Hi! I currently do Intermittent Fasting 8:16, where my eating window is noon-8pm. I have PCOS/Insulin Resistance and there's some murmurs that IF could help but either way what I've found is a few things:

• I don't have my morning coffee, so I don't drink coffee throughout the day, eliminating the cream and sugar I'd normally be ingesting all day.
• I drink tea and/or water with nothing in it, so I'm better hydrated.
• It's easier to track two meals + snack and I can have slightly denser meals if I want, but it's definitely overall easier to manage.
• It's basically eliminated all late-night snacking.

Some caveats - I usually eat around 10am on the weekends and I have been known to make occasional late night exceptions if I'm out but I try not to. I've been fasting about three months and am 22lbs down, but I couldn't tell you if it's because of the "fasting" or because the fasting helped my diet overall.

I fast every day between 1pm and whenever my dinner is, usually 7-10pm, except on Wednesdays where I'll eat breakfast because I'm out late for lab. Unless I pack a lunch, then I'll skip it. I say "fast", but I don't snack at all, so it's more like refusing to eat my first meal before 1pm and then eating my second meal whenever and then going to bed. Not quite as structured, but the concept of not eating until a certain time is the same. I just eat all of my snack calories into my meals because it's easier to track, and it personally holds me off better.

I find that my hunger is weakest in the morning, as I don't usually wake up hungry. Yet if I eat breakfast (which I normally skip) I'll still be hungry by the afternoon. Just waiting until the afternoon saves me the calories from breakfast, which is great because it fits what I usually do anyway. I eat my lunches anywhere from 1-4pm because the later I eat it, the less hungry I am throughout the rest of the day, so the less I have the urge to snack. Also my family tends to eat dinner really late. That's not a meal I have control of. I usually stay awake until 1-2am though, so no big deal.

I think the basic idea is that if you eat more within a condensed period of time, you'll be more full within that time period but still be incentivized to not eat outside of it. Thus theoretically, you should be eating less in total. That's how it works for me, anyway.

The only downside I can think of for me, is that I'm always hungry before I get to eat. I guess that's part of the whole point though. It's 11:53 am and I'm sitting in my chemistry class feeling the hunger pangs, but I'm so used to them now in the mornings that it's like having an itch. On the bright side, having class really helps enforce it haha

Many mornings I wake up not hungry so I wait until 11 or noon to eat. Then I try to stop eating by 7 or 8 pm, just because I know it is a slippery slope for me to be eating late at night. Lol so I guess I practice IF part time without knowing It? (I have always thought IF was not for me). But I try to also listen to my body and not get in a rut. This morning I was hungry so I ate a solid 400 calorie protein packed breakfast. But that is not the norm. So great to hear everyone's experiences. Thank you for sharing.

I don't like fasting per se .. I might reduce my calory intake by chosing low cal / low fat food for a period of time but do not skip any meals ... not eating definitively doesn't work for me.

What I do sometimes is juicing ... the 1st time I did it was for like a week but now I might do 1 or 2 days a week if I think I need like reset my body. All I have during those days is fruits and vegetable juices and compliment with 1 meal that is a salad.

I'll also clarify my post to say that I do not do intermittent fasting all the time. I've gotten better at listening to what my body needs. There are certain times a month...heh...where my hunger is more pronounced so I adapt. Scheduling is also a huge factor with IF because sometimes you have a lunch date with the girls or date night with the husband, or a number of social events that require you to be more flexible with eating times. Its all ok! As someone stated above, its about making lifestyle changes that are sustainable. And life isn't always gonna be carefully scheduled!

I've been asked by a few people to share the Intermittent Fasting details that I've found are working for me, so in the interest of efficiency, I figured I would just post here.

For me, I started with IF 16:8. This means 16 hours of fasting and 8 hours feed window. When you are sleeping, you are in a "fasted state" therefore, those hours spent sleeping also count towards your fasting time. Your feed window basically maps out a window of time when you eat- you should be consuming your calories and nutrients inside of that time. IF does not equal starving yourself!

There is some debate regarding whether or not consuming things like coffee or tea will "break fast," and I believe that everyone's body is different. The approach and mindset I adopt is that anything I ingest that will induce a digestive or metabolic reaction from my body, will break my fast. Whether that is black coffee or vitamins. So outside of my feed window, I only intake water. Lots of water. Again: this is wholly dependent on what approach you take on fasting. For some people, having black coffee or tea during fasting works perfectly fine.

The important thing to note about IF is that your window is entirely flexible AND IF is not something you need to "sustain" - you can absolutely do IF one, two, four, six or ANY days a week you wish. As long as you are achieving at least a 16 hour fast, you will reap the health benefits of fasting. (Some studies suggest women to start at 14hrs, but again, listening to your body is important). For me, I started at 3 days a week, to 4 days and now I am on a little over two weeks of 18:6. I moved on to 18 hours fasting because it works for me. With keto, my hunger is not an issue whatsoever and I'm able to have really delicious and substantial meals due to this. Will I do IF forever? No. I'll do it on days that feel natural for me and work with my life.

That said. You can adjust your window according to what works for you. Are you someone who gets hungry mainly earlier in the day than in the evening? Start your feed window at 10AM and no eating after 6PM. Or are you someone who gets hungry later in the day and into the evening? Start your feed window at 1PM and no eating after 9PM. Its entirely flexible to what suits you.

My approach is as follows:

18:6, 7 days a week
*Consume only water until feed window starts
2PM I break my fast with a smaller meal. Usually bacon, eggs, and some type of fat- avo or cheese.
Vitamins and Supplements taken.
Coffee and cream for the day.
1L Water w/ Lite Salt and some Lemon juice (electrolytes are important)
6:30PM or 7PM Dinner - this is my big meal for the day. Its extremely satisfying and hits my macros.
Vitamins and Supplements taken.
No eating after 8PM.
Water.

My weekly loss target is 2lbs/week. I usually exceed it because I eat at a higher deficit. If your calorie goal is higher, it may feel like a struggle at first. This is why Keto works so well with IF, because Keto is extremely satiating. If you are not doing Keto, IF is still totally possible. Listen to your body and find a window that works best for you and your daily schedule.

When doing IF, I still hit my calories and macros (I need to work a little on hitting protein every single day though). And on days where I may not be doing IF, I still eat at my calorie goal.

Again, IF is not about starving yourself. I do not find I am hungry while fasting. I am not watching the clock counting down the timer when I can eat lol. If you speak to most people who do IF, they can attest to this.

For those who are looking for advice on how to bust through any crawls or stalls, feel free to do more research on this if its something you might be interested in. I can of course only speak from personal experience, and cite references that have helped me, but I am now 4lbs away from being under 200lbs, and I have been at a steady 2-3.2lb loss every week even at this weight when loss typically starts to slow down. So I believe in my heart that this is something that works for me. Your own mileage my vary, and I'm in no way imposing my nutrition plan on others- simply answering some questions that were sent my way. I'm always happy to talk about what I'm doing, but again, you have to do what you feel works best for your body and your life.

Related References:

Really great IF community and information
Mobile app for tracking fasting that I use
Benefits with research studies cited
IF for Weightloss w/ Jason Fung
Time Restricted Feeding w/ Dr. Satchin Panda, Circadian Rhythm approach