12 Hour Fast

megancarlotta

So I was reading an article from Fitness magazine and it said we should eat only in a 12 hour window. This means if your last meal is at 7 pm, you can eat after you wake up at 7 am, then be done eating again by 7pm. Its also important to note, you should be done eating 2 hours prior to when you go to bed. This is important because the first few hours at night you burn glucose, then you burn fat. But to do so you need to let your body fast.

Does anyone do this and have any feedback to share?

75Juniper

It doesn't matter when you eat. Calories in vs. calories out. There are loads of people on here that eat late at night, eat several times a day, don't fast, etc. and have been very successful at losing weight.

artickb22

I work evenings- 4p to midnight. And my gym classes (fitness and aquatic) are always between 8am and 11pm so I end up sleeping from about 2am to 8am, getting up to go workout, and trying ot take a short nap before work between noon and 2pm. Because of this I dont' get alot of continuous sleep. HOWEVER, on sundays I allow myself a break day from exercise (I do sometimes do yoga on sundays) so therefore I get to sleep in and usually end up sleeping 11-12 hours. It is WONDERFUL!! LOL. I have to say that after being a sleep for that long of a period (and therefore not eating during that time) I always wake up feeling skinnier....does that make sense? Not sure if it does but I just feel smaller. Any bloating dissapears and by that time my body's done it's work and processed anything I've ate the previous day so I'm left feelin like I have a clean slate. I love it!!! I'd def recommend it for others to try. I am a big advocate on knowing what works best for your body though also. This works for me, but it wont work for just anyone/ everyone. Ya just gotta find what works for you.

I will say I don't really know about long term effects of fasting and I don't really do it intentionally (I dont' have that kinda willpower) but I have some Hindi friends and it's apart of their culture/religion to fast and it works welll for them.

pitlvr2x

was that in this months Fitness? I would like to take that article to my Dr apt and she what she says, I know it's difficult for some of us to stay within certain hours, sometimes I can workout in the a.m. and some in the p.m. ~ the days I work out at night I eat SO late I always wonder if it slows my weight loss down because I eat, shower and then go to bed...hhmmm

ElizabethRoad

If it works for you, that's great. Certainly nothing wrong with it. It's not the only way, however.

The rule about not eating for 2 hours before bedtime is a bit silly. Do you honestly think there's a big difference between sleeping and sitting there watching TV? Sleep is not a magical state; you will continue burning about the same as when you're sitting around awake.

future_runner

I know I personally sleep better if I have not eaten close to bed time, and adequate sleep is a factor in weight loss. So I try to follow the 2 hours before bed rule, but its not a hard rule for everyone. The 12 hour fast isn't either. I dont have a problem with late night snacking. A lot of people do and are really helped by a "no eating after X time" rule to stop mindless snacking. Again, not a steadfast rule but not bad advice. When I used to :smokin: everyday I had a "no munching after Xpm rule" just to keep that under control haha.

megancarlotta

was that in this months Fitness? I would like to take that article to my Dr apt and she what she says, I know it's difficult for some of us to stay within certain hours, sometimes I can workout in the a.m. and some in the p.m. ~ the days I work out at night I eat SO late I always wonder if it slows my weight loss down because I eat, shower and then go to bed...hhmmm

It is in this month's fitness. I know for me personally, if I eat to close to bed I have a harder time falling asleep.

I don't usually buy Fitness magazine but it had a section on tips from some of the Olympic Hopefuls and I really wanted to check it out. I thought it was a pretty good magazine!

rml_16

So I was reading an article from Fitness magazine and it said we should eat only in a 12 hour window. This means if your last meal is at 7 pm, you can eat after you wake up at 7 am, then be done eating again by 7pm. Its also important to note, you should be done eating 2 hours prior to when you go to bed. This is important because the first few hours at night you burn glucose, then you burn fat. But to do so you need to let your body fast.

Does anyone do this and have any feedback to share?

I read that article. I'll have to double check, but I don't recall it being necessary to.stop eating two.hours before bed unless you have acid reflux issues. The main point was the twelve hours between your last meal and your first the next day.

jfan175

I love going to bed with a full belly, and I definitely sleep better.

Sidesteal

The part about not eating before bed is bunk. Short term fuel sourcing is irrelevant because it fails to consider fat balance (storage minus oxidation) over a longer period of time.

Energy balance will be the important variable, not nutrient timing.


The idea of fasting is showing SOME possible beneficial evidence, but in my opinion I don't think there's anything substantial enough to say that fasting is arbitrarily superior to someone eating 4 meals per day (as an example) given an equal comparison of calories/macros.

Kalynx

got excited, thought this topic read '12 hour FEAST' :drinker:

gayje

got excited, thought this topic read '12 hour FEAST' :drinker:

ROFLMAO!!!!! Nearly pee'd in my jammies reading this! :laugh:

ZeroWoIf

got excited, thought this topic read '12 hour FEAST' :drinker:

Not only did you made me laugh but you also made me cry. Isn't that a Calzone in your profile? Can't wait to have one again LOL.

crystal_darling

got excited, thought this topic read '12 hour FEAST' :drinker:

LMAO!! :laugh: :laugh: That was the funniest thing I've heard all night!

In regard to the article, Unless someone is going to bed everynight at 9pm and waking up everday at 7am.. maybe. As for me I wake up at 9:30 and don't fall asleep until about give or take 11:30. But seeing as though I'm not an expert in the matter I'll leave it at, maybe it works.. maybe it doesn't. I'm sure as hell not waking up at 7am to test it out.

bpmartyr

I fast 16 hours every day with an 8 hour feeding window between 2 and 10pm. It has been doing wonders for body composition for me. Your mileage may vary.

rml_16

got excited, thought this topic read '12 hour FEAST' :drinker:

LMAO!! :laugh: :laugh: That was the funniest thing I've heard all night!

In regard to the article, Unless someone is going to bed everynight at 9pm and waking up everday at 7am.. maybe. As for me I wake up at 9:30 and don't fall asleep until about give or take 11:30. But seeing as though I'm not an expert in the matter I'll leave it at, maybe it works.. maybe it doesn't. I'm sure as hell not waking up at 7am to test it out.

???

That doesn't make any sense. Why would you need to wake up at 7 a.m.? Sleep is irrelevant. The idea is to wait 12 hours between your last meal one day and your first the next. As an example, the article says if you happen to be up really late and eat at, say, midnight, you shouldn't eat again until noon the next day, regardless of when you go to sleep or wake up.

kitinboots

I did a 24hr liquid fast last week to remind myself what hunger feels like. I did it from 7pm to 7pm so I still ate my calories for the day, I just did so before and after.
I think it was a pretty good idea to shrink my stomach a little so I didn't overeat when we went for dinner afterwards.

cmeade20

I eat right before bed all the time and I've lost quite a bit. Time you eat is irrelevant to fat loss.

meggonkgonk

I think stopping eating earlier helps my sleep, but not necessarily my weight loss. I find if I cut off an hour or 2 before bed, I sleep more soundly and through the night (also less/no bathroom breaks).

kennethmgreen

The idea of fasting is showing SOME possible beneficial evidence, but in my opinion I don't think there's anything substantial enough to say that fasting is arbitrarily superior to someone eating 4 meals per day (as an example) given an equal comparison of calories/macros.

^This. My emphasis added. That last line is hugely important in these types of discussions, and it's often overlooked.

KevDaniel

I don't know if 12 hours really equates to a fast. In the end it really determines how much energy you are consuming versus expending. People have this calories in calories out mentality, but it is important to note there is a difference in the "type" of calories you are consuming.

If anything I would say no simple carbs at night because they are converted to energy rather quickly and unless your going to burn them off at night then it best not to let them get stored as fat while you sleep.