Considering Intermittent Fasting

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MissyReed1003
MissyReed1003 Posts: 5 Member
edited April 8 in Getting Started
Hi!!! I have tried Intermittent Fasting in the past, the 16:8 type of Fasting, but have a questions about restarting Fasting and if it gets easier to skip a meal when one is used to eating three meals a day??? Normally I would skip breakfast because then I would be able to eat from 11 am to 7 pm, but my past attempts that I remember by the time 11 am came, it felt like I was starving, which is pretty sad, Haha!!! So am seeking advice because I would like to take up IF again, but want to be successful! Thank you all!!!

Replies

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 10,609 Member
    Why do you want to do intermittent fasting? What do you expect from it? It's not working for everyone, you know.
  • MissyReed1003
    MissyReed1003 Posts: 5 Member
    I am trying to lose 20 pounds and I tend to over eat at times so was hopeful that this might help especially since one meal would be eliminated and I know I would have to watch my calorie intake like I am trying to now, but am hopeful to get into more of a routine as far as times of the day that I can eat during!!!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    MissyReed1003 wrote: »
    Hi!!! I have tried Intermittent Fasting in the past, the 16:8 type of Fasting, but have a questions about restarting Fasting and if it gets easier to skip a meal when one is used to eating three meals a day??? Normally I would skip breakfast because then I would be able to eat from 11 am to 7 pm, but my past attempts that I remember by the time 11 am came, it felt like I was starving, which is pretty sad, Haha!!! So am seeking advice because I would like to take up IF again, but want to be successful! Thank you all!!!

    I don't think that's sad...I think that's pretty normal when you haven't eaten anything in 16 hours.

    I've done IF on and off over many years...once upon a time, we just called it skipping breakfast. There have been times when I've found it beneficial in keeping calories in check like last summer when I was injured for the entire summer and unable to do much physically...IF helped me keep calories in check so that I could at least maintain my weight through the healing process (ended up gaining about 10 Lbs anyway over the course of about 4 months, but it could have been worse)...and yeah...I was typically pretty hungry come lunch time. Like I said, I don't think that's sad...it would seem completely normal to me. 16 hours without food is quite a long time.
  • Poobah1972
    Poobah1972 Posts: 943 Member
    edited March 2021
    You can always try it again, but if you find your starving then maybe it's not the best thing for you. My Fiancé and I will be water fasting (36 hours) for the entire day Sunday for the 8th week in a row this week, and somehow we both honest to goodness love Sundays. We are also following a Keto WOE, and it seems to stamp out the hunger whether its a Fast or otherwise.... Sundays are pretty much just another day with a whole lot extra time on our hands.

    Everyone is different though, and Water fasting isn't really recommended for anyone sub 20 BMI (or if your pregnant, or breast feeding, and especially anyone susceptible to eating disorders).

    Now I hope everyone doesn't think I'm suggesting you water fast I'm not... However I am saying fasting, or intermittent fasting may well be easier if your are following a low carb diet simply due to how it smoothes out insulin levels coupled with intake of high fat and moderate proteins working to curve hunger to a much muted level. Additionally, if your already in a state of ketosis then your less likely to experience electrolyte imbalances during your fasting period which can lead to headaches and general feelings of fatigue (keto-flu).
  • Keitsa
    Keitsa Posts: 1 Member
    I've been doing IF for several weeks. It works for me. I do the 16:8. I start eating around 1:00 p.m. and stop at 9:00 p.m. I have never been a big breakfast eater, but started eating breakfast because...you know "it's the most important meal of the day!". Well, that never worked for me. Once I started eating in the morning, I would eat all day long and the evening has always been the worst for me. If I can stave off hunger until 1:00 p.m. I can eat what I want in the evenings. I also am trying to eat healthier in general so I am eating lots of fruits and vegetables, staying away from red meat, and mostly eating chicken and fish/seafood. I've decreased my junk food intake and given up any type of sugary drinks, water, and seltzer water only (I do have the occasional glass of wine or cocktail). But that does not mean I don't indulge sometimes. I do, but even with that, I am usually still in a calorie deficit because of IF. If you are struggling to start, don't start right away with 16:8, maybe try 12:12 or, whatever works for you, at first and work your way up.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    You could also be eating too few calories in general - making the effect of skipping breakfast worse.

    Or your carbs could be light for evening meal and then you are active afterwards using many up, leaving not enough for next morning.

    I just skipped it all till dinner because I was skeptical - shocked at how well it worked.
    But I think I store a lot more carbs than average.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 7,211 Member
    I skipped breakfast for 6 months. It worked well for me, in the sense that it left me more calories for the other meals, which made it easier to stick to my calorie budget.

    That being said, I still got really hungry in the morning, from 10AM onwards. I didn't mind the hunger at all, but it was quite annoying when my stomach would make ungodly noises during meetings and training sessions :D

    I've since stopped my habit of skipping breakfast:
    - I realised I was low on protein intake, so I added a high protein breakfast
    - lockdown/working from home full-time lets me eat breakfast at a later hour, which suits me better
    I still skip breakfast when I know I'll have a high calorie lunch or dinner (take-away pizza, family get-togethers,...)

    I see several options:
    - just 'deal' with the hunger, like I did
    - experiment with a different eating schedule (for example skip a different meal)
    - and if that doesn't suit you, just conclude that intermittent fasting isn't for you and try something else :smile:
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 10,609 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    All the disagrees are hilarious...must be an IF zealot out there who thinks it's all "magic"

    Hey, I got two :D I has two fans :*
  • MissyReed1003
    MissyReed1003 Posts: 5 Member
    Thank you all so much for responding and for the advice!!!
  • penguinmama87
    penguinmama87 Posts: 1,155 Member
    edited March 2021
    When I was doing IF, I would gradually reduce the amount I was eating at a particular meal as well as gradually shift the time later, so it wasn't as abrupt a shift to just quit entirely all at once. By the time I actually quit eating breakfast, I didn't miss it at all after a few days. I generally found on IF that any hunger pangs I would have went away after about half an hour if I just ignored them. I'm breastfeeding right now so IF isn't a good fit, but I might give it a shot again when my baby weans, depending on how much weight I have left to lose.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,887 Member
    wunderkindking wrote: »
    It works for me. I rarely want food in the morning and I'm busy during the day so occupied by things that aren't food. Saving the majority of my calories for dinner and beyond makes it painless for me to stay in a deficit.

    But it's not magic. I just shifted when I eat to fit when I want to eat, instead of eating when I was SUPPOSED to/thought I should be.

    This is me, except I like eating lunch and dinner and just having coffee at breakfast. I was in the habit of eating three meals and just started skipping breakfast and didn't find it difficult, but I have gone through significant periods of my life not eating breakfast, so I don't really feel like it's a big deal to skip it, and I tend not to feel all that hungry if I know that it won't be too long until my next meal. But I don't think IFing is magic, it just works with my current preferred schedule. If someone really struggles with it, it's likely not a good fit.

    Also, re the idea that low carbing makes a big difference, I've done it when eating higher carb (when doing mostly plant based) and lower carb and in-between and it makes zero difference to me. When I was in my 20s and ate a pretty unhealthy diet (with plenty of refined carbs), I often ate only at 2 and at dinner, and it was no biggie to me. I assume it has more to do with personal preferences or habits.
  • wunderkindking
    wunderkindking Posts: 1,615 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    wunderkindking wrote: »
    It works for me. I rarely want food in the morning and I'm busy during the day so occupied by things that aren't food. Saving the majority of my calories for dinner and beyond makes it painless for me to stay in a deficit.

    But it's not magic. I just shifted when I eat to fit when I want to eat, instead of eating when I was SUPPOSED to/thought I should be.

    This is me, except I like eating lunch and dinner and just having coffee at breakfast. I was in the habit of eating three meals and just started skipping breakfast and didn't find it difficult, but I have gone through significant periods of my life not eating breakfast, so I don't really feel like it's a big deal to skip it, and I tend not to feel all that hungry if I know that it won't be too long until my next meal. But I don't think IFing is magic, it just works with my current preferred schedule. If someone really struggles with it, it's likely not a good fit.

    Also, re the idea that low carbing makes a big difference, I've done it when eating higher carb (when doing mostly plant based) and lower carb and in-between and it makes zero difference to me. When I was in my 20s and ate a pretty unhealthy diet (with plenty of refined carbs), I often ate only at 2 and at dinner, and it was no biggie to me. I assume it has more to do with personal preferences or habits.

    Yeah definitely no relation to carbs/no carbs/low carb for me. My diet's 50% carbs on a good day. On a bad one more like 80%. Still the schedule that works for me just fine.
  • natiurb
    natiurb Posts: 1 Member
    Hi I'm interested in intermittent fasting too. I work from 11p-7 a , so I'm trying to figure out a way to get this done. Also a way to squeeze in some exercise with a house full of teenagers and a 2 yr old.
  • NVintage
    NVintage Posts: 1,463 Member
    edited March 2021
    I worked that schedule for almost my entire 20s, and I'd generally wake up around 10 and have coffee. I'd take a lunch break around 2, and eat a small kids meal, and then eat whatever I wanted for dinner that night. Now that I stay home i just wait until I'm hungry (usually around 10am) and then eat within a 8 hour window.
    Don't know if this would work for anyone else, but I keep my exercise stuff in the bathroom, and do a little weights and Pilates type moves and mini elliptical several times per day for maybe 5 minutes, and try to walk whenever possible.
    natiurb wrote: »
    Hi I'm interested in intermittent fasting too. I work from 11p-7 a , so I'm trying to figure out a way to get this done. Also a way to squeeze in some exercise with a house full of teenagers and a 2 yr old.

  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    natiurb wrote: »
    Hi I'm interested in intermittent fasting too. I work from 11p-7 a , so I'm trying to figure out a way to get this done. Also a way to squeeze in some exercise with a house full of teenagers and a 2 yr old.

    I worked that schedule for years, treated it like other work days - meaning I get up and pretty much go straight to work, so sleep was adjusted to accomplish that. But your house may not allowing going to bed at 1-2 pm, unless family is willing to work with your schedule and be quiet. 2 yr old, ya right.

    Even with slow job the ability to come home and get right to bed didn't happen, so eating dinner when I came home wasn't an issue. Didn't eat breakfast then either, and on flection that job didn't require lunch, so IF would have been super simple.
    I liked ability to get home after work, and do workouts with sun up, even though it wasn't warmest part of day during cooler seasons for bike ride.

    Also, TRE (Time Restricted Eating) doesn't say the window has to be afternoon evening - that's just normally done it seems to enjoy dinner, and a bigger one, with family.
    Studies have shown benefit to eating breakfast/lunch if you do morning workout, just slightly, to later window.

    So if sleep has to be done right after work, then up way before work and eat breakfast then, lunch at work, no "dinner" when you get home.
  • N0M0Y0Y0
    N0M0Y0Y0 Posts: 30 Member
    Still learning this app. Looking for supportive community/friends to keep me inspired. Have lost about 55lbs. Still got about 180lbs to go. Doing keto and I.F.. lately been doing omad. feel free to add me. Still haven't figured out how to friend request
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 7,211 Member
    rick60rt wrote: »
    Still haven't figured out how to friend request

    Tap/click the user's name, a window will pop up. Tap/click their username there and you'll be taken to a page where you can send a friend request.
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