what are yourthought on Intermittent Fasting

dysonjc

I.F. Intermittent Fasting and building lean muscle .. what are you thoughts..

I have been using I.F. for around 3 weeks now 16hr fast 4hr feed.. and i have dropped around 10 lbs and have dropped a nice amount of body fat .

emtjmac

I'm sure someone has found some benefit to those kinds of practices, I don't know the science behind it or anything. I stay away from things that aren't sustainable. I believe that the body adapts to how you eat and eating like that is not sustainable so far as I can tell. Maybe it's not meant to be sustainable but to me that's counterproductive so I wouldn't participate in it.

phxricky

Dude it works!! When I do it I notice the results big time.

angelew

I'm giving it a try too after reading about the benefits. Only on day 3. Shooting for a 7 hour feed- so pretty mild. I like it so far...not thinking about food all day like I was with the 5 small meals plan I was following. Feeling like I eat more intuitively- which is nice after eating so often because I think it's a "mealtime" or because eating 5x a day is recommended for "most" people. Good luck to you!

tmauck4472

Join the IF group. I belong but am currently not doing it. It's really a great program and I understand it completely but for some reason it just did not work well with me or I just didn't give it enough time to work. I will always have it to go back to. I really liked the fasting part and did it without issues.

Shange_Gully

Found it effective, but stopped because I enjoy eating whenever as I want as opposed to within a window.

I'd recommend it though for anyone wanting to lose fat.

rawhidenadz

It works. And it's totally sustainable, at least it has been for me. It's awesome to be able to eat big meals in your window and actually get to feel full instead of eating snacks every couple of hours. I just get hungrier if I'm always eating.

iAMsmiling

First it seems really smart, then it doesn't, then it does, then it doesn't... YMMV.

FittyForLife

I love it.. I do it twice a week and I see great results.

Copaiba

Is there a good website about IF that you would recommend?

ali_b83

I've been doing it for around two months or so. I do much better this way. Keeps me from eating crap in the mornings or late at night just because I'm tired. I've never felt "bad" as a result of fasting. Just depends on what works best dependent on each person's lifestyle.

Copaiba- www.leangains.com

Capt_Apollo

i like it. i don't do it every day, usually 2-3 times a week. i like it for several reasons, mostly because it means i can eat huge homecooked dinners.

Copaiba

thank you!

CoderGal

I'm sure someone has found some benefit to those kinds of practices, I don't know the science behind it or anything. I stay away from things that aren't sustainable. I believe that the body adapts to how you eat and eating like that is not sustainable so far as I can tell. Maybe it's not meant to be sustainable but to me that's counterproductive so I wouldn't participate in it.

...I don't IF but...why do you think it's not sustainable?

vtmoon

You are missing 4hrs OP.

I personally enjoy it, but I'm used to fasting due to religious reasons. I think 14/10 or16/8 are good starting point to give you a feel for it. As far as sustainability it's all based on how you implement it or the method you follow.

I'm currently doing 21/3 which is awesome for me because I hate having to plan so many meals during the week. And a lot of the time I use to eat those meals just because I was supposed to.

jzammetti

I guess I sort of do that naturally - I fast from 10pm - noon the next day and eat from noon until 10. Does that count? lol

Julicat6

If it works for you, feel free. It won't work for me. I get hypoglycemic if I go too long between, doesn't matter what I ate last. I start getting shaky, anxious and emotional when my blood glucose is below 70. I've had it tested when I felt like that. more frequent littles work best for me. I don't get hangry and I don't get cravings anymore. We all have to know our bodies and our minds. If it works for you, then all the best.

Dave198lbs

I'm sure someone has found some benefit to those kinds of practices, I don't know the science behind it or anything. I stay away from things that aren't sustainable. I believe that the body adapts to how you eat and eating like that is not sustainable so far as I can tell. Maybe it's not meant to be sustainable but to me that's counterproductive so I wouldn't participate in it.

...I don't IF but...why do you think it's not sustainable?

as far as I can tell there is no valid reason it can't be sustainable other than caving to social pressure or mental weakness

The toughest times for me are always social occasions that happen outside my feeding window

CoderGal

If it works for you, feel free. It won't work for me. I get hypoglycemic if I go too long between, doesn't matter what I ate last. I start getting shaky, anxious and emotional when my blood glucose is below 70. I've had it tested when I felt like that. more frequent littles work best for me. I don't get hangry and I don't get cravings anymore. We all have to know our bodies and our minds. If it works for you, then all the best.

I was the exact same way...I don't know if I was hypoglycemic but if food didn't go in my mouth immediately after waking up I'd almost pass out. I'd get super shaky, hot, anxious, and then I'd nearly black out. I can't say that I've pinpointed what happened to me but it seems like since I upped protein and started including it in larger amounts with every meal I stopped needing to eat so often? I was a religious snacker. I use to get up, eat breakfast, have a snack, have lunch, have a supper, have a second supper, and grab a few snacks when I got home...this went back to before I needed to lose weight and was slim...and now I'm back to that weight and whatever change I made made it different? I've been thinking about IFing lately but don't know much about it or why I should do it other then the convenience with my schedule right now.

CoderGal

I'm sure someone has found some benefit to those kinds of practices, I don't know the science behind it or anything. I stay away from things that aren't sustainable. I believe that the body adapts to how you eat and eating like that is not sustainable so far as I can tell. Maybe it's not meant to be sustainable but to me that's counterproductive so I wouldn't participate in it.

...I don't IF but...why do you think it's not sustainable?

as far as I can tell there is no valid reason it can't be sustainable other than caving to social pressure or mental weakness

The toughest times for me are always social occasions that happen outside my feeding window

I agree, I'm curious as to why that poster thinks otherwise.

lwagnitz

I've heard of this and have actual heard it has significant health benefits besides losing fat, and it's safe. I want to start this but have no idea how to do it safely, I'm kind of paranoid. Anyone have suggestions?

CoderGal

I've heard of this and have actual heard it has significant health benefits besides losing fat, and it's safe. I want to start this but have no idea how to do it safely, I'm kind of paranoid. Anyone have suggestions?

I'm with you XD

mabug01

I think it's probably how early humans ate before agriculture was begun. I don't see anything wrong with it. I may try it someday soon.

Brunner26_2

I like it simply because I eat larger meals. I usually do 16/8 5 days a week.

Capt_Apollo

I've heard of this and have actual heard it has significant health benefits besides losing fat, and it's safe. I want to start this but have no idea how to do it safely, I'm kind of paranoid. Anyone have suggestions?

I'm with you XD

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2010/02/08/intermittent-fasting/

californiagirl2012

I.F. Intermittent Fasting and building lean muscle .. what are you thoughts..

I have been using I.F. for around 3 weeks now 16hr fast 4hr feed.. and i have dropped around 10 lbs and have dropped a nice amount of body fat .

I found that it works great and is a sustainable way to manage a calorie budget. Humans are designed for this and have been doing it since the beginning of time, both as hunter gatherers and for spiritual reasons. Almost all religions have a form of fasting.

When a pastor gave me a hard time about fasting for managing calories and weight loss I asked "Why is it okay to fast for spiritual reasons but not for weight loss?". They just stared at me like a deer in a headlight.

An excellent source for the science behind it is Brad Pilon's Eat Stop Eat. Just look at his web site and see his articles and qualifications. Awesome stuff there.

CoderGal

How is everyone going to say it works?

It will only work if you burn more calories than you consume. If you eat too much you won't lose any fat. Even if you're doing IF. It's not about if IF "works" or not. It doesn't. What works is burning more than you consume.

I did IF for a year, with no additional benefits.

What are peoples thoughts on this?

I kinda want to try it just to see if it makes me feel any different...I can see the benefit if I want to get into lifting because there's moments you're a giant energy store if that makes any sense...

I also want to try it so I feel I have some fire to throw at the *'s who say its not sustainable. It seems those who do it on my friends list are sensible intelligent people.

ali_b83

I guess I sort of do that naturally - I fast from 10pm - noon the next day and eat from noon until 10. Does that count? lol

Sure does! You're doing 14/10. Same thing I do, give or take an hour here and there.

harlanJEN

I'm sure someone has found some benefit to those kinds of practices, I don't know the science behind it or anything. I stay away from things that aren't sustainable. I believe that the body adapts to how you eat and eating like that is not sustainable so far as I can tell. Maybe it's not meant to be sustainable but to me that's counterproductive so I wouldn't participate in it.

I like the way you think . " I stay away from things that aren't sustainable"

Dave198lbs

How is everyone going to say it works?

It will only work if you burn more calories than you consume. If you eat too much you won't lose any fat. Even if you're doing IF. It's not about if IF "works" or not. It doesn't. What works is burning more than you consume.

I did IF for a year, with no additional benefits.

What are peoples thoughts on this?

I kinda want to try it just to see if it makes me feel any different...I can see the benefit if I want to get into lifting because there's moments you're a giant energy store if that makes any sense...

I also want to try it so I feel I have some fire to throw at the *'s who say its not sustainable. It seems those who do it on my friends list are sensible intelligent people.

check out leangains.com

some believe that cardio in a fasted state helps burn fat better than in a fed state. I havent done it long enough to determine if thats true for me yet, but it seems to make sense (to me.)

Capt_Apollo

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2010/02/08/intermittent-fasting/

What the Hell is Intermittent Fasting?
IF is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: you purposely avoid eating for a twenty-four hour period (or two) during the week. Why? Because recent studies have shown that your metabolism operates more on a marathon basis (how many calories consumed over a long period of time) than on a sprint basis (what you ate yesterday). Prior to this research, I was giving way too much credit to my stomach – it’s not nearly as intelligent as I thought. Think long term when it comes to calories consumed and burned, not short term.

Mark over at Mark’s Daily Apple has a great write-up on the evolutionary science behind fasting. Mark runs one of the most thorough and successful paleo diet blogs out there, and I highly value his opinion. I love looking into the evolutionary aspects of diet and fitness, and I’m often very weary of any new “breakthrough” that requires a pill or drink or anything. We’ve survived as a species for tens of thousands of years with diet, exercise, and intelligence.

Fasting is one of those evolutionary aspects that makes complete sense to me.

How Does it Work?
Our bodies are genetically engineered to deal with feast or famine. 10,00 years ago, surprisingly there was no free All-Star Slam Breakfast from Denny’s! Our bodies need fuel to operate, and if there isn’t any food in the stomach to pull from, it uses the fat stored within the body for energy. The fat gets burned for energy, the body keeps moving, and thus becomes leaner.

Secondly, because of these skipped meals, you are putting your body into a calorie deficit (averaged out for the week). Remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint, so start thinking of your calories more in terms of weekly units rather than daily amounts, iif that helps. More calories burned compared to calories consumed = weight loss!

How Do You Do It?
Simple: pick a day (or two) per week and purposely skip breakfast and lunch, and then eat a normal dinner. Brad over at Eat Stop Eat recommends doing this type of fasting once or twice a week – for example, a fast on Monday, and then another one on Thursday. Liquids are okay on fasting days, just not ones with calories. Heyoooo H2O!

If you’re used to eating a LOT of food, and you normally eat a big breakfast, this is going to be a pretty big drastic change. Start by skipping breakfast and see how your body reacts to it. If you can handle that, work your way up to skipping breakfast and lunch. Notice that I’m not saying you should skip breakfast and lunch every day. Eat normally five days a week, try a fast one of the other days for a few weeks and see how your body reacts.

Eat, don’t eat, and then eat. Got it?