Any women who have tried Intermittent Fasting (IF)??

alevelali27 · June 2014

Hey guys!

I started IF'ing about a week ago. I am 20 years old, 125 lbs, reasonably fit, and interested in burning some body fat. Have been training fasted (some HIIT and a little bodyweight strength training - don't have a gym at the moment!) in the morning and eating in an 8-hour window from 11am-7pm.

So far, the biggest benefit I have noticed is the fact that I am able to control food cravings and the amount I eat! I have no clue whether this will help me burn body fat (there's some discrepancy regarding IF for women), but I do think that it is a good way to keep my calories in check without feeling deprived. I've found that after the first couple of days, 11am came around and I wasn't even hungry, whereas I used to wake up and mindlessly have breakfast without thinking if I was hungry or not! Of course, I've been extra careful about tracking my calories to make sure I don't eat under or over the amount that I need.

So, have any of you girls tried this out? Did it work for you? Any words of caution or tips to IF'ing in a smart way?

Thanks in advance for any input!

thavoice · June 2014

Hey guys!

I started IF'ing about a week ago. I am 20 years old, 125 lbs, reasonably fit, and interested in burning some body fat. Have been training fasted (some HIIT and a little bodyweight strength training - don't have a gym at the moment!) in the morning and eating in an 8-hour window from 11am-7pm.

So far, the biggest benefit I have noticed is the fact that I am able to control food cravings and the amount I eat! I have no clue whether this will help me burn body fat (there's some discrepancy regarding IF for women), but I do think that it is a good way to keep my calories in check without feeling deprived. I've found that after the first couple of days, 11am came around and I wasn't even hungry, whereas I used to wake up and mindlessly have breakfast without thinking if I was hungry or not! Of course, I've been extra careful about tracking my calories to make sure I don't eat under or over the amount that I need.

So, have any of you girls tried this out? Did it work for you? Any words of caution or tips to IF'ing in a smart way?

Thanks in advance for any input!

Not a girl but have lost 29.9 lobs in 11 weeks on fasting. I fast 3 24 hour cycles a week and eat BMR for 3, and TDEE for 1.

Tips? Water. Sugarfree gum. Stay busy.

It has been pretty easy so far I have to admit. I fast from 8pm to 8pm cycle which I love as I know if I get hungry I am eating dinner that evening.

After awhile your body gets used to it and it is tough to eat up to your TDEE.
So far..I love it.

AlyRuth94 · June 2014

I tried IF back when I did Paleo in about 2011. IF is how I broke through my plateau weight back then after being stuck on the scale at 150 for two months. However, it really did a number on my personal motivation, as I was hungry a lot, and I quit the whole diet about five pounds later.

Now, I'm kind of on a not-intentional IF... I eat brunch every day between 11am and noon and I eat dinner at 6pm. Typically, I don't eat any snacks before or after. So I guess you can say I am on an IF diet now, but I am not seeing any weight loss that I wouldn't expect if I was eating at 9am and 8pm. 1lb/week lost just as expected. I just follow this routine because it limits my meals to 2 per day without leaving me hungry at any point.

thyme4 · June 2014

I am female, 55, and pretty much within a few lbs. of my "target' weight. I have been following a 16:8 protocol for just over a month, with the intention to work on body composition. I do both my cardio and my strength workouts in a fasted state. My primary observation is that it is even more important when doing IF to understand your true TDEE, and not impose too dramatic of a cut otherwise it could be hard to stick to.

I have dropped a little bit of weight (though not my primary focus), and have noticed a change in body comp based on caliper measurements, so I do think it is making my efforts more productive. It is actually a challenge for me to get all my calories into 8 hours sometimes, but partly that is just realizing I need to eat more calorie dense foods.

There is a group for IF'ers that you might want to join for more specific input and advice from others in your age demographic. I am pretty sure that differences in hormone levels will impact how we respond to more prolonged periods of IF.

Grrrrleo · June 2014

Yes,I'm doing this at the moment,around 18 or 19 hour fasts on average 6 days a week (eg depending on social activities etc). I've been on this for a few weeks - weight loss not quick or huge but heading in the right direction, I've shifted 3 kg over a few months, I'm now 63kg. Work commitments, being injured so not being able to put in my 6 session a week gym habit made me try something different. I tried 5:2 a while ago but have found daily IF surprisingly straightforward , I can easily manage 20 hours without eating, especially when I'm at work and for this reason I find maintaining a calorie deficit much easier as I prefer to eat later in the day so can do this without the guilt.

I'd be really interested in hearing other peoples experiences (especially females!) of IF, particularly how much they exercise, how many calories they consume in comparison with their recommend allowance for weight loss etc.

Thanks!

lindsey1979 · June 2014

I'm doing the 5:2 plan --- where I have 24 hour fasts twice a week (I eat the full 500 calories at dinner, but haven't eaten since dinner the day before). I just started -- this is my first week. So I can't talk to you about results so far, but I have been pleasantly shocked with how easy the fast days have been. I thought I'd really struggle, but didn't at all. I didn't even feel it until the last 3-4 hours or so.

I'm hopeful that this will be a great way to meet my weekly calorie goals. For perspective, I'm 5'9" and 177, with another total of 15-20 lbs to lose. I highly doubt anything under 157 lbs will be a good look for me as I'm a size 6 then.

alevelali27 · June 2014

Thanks to all who have replied!!! Reading over your messages right now

alevelali27 · June 2014

So far, it seems like a good way to go! I guess the next step for me will be looking at IF-specific groups as someone suggested and probably looking into the different protocols, maybe try a couple of them out and see which one works for me. I gotta be honest though, whole day fasts kind of scare me! For those of you who have tried this, do you recommend multivitamins, greens powders, BCAAs or anything like that to hold you off? Should I just get over my fear of not eating? Lol

From what I've read around the internet, the 16/8 protocol is kind of a "beginner's" IF, so I might cut that down a couple of hours once I'm totally used to it. I'm wondering, at what point might it affect exercise intensity? So far, I've been able to do pretty intense cardio for 25-40 minutes every single day in a fasted state with no problems whatsoever, but maybe cutting down the eating window would limit this? I'll also start doing heavier strength training once I get access to a gym, and I'm not sure how this would play into the IF.

Again, thanks for your input!

Keiras_Mom · June 2014

I lost almost all my weight with alternate day fasting. It's great! I'm currently maintaining with HDE (Hunger Directed Eating) and not tracking calories for the moment, but I would never have had the success I have without ADF.

amberlykay1014 · June 2014

I can't comment too much because I only just started IF at the beginning of May, so I've been slowly transitioning to a feeding window of 2-10pm. So far I love it! I don't have to think about food at all in the mornings, have lots of energy, get to eat 2 huge meals (sometimes 1200 cals at a time!) and my training has stayed about the same. I haven't lost weight, but I am losing fat. I cut 2" off my waist last month eating 1900 calories/day on average.

My diary is open if you want to check it out.

lindsey1979 · June 2014

As I said earlier, I've just started IFing on the 5:2 plan and I was very worried about the fast days. That it would simply be way too hard. I generally eat a Primal diet (basically Paleo with dairy) so I don't tend to waste calories on a lot of empty calorie foods. I was shocked by how easy the fast days were. I held all my 500 calories for dinner and really didn't even start to feel it until 3 pm. I drank a lot of unsweetened green and herbal tea throughout the day and it was totally fine. It's sort of scary because it showed me how much I've been eating not out of hunger, but out of habit or other reasons.

I also lift heavy -- Starting Strength program -- twice a week and I just make sure to life on feed days. It hasn't been a problem at all and don't anticipate it being a problem. Good luck with it!

Any women who have tried Intermittent Fasting (IF)??

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