Does anyone else experience mental struggles in intermittent fasting or ADF

shmmm3

Intermittent fasting is seemingly as simple as a diet plan can get: Eat. Stop eating. Eat again. So, why all the mental struggle around eating or not eating within a short window?

For me, there are two distinct struggles. 1) Calming myself that I'm not causing any damage from loss of nutrients during the fast. 2) Calming myself that I don't have to try to eat perfectly after a fast.

Does anyone relate?

azoutte

I was nervous to try a significant hike while I was fasting. But I found that my fasting energy level was just as good if not higher than if I’d had breakfast.
The first couple days I tried IF, when I broke the fast I ate more than I should’ve. So, I went from feeling fantastic while fasting to feeling badly after I ate that meal. The stark difference helped me to change what the break fast meal was.
To me, it’s experimenting and figuring out what makes you feel best. Healthier eating just feels better.

kshama2001

I have zero mental struggles with 12:12 fasting.

sollyn23l2

Assuming you are healthy, there will be no "loss of nutrients" during a fast unless you do a multi-day fast. I recommend stop thinking of it as a fast, since that is where most of your mental hangups seem to be. Think of it as "I'm not going to stuff my face with excess food I don't need after dinner"

AnnPT77

Would it be different with a different strategy?

I'm not suggesting you should necessarily do something different: Multiple strategies can lead to weight loss (if that's your main goal?). Different people do best with different strategies, and IF is one of several that quite a few people here seem to adopt. If IF is the easiest route for you, that's perfect.

More what I'm saying is that when I look at myself, my mental struggles (tendencies) seem to find a way to express themselves in different scenarios. For example, if I were concerned about whether I'd eat perfectly after a fast, I'd probably also feel concerned about whether I was eating perfectly in three meals and two snacks spread across all my waking hours.

If the issue is the strategy (IF), you could consider a different strategy - various ones can work, if the goal is weight loss (you didn't specifically say). On the other hand, if the issue is staying calm, then it might be good to think about ways to work on that head on, via stress or anxiety reduction methods.

sbelletti

Based on HOW you're struggling, then it sounds like IF might not be a good strategy for you. Have you tried other methods of planning your calories for the day?

I've had much more success eating smaller portions regularly throughout the day. Other people find that a big breakfast is helpful, while some prefer to skip it, etc. Are you dealing only with calories or are you also tracking macros? Perhaps those might need to be adjusted.

There are a lot of techniques to help you adapt to a healthier diet and lifestyle, and it doesn't have to be a struggle. Ideally, what works for you to lose weight will be the same strategy you continue for life to maintain it, so it's important to figure out what works for you.

tomcustombuilder

Realize that there no magic to IF, it’s just a way to potentially take in fewer weekly calories.

People try to go from normal eating to an IF protocol. The trick is to slowly go later in the morning for your first meal. You don’t just go from brekky at 7 to no food till 12.

shmmm3

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Would it be different with a different strategy?
"For example, if I were concerned about whether I'd eat perfectly after a fast, I'd probably also feel concerned about whether I was eating perfectly in three meals and two snacks spread across all my waking hours.

If the issue is the strategy (IF), you could consider a different strategy - various ones can work, if the goal is weight loss (you didn't specifically say). On the other hand, if the issue is staying calm, then it might be good to think about ways to work on that head on, via stress or anxiety reduction methods.

I think this reflects my experience. And I know that when I do track with other strategies, with 3 meals a day, snacks, anything, I get overly concerned with perfect nutrition. It's good to recognize that it is probably just anxiety looking for another excuse to comfort eat.

and this:

sollyn23l2 wrote: »

Assuming you are healthy, there will be no "loss of nutrients" during a fast unless you do a multi-day fast. I recommend stop thinking of it as a fast, since that is where most of your mental hangups seem to be. Think of it as "I'm not going to stuff my face with excess food I don't need after dinner"

MelG7777

I don’t relate because I feel fantastic while doing it. So it doesn’t negatively affect me mentally. I always knew if I felt “starved” or if it didn’t feel good/right, I’d switch it up. My usual is 18/6. I’ve done a LOT of ADF but not recently. When I workout really hard ADF is really hard and I’m really hungry and that’s my signal that it’s probably not for me anymore. But 18/6 (or even a little longer) just feels good and I don’t even notice most times. When I used to do a lot of 42-48 hr fasts I did have to keep REALLY busy though. How long have you been doing it? Could be you need to work past the mental block and see it’s working and you feel ok. Or, like others said, maybe it’s not for you. Good luck.

shmmm3

I did it! Thanks, everyone. Your comments have helped me stay on track and calm. On Monday I fasted all day until Tuesday night. I woke up in such a good mood this morning and the scale is way down. I broke my fast with 1600 calories worth of really nutritionally dense foods.

kaydensmom2009

I lost 85lbs and maintain with IF. I eat from 12-7. I eat 2 large meals a day with it. But that’s just what works for me. IF isn’t necessary, all it does is help me control my night time binged and allow me to eat large meals which is my preference. It is a tool. You don’t have to IF or ADF. Do what you prefer and what works for you.

ahoy_m8

shmmm3 wrote: »

I did it! Thanks, everyone. Your comments have helped me stay on track and calm. On Monday I fasted all day until Tuesday night. I woke up in such a good mood this morning and the scale is way down. I broke my fast with 1600 calories worth of really nutritionally dense foods.

Glad you feel fantastic and that it worked for you. I'll echo the others who say do what's easiest/calmest for you. I did 5:2 for a few months when I had a crazy schedule change that made a proper dinner impossible 2 days/wk so those were my fast days. I felt mentally more calm about it because I didn't have to fight the schedule those days. However, when my schedule changed back, I went back to a consistent eating schedule because that's easiest for me. IMHO, your eating schedule should make sticking to your calorie goal mentally easier, not harder. The mental effort to stay on calorie budget is hard enough some days without adding extra complexity. The easier you make it for yourself, the higher your likelihood of long term success will be.

neanderthin

Most nutrient deficiencies apparently happen further out than a few days and if you talking about time restricted feeding (TRF) like 12:12 or 18:6 then no you don't have to worry about deficiencies. And if someone is fasting more than TRF then it's recommended that you do it with your Doctors knowledge because medications can and are effected, which can put a person in a threatening position, so see your Doctor if that's what your doing.

As far as worrying about eating perfectly after a fast, well that isn't even a thing, even though that seems to be what the general population may think about it simply because fasting has somehow transformed into a way to lose weight, although it can be used as part of a weight loss strategy. Fasting has nothing to do with the food you eat and you can eat whatever you want. Cheers