Welcome to Debate Club! Please be aware that this is a space for respectful debate, and that your ideas will be challenged here. Please remember to critique the argument, not the author.

Why intermittent fasting is so popular now?

2

Replies

  • Bmoremama
    Bmoremama Posts: 84 Member
    I do nutrient-supported IF 24-48 hours. Works for me. Everyone's different.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,023 Member
    IF is popular right now because the diet industry constantly needs something new to promote and find ways to sell. Right now they are on IF, I guess sales numbers were dropping for low-carb books. I'm sure they will find a way to take something reasonable like IF, twist it into something extreme, bombard us with the need to jump through a bunch of unnecessary hoops to accomplish it that only these 12 books can explain, claim it cures several chronic health issues magically, then use the backlash to start promoting the next big thing.

    I know several people it works great for, but I get hangry if I don't eat first thing in the AM and last thing at night, so it doesn't work for me.
  • tlflag1620
    tlflag1620 Posts: 1,358 Member
    I kind of fell into IF without knowing it was a "thing". I've been eating LCHF for about three years now. Within 4-5 months of starting (once I was near my goal weight) I noticed I wasn't snacking between meals anymore. Once I got to and maintained goal weight for a time, I realized I wasn't hungry in the morning anymore. So instead of making myself eat (out of habit, sense of duty, brekkie being the "most important meal" and all that malarkey), I simply had my coffee with half and half and waited until I truly felt hungry. For me, that usually occurs around noon, sometimes as late at 2-3 pm. Then I eat normally until about 9-10 pm. I started hearing about IF on various blogs and message boards, looked it up and said, "huh... Been doing that for a while. What's the big deal?" I do think LCHF lends itself well to IF because you're not dealing with crashing blood glucose levels and the foods are quite filling and satiating. I could never have done IF on my previous low fat, high carb diet. The nice thing is, it's very very simple. No need to buy books.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,023 Member
    annaskiski wrote: »
    Yeah, I don't know why people are saying that the dieting industry is promoting it....
    You don't need to read a book to understand, 'skip breakfast if you are not a breakfast person'.

    Oh I totally agree!
    But the industry always takes something simple and convinces people it's complicated and magic and there are specific rules they must follow so they can sell it for a few years.
  • Budjola
    Budjola Posts: 148 Member
    its convenient and it works thats why its popular, its not something new its just labeled as new
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Because MFP was really popular last year? Folks like to try things.

    I'm trying IF because it interested me.
  • Azercord
    Azercord Posts: 573 Member
    Yeah IF has been around for a loooooong time it just floats around in the background because there isn't a lot of revenue to be made off of it. I do 18:6 because I like to eat really big meals to feel full. 1400 calories a meal will make your belly full and your brain happy but it definitely limits your options to twice a day.
  • seamaj
    seamaj Posts: 1 Member
    I've been doing IF for 4 weeks, cycling between 16/8, 18/6 and 14/10. Skip breakfast every day. Little to no carbs or fats 2 hours before bed. Cardio twice a week for 30 minutes on an elliptical. Lost 15 lbs. (195 to 180, I'm 6'2"). Love IF.
  • Springfield1970
    Springfield1970 Posts: 1,945 Member
    edited April 2016
    I did it and managed my weight for a while without counting calories. I'd have a mid day protein low carb snack, then eat whatever I wanted dinner 6-7. This included a big carb portion, big dessert, chocolate so I think I was eating lowish protein, and lots of sugar. I'd get a food coma after and slept better than I do now. So a 17/7 16/8. I'd get pretty manic in the day from the starvation high. This woe allowed me to eat the same as my 6'3" partner at dinner together.

    Downsides. No energy for proper cardio training. Hellish mood swings and HANGER. Big blood sugar surges and drops. Evenings wiped out.

    My thoughts. I think evolutionary men tend to do better with this, as they would have been out hunting all day and not eating, with a big meal later, but obvs not cheesecake, wine and chocolate.
    Women maybe would be grazing more?
    Who knows. It worked for me for a few years. I worried about getting diabetes.

    Nowadays I am happy having a 900 calorie high carb breakfast at 5am then training, a normal lunch and a smallish dinner then greek yoghurt, 100 plus G protein a day. I still get hungry but it doesn't make me dizzy or unbearably grumpy.

    Also my silent migraines have stopped. I used to get such bad vision disturbance. Not a fan of low carb and IF or anything fast based!


  • Vetticus_3
    Vetticus_3 Posts: 78 Member
    well, there are some studies being done about the impact of diets on our body - lean muscle v fat... and if I'm remembering correctly, a couple have shown that if calories in is kept the same, IF will cause a bigger decrease in fat and less decrease in muscle, compared to just less calories. There's apparently some work being done to show that, keeping calorie input the same, simply having 3 spaced out meals a day (no snacks) is better (less inflammation markers in blood, less body fat %) than having a lot of smaller meals through the day.

    Look, IDK, but if it works for you then go for it.

    If I were back int the cave man era, I would totally graze on cheesecake and chocolate all day. I'd replace the wine with beer, but still...mmmmm grazing cheesecake.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,023 Member
    I did it and managed my weight for a while without counting calories. I'd have a mid day protein low carb snack, then eat whatever I wanted dinner 6-7. This included a big carb portion, big dessert, chocolate so I think I was eating lowish protein, and lots of sugar. I'd get a food coma after and slept better than I do now. So a 17/7 16/8. I'd get pretty manic in the day from the starvation high. This woe allowed me to eat the same as my 6'3" partner at dinner together.

    Downsides. No energy for proper cardio training. Hellish mood swings and HANGER. Big blood sugar surges and drops. Evenings wiped out.

    My thoughts. I think evolutionary men tend to do better with this, as they would have been out hunting all day and not eating, with a big meal later, but obvs not cheesecake, wine and chocolate.
    Women maybe would be grazing more?
    Who knows. It worked for me for a few years. I worried about getting diabetes.

    Nowadays I am happy having a 900 calorie high carb breakfast at 5am then training, a normal lunch and a smallish dinner then greek yoghurt, 100 plus G protein a day. I still get hungry but it doesn't make me dizzy or unbearably grumpy.

    Also my silent migraines have stopped. I used to get such bad vision disturbance. Not a fan of low carb and IF or anything fast based!


    I don't remember where, but I have read some articles about IF that said it might not work as well for women, that most of the studies done on IF only involved men and that there may be a hormonal issue with women that wasn't taken into consideration. Wish I could remember where I saw that!
  • Negative_X
    Negative_X Posts: 296 Member
    I IF & train fasted (leangains) because it works for me and I enjoy it. Been at it for a solid 6+ years now and won't eat/train any other way.

    But in the end, just eat/train however the hell you want... if you don't enjoy something, what's the likelihood you'll stick to it? Find what works for YOU and run with it.
  • JoshuaMcAllister
    JoshuaMcAllister Posts: 500 Member
    Or there could be a simpler explanation. We are a generation of drunks using the calories saved on intermittent fasting days and blowing them non fasting days by binging on booze?
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    kimny72 wrote: »
    I did it and managed my weight for a while without counting calories. I'd have a mid day protein low carb snack, then eat whatever I wanted dinner 6-7. This included a big carb portion, big dessert, chocolate so I think I was eating lowish protein, and lots of sugar. I'd get a food coma after and slept better than I do now. So a 17/7 16/8. I'd get pretty manic in the day from the starvation high. This woe allowed me to eat the same as my 6'3" partner at dinner together.

    Downsides. No energy for proper cardio training. Hellish mood swings and HANGER. Big blood sugar surges and drops. Evenings wiped out.

    My thoughts. I think evolutionary men tend to do better with this, as they would have been out hunting all day and not eating, with a big meal later, but obvs not cheesecake, wine and chocolate.
    Women maybe would be grazing more?
    Who knows. It worked for me for a few years. I worried about getting diabetes.

    Nowadays I am happy having a 900 calorie high carb breakfast at 5am then training, a normal lunch and a smallish dinner then greek yoghurt, 100 plus G protein a day. I still get hungry but it doesn't make me dizzy or unbearably grumpy.

    Also my silent migraines have stopped. I used to get such bad vision disturbance. Not a fan of low carb and IF or anything fast based!


    I don't remember where, but I have read some articles about IF that said it might not work as well for women, that most of the studies done on IF only involved men and that there may be a hormonal issue with women that wasn't taken into consideration. Wish I could remember where I saw that!

    There seems to have been ONE blog about that that everyone seems to quote. But nothing following up on that, except for folks re-quoting that.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,023 Member
    kimny72 wrote: »
    I did it and managed my weight for a while without counting calories. I'd have a mid day protein low carb snack, then eat whatever I wanted dinner 6-7. This included a big carb portion, big dessert, chocolate so I think I was eating lowish protein, and lots of sugar. I'd get a food coma after and slept better than I do now. So a 17/7 16/8. I'd get pretty manic in the day from the starvation high. This woe allowed me to eat the same as my 6'3" partner at dinner together.

    Downsides. No energy for proper cardio training. Hellish mood swings and HANGER. Big blood sugar surges and drops. Evenings wiped out.

    My thoughts. I think evolutionary men tend to do better with this, as they would have been out hunting all day and not eating, with a big meal later, but obvs not cheesecake, wine and chocolate.
    Women maybe would be grazing more?
    Who knows. It worked for me for a few years. I worried about getting diabetes.

    Nowadays I am happy having a 900 calorie high carb breakfast at 5am then training, a normal lunch and a smallish dinner then greek yoghurt, 100 plus G protein a day. I still get hungry but it doesn't make me dizzy or unbearably grumpy.

    Also my silent migraines have stopped. I used to get such bad vision disturbance. Not a fan of low carb and IF or anything fast based!


    I don't remember where, but I have read some articles about IF that said it might not work as well for women, that most of the studies done on IF only involved men and that there may be a hormonal issue with women that wasn't taken into consideration. Wish I could remember where I saw that!

    There seems to have been ONE blog about that that everyone seems to quote. But nothing following up on that, except for folks re-quoting that.

    So I probably read an article, a blog quoting the article, and a blog quoting the blog that quoted the article :)
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    kimny72 wrote: »
    kimny72 wrote: »
    I did it and managed my weight for a while without counting calories. I'd have a mid day protein low carb snack, then eat whatever I wanted dinner 6-7. This included a big carb portion, big dessert, chocolate so I think I was eating lowish protein, and lots of sugar. I'd get a food coma after and slept better than I do now. So a 17/7 16/8. I'd get pretty manic in the day from the starvation high. This woe allowed me to eat the same as my 6'3" partner at dinner together.

    Downsides. No energy for proper cardio training. Hellish mood swings and HANGER. Big blood sugar surges and drops. Evenings wiped out.

    My thoughts. I think evolutionary men tend to do better with this, as they would have been out hunting all day and not eating, with a big meal later, but obvs not cheesecake, wine and chocolate.
    Women maybe would be grazing more?
    Who knows. It worked for me for a few years. I worried about getting diabetes.

    Nowadays I am happy having a 900 calorie high carb breakfast at 5am then training, a normal lunch and a smallish dinner then greek yoghurt, 100 plus G protein a day. I still get hungry but it doesn't make me dizzy or unbearably grumpy.

    Also my silent migraines have stopped. I used to get such bad vision disturbance. Not a fan of low carb and IF or anything fast based!


    I don't remember where, but I have read some articles about IF that said it might not work as well for women, that most of the studies done on IF only involved men and that there may be a hormonal issue with women that wasn't taken into consideration. Wish I could remember where I saw that!

    There seems to have been ONE blog about that that everyone seems to quote. But nothing following up on that, except for folks re-quoting that.

    So I probably read an article, a blog quoting the article, and a blog quoting the blog that quoted the article :)

    You and me both. :)
  • LuckyNumbers
    LuckyNumbers Posts: 208 Member
    Because the thought of eating 6-8 small meals a per day for the rest of your life is absurd. :) IF on the other hand is simple and sustainable.

    Bless anyone who can do IF, but it would be neither simple nor sustainable for me. On a typical day, I need breakfast when I wake up, I am hungry at 11 (snack), hungry for lunch, hungry at 3 (snack), and hungry for dinner. I am a hangry, hangry person if I don't quell the ghrelin in my stomach. I could never make it to 2:00 pm without eating and NOT bite someone's head off, and I am fairly certain that once I did eat, I would have no problem eating twice my allotted calories for the day. Binge city.

    It's why I'm a fan of CICO - you can eat whatever you want, whatever time of day you want, however many times per day, as long as you burn more calories than you consume in said day. A highly customizable, sustainable, and simple plan that works for everyone.