Intermediate Fasting

ttat0325

What is Intermediate fasting? Does it aid in the help of losing weight?
I've always wondered this, does it cause more harm than it does good? Many people have told me that intermediate fasting is good if you are generally trying to lose a lot of weight but at the same time many people tell me that intermediate fasting will mess up your matobolism and possibly lead to eating disorders. How much fasting is too much within a week? Thanks.

tobejune

intermittent?

volume77

intermittent fasting is good. not sure about intermediate fasting.....................

ttat0325

Yes, I mean intermittent. Spelling mistake lol

MysticRealm

It's intermittent fasting.
You either eat 500 or so cals, 2 days a week and like 2000 cals the rest of the week,
or you eat all you cals in a 4-8 hour window each day.
It's not really designed for weight loss, though some people feel it does help them.

I sorta 'accidentally' do intermittent fasting as I am never hungry from breakfast so don't eat till lunch, and usually have about a 9 hour eating window.

ttat0325

I see... So in other words, it's basically fasting for 24 hours, then consuming a small meal?

AbsoluteNG

I see... So in other words, it's basically fasting for 24 hours, then consuming a small meal?

Documentary below that better explains what it is.

http://documentaryheaven.com/eat-fast-and-live-longer/

workingoutforpeanutbutter

IF is when you fast for certain periods of the day and eat for certain periods. There are various forms of IF- LeanGains, Eat Stop Eat, 5:2, Warrior Diet.

ttat0325

Im trying to go for 1 cheat meal a week. Should i intermittent fast the day before or do it the day after? Or is that not safe?

Willowana

I see... So in other words, it's basically fasting for 24 hours, then consuming a small meal?

Documentary below that better explains what it is.

http://documentaryheaven.com/eat-fast-and-live-longer/

^^ Yep. There are several varieties to IF, but all of them work on the premise of allowing your body to take an insulin break, so to speak. It also aids in fat burning. Not all versions of IF require small meals before/afterwards. Some versions tell you to eat normally. I'm doing Eat Stop Eat, and I try to cram as many calories before and after as possible. I specifically do that because I already have a 500 calorie deficit everyday right off the bat. I have about a 1,100 calorie deficit on fast days. I noticed it was creating TOO much of a deficit. (I plateau if my deficit is too large, and my results started to slack off). So now I'm thinking more about weekly calories vs. daily. On my non-fast days, I will sometimes go over my calorie limit to "make up" some of that large deficit.

Willowana

Im trying to go for 1 cheat meal a week. Should i intermittent fast the day before or do it the day after? Or is that not safe?

I don't see any reason why you couldn't do it either way.

However, I would personally fast beforehand, simply because I don't "spend" extra calories unless I have actually earned them.

(Edit to say: I enjoy cheat meals too, but I always track the calories anyway. "Cheating" doesn't equal "free for all" IMO. It's too easy to go way off-base if you don't know exactly what you consumed. There has been the occasional buffet where there was no way I could possibly account for it, but generally I try to track everything.)

jaxokc

Have you looked here?
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/49-intermittent-fasting

gauchogirl

There are several types of IF, and even more if you tinker and find what works best for you. I personally follow http://www.fast-5.com/ Fast 5, which is daily fasting for 19 hours and eating in a 5 hour window. I tried a couple other methods first (leangains, eat, stop, eat) but found this worked best for me because it solved another problem I was having: hating to prepare and bring lunch (and sometimes breakfast) to work every day. Such a pain. I LOVE the freedom of just "going to work" and not having to think about food all day. At 3:00, if I feel the need (I don't always), I will eat something. It can be small (a handful of almonds) or a substantial salad (think 700-800 calories.) Then I eat dinner between 6-7. Sometimes I continue to snack on nuts until about 8 pm.

I do this M-F with no problem. On weekends, I don't worry about timing, though I TRY to not eat early in the day. Usually it means a noonish meal is my first, but not always. I personally think there are health benefits besides weightloss, but even if I didn't believe that, I don't think there are negatives and it allows me freedom and helps me control (and cycle) my calories. I KNOW I will eat more on the weekend, so the M-F IF allows me to eat less calories during the week, thereby saving them for the weekend. I put these all in the "pro" column with the No. 1 being the freedom to not have to bring food to work each day. The only "con" I really have is it's harder on potluck days at work to not nosh all day on that table of food.

Again, I tried different things and found this worked best for me. Others will vary and for some, IF isn't a good fit. The cool thing is, we all have the ability to determine what's best for us.

ttat0325

I see, thanks a lot for all the advice, and thank you to all the other posters as well.
I'll personally stick with this plan of Eat Stop Eat for about 90 days and we'll see where it goes from there, Again, Thanks a lot guys !

One more thing though, should i still do my cardio workout or lifting days while im fasting?

Willowana

I see, thanks a lot for all the advice, and thank you to all the other posters as well.
I'll personally stick with this plan of Eat Stop Eat for about 90 days and we'll see where it goes from there, Again, Thanks a lot guys !

One more thing though, should i still do my cardio workout or lifting days while im fasting?

Yep, you can exercise. In fact, a lot of people time their fasts with their exercise routines. Some will weightlift right before their fast ends, and then eat post-workout (usually lots of protein and fats) to aid their muscle repair. The Leangains Approach does that specifically for heavy lifters.

Cardio is great, and you can do that at any time.