. My focus on these days is not what I'm eating, or how it relates to my dieting, but I use it more as training wheels for maintenance. How do I imagine myself eating when I'm at goal weight maintaining? Do I see myself giving up all the foods I like or eating it in microscopic portions? The answer is no. Do I see myself gorging until I burst? I don't think I would maintain for long if I do that often. The way I see myself is eating normally, not overeating, but not overly stressing about my intake. I see myself indulging my senses, but not mindlessly eating whatever I see in front of me without thought. On eat days I try to replicate that balanced mix of indulgence and caution.

That's a great way of looking at things! Its more adaptable to daily lifestyle. I'd hate it if I was having to miss out on going out or enjoying time with friends and family because I'm limited to eating such few things. This is the whole point I chose to do IF rather than a strict diet with limited items and strict schedule.

memickee

nabila_rahman94 wrote: »

Also, what do you guys eat on eat days? Some people may say just eat anything you want but that doesn't seem right. What are you guys eating? I'm working out 3/4 of my eat days so I can just eat anything or I feel gross at the gym.

I eat whatever I want on my high calorie days but within my daily calorie budget (TDEE). I have eaten cake, ice cream, pizza, beer etc. All things being equal, it's Calories in < Calories out. I like eating my meals at night; this allows me to plan for social outtings and be able to fit in the yummy food in my calorie allowance. What do I do at lunch? Walk.

I like to run on my fast days, right before I break it for dinner. This of course is a personal preference.

Start out with baby steps so you are not overwhelmed and give up. On your fast days, don't jump directly to 500 calories slowly reduce to that amount. If you eat over 500 that day, say 100 or 200 calories, count it as a fast day. Do torture yourself by being miserable. Ease into it.

amusedmonkey

Forgot to add about weight fluctuations:
Daily fluctuations are a fact of life and happen all the time, but even more so on IF. The amount of food in your digestive track has weight, and since this kind of IF introduces large differences in the amount of food you eat your weight tends to fluctuate more violently. I do weigh myself every day and look at the trend instead of the actual numbers. Libra on Android and Happy Scale on iOS could help you track the trend. If you would rather use a computer, https://trendweight.com is a good website. Keep in mind it takes a couple of weeks on Libra (on default setting) and about a month on trendweight to establish a stable trend because it needs a certain number of data entries for accurate calculations.

This is how trendweight looks (if the dotted line is projecting downwards it means you are losing, regardless of the actual numbers):

nabila_rahman94

amusedmonkey wrote: »

Forgot to add about weight fluctuations:
Daily fluctuations are a fact of life and happen all the time, but even more so on IF. The amount of food in your digestive track has weight, and since this kind of IF introduces large differences in the amount of food you eat your weight tends to fluctuate more violently. I do weigh myself every day and look at the trend instead of the actual numbers. Libra on Android and Happy Scale on iOS could help you track the trend. If you would rather use a computer, https://trendweight.com is a good website. Keep in mind it takes a couple of weeks on Libra (on default setting) and about a month on trendweight to establish a stable trend because it needs a certain number of data entries for accurate calculations.

This is how trendweight looks (if the dotted line is projecting downwards it means you are losing, regardless of the actual numbers):

Thank you so much! The downward scale looks much better then fixating on my weight each morning!