Fasting one day a week

I used to do it with some success. I did notice that I lost more on a monthly basis when I took a day off and just drank water or a healthy juice.

Now that I'm exercising 5-6 times a week I don't take days off. My body demands the nutrition for recovery too much. I tried to take a day off to fast on a rest day and I really paid for it that week. So I suppose it would depend on your diet and activity level.

I wouldn't do it. To me, it seems too disordered.

In what way have you heard that intermittent fasting is good for you? IMO this sounds like a gimmick that isn't needed if you eat the right amount of calories per day to achieve what your goals are.

I just read about this in a magazine where you actually fast 2 days a week, limiting to like 500 calories......... then the rest of the week you eat whatever you like. I thought it was interesting. So I can't wait to see what some say on here in response to your question.

I *sort of* do this. I wouldn't put it as "eating whatever I like" the rest of the week. I eat the same clean vegan food, just less on some days. So some days my net calories are very low and sometimes they're very high. Some weeks there isn't as big of a difference between low days and high days. Basically I just try to hit a different calorie goal every day (different by both net and gross). Some people call this Calorie Cycling. At the end of the week you still average out to your MFP goal.

For me, especially now with so little to lose, when I do this is the only time I get consistent losses. I also feel like this is a safe way to keep low calories with a flexible lifestyle and without damage to metabolism.

I don't think I would call this IF. I eat almost constantly -- I "graze" lol. To me IF always sounded a lot like skipping breakfast and going to bed hungry, neither of which I'm too fond of. But with that being said, lately I have been considering adding in one completely fasted day so I'm curious about this too.

Here is what my last 30 days looks like:

In what way have you heard that intermittent fasting is good for you? IMO this sounds like a gimmick that isn't needed if you eat the right amount of calories per day to achieve what your goals are.

Intermittent fasting is simply one vehicle that people use to stay in a caloric deficit. I don't think there are any magic bullet like properties to IF, it is simply a schedule that works for some people.

For example, I am doing 16-8 right now and it is perfect for my lifestyle and mindset. Im not doing it as a "gimmick", I don't believe it has magical properties...it just allows me to most comfortably stay in a caloric deficit.

edit: saw above post - "eating right" and IF are not mutually exclusive. You can easily eat right while practicing IF.

Hi

This has been proven time and again to be incredibly beneficial. The most popular ones are the 16-8 fast and the 5-2 fast.

16-8 is where you eat each day within an 8-hour window, so effectively fast for 16hrs. You can do this every day, including workout days. So when I do 16-8, I eat my evening meal at 7pm and then fast until 11am the next day. At 11am I eat a big breakfast and two hours later I'm ready to work out. Then lunch and dinner within the 8 hour window.

5-2 is where you limit your calorie intake to 500cals on two days and eat what you like the rest of the time.

Fasting increases the production of growth hormone and flips your body from 'replace' to 'repair' mode. This means that instead of eliminating damaged cells and replacing them with new, synthesised ones, it repairs them. Damaged cells can become free radicals in the body, leading to inflammation and illness, so repairing them is obviously better. It also takes less energy than creating new ones and a body that regularly repairs itself will heal quicker.

NOTE: You can drink during your fast period. If you are worried your body won't wake up because it hasn't had any breakfast, a large glass of cold water will do the trick. And on the 16-8 diet, you're not missing out on breakfast, you're simply delaying it.

PrimalGirl

I fast one day a week but mine is for spiritual reasons. The added bonus side to it though is that it does help with weight loss and looking younger :laugh:

there are two types of fasting that are the most common.

The 5:2 is where women eat 2,000 calories five days a week, and 500 calories two days a week. the fast days do not need to be consecutive. if done correctly, i can see the benefit. but i see too many people abusing this type of diet, by justifying binge eating and unhealthy food, because "oh hey, tomorrow i'm fasting."

I fast, and I can tell you right now, it won't work if you binge eat unhealthy food. At least 5:2 won't.

the other way is the Intermittent fasting approach of fasting for 16 hours, and then having an 8 hour window to consume ALL OF YOUR DAILY CALORIES. so you have dinner at about 7pm. now you don't eat until about 11am the next day. the great thing about this is that you sleep away half the fast. a big dinner will help you get through the morning. coffee and water is allowed during the fast.

if you are going the Intermittent fasting route, get used to it. don't just all of a sudden start a 16 hour fast. have a big dinner, and skip breakfast the next day, or just have your breakfast a little later than usual. i only IF about 3-5 days a week, depending on my work schedule. i work a lot of night shifts, so i can't always stick to it. when i do, i find that i have plenty of energy, and have no problem exercising in a fasted state (must have coffee though).

This I would agree with. It took me about 3 goes to successfully fast. I had to ease into it by eating 1000 calories or so on fast days and I still overshoot (I did yesterday).

To the OP, it's not luck. It's hard work, just like any other diet or eating programme.

I've been 5:2ing since January. I love how it makes me feel, I'm down to my last few pounds, I've just run my first half-marathon and I'm saving money on grocery bills. I had my bloods tested back in January, and I'll have them re-done soon but my cholesterol etc weren't that high to start with. I don't find that I binge on non-fast days, but I don't feel guilty about what i eat either. My appetite is less, and I recognise and can handle the feelings of hunger.

It's not for everyone - I'd encourage people to try it if they're interested (and are not in the groups of people who should NOT be fasting), but I also encourage people to find something different if they find this way of eating makes them miserable.

To the people who have done this ,what luck have you had?
I've heard intermittent fasting is good for you every once in a while and won't wreck your metabolism.
Plus you lose weight faster.
Experiences?

Some people find that it works for them, but those that I know who have done it for awhile don't make claims that they lose weight faster on it.

If you want more individualized info, there are fasting groups on MFP you can join.

I wonder about fasting sometimes. I eat my last meal of the day around 7 or 8 in the evening. When I get up to get ready for work, it's 5:30 a.m. and by the time I'm in my car at 7 a.m., I am so hungry that I'm nauseous! I don't think I could make it until 11 to eat my first meal of the day!

You don't have to. Michael Mosely eats at 7am and 7pm, just divides his calories between the two meals. If I got up at stupid o'clock, I wouldn't be able to fast all day either lol

Different strokes for different folks. You may get numerous anecdotal responses to your question.

I have been doing IF for more than half a year now and I love it. I am NOT doing it for the purpose of weight loss at all (I have been in maintenance since Aug last year). The original motivation was I got tired of planning and preparing 3-5 meals a day. I am still enjoying IF because the truth is I love eating two gigantic meals a day. It's so cool to see a spread of food in front of me. :laugh:

Different strokes for different folks. You may get numerous anecdotal responses to your question.

I have been doing IF for more than half a year now and I love it. I am NOT doing it for the purpose of weight loss at all (I have been in maintenance since Aug last year). The original motivation was I got tired of planning and preparing 3-5 meals a day. I am still enjoying IF because the truth is I love eating two gigantic meals a day. It's so cool to see a spread of food in front of me. :laugh:

Haha. I've restricted myself to 4 meals a day and each one is like a feast. I used to eat constantly but it's harder to plan calories and macros well.

I just read about this in a magazine where you actually fast 2 days a week, limiting to like 500 calories......... then the rest of the week you eat whatever you like.

Is that really fasting or just a VLCD 2 days a week? Fasting is abstaining from food for some period of time, not just eating less.........:huh: