IF Forever?

newheavensearth

Silly question. It's been said not to do anything for weight loss you don't want to maintain. Well I did 16:8 IF for 5 days and noticed a huge difference in my belly bloat and definition... as in I actually saw some and had a great woosh. Question is once I get to goal is this something that has to be continued, do you wean yourself off, or done only as needed? I stopped due to schedule changes and would like to start again. But fear of regain has me hesitant. I haven't regained my woosh, just regular fluctuations so far.

Thanks.

malibu927

16:8 has nothing to do with weight loss other than helping you stick to your calorie goal. You can do it for the rest of your life if you choose to.

AnvilHead

IF is simply what time of the day you eat - there's nothing magical, powerful or life-changing about it. If you enjoy eating on such a schedule and it provides better satiety for you, there's no reason you can't do it indefinitely/forever.

I've eaten on more or less a 16/8 pattern for years. It's just how I like to eat - I'm not that hungry in the morning and like having a lot of calories for dinner time. I did it before IF was all the current fad, and will probably still be doing it after the fad fades and people are on to the next trendy diet thing. I don't ascribe any wizardry to it and I don't stick to it like a religion - if I'm hungry outside of those hours on any particular day for any particular reason, I eat. If I'm not, I don't.

You can gain, lose or maintain weight doing IF. It all comes down to how many calories you're eating, not what time of the day you're eating them.

seska422

newheavensearth wrote: »

It's been said not to do anything for weight loss you don't want to maintain.

That pertains to what you eat, not when.

Meal timing (such as IF) can be changed whenever you wish without changing your calories or macros. It's flexible and easy enough to alter as needed, such as with the schedule changes you mentioned.

Meal composition isn't so easy to change. Losing weight on low carb when you don't think that you can do low carb forever means that you are stuck experimenting with finding a new way to eat when you transition from weight loss to weight maintenance. It's easier to figure out a comfortable way of eating while you are losing weight as practice for maintenance.

AnvilHead

seska422 wrote: »

...Meal timing (such as IF) can be changed whenever you wish without changing your calories or macros. It's flexible and easy enough to alter as needed, such as with the schedule changes you mentioned...

Exactly. I mean, if I just started eating breakfast at 8:00 instead of around noon, I've changed my meal timing and I'm not doing 16/8 anymore. One simple change. And there'd be no weight regain as long as I kept my calorie intake the same as it was before. The calories are what matter.

TavistockToad

malibu927 wrote: »

16:8 has nothing to do with weight loss other than helping you stick to your calorie goal. You can do it for the rest of your life if you choose to.

This

h1udd

I flick in an out of IF on a weekly basis, some days, most week days I do 16:8, with a couple of 20:4s thrown in if I am expecting a high calorie weekend ... I never IF on the weekend .... sometimes I wake up thinking this is an IF day, get to work and think, "nah, I am hungry its a normal day today"

IF is just meal timing, you can eat when you like, whenever you want... I go on feeling and what my weekend plans are to when I eat

sijomial

newheavensearth wrote: »

But fear of regain has me hesitant.

Regain of fat would be from a calorie surplus and not from your eating pattern.
I experimented with 16:8 at maintenance, made no difference to my weight when I started it, made no difference when I stopped it. Now I just skip breakfast when I want to or when I want to fairly painlessly cut some calories - but it's the calories not the meal timing itself that makes the difference.

If IF makes your adherence to your goal easier then do it, if IF makes adherence harder then don't do it, if IF some of the time helps you then do that.
(Above was an attempt to get maximum number of ifs in one sentence!)

toxikon

16:8 is usually just 'skipping breakfast'... definitely doable long-term. I've been doing it for years!

GottaBurnEmAll

IF is really more about meal timing. The keys to maintenance might shift for you as time passes, and your life circumstances change.

The bottom line is that energy balance is key. The things that make you able to comply are moving pieces and you are free to move those around and use those as you see fit in order to make compliance possible. Macro balance and food choice, exercise patterns (including choice, timing, duration, intensity and frequency), and meal timing are all just tools. Use them as they suit you.