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Intermittent Fasting

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peabean26
peabean26 Posts: 78 Member
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I've posted a few times here before trying to understand why I cant seem to lose weight. Basically I've been Keto for a solid 2 months and lost less than 5lbs. Its been driving me nuts for quite some time. Although I love the other benefits of Keto, such as higher energy, less aches and pains, better sleep, etc, lets be honest: I really want to lose weight!!!

Last week I was scheduled to have a laproscopic surgery, so for 2 days I only ate liquids (broth with butter, jello, etc) and one meal. The surgery ended up getting canceled (for other reasons) but I realized when I got home that I'd lost 2 lbs. Remarkably, they didn't come back when I ate normal keto for the rest of the week. So this week I decided to try intermittent fasting to see if I could lose more. Low and behold, I've lost another pound this week!!!

I'm so incredibly excited! It has felt awful to work so hard at this diet and see the same number on the scale over and over every morning. I have PCOS and a very slow resting heart-rate so losing was never going to be easy for me, but even tracking calories and Keto wasn't cutting it.

So now I have a new plan, keto plus IF. I just wanted to put this out there to all the women with PCOS who are struggling to lose on keto. I wouldn't have thought to try IF if it hadn't been for the surgery prep, but now I feel confident that this is what my body needs to actually lose.

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  • volfan22
    volfan22 Posts: 149 Member
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    I have only tried IF once - and I thought I was going to starve to death. LOL (Probably all mental....I love to eat.) I have considered the egg fast (I have a bal gown to get into next month) but I have also heard that you quickly gain back what you lose when you return to "normal" food.

    I too have a slow moving scale but I don't let it bother me because I feel so much better. I know I'm shrinking in inches (both from a tape measure and loose clothing) so I really don't worry about pounds. I do workout too. In the month of November I only lost 2 lbs - but then this month I'm already down another 3. It's just a screwy little thing I have noticed with this WOE.
  • cchild2
    cchild2 Posts: 47 Member
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    Low carbing definitely makes IF easier. From what I know about IF, it is much (better?) (healthier?) for guys then gals. It may be worth a google search.
    http://www.marksdailyapple.com/women-and-intermittent-fasting/#axzz3LakH0kGZ

    But just like with anything, YMMV and listen to your body. It does seem to work for some women, just not all.
  • peabean26
    peabean26 Posts: 78 Member
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    I would be happy to have a slow moving scale, unfortunately I had a non moving scale!

    I've never heard the thing about it being better for men than women. Since this is only my second week trying it I will have to see. It definitely takes some willpower on the fasting days.
  • ChoiceNotChance
    ChoiceNotChance Posts: 644 Member
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    I just read an article yesterday that said it's more effective and improves health conditions more for men than women. Not that it's necessarily bad for women.
  • msnucerity
    msnucerity Posts: 333 Member
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    I'm also thinking of trying IF (the scale moves vvveerrrryyy slowly for me too). How long have people fasted at a time? 2 days every week? 3 days every 10-14 days?

    Not sure of where to go from here (more googling required) but feel free to add me as a friend (we can be fasting buddies!)

    I'm such a dork sometimes... B)
  • TheTrophyWife
    TheTrophyWife Posts: 86 Member
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    My scale is psychotic! Last night I was 309. This morning I was 306. Tonight I'll probably be 310. Each time I have to tell myself that the scale is not important. I am creating a healthy lifestyle.

    What's this about not hurting? My joints still hurt. I have a touch of sciatica and I don't expect anything to improve that or my knees that crunch when I bend them. I just want to lose the weight.
  • RockLobster4
    RockLobster4 Posts: 18 Member
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    I started IF about three weeks into keto and I think it helped avoid the normal stall after the first few weeks of water loss. My version of IF is only eating from noon-8pm (because we usually eat a late dinner). I'm not big on coffee, so I only drink water from waking-noon. I find that this allows me to eat bigger meals because I'm squeezing the same amount of calories into a shorter period of time. It only took a few days for my stomach to get used to the idea of not eating breakfast, and then I wasn't even hungry until noon anyway. I have been cheating like crazy lately because of Thanksgiving, my birthday, and Christmas coming up, but when I was on track I lost about 22 lbs in 6 weeks with keto and IF. I'll get back to it hardcore after New Year's, but for now I'm just trying to be good day-to-day and not get down on myself too bad when I slip up at a party or family gathering.
  • Foamroller
    Foamroller Posts: 1,041 Member
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    I've had very good results combining IF eating protocols and LCHF. I'm not too strict, though, since I want to exercise A LOT.
  • TheTrophyWife
    TheTrophyWife Posts: 86 Member
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    I would really like to try this but as a disordered eater, I'm afraid that once I stop eating, it's over. I can go a whole day on water and coffee and maybe a can of tuna. For me, regular eating feels like a slip up. I would love to be able to manage something like IF without completing falling back into the rabbit hole. It has taken a LOT for me to eat so much every day. I'd love to just not eat at all and maybe live off of heavy whipping cream for a few days. Would that count as IF?
  • cchild2
    cchild2 Posts: 47 Member
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    Two common approaches are only eating during a small window during the day (maybe 12 noon - 6 pm) or 1-2 days a week skipping two meals a day (I skip breakfast and lunch one day a week)
  • DittoDan
    DittoDan Posts: 1,850 Member
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    Instead of typing everything again, look at my comments on fasting on my MFP Blog:

    Fasting & Keto

    And:

    Fasting, Diabetic ~ Glucose/Sugar Levels

    Since I wrote these early on, I have fasted several more times. I am thinking about doing another this weekend. I usually do a 24 hour fast at minimum, and the longest was 4 days. If you are adapted, it is much harder in YOUR MIND than the actual fast.

    Dan the Man from Michigan


  • TheTrophyWife
    TheTrophyWife Posts: 86 Member
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    Thanks Dan. I read both and then decided to fast instead of eating dinner last night. I probably shouldn't have done it so soon into starting but I wanted to see what would happen. The scale moved a little. I'm going to throw it out.
  • radiii
    radiii Posts: 422 Member
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    I was doing the 16/8 IF for a number of months earlier in the year and really liked it. I am not sure if I lost any weight that I wouldn't have in the first place, I just really liked what felt like a powerful feeling of not being tied to needing to eat all the time, and I enjoy bigger meals. I was eating between ~1pm-8pm most of the time, but I'm having to change that. While its true from a nutritional perspective that it doesn't matter when you eat, it appears that I really need the morning meal to stimulate normal/healthy bathroom habits. For now I'm just not doing IF anymore, the idea of eating from 9am-4pm or and not eating in the evening is far less appealing to me.
  • DittoDan
    DittoDan Posts: 1,850 Member
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    TheTrophyWife wrote: »
    Thanks Dan. I read both and then decided to fast instead of eating dinner last night. I probably shouldn't have done it so soon into starting but I wanted to see what would happen. The scale moved a little. I'm going to throw it out.

    It never hurts to do a fast. It actually will help in your Keto adaptation. It trains your body to rely on your stored fuel (fat).

    Look at the section on "Fasting" on my blog #11:

    Really Good Keto Websites

    I hope this helps,

    Dan the Man from Fasting Land



  • lulalacroix
    lulalacroix Posts: 1,082 Member
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    If I have too many carbs, I will IF the next day and then stick to high fat the rest of the day with little carbs. This always resets my diet and lessens my bloat. I also have PCOS and am very sensitive to carbs. Most days I'm under 10 total carbs.
  • TheTrophyWife
    TheTrophyWife Posts: 86 Member
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    Dan,

    Thanks for putting that together! I really appreciate the abbreviations too. Now I know what everyone has been saying! LOL!

    So, I'm considering drinking my fat shakes until I feel like I need solid food. I can usually make a 16 oz shake last for a couple of hours plus I drink my BPC with it for breakfast. I'm also thinking about changing my numbers again even though I said I wasn't.
  • kirkor
    kirkor Posts: 2,530 Member
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    peabean26 wrote: »
    I've posted a few times here before trying to understand why I cant seem to lose weight.


    What kind of deficit were you running?

  • ABrownGrl
    ABrownGrl Posts: 41 Member
    edited January 2015
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    TheTrophyWife wrote: »
    My scale is psychotic! Last night I was 309. This morning I was 306. Tonight I'll probably be 310. Each time I have to tell myself that the scale is not important. I am creating a healthy lifestyle.

    What's this about not hurting? My joints still hurt. I have a touch of sciatica and I don't expect anything to improve that or my knees that crunch when I bend them. I just want to lose the weight.

    @TheTrophyWife‌
    Try adding this to your diet....
    http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005KG7EDU/ref=sr_ph?ie=UTF8&qid=1420815625&sr=1&keywords=great+lakes+gelatin

    It should really help with sore joints and crunching knees. I put it in my coffee in the morning, but you can put in whatever. It just dissolves and has no flavor!

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