Questions on intermittent fasting (please help)
alexastoutxo
Posts: 139 Member
So I'm thinking about doing intermittent fasting, id most likely be doing 15/9 or 16/8 give or take but I have a few questions I'm hoping people with experience could answer.
1. The most I've ever fasted is 12-13 hours, could I possibly "train" My body to fast up to 15-16 hours? Or longer?
2. Can you fast longer than the usual 16 hours? Would it affect you negatively?
3. How many meals can you have when doing intermittent fasting?
4. I like to have 5 meals a day. Breakfast/lunch/dinner and 2 snacks, could I possibly fit all of those meals into an 8-9 hour window? My main meals are already very voluminous to begin with so it seems a bit hard to try to combine one of them to make an even larger meal. Or should i try combining a snack and meal? What do you think? Is it optimal? Or how should I go about that?
I'm scared to combine any meals or snacks because again they are all very voluminous and I feel like it would "stretch" my stomach out.
Please leave me your suggestions/opinions
1. The most I've ever fasted is 12-13 hours, could I possibly "train" My body to fast up to 15-16 hours? Or longer?
2. Can you fast longer than the usual 16 hours? Would it affect you negatively?
3. How many meals can you have when doing intermittent fasting?
4. I like to have 5 meals a day. Breakfast/lunch/dinner and 2 snacks, could I possibly fit all of those meals into an 8-9 hour window? My main meals are already very voluminous to begin with so it seems a bit hard to try to combine one of them to make an even larger meal. Or should i try combining a snack and meal? What do you think? Is it optimal? Or how should I go about that?
I'm scared to combine any meals or snacks because again they are all very voluminous and I feel like it would "stretch" my stomach out.
Please leave me your suggestions/opinions
1
Replies
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Dr Eric Berg...Find him on youtube, he has a million followers for a reason. The guy is an expert (a word I do not throw around lightly) when it comes to 'IF'....He's got videos (short videos) on all of your questions. Thank me later!9
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tramaine_21 wrote: »Dr Eric Berg...Find him on youtube, he has a million followers for a reason. The guy is an expert (a word I do not throw around lightly) when it comes to 'IF'....He's got videos (short videos) on all of your questions. Thank me later!
^ I'd ignore that advice, for a few reasons:
1) Dr. Berg is a chiropractor - not a dietician or M.D., despite how he tends to (mis)represent himself. He has no qualifications to give advice about diet/nutrition matters.
2) Dr. Berg advocates some very controversial (read: woo/quack) practices.
3) Dr. Berg has been fined and ordered to cease and desist several of his controversial (woo/quack) practices, and seems to have some ethical issues: https://www.casewatch.org/board/chiro/berg.shtml10 -
You don't have to train your body to "fast" for 16-18 hours
If you're healthy, you can fast for 24 to 36 hours without any ill effect, but I don't really see any benefit.
You can eat as many meals you want, whenever you want. If you want to control your weight, you have to monitor calories.
Why would you want to change up something that is clearly working perfectly for you?3 -
1. The most I've ever fasted is 12-13 hours, could I possibly "train" My body to fast up to 15-16 hours? Or longer?
the more you do it the easier it gets as your circadian rhythm slowly alters to not bother you as much at certain times of the day
2. Can you fast longer than the usual 16 hours? Would it affect you negatively?
yes ... the only negative effects is if you workout you will see reduced performance, possibly slight brain fog if you run low on blood sugar .. oh and possible headaches if you do workout and run low on salts
3. How many meals can you have when doing intermittent fasting?
as many as you want .... but be realistic, if you only have a 4 hour window to eat, you probably dont want any more than 3 meals
4. I like to have 5 meals a day. Breakfast/lunch/dinner and 2 snacks, could I possibly fit all of those meals into an 8-9 hour window?
the point of a "snack" is to tide you over between meals .... you might not need the snack if your meals are only an hour a part ... I use IF to avoid snacking and allow me to have a bigger meals
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I found intermittent fasting great, when I was cutting it helped, I would fast for 16 hours and it strangely made me more alert and energised. Literally all I had whilst fasting was water or black coffee.
As long as you track your calories it’s not essential, but if you lower calories to try and lose body fat, then obviously having a smaller eating window allows you to eat more in that time (still staying in your calorie goal).
If you are bulking to put on size, then IF probably isn’t the best idea as it’s a lot of food in a smaller period of time.
To lose weight (BF), eat a calorie deficit, 85% clean, train hard and get plenty of rest2 -
1. The most I've ever fasted is 12-13 hours, could I possibly "train" My body to fast up to 15-16 hours? Or longer?
the more you do it the easier it gets as your circadian rhythm slowly alters to not bother you as much at certain times of the day
2. Can you fast longer than the usual 16 hours? Would it affect you negatively?
yes ... the only negative effects is if you workout you will see reduced performance, possibly slight brain fog if you run low on blood sugar .. oh and possible headaches if you do workout and run low on salts
3. How many meals can you have when doing intermittent fasting?
as many as you want .... but be realistic, if you only have a 4 hour window to eat, you probably dont want any more than 3 meals
4. I like to have 5 meals a day. Breakfast/lunch/dinner and 2 snacks, could I possibly fit all of those meals into an 8-9 hour window?
the point of a "snack" is to tide you over between meals .... you might not need the snack if your meals are only an hour a part ... I use IF to avoid snacking and allow me to have a bigger meals
That concerns me now..im a long distance runner and I usually go for a run after my very first meal..i don't want to have low energy before I go out for a run. Does this mean I can't fast for 16 hours since this will happen?0 -
MickyCrispDipper wrote: »I found intermittent fasting great, when I was cutting it helped, I would fast for 16 hours and it strangely made me more alert and energised. Literally all I had whilst fasting was water or black coffee.
As long as you track your calories it’s not essential, but if you lower calories to try and lose body fat, then obviously having a smaller eating window allows you to eat more in that time (still staying in your calorie goal).
If you are bulking to put on size, then IF probably isn’t the best idea as it’s a lot of food in a smaller period of time.
To lose weight (BF), eat a calorie deficit, 85% clean, train hard and get plenty of rest
Is having alot of food in a small period of time bad? As in is there any negative health effects?0 -
You're overthinking it, lol. It's just a way of eating (that doesn't work for everyone). When you eat your calories doesn't matter.
Personally, I tried, and it wasn't for me, I was just too weak and my morning workouts sucked.2 -
You're overthinking it, lol. It's just a way of eating (that doesn't work for everyone). When you eat your calories doesn't matter.
Personally, I tried, and it wasn't for me, I was just too weak and my morning workouts sucked.
Yeah I tend to overthink things lol but honestly, I'm just afraid of any negative effects. Especially in terms of my running performance. I like to have energy for my runs and just don't want to be sluggish throughout it.0 -
alexastoutxo wrote: »That concerns me now..im a long distance runner and I usually go for a run after my very first meal..i don't want to have low energy before I go out for a run. Does this mean I can't fast for 16 hours since this will happen?
dunno ... try it and see .. its different for everyone ... I always workout fasted so never made much of a difference to me. I stop eating on a Sunday about 9pm ... get up 4:30am on Monday, go to gym, then cycle to work, do a days work, Cycle to the mountain bike trails, then go mountain biking, cycle home from the trails and Have dinner about 8pm .... works fine for me
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I do the 16/8 fast.
I skip breakfast and eat from 12 noon to 8 pm.
I workout in a fasted state and it doesn't bother me. I'll bet you could run while fasting and be ok. Just stay hydrated.1 -
alexastoutxo wrote: »So I'm thinking about doing intermittent fasting, id most likely be doing 15/9 or 16/8 give or take but I have a few questions I'm hoping people with experience could answer.
1. The most I've ever fasted is 12-13 hours, could I possibly "train" My body to fast up to 15-16 hours? Or longer?
2. Can you fast longer than the usual 16 hours? Would it affect you negatively?
3. How many meals can you have when doing intermittent fasting?
4. I like to have 5 meals a day. Breakfast/lunch/dinner and 2 snacks, could I possibly fit all of those meals into an 8-9 hour window? My main meals are already very voluminous to begin with so it seems a bit hard to try to combine one of them to make an even larger meal. Or should i try combining a snack and meal? What do you think? Is it optimal? Or how should I go about that?
I'm scared to combine any meals or snacks because again they are all very voluminous and I feel like it would "stretch" my stomach out.
Please leave me your suggestions/opinions
You're definitely over thinking it.
re #1 -- If you have to "train" your body to fast, then you're probably swimming against the current regarding your natural tendencies/preferences... so why make things harder than they need to be?
re #2 -- Yes you can. Results are pretty individual, so it's hard to say how it would affect you specifically.
re #3 -- As many as you want, but more meals + shorter feed window kinda just means constant grazing and/or 1 really big, really long meal. Where do you draw the line?
re #4 -- See my comments on #3. No, you aren't going to stretch out your stomach. If you're that worried about it, switch some of the higher volume/lower cal foods for more calorie dense/lower volume options. Lastly, there is no optimal. Either it makes things easier for you or it doesn't.alexastoutxo wrote: »
That concerns me now..im a long distance runner and I usually go for a run after my very first meal..i don't want to have low energy before I go out for a run. Does this mean I can't fast for 16 hours since this will happen?
How long (distance and time) are you typically running?0 -
alexastoutxo wrote: »MickyCrispDipper wrote: »I found intermittent fasting great, when I was cutting it helped, I would fast for 16 hours and it strangely made me more alert and energised. Literally all I had whilst fasting was water or black coffee.
As long as you track your calories it’s not essential, but if you lower calories to try and lose body fat, then obviously having a smaller eating window allows you to eat more in that time (still staying in your calorie goal).
If you are bulking to put on size, then IF probably isn’t the best idea as it’s a lot of food in a smaller period of time.
To lose weight (BF), eat a calorie deficit, 85% clean, train hard and get plenty of rest
Is having alot of food in a small period of time bad? As in is there any negative health effects?
No, it's fine. Any possible negative side effects are more related to you how feel/perform rather than health or weight management related.0 -
Is there a reason you are thinking of doing intermittent fasting?0
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alexastoutxo wrote: »So I'm thinking about doing intermittent fasting, id most likely be doing 15/9 or 16/8 give or take but I have a few questions I'm hoping people with experience could answer.
1. The most I've ever fasted is 12-13 hours, could I possibly "train" My body to fast up to 15-16 hours? Or longer?
2. Can you fast longer than the usual 16 hours? Would it affect you negatively?
3. How many meals can you have when doing intermittent fasting?
4. I like to have 5 meals a day. Breakfast/lunch/dinner and 2 snacks, could I possibly fit all of those meals into an 8-9 hour window? My main meals are already very voluminous to begin with so it seems a bit hard to try to combine one of them to make an even larger meal. Or should i try combining a snack and meal? What do you think? Is it optimal? Or how should I go about that?
I'm scared to combine any meals or snacks because again they are all very voluminous and I feel like it would "stretch" my stomach out.
Please leave me your suggestions/opinions
You're definitely over thinking it.
re #1 -- If you have to "train" your body to fast, then you're probably swimming against the current regarding your natural tendencies/preferences... so why make things harder than they need to be?
re #2 -- Yes you can. Results are pretty individual, so it's hard to say how it would affect you specifically.
re #3 -- As many as you want, but more meals + shorter feed window kinda just means constant grazing and/or 1 really big, really long meal. Where do you draw the line?
re #4 -- See my comments on #3. No, you aren't going to stretch out your stomach. If you're that worried about it, switch some of the higher volume/lower cal foods for more calorie dense/lower volume options. Lastly, there is no optimal. Either it makes things easier for you or it doesn't.alexastoutxo wrote: »
That concerns me now..im a long distance runner and I usually go for a run after my very first meal..i don't want to have low energy before I go out for a run. Does this mean I can't fast for 16 hours since this will happen?
How long (distance and time) are you typically running?
I run about 6 to 14 miles, 5-6 times a week typically0 -
alexastoutxo wrote: »MickyCrispDipper wrote: »I found intermittent fasting great, when I was cutting it helped, I would fast for 16 hours and it strangely made me more alert and energised. Literally all I had whilst fasting was water or black coffee.
As long as you track your calories it’s not essential, but if you lower calories to try and lose body fat, then obviously having a smaller eating window allows you to eat more in that time (still staying in your calorie goal).
If you are bulking to put on size, then IF probably isn’t the best idea as it’s a lot of food in a smaller period of time.
To lose weight (BF), eat a calorie deficit, 85% clean, train hard and get plenty of rest
Is having alot of food in a small period of time bad? As in is there any negative health effects?
No, it's fine. Any possible negative side effects are more related to you how feel/perform rather than health or weight management related.
So would a shorter eating window be more practical for someone who is trying to lose weight? And a longer eating window be better for someone to gain? I know it's all individualized but would that be more effective especially with having a lot of calories to fill or less calories to fill your day?0 -
sunfastrose wrote: »Is there a reason you are thinking of doing intermittent fasting?
New job that I start on Monday so I kinda have to move my schedule around a bit0 -
alexastoutxo wrote: »alexastoutxo wrote: »MickyCrispDipper wrote: »I found intermittent fasting great, when I was cutting it helped, I would fast for 16 hours and it strangely made me more alert and energised. Literally all I had whilst fasting was water or black coffee.
As long as you track your calories it’s not essential, but if you lower calories to try and lose body fat, then obviously having a smaller eating window allows you to eat more in that time (still staying in your calorie goal).
If you are bulking to put on size, then IF probably isn’t the best idea as it’s a lot of food in a smaller period of time.
To lose weight (BF), eat a calorie deficit, 85% clean, train hard and get plenty of rest
Is having alot of food in a small period of time bad? As in is there any negative health effects?
No, it's fine. Any possible negative side effects are more related to you how feel/perform rather than health or weight management related.
So would a shorter eating window be more practical for someone who is trying to lose weight? And a longer eating window be better for someone to gain? I know it's all individualized but would that be more effective especially with having a lot of calories to fill or less calories to fill your day?
No. Fewer overall calories would be better for someone trying to lose. More overall calories would be better for someone trying to gain.
Figure out what the right amount of calories are for you. Once you do that, you can eat them whenever you want, whenever is best for your workouts and for your ability to be consistent with that calorie goal. Weigh loss/gain will have no bearing on when you eat the cals. Your workouts, your ability to stay on track, and your overall satisfaction could very much be impacted by when you eat.1 -
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There is an IF group here at MFP1
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alexastoutxo wrote: »alexastoutxo wrote: »MickyCrispDipper wrote: »I found intermittent fasting great, when I was cutting it helped, I would fast for 16 hours and it strangely made me more alert and energised. Literally all I had whilst fasting was water or black coffee.
As long as you track your calories it’s not essential, but if you lower calories to try and lose body fat, then obviously having a smaller eating window allows you to eat more in that time (still staying in your calorie goal).
If you are bulking to put on size, then IF probably isn’t the best idea as it’s a lot of food in a smaller period of time.
To lose weight (BF), eat a calorie deficit, 85% clean, train hard and get plenty of rest
Is having alot of food in a small period of time bad? As in is there any negative health effects?
No, it's fine. Any possible negative side effects are more related to you how feel/perform rather than health or weight management related.
So would a shorter eating window be more practical for someone who is trying to lose weight? And a longer eating window be better for someone to gain? I know it's all individualized but would that be more effective especially with having a lot of calories to fill or less calories to fill your day?
No. Fewer overall calories would be better for someone trying to lose. More overall calories would be better for someone trying to gain.
Figure out what the right amount of calories are for you. Once you do that, you can eat them whenever you want, whenever is best for your workouts and for your ability to be consistent with that calorie goal. Weigh loss/gain will have no bearing on when you eat the cals. Your workouts, your ability to stay on track, and your overall satisfaction could very much be impacted by when you eat.
That's kinda what I'm wanting to control, I know when I eat will impact my overall satiety/workouts/staying on track which is why I asked that previous question. I feel like I didn't word my question right though so let me explain..im a volume eater and I eat about 5 meals a day. My breakfast, lunch and dinner are all pretty voluminous and I typically ate them all in a 11-12 hour window. So I guess i did more of a 12/12 or 13/11 approach to my eating because that's what I felt my best at in terms of performance/satisfaction etc. But I know I wouldn't be able to eat all my desired meals in a 8-9 hour window. I guess I'm having trouble on how to time my meals to be around the same window to feel that same feeling of satisfaction. I wanted to try out intermittent fasting to see how I could go about eating my meals spaced out but also having that same feeling of performance and satisfaction. Damn that was a long explanation but does that make sense?0 -
alexastoutxo wrote: »alexastoutxo wrote: »MickyCrispDipper wrote: »I found intermittent fasting great, when I was cutting it helped, I would fast for 16 hours and it strangely made me more alert and energised. Literally all I had whilst fasting was water or black coffee.
As long as you track your calories it’s not essential, but if you lower calories to try and lose body fat, then obviously having a smaller eating window allows you to eat more in that time (still staying in your calorie goal).
If you are bulking to put on size, then IF probably isn’t the best idea as it’s a lot of food in a smaller period of time.
To lose weight (BF), eat a calorie deficit, 85% clean, train hard and get plenty of rest
Is having alot of food in a small period of time bad? As in is there any negative health effects?
No, it's fine. Any possible negative side effects are more related to you how feel/perform rather than health or weight management related.
So would a shorter eating window be more practical for someone who is trying to lose weight? And a longer eating window be better for someone to gain? I know it's all individualized but would that be more effective especially with having a lot of calories to fill or less calories to fill your day?
No. Fewer overall calories would be better for someone trying to lose. More overall calories would be better for someone trying to gain.
Figure out what the right amount of calories are for you. Once you do that, you can eat them whenever you want, whenever is best for your workouts and for your ability to be consistent with that calorie goal. Weigh loss/gain will have no bearing on when you eat the cals. Your workouts, your ability to stay on track, and your overall satisfaction could very much be impacted by when you eat.
I'm having to change this because of my new job on Monday so I'm trying to schedule my meals as close to that same schedule of eating so I could still have that same impact of satiety/performance/staying on track overall. But I'm figuring out it may not work out so well and I was wondering how intermittent fasting would be if I tried it instead but If I tried IF, i would have to eat everything in a 8-9 hour window which would difficult for me. Again does that make sense?0 -
So all this is because you're starting a new job that will impact when you're able to eat?
It sounds like you might just have to try it and see how you do... make a few adjustments as necessary, and see if it's something you can/would want to stick with. I'm a volume eater and I IF just fine... but I do it very differently than you, so I can't really predict how you'll do/feel.
Is there a reason you have to eat the same volume? If you're eating over a shorter timeframe, can you reduce the volume (more lower volume/higher cal foods) so you get that same satisfaction when you eat without feeling like you have to gorge yourself?0 -
So all this is because you're starting a new job that will impact when you're able to eat?
It sounds like you might just have to try it and see how you do... make a few adjustments as necessary, and see if it's something you can/would want to stick with. I'm a volume eater and I IF just fine... but I do it very differently than you, so I can't really predict how you'll do/feel.
Is there a reason you have to eat the same volume? If you're eating over a shorter timeframe, can you reduce the volume (more lower volume/higher cal foods) so you get that same satisfaction when you eat without feeling like you have to gorge yourself?
Well I was thinking about doing that and experimenting but I do like the foods I eat now to be honest. If I wrote out my old schedule/the foods i ate to how my new schedule looks could you give me some suggestions/your approach as to how you would try it? Maybe switch up the foods or times?
I may make a different post asking the same just to see now differently others would approach this and I could them out as well.0 -
This is probably going to come out pretty sharp, so I apologize in advance... But you seem fairly set on both continuing your normal eating, and the shortend feed window. So just give it a go and see how it works. You can only think and predict so much, at some point you just have try it and see if it works for you.
I don't eat very well, and I wouldn't recommend my methods of eating to other people, so what I would or wouldn't do shouldn't have any bearing on what you should or should not do. But ultimately, it shouldn't be hard to swap out certain foods for others. If you're unsure how to go about it, prelog some things, move Foods in and out until you come up with a plan for the day that looks like it'll work. Eat according to that plan, and see how you do.1 -
OP, just eat on whatever schedule works for you. There is no magic to eating during a specific length window and calling it "IF". If your new schedule is easier if you skip breakfast than do that. Some people do great working out fasted, others can't stand it. For your weight, all that matters is how many calories you eat. The rest is personal preferences around satiety, lifestyle, activity, and availability. No one can tell you what will work for you. Just play around with it and you'll figure it out. :drinker:2
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OP, just eat on whatever schedule works for you. There is no magic to eating during a specific length window and calling it "IF". If your new schedule is easier if you skip breakfast than do that. Some people do great working out fasted, others can't stand it. For your weight, all that matters is how many calories you eat. The rest is personal preferences around satiety, lifestyle, activity, and availability. No one can tell you what will work for you. Just play around with it and you'll figure it out. :drinker:
I understand. We're all different so it's hard for anyone to tell me what would work for me but i honestly just want to hear how others would approach this. I just posted a new question on the forum explaining my new schedule. If you could possibly read it and help me out in anyway I'd truly appreciate it
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tramaine_21 wrote: »Dr Eric Berg...Find him on youtube, he has a million followers for a reason. The guy is an expert (a word I do not throw around lightly) when it comes to 'IF'....He's got videos (short videos) on all of your questions. Thank me later!
^ I'd ignore that advice, for a few reasons:
1) Dr. Berg is a chiropractor - not a dietician or M.D., despite how he tends to (mis)represent himself. He has no qualifications to give advice about diet/nutrition matters.
2) Dr. Berg advocates some very controversial (read: woo/quack) practices.
3) Dr. Berg has been fined and ordered to cease and desist several of his controversial (woo/quack) practices, and seems to have some ethical issues: https://www.casewatch.org/board/chiro/berg.shtml
Dr Berg is brilliant, and he's never said he was an MD...He has legit credentials and great advice. Plus he advises for people to do their own research. Even some of the best doctors have had their run-ins with conflicting/legal issues etc...Too each is own...Always got to be a critic somewhere...5 -
Did you read the casewatch.org link?tramaine_21 wrote: »tramaine_21 wrote: »Dr Eric Berg...Find him on youtube, he has a million followers for a reason. The guy is an expert (a word I do not throw around lightly) when it comes to 'IF'....He's got videos (short videos) on all of your questions. Thank me later!
^ I'd ignore that advice, for a few reasons:
1) Dr. Berg is a chiropractor - not a dietician or M.D., despite how he tends to (mis)represent himself. He has no qualifications to give advice about diet/nutrition matters.
2) Dr. Berg advocates some very controversial (read: woo/quack) practices.
3) Dr. Berg has been fined and ordered to cease and desist several of his controversial (woo/quack) practices, and seems to have some ethical issues: https://www.casewatch.org/board/chiro/berg.shtml
Dr Berg is brilliant, and he's never said he was an MD...He has legit credentials and great advice. Plus he advises for people to do their own research. Even some of the best doctors have had their run-ins with conflicting/legal issues etc...Too each is own...Always got to be a critic somewhere...
Dr. Oz has "legit" credentials too - he's an MD, and a cardiothoracic surgeon to boot. Yet he dispenses some of the worst, garbage, woo-filled advice ever about diet and nutrition. Berg is along the same lines.
3
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