Does anyone fast?

bufger

My goal is to lose body fat and maintain muscle but some days I'm fine with eating at a slow deficit and once a week or once every two weeks I feel like fasting for the whole day (just casein with water, no training on that day). Does anyone else do this and is it destroying my hard work? Or does it not make too much of a difference?

I don't want to lose lean mass or at least I'd want the percentage of loss to be at least 80% Fat 20% muscle. My BF is at around 24%

amusedmonkey

If it doesn't mess you up mentally and if your overall weekly deficit is reasonable and you're training appropriately, not eating once every week or two won't cause excess muscle loss. Do what feels easier for you.

TavistockToad

as long as your weekly deficit is where you want it to be, you should be fine.

bufger

Thanks both. I struggle with the same routine and same deficit. I'd much rather do one week at a slight deficit, one week at maintenance with a day fasting. I just like to mix things up

sijomial

When I lost my excess weight I followed the 5:2 intermittent fasting protocol which was 2 non-consecutive days a week at very low calories (c. 600), 5 days at maintenance calories and it worked very well to support a heavy training load. On my low cal days I prioritised protein but from food rather than supplementing and also trained but not the high intensity or long duration sessions.

Lost 1lb week as expected, good energy levels as the majority of my training was fully fuelled, good recovery and added some muscle.

I find an everyday deficit tedious, draining on energy and motivation and harder to stick to compared to picking odd days to nibble off some calories.

bufger

sijomial wrote: »

When I lost my excess weight I followed the 5:2 intermittent fasting protocol which was 2 non-consecutive days a week at very low calories (c. 600), 5 days at maintenance calories and it worked very well to support a heavy training load. On my low cal days I prioritised protein but from food rather than supplementing and also trained but not the high intensity or long duration sessions.

Lost 1lb week as expected, good energy levels as the majority of my training was fully fuelled, good recovery and added some muscle.

I find an everyday deficit tedious, draining on energy and motivation and harder to stick to compared to picking odd days to nibble off some calories.

Thats great to hear. Its exactly my thought process. Thanks!

heather233

I dont eat when I wake up. I drink my bcaas then workout. I also dont eat after 8 pm. I think it helps burn fat. Some people cant handle not having something light before a workout but Im not usually hungry first thing so I just workout.

feisty_bucket

A bunch of people are into Intermittent Fasting on here; check out the specialized groups.

FWIW: I've been doing full-day fasts once or twice a week, depending on goals, for the past three years. It's more or less Mosley's 5:2/6:1 except I don't mess with the suggested 600 calorie meal (found it counter-productive, makes me hungrier). I just have a lil' milk in my coffee and that's it. On regular days, I lift or sprint and eat. Maintaining at about 15% bodyfat, 48 yrs old.

Very happy with the technique. It gets easier the more you do it, for sure. There's no way I'd do the every-day-low-calorie thing again.

Laces918

I fast every day between meals.. it’s usually only a few hours but feels like forever.. 😂😂

gia_incognito

I fast once a week, usually on Mondays to make up for inevitable higher calories on the weekend.

Keto_Vampire

I do fast (daily) but just don't believe all the hype you hear/read about. Fasting is simply a tool that allows one less time in the day to eat (usually helps trying to achieve a kcal deficit...usually). No need to do prolonged fasts (72+hours = entering beginning stages of starvation/protein/EAA breakdown/utilization for energy), 16-20 hours is fine.

Fasting is not for everyone (I just happen to be use to this eating pattern from a young age - no breakfast, school, no lunch, extracurricular activities/work, home, eat/homework/study, sleep). Was reintroduced to this fasting concept as a dietary tool from my Muslim roommates (Ramadan) in college after abandoning this way of eating after changing to eating more like a bodybuilder (5+ times a day). Fasting is simply easier to be adherent with and simplify intake (measuring fewer times per day equates to less error)

I would not consider protein fasting the same as traditional fasting. Just some advice - one day with a huge kcal deficit might make you prone to binge the next day &/or have terrible gym performance (schedule this day wisely to avoid this).

Chieflrg

Everybody fasts in between meals.

I don't recall what literature I read a few months ago, but it suggested the fasting shows no more of a benefit for losing fat than just eating in a deficit and can give issues with strength loss for what's it worth. It also mentioned that those who do are more likely to fall off the wagon and gain weight back. Of course for some people it might help with adherence.

AnvilHead

Chieflrg wrote: »

Everybody fasts in between meals.

I don't recall what literature I read a few months ago, but it suggested the fasting shows no more of a benefit for losing fat than just eating in a deficit and can give issues with strength loss for what's it worth. It also mentioned that those who do are more likely to fall off the wagon and gain weight back. Of course for some people it might help with adherence.

Was it one of these?:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0261561417301255

https://www.dymatize-athletic-nutrition.com/en_GB/why-dymatize/blog/intermittent-fasting-fat-loss-and-better-health

https://www.myoleanfitness.com/intermittent-fasting-vs-traditional-dieting/

https://www.iifym.com/intermittent-fasting-myths-debunked/



[ETA:] Alan Aragon said it best: "There is nothing anabolic about NOT eating!"

Chieflrg

[

AnvilHead wrote: »

Chieflrg wrote: »

Everybody fasts in between meals.

I don't recall what literature I read a few months ago, but it suggested the fasting shows no more of a benefit for losing fat than just eating in a deficit and can give issues with strength loss for what's it worth. It also mentioned that those who do are more likely to fall off the wagon and gain weight back. Of course for some people it might help with adherence.

Was it one of these?:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0261561417301255

https://www.dymatize-athletic-nutrition.com/en_GB/why-dymatize/blog/intermittent-fasting-fat-loss-and-better-health

https://www.myoleanfitness.com/intermittent-fasting-vs-traditional-dieting/

https://www.iifym.com/intermittent-fasting-myths-debunked/



[ETA:] Alan Aragon said it best: "There is nothing anabolic about NOT eating!"

No it was another one, I'll try to dig it up. It did mention severely obese people could see some results though as a exception. Of course that would be done under close watch of their doctor.