Fasting one day per week?

gabbyo23

Could this help me lose weight?

I know many people look at weekly calories rather than daily, calorie cycling, 5:2 etc
..

So I'm thinking...I do 1500 a day. Let's say that's giving me a 3500 deficit. If I fast for a day I add another 1500 to that.

Could this be a good way to increase my deficit and lose weight quicker whilst not feeling deprived on the non fast days? I'm thinking I'd rather do this than cut back to 1200 every day...

Any thoughts?

SueSueDio

Try it and see if it works for you? Personally I'd rather eat less every day than have to go without food for one, but that's just me.

If you have an appropriate deficit over the course of the week (rather than on a daily basis) then it could work well, but it would depend on how you respond to the fasting and whether it makes you want to eat more than you should on the other days.

If you feel that 1200 is too low for you (it is for many people), then you could look at your overall goals to see if you're being too aggressive or consider increasing your exercise to give yourself a bit more to eat. If you're currently on 1500 per day and not losing then you might be underestimating your portion sizes and calorie counts. Without knowing more about you, we can't offer many suggestions.

Eat as much as you can while still losing, even it is slower than you'd prefer!

crzycatlady1

I did alternate day intermittent fasting during my weight loss phase and alternated between higher (around maintenance) calorie days, with low (500 or less) calorie days. It worked well for me because I didn't feel like I was dieting all the time and I was still able to enjoy higher calorie weekends, social events etc. I never went 0 calories though, that would be very difficult I think?

Rebecca0224

gabbyo23 wrote: »

So I'm thinking...I do 1500 a day. Let's say that's giving me a 3500 deficit. If I fast for a day I add another 1500 to that.

if you are already at a 3500 deficit and I wouldn't think it would be good to reduce it anymore. At a 1500 calories a day thats 10500 calories a week and you are already down 3500 if you reduce it by 1500 more you will only be consuming 5500 calories a week or 785 calories a day. At your current deficit you are only getting average of 1000 calories a day and that is with no exercise. Any less would not be healthy or sustainable. Females should have minimum 1200 calories a day and men 1500. Weight loss takes time be patient and if you want to cut anymore calories consult your doctor first.

janekana

I would say lower your calorie intake for that one day but don't not eat entirely! Sure it'd put you in a deficit, but it won't give you any energy for that one day, unless you plan on just sitting around in your room all day which requires little to no energy.

A 3500 caloric deficit for the entire week honestly sounds good, though slow, but healthy. Don't rush it, you won't lose weight overnight. If you still feel like you want to fast though, check out intermittent fasting. Just as long as you have something in that one day.

RoxieDawn

"lose weight quicker" why? Losing weight quicker does not mean that's better. Why not do it in a non aggressive, sustainable way?

The question is how much did you set MFP up to lose weight each week and what is your activity level?

1200 is usually to little of calories unless you meet specific criteria (height, current weight, activity level)..

But, if you want to cycle your calories, you can eat them any way you want to, at the end of the day and week the calorie deficit is what you need to be in..

courtneyfabulous

Not eating for an entire day is harder than you'd think and not good for your brain. You could go 1200 for 1 or 2 days a week and keep the rest at 1500 maybe...

I really don't think too low calories or fasting completely is a good idea- it just leads to increased hunger, a slower metabolism, and muscle loss.

Maybe eat the same and just include a little more exercise to speed results?

But 1 pound a week (3500 calorie/week deficit) is already a pretty good rate of loss.

SideSteel

courtneyfabulous wrote: »

Not eating for an entire day is harder than you'd think and not good for your brain. You could go 1200 for 1 or 2 days a week and keep the rest at 1500 maybe...

I really don't think too low calories or fasting completely is a good idea- it just leads to increased hunger, a slower metabolism, and muscle loss.

Maybe eat the same and just include a little more exercise to speed results?

But 1 pound a week (3500 calorie/week deficit) is already a pretty good rate of loss.

If anything, single day fasting may have a short term positive effect on energy expenditure.

It's right around 72 hours of fasting where metabolic down regulation starts to occur.


To the original poster:

There are methods of intermittent calorie restriction that appear somewhat promising but ultimately I think it depends on how well you're going to be able to stick to the diet.

If it were me and I were looking to do some type of an approach where some days are very low, I would probably make the lower days more similar to a protein sparing modified fast where you are still eating protein and perhaps some fibrous vegetables.

You could feasibly create at least some amount of satiety this way, you could theoretically blunt muscle protein breakdown by at least getting in a reasonable amount of protein.


Ultimately though once again I think it's going to really depend on what you can adhere to.

Intentional_Me

The point of IF is not to lose weight faster. If you eat no calories 2 days a week you need to consume those calories between the other 5 days to stay on plan. If this doesn't sound pleasant to you 5:2 may not work (especially with zero cals). You could still do 5:2 but just do lower cals on the two days and have less leftover to split between the 5 days. Or you can look at things like 16:8.

All about what's sustainable.

courtneyfabulous

I still can't imagine not eating for an entire day- and I come from a history of anorexia. But even at my worst most restrictive point I had to have at least a little food or soda or something, otherwise my blood sugar would get low and I would get dizzy & shakey.

paperpudding

Wouldn't work for me.

Am hungry by mid morning if I don't eat breakfast

And I like food, I don't want to go a day without it.

But many people do short term fasts for various reasons - not convinced it will be good idea for you though.

gabbyo23

Thanks all! Just playing with the idea really.

Everyone always says weight loss is just a numbers game...it's maths. How you consume your ideal calorie amount isn't really relevant as long as it's sustainable, right?

Who knows if I'll actually do this. I may find it too harsh. But it's an interesting thought and it's made me realise that actually my 1500 calories isn't necersarily a goal, but a limit, and if I don't need all 1500 one day that's OK.

X

CooCooPuff

I've been doing 5:2 for three weeks and really enjoy it. My rate of loss seems similar to what it would be using NEAT, not enough time to really determine, but I do this because I like eating more on the weekends and was sick of a constant deficit. It feels less restrictive because I can eat more if what I want when I'm out with friends and have more free time. Hunger and energy on Mondays and Wednesdays haven't really been an issue.

It's something you need to try out yourself to see how it would work.

2,360 for 5 days, 590something for 2 (using this calculator)

amusedmonkey

So you're aiming for a 800 calorie deficit. This sounds reasonable if you have enough fat to handle it. Try it and see. Personally, I find not eating for a whole day stressful but very doable. I sometimes do it for the holidays to halt weight gain before resuming eating slightly over maintenance, repeat until the holiday season is over. If you feel a stressful day is worth a relaxed week, why not? Try and see.

Another method you may want consider is consolidating missing deficits. I do this sometimes as well. Say you want to average 1200 a day (a 6-day total of 7200), you basically eat to your comfort without going overboard, say your net numbers turned out to be 1200, 1200, 1300, 1600, 1100, 1500 (a 6-day total of 7900, that's 700 calories higher than your goal). On the 7th day you basically eat 1200 minus 700, or 500 calories. If you are going through a more severe hungry phase you could consolidate every 2-3 days instead of 6.

Keep in mind I used your numbers because you stated you wanted to average 1200. Personally, I would recommend against going that low if you can afford it. All forms of intermittent fasting are more focused on managing hunger and improving adherence than accelerating weight loss, which is unnecessary unless you're losing weight for a medical procedure or something.

elisa123gal

I'm trying intermittent fasting right now... very curious about what I'll think after a few weeks. I'm dong the 16:8.. where you basically skip breakfast and eat for an 8 hour window. The theory is you're in a big time fat burning mode if you don't feed your body constantly, especially first thing in the morning.

It is has been interesting and i feel fine ...if it works.. i think I'll be totally into it.. for these reasons.

1. I don't start my day obsessing over food and calorie count
2. I've learned that being a bit hungry is not the end of the world..and the hunger does pass
3. when i eat my food tastes better because i'm truly hungry instead of thinking I'm hungry
4. It makes things way more simple.. no more chopping .. packing.. obsessing over my tidbits of food for the day.
5. When my eating window opens.. i don't stuff my face for 8 hours.. in fact.. before I know it the 8 hours is up..and I automatically stop eating and thinking about food.



oh yeah.. but i do drink my coffee in the morning...

jennifer_417

I think it might be a bit much on top of maintaining a deficit all the other days of the week. As far as I know, all of the IF protocols have phases of fasting, and phases of eating more. Keeping a really high calorie deficit usually backfires in the long run, in the form of uncontrollable binging, or if you keep it long enough, symptoms of malnutrition like extreme fatigue, hairloss, irritability, and various health problems.

TeaBea

gabbyo23 wrote: »

Could this help me lose weight?

I know many people look at weekly calories rather than daily, calorie cycling, 5:2 etc
..

So I'm thinking...I do 1500 a day. Let's say that's giving me a 3500 deficit. If I fast for a day I add another 1500 to that.

Could this be a good way to increase my deficit and lose weight quicker whilst not feeling deprived on the non fast days? I'm thinking I'd rather do this than cut back to 1200 every day...

Any thoughts?

There are healthy zig-zag diets out there. 5:2 and the Alternate Day Diet. BUT these diets take overall calories into consideration.......your proposal is a 6 day diet+a complete fast day. This sounds way too aggressive.

When we lose weight we lose fat+existing lean muscle mass. Large deficits make it harder for your body to support existing lean muscle mass so you end up losing more lean muscle than is healthy. A moderate calorie deficit would be healthier.

5:2 is eat your MAINTENANCE for 5 days and then 500 calories for 2 days. 4:3 would be the more aggressive version....best for people with more weight to lose. Risk of muscle loss for obese people is minimal.

Find your maintenance here: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

Help for 5:2 here:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/100058-5-2-fasting

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/8628-5-2-diet

This "helps" with weight loss because it's a good fit for some people. All you need is consistent calorie deficit. If a zig-zag diet helps you accomplish that....great.

TeaBea

rebeccaculp87 wrote: »

gabbyo23 wrote: »

So I'm thinking...I do 1500 a day. Let's say that's giving me a 3500 deficit. If I fast for a day I add another 1500 to that.

if you are already at a 3500 deficit and I wouldn't think it would be good to reduce it anymore. At a 1500 calories a day thats 10500 calories a week and you are already down 3500 if you reduce it by 1500 more you will only be consuming 5500 calories a week or 785 calories a day. At your current deficit you are only getting average of 1000 calories a day and that is with no exercise. Any less would not be healthy or sustainable. Females should have minimum 1200 calories a day and men 1500. Weight loss takes time be patient and if you want to cut anymore calories consult your doctor first.

This^

Gotta love math!

amusedmonkey

TeaBea wrote: »

rebeccaculp87 wrote: »

gabbyo23 wrote: »

So I'm thinking...I do 1500 a day. Let's say that's giving me a 3500 deficit. If I fast for a day I add another 1500 to that.

if you are already at a 3500 deficit and I wouldn't think it would be good to reduce it anymore. At a 1500 calories a day thats 10500 calories a week and you are already down 3500 if you reduce it by 1500 more you will only be consuming 5500 calories a week or 785 calories a day. At your current deficit you are only getting average of 1000 calories a day and that is with no exercise. Any less would not be healthy or sustainable. Females should have minimum 1200 calories a day and men 1500. Weight loss takes time be patient and if you want to cut anymore calories consult your doctor first.

This^

Gotta love math!

She made a slight mistake in her calculations, but I don't think the above math is correct either. If eating 1500 calories gives her a 3500 deficit per week (that's 2000 sedentary maintenance), so if she fasts 1 day she would be adding 2000 calories to 3000 (6*500), or a total of 5000 calories. For a simpler calculation it's easier to just multiply 1500 by 6 and divide by 7. That's 700 something daily deficit, or slightly less than 1300 average. That's not unreasonable.

SueSueDio

The way I read the OP was that she's eating 1500 per day, so if she fasts for one day a week she then has 1500 calories to split among the other six, giving her the same overall weekly deficit but with more calories to eat on most days. I may have misunderstood her intentions, but that's what I thought she was getting at.

Staying with 1500 for six days and 0 on one is an entirely different thing but I still wouldn't like it either way, personally! I like eating too much (which is why I'm here... ) and can't imagine even doing one or two 500-calorie days!

Psychgrrl

It is a numbers game--whoever eats the most and still loses wins. You shouldn't have to punish your mind or your body for a bigger deficit. Weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint.

Plenty of people fast for religious reasons and IF folks do it because it works for them--but they are eating the calories on the fasting day on their other days, not eliminating them completely.

You want to make changes leading to sustainable weight loss. You want to be able to lose the weight without being miserable. However you get there is up to you, just please take care of yourself.