Intermittent Fasting for Women

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I was jsut wondering, do you do this daily even on weekends? or just Monday through Friday?

I do 18/6. It's going really well for me. It's really helped lower my blood sugar without medication (I'm diabetic) and I actually have more energy doing IF than I do eating small meals around the clock.

I do 20/4 and I like it. Some women encounter hormonal issues with too small of a feeding window. Then again, I'm like 0% estrogen 100% testosterone lol.

I've been doing 20/4 IF since June 3rd and I love it. All my adult life (and most of my teenage years) I've eaten like this naturally until I moved in with others who eat at least three meals a day. It wasn't long before I began to eat like them and gained thirty pounds. It doesn't sound like much but on a 5' 1" person it makes a tremendous showing. I was miserable and ended up on MFP. It's here I read about intermittent fasting and began to research it. I was glad to see that the way I've always eaten and was often chastised for now has validation and support from many. So, back to IF for me and I feel great. No hunger pangs or cravings, no all day eating junk crap. I have loads of energy and drink lots of clean, cold water . When I finally eat in the evening my choices are much better; I crave good healthy food and eat to my calorie limit. I go to bed full, satisfied and sleep like a baby. IF is, for me, a lifestyle 24/7. I'm not so regimented that I passed on the Fourth of July food festivities but I feel so blah today and can't wait to get back to IF tomorrow. It'll be a long time before I feel like doing that again.

edited- kant spel

Tried it, like the female mice in the study, I couldn't sleep on fasting days. Maybe I'm a mouse?

Maybe this actually depends on your lifestyle/activity level. If you are losing weight by diet alone, I reckon it would go pretty well. But if you are exercising then not so much.

I was advised by the gym to do some fasted cardio, low intensity, to burn fat. In other words, wake up (fasted state) walk briskly (with the dog, lucky dog) but not overdo it, or we start to use muscle for fuel rather than fat. Then 30-60 minutes later EAT.

I thought I would be clever and delay the eating, I got later and later, today it was 1:30 when I had breakfast. But just today I was directed to a post that says if you don't refuel your body in that timeframe it will be harder to replenish your energy, so if like me you want to go to the gym and lift weights after work, you will find yourself more tired, and not work to your maximum capacity.

Now I can't say for sure, but there have been some days at the gym when I go like a demon, and lift some quite heavy weights, and other days I am exhausted and drop 10-20% off my heavy lifts. I am now wondering if this is directly related not just to what, but WHEN I eat.

http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/healthy-eating/what-to-eat-before-and-after-exercising.

If your wife is exercising I would try what a previous poster suggested, I tried it for a few weeks, fasting 2 days and eating normally for 5. Fasting supposedly means eating 500 calories, but I usually ended up 700-800, just don't fast 2 days in a row. This worked quite well for me, but I love food and the fast days were hard. I am at goal weight now though, so I must have been doing something right this year.

Tell her good luck, whatever she decides.

I just started intermittent fasting...16/8. Down 2 lbs the first week. But, there isn't much on this diet for obese women, such as myself. I have looked and looked. It's always someone who is a gym enthusiast, training for competition. I want to know what to expect, how should I be feeling? I noticed my skin, seemed like it had more cellulite, then like the fat was breaking down...then it would look better for a few days, then loose again. Not sure if this is just the fat breaking down as toxins were being removed. But as I progress, believe me I will post how this works for women who are truly over weight, not just 10 vanity pounds.

I first started IF 2 years ago, started on 16/8 (8 hour eating window and 16 fasted. The window opened at noon and closed at 8pm). Eventually went to a 4 hour eating window. I'm a 5'7" female 40's starting weight was 180. I lost 7 lbs. the first week, (probably lots of water at first) and at least 1lb. the following weeks. I believe my intake was anywhere between 1600-1800 calories. I lifted (compound, heavy) 3x a week and ran the other 3. My rest/relax day was Sunday. I would eat whatever I wanted on that day (during the eating window). I like eating big and would rather have one good big azz meal than a bunch of little ones. When I was eating 5-6x a day I was hungry all the time (ooh yayy in 2 hours I can have a cheesestick and an apple.............NOT!!)

I literally broke down and cried one day after the first month on IF. I was losing weight and felt great, more energy, getting more done, etc. I had struggled for so many years trying to work with those numerous tiny meals a day and I was RELIEVED that I finally found something that worked for me!! I like going to Chipotle and getting the Monster Burrito with double meat, beans, cheese and greens (about 1200 cals) eating the entire burrito and enjoying it, then having a protein shake a few hours later (protein powder, coconut oil, peanut butter, etc, whatever got the shake up to 4-500 cals) and be done with eating. No obsessing over structuring meals, finding time to eat, endless cooking, tupperware-ing and schlepping the meals to work, etc.

It worked for me, it might not for others, my suggestion for people is, if you're interested, try it and see if it works for you. It does for some, not for others (like a lot of stuff in life haha)

Keep it simple. Figure out how many cals you need, pick a window and eat during that window. When your window is closed, you can drink water, tea, coffee, diet drinks etc...as long as it doesn't have calories go for it. If you are hungry while waiting for the window to open, get out of yourself. Do some chores, wash the laundry, go for a walk, wash your car, call a friend, listen to music, go for a run. It took me about a week to get acclimated to the IF lifestyle. After that it was easy. I found I got more done not worrying and trying to plan around eating so many times a day. Good luck to all!!

Melissa

I've been starting to intermittent fast more often now that I am well adjusted to my eating plan. I never liked to eat breakfast anyway. This week, I've done 16/8 every day. I don't really plan to do it, but if I'm not hungry for breakfast, I just choose not to eat.

I do end up having to eat at night in order to get my calories in, but I sleep best if I've had something to eat before going to bed anyway. According to my research and experience with my own body, eating at night is great for me.

I'm losing weight at a good pace, and I'm feeling great. I have to give my dietary choices the credit for my health improvements, but intermittent fasting fits right in.

I kind of just stumbled into it myself. I don't care for breakfast either and was apparently doing a 16/8 intermittent fast without knowing it. It wasn't until reading some of the posts on MFP that I realized what I was doing had a name. It seems to work for me thus far. I agree with what most everybody has said, listen to your body and do what works. BTW, cute dog!