alternate day fasting

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  • kf5nd
    kf5nd Posts: 14 Member
    I am at a plateau, maybe alternate day 5:2 moderated fasting will help me punch through. I am at BMI 25, on my way to BMI 23 for blood sugar and liver health reasons.

    I just starting trying it today after seeing the BBC Horizons Michael Mosley show yesterday. I feel fine at 121:45 PM, and 300 Calories left for tonight...
  • I just started a regiment this past Monday. I am thirty pounds over weight, and my goal is to lose it in ten weeks. I am fasting every other day at 0 calories (unless, I have a couple of diet and vodkas). On my up days, I have limited myself to 1350 CALS

    So far I have dropped 3 lbs (presumably fat not muscle).

    Previous to starting this process I was consuming about 3000 to 3500 calories a day of mixed good food, and junk food.

    This should be an interesting ride. I also started a 4 day a week workout regiment (resistance), that I will stay on. My objective is to get down to 195 lbs, with about 12% body fat (I am currently at 29% body fat [obese])

    I have done a similar process before, and the results usually work out pretty good. What I like about the EOD process is I can eat what I want (food types) on my up days ( I love carbs, and foods with fat).

    Nothing beats a bacon cheeseburger, an order of fries and a couple of beers, or 2-3 slices of cheese and pepperoni pizza.

    It will be interesting how quickly my goal can be met on the alternate day fasting plan.
  • imacountess
    imacountess Posts: 3 Member
    I saw a TV show on this. I tried to limit myself to 500 calories the first day and was starving and ate some more up until about 1000 calories that day. So on my up day instead of unlimited I am aiming for 1600. I can't go without anything on a day (but from what I have read that is OK, as long as it is fairly low - you still get the health benefits). Worse case scenario, is that I will end up doing that calorie confusing diet that says as long as your weekly goal is met it is better to not consistently do low calorie day after day so that your metabolism does not slow down. I've seen this happen to myself before. So if I can't do extreme swings from day to day I figure some swing from day to day is better than none. Good luck to you alternate day real fasters. More power to you!
  • fatsnacker
    fatsnacker Posts: 209 Member
    I watched it too and have been fasting two days a week for 3 months (fasting days 1000 cals each).

    I have lost 21lbs so far and can get through a fasting day without feeling hungry - I have found my off switch !!
  • Shawnzgirl78
    Shawnzgirl78 Posts: 148 Member
    I found that when I fasted, either for a meal or an entire day (especially) I was able to get back on track and be more realistic with my portions. It helps with control (less emotion behind the eating/cravings subside)..
  • avocado22
    avocado22 Posts: 19 Member
    bump
  • Ayne6246
    Ayne6246 Posts: 37 Member
    I'm interested to see how everyone does with this. I've been trying to lose 30# since the start of the year. I was fairly successful for the first 3 weeks, lost 4# & 5.5 inches over all, but have stalled and gained back & lost the same 2# since the middle of February and have actually gained back all but 1 inch. I am doing a minimum of 40 minutes and a max of 120 minutes of Richard Simmonbs 5-6 days a week. I have been keeping track of calories on this site and trying to keep my calories under 1500/.day. Am actually having to force myself to eat at least 1200/day. I have chronic digestive problems so I have about 2 days a month or so that I cannot keep anything at all down. Of course on those days, I see my weight drops 1-3# but it comers right back when I am able to eat again. I'm really getting discouraged. The calculations here on this site predict a 2#/wk weight loss but my numbers just aren't moving, NOR are my measurements.
  • gr8pillock
    gr8pillock Posts: 374 Member
    I actually tried full blown fasting on my fasting days, when I originally gave it a whirl. I lost ten pounds in a matter of weeks and kept it off without any trouble. Still, it wasn't the easiest thing in the world to do. As I'm returning to getting back on track, I've been doing this without even realizing it and am, again, down a significant amount in a short span of time. I'm not starving myself, I'm not sick. THIS Is actually much easier than the full caloric restriction I did before on my fast days.

    This I could do. This I could do indefinitely. I'm super glad I watched that film though. Knowing the affects on the brain actually gave me a serious sense of motivation to get back to it, seriously. Here's to losing the last 20 or so pounds I aim to lose. :)
  • klcottle
    klcottle Posts: 2
    Sounds like a path to an eating disorder, IMO.

    But more power to you if it works for you :ohwell:
  • AmythistRae
    AmythistRae Posts: 107
    bump for later
  • gr8pillock
    gr8pillock Posts: 374 Member
    Sounds like a path to an eating disorder, IMO.

    But more power to you if it works for you :ohwell:

    I actually had a moment where I considered just those implications. There is a stigma with caloric restriction and eating disorders, but I think the two are quite distant from each other. One can naturally have an eating disorder, which is entirely mental and driven by something psychological. The act of fasting is separate from that drive. I myself was trying to analyze my own fasting, because I wondered if it would lead to such a thing, if I was capable of that kind of mental shift.

    I'm not. I like food. I like to eat. I don't want to be skin and bones. But I DID find a great deal of benefit from my fasting in the past, so was content to return to it after I took a break from it and tried simply restricting calories across the board. It has been done for thousands of years and our species survived, so I'd say it's worth looking at when there are health benefits besides just weight loss.
  • meliad
    meliad Posts: 71
    Hello all.

    I am a trying this method starting today. I try to eat healthfully usually but the thing is that I just eat too much. I love food and have a hard time respecting the fact that I am either not hunger or actually full when there is delicious food around. Soooo maybe this will help me become more disciplined.

    The other issue I have been having is stress eating. I am a nursing student and on the days I go to the hospital I must eat to be able to handle stress and to keep my blood sugar stable for the yucky/queasy times. So I eat oatmeal with pb and fruit for breakfast and a healthy soup for lunch. But when I leave the hospital I am craving comfort food. I need to get over it yet stick with the plan in the morning.

    THis plan seems like if I can stick to my fast days it will work. I may chose to fast on Mon, Wed, Fri so that I always eat on hospital days and can eat regular meals with my family on the weekends.
  • elkay7
    elkay7 Posts: 2
    I just started an ADF diet and am blogging about my experience here, obstacles, research, etc: http://tryingadf.blogspot.com.

    It isn't easy for me, but it is getting better day by day.
  • LaurasClimb
    LaurasClimb Posts: 211 Member
    bump...I don't have time to read all 9 pages of replies but will later...
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,835 Member
    Hey guys,
    I just had a quick question on down-days and exercise...I'm very active running 30-35miles/week and lifting twice a week (trying to get ready for a 10K in may and break 40min again this year) and I unfortunately gained the freshman-15 last semester (lost 5lbs so far and need to lose another 10-15lbs).

    It is inevitable that I'll need to run, at least, on my down-days (usually 5 or 6 miles), and so, in that case, do I still eat just 600kcal or 1200-1300kcal (I burn roughly 600 on a 5miler and about 700 on a 6miler)? The reason I ask is because wouldn't the while daily caloric total still be around 600kcal, just like the diet requires for guys?

    Thanks for any answers!

    If you have a high workload during the week then you just need to make sure you eat enough over the entire week. It doesn't appear that you have a lot of weight to lose so probably 1lb or 3500cal deficit per week will be enough.

    Estimated TDEE is bwx14-16 for most but if your exercise volume is high it may be even higher than that.
  • rarejule
    rarejule Posts: 4
    After seeing Mosley's documentary earlier this week and reading up a ton on ADF, I have begun my journey to better health! Today is my first FAST day and, after consuming my 500 calorie lunch, am looking forward to keeping my mind busy until tomorrow with more reading, success stories, and the like!

    If you've posted in this thread before and have an update, please share!
  • squatsandlipgloss
    squatsandlipgloss Posts: 595 Member
    I just started a regiment this past Monday. I am thirty pounds over weight, and my goal is to lose it in ten weeks. I am fasting every other day at 0 calories (unless, I have a couple of diet and vodkas). On my up days, I have limited myself to 1350 CALS

    So far I have dropped 3 lbs (presumably fat not muscle).

    I hate to burst your bubble, but that is not fat you've lost, but water... Good luck with your diet, I hope you understand the damage you are causing to your body. But it is your body, not ours ;)
  • AbsoluteNG
    AbsoluteNG Posts: 1,079 Member
    I just started a regiment this past Monday. I am thirty pounds over weight, and my goal is to lose it in ten weeks. I am fasting every other day at 0 calories (unless, I have a couple of diet and vodkas). On my up days, I have limited myself to 1350 CALS

    So far I have dropped 3 lbs (presumably fat not muscle).

    I hate to burst your bubble, but that is not fat you've lost, but water... Good luck with your diet, I hope you understand the damage you are causing to your body. But it is your body, not ours ;)

    Misleading information since everything in your body is made up of water, I believe the saying is 90% water. When you burn fat or how scientist call "fat oxidation", you actually get water as a byproduct every single time. The same thing goes for carbs and vice versa. When you eat food, water will bind with what you eat to be stored.
  • sharikamrita
    sharikamrita Posts: 1 Member
    Hey on day 4 of ADF, I do 500 cal on the fasting days and about 2000 on the feeding days. On fasting days I lift in the morning followed by a protein shake with a banana and peanut butter and then fast till the next day. On feeding days I wake up and do cardio and then eat a normal days meals. The kicker seems to come from the fasted lifting and the fasted cardio. So far I'm down 4 lb in 4 days. I'm hoping to lose 20 lbs in 5 weeks.
  • dsjnix
    dsjnix Posts: 9 Member
    So Im curious those of you that tried this, what were your results?