Intermittent Fasting...am I doing too much?

LadyRaeB
LadyRaeB Posts: 9 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am never hungry in the morning, but have been drilled with that "breakfast is the most important meal" mantra all my life. I was forcing myself to eat. One day my husband said "just eat when you get hungry" and a light went on like DUH. I drink about a gallon of water between 6am and 6pm which fills me up and I only really start getting hungry around 6, so that's when I eat dinner. I usually work out around noon and have a poached egg afterwards, other than that I get all my calories at dinner.

I never felt satisfied with traditional "diet plans" because the meals were always small and unsatisfying. This way I can pretty much eat whatever I want at dinner (I don't care for fried, greasy, overly processed etc food anyway) including desert and still not go over my recommended daily intake. Not feeling deprived has eliminated my tendency to binge or sneak snacks. I'm just getting started but I've lost 14lbs in 3 weeks.

But my husband is now concerned that I'm losing too fast, that my diet is too extreme. Am I doing it wrong? Should I be stretching my meals out a bit more?

Replies

  • tomatosoup3
    tomatosoup3 Posts: 126 Member
    I don't know about the diet itself, but when I started out (not doing IF, just good old calorie counting) I also lost about 14 pounds in 3 weeks. But then it tapered off to about 1 pounds per week after that.

    I'd say that if you continue losing weight this fast, then yes, something is wrong. But if this was just the initial "woosh" (which is quite common) and the weight loss slows down, then you're okay.

    ps- are you actually meeting your caloric goals? or are you hundreds of calories short each day...?
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    what are your stats, and how many calories are you eating per day?
  • LadyRaeB
    LadyRaeB Posts: 9 Member
    edited June 2016
    I'm not sure what you mean by "stats"

    Honestly no I have not actually been meeting my caloric goals. With my exercise added in I've been falling short. According to myfitnesspal I should be getting about 1500 calories per day and I've eaten 1100-1500 every day. And I count *everything*...sauce, kool-aid, multivitamins... But then when I add my exercise my daily goal jumps up to 1800-2000 and it's just been impossible for me to get there without gorging or eating when I'm not hungry.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    Your stats are height, weight, age etc

    Do you weigh everything you eat? If not, chances are you are eating more than you think..
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    LadyRaeB wrote: »
    I am never hungry in the morning, but have been drilled with that "breakfast is the most important meal" mantra all my life. I was forcing myself to eat. One day my husband said "just eat when you get hungry" and a light went on like DUH. I drink about a gallon of water between 6am and 6pm which fills me up and I only really start getting hungry around 6, so that's when I eat dinner. I usually work out around noon and have a poached egg afterwards, other than that I get all my calories at dinner.

    I never felt satisfied with traditional "diet plans" because the meals were always small and unsatisfying. This way I can pretty much eat whatever I want at dinner (I don't care for fried, greasy, overly processed etc food anyway) including desert and still not go over my recommended daily intake. Not feeling deprived has eliminated my tendency to binge or sneak snacks. I'm just getting started but I've lost 14lbs in 3 weeks.

    But my husband is now concerned that I'm losing too fast, that my diet is too extreme. Am I doing it wrong? Should I be stretching my meals out a bit more?

    No. If things are working for you, you can eat an egg after working out and eat the rest of your calories at dinner.
    Here is a group for intermittent fasting. Most of them eat twice a day: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/49-intermittent-fasting
  • LadyRaeB
    LadyRaeB Posts: 9 Member
    edited July 2016
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    Your stats are height, weight, age etc

    Do you weigh everything you eat? If not, chances are you are eating more than you think..

    I'm 27, 5'6" and about 270lbs. I cook most of my dinners so I either weigh or measure everything. We go out to eat every Thursday and I go by the restaurant's nutrition information for those meals, so it might be a little off then. But like I said that's only once a week. Otherwise I try to be as precise as possible and logging everything, including cooking oil.
    RodaRose wrote: »
    No. If things are working for you, you can eat an egg after working out and eat the rest of your calories at dinner.
    Here is a group for intermittent fasting. Most of them eat twice a day: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/49-intermittent-fasting

    Thanks! I'll check it out.

  • llbrixon
    llbrixon Posts: 964 Member
    You are doing great!
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    @LadyRaeB If you want to increase your calories, here are some suggestions for calorie dense foods:


    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p1
    avocado
    cheese
    full fat dairy
    Greek yogurt
    ice cream
    peanut butter (or other nut butters)
    dark chocolate
    less lean cuts of meat (including beef, pork, sausage, etc.)
    seeds (chia, flax, sunflower, etc.)
    nuts
    olive oil
    coconut oil
    butter
    beans and lentils
    protein shakes, bars, and smoothies
    hummus
    beef jerky
    cornbread
    tuna
    full calorie condiments
    full calorie sauces & dressings
    sour cream
    guacamole
    whole grain pasta
    rice
    bacon
    whole eggs
    quinoa
    fruit and fruit juices
    pretzels
    bananas
    scones
    muffins (bran, blueberry, banana nut, etc.)
    potatoes (sweet, red, gold, purple, white, etc.)
    dried fruit (raisins, apricots, plums, dates, etc.)
    granola
    coconut
    salmon
    edamame
    olives
    honey
    molasses

  • MiltonAFC
    MiltonAFC Posts: 121 Member
    Absolutely not. I'm an IF'er as well, many people save their calories for later in the day to have two big meals and a snack. You can YouTube "kinobody" and many others.

    I personally don't really get hungry until 2-3pm, if I do get someone hungry before that I drink water or 0 calorie flavored sparkling ice water(these things are magic, highly recommend them!)

    The unofficial/official rules of weight loss is losing anywhere between half to two pounds a week is perfectly acceptable. Anymore than that is risky you're creating such a huge caloric deficit which will ultimately cause you to plateau quicker and lose muscle fiber at the same time.

    HOWEVER, if someone is really overweight by a lot. Its not out the ordinary for them to lose 2-4 pounds a week. Same way how it's standard for someone to lose 3-6lb, maybe more or less when they first start dieting.
  • LadyRaeB
    LadyRaeB Posts: 9 Member
    Thanks for all your input guys!
  • Moonbeamlissie
    Moonbeamlissie Posts: 504 Member
    I think your fine. I lost a huge amount of weight my first couple of months and then it tapered down. The smaller you get the harder it is to lose the weight. I also like just eating one meal a day. It makes me feel better to sit down to dinner with my family and not have to decide what i can fit in with the calories I have left. If i get hungry during the day I will eat some sort of fruit and plenty of water.

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