Hello. I just started IF last week. I have been trying the 5:2 plan. I lost a pound last week, but nothing so far this week. I checked measurements and no changes there either. The only difference is that I started going to the gym every day during the week since last Wednesday. I eat 1500 calories on my high days and try to stay around 500 on my low days. Can anyone recommend what I might be doing wrong? Or should I try the 16 hour fast instead?

Hello, I'm late 40's and tall, looking to loose about 50-60lb total. I've been studying about CR and IF and Keto plans for a while and have mixed and matched with some success in the past, but something intense came along in my life and I didn't stick with it. The results were never consistent though. A couple weeks ago I saw a client whom I hadn't seen in months had lost a significant amount of weight and she told me about a nutritionist she's been seeing. He said that he's guessing (having done the labs etc yet) that I'm insulin resistant and put me on a 16/8 IF with a specific meal plan for those 6 hours low Keto'ish.

I'll admit I've substituted a few things over the first few days (had a tooth removed and couldn't chew some things, but they were healthy subs). I'm just a little surprised that I'm almost a week in and although I feel pretty good (headaches aside) and feel "thinner" and have been dropping water and drinking a ton of it too, but I'm not loosing any weight and nearly nothing in inches. Note: once I start a plan I can usually loose about 5lb (water) and up to 7 inches on my waist the first week.

I'm not concerned yet as I'm guessing its called "resistant" for a reason, but just surprised that I can reduce calories, reduce feeding time by that much and not really see the needle move at all.

Overall, this has been one of the easiest plans to follow and stick to, and I like how I feel mentally and energy wise. Prior, I felt like I went into a food coma with every meal no matter how healthy, so this is a step in the right direction.

Anyway, glad this group is here. Anyone else have insulin resistance and if so, how long did it take for you to start loosing and did you have to switch it up (ie have cheat days, or carb cycle) to keep your body thrown off so you could start loosing again?

Hello, I've been fasting now since last Friday (May 19th) on a 16:8 IF plan. My feasting hours are typically from 11AM to 7PM (however today I had to adjust to a 12AM to 8PM window). I feel as though I have reaped the benefits thus far. I have lost approximately 6 pounds with the loss from yesterday being the most significant of about 2 lbs. I'm also noticing a lot more mental clarity throughout the day as well as feeling more energetic and somewhat more light on my feet.

The 11-7 fasting window really fits my schedule well when considering convenience and family demands. I do have some questions concerning exercise timing and type. For the past two months I have been going to the gym in the mornings at 6AM and lifting weights three times a week. Typically I would eat a protein packed healthy breakfast afterwards to aid in muscle recovery. Now I don't eat anything until my feasting window opens up (typically 4 hours after I finish my workout). I haven't necessarily noticed any changes in my strength so i'm not too concerned with losing muscle mass, but was curious in the long term what I should expect to see differently in muscle development now that i'm not feeding my body immediately afterwards.

I also run after work daily for half an hour and since starting IF I have noticed feeling significantly more energized leading up to the run.

I guess my main questions, from reading through this group's different threads relate to the types of workouts i'm doing and their timing in my fasting/feasting windows. It seems most people say to do cardio in the fasting period and lift weights in the feasting period for optimal muscle growth. Unfortunately I can't rearrange my day for this due to time constraints; so should I be worried about muscle decomposition or maybe just slower muscle growth?

Thanks guys!

I heard about intermittent fasting on a podcast one evening last week as I was driving home from dance. It made so much​ sense to me that I skipped my usual post - workout snack and didn't eat again until 11 am the next morning. I'm doing 16/8, 11 am - 7 pm and I love it! It's so much easier to stay within my calorie goals with this added structure, plus yesterday on Memorial Day I didn't track my food at all and my weight was great this morning. . I'm very happy to have found this method! Also, I have tons of energy in the morning before I break my fast, which I was not expecting!

Just an update. 5 days in and I think it's going great! I've been doing 16:8 with a feeding window from 2 PM to 10 PM. Yesterday I fasted for 19.5 hours and it didn't bother me a bit. I'll admit I slept a bunch so that probably helped.

Today was my first day back at work since I started and no problems. I brought a couple hard boiled eggs, sugar snap peas and a granola bar and ate about 2:30 after a nice walk. I'm still working on cutting out sweets, they are my downfall. At least I'm keeping it in check to some degree. Cookies at work today and I didn't touch them.

I weighed myself this morning and maintained my lowest weight so I think that's a good sign. Typically when I weigh mid week I'm over by a couple pounds but for some reason, when weighing day rolls around I'm back down. I'm hoping this means that when I weigh in on Sat I'll have lost some weight. I still need to take my measurements so I don't have to rely on weight alone to judge my progress.

As far as exercise goes I have been walking 20 - 30 minutes at work daily and I'm in the community a lot during the day so I walk a little then too. Over the holiday weekend I decided to do a beginner body weight workout. I did it on Sun. and my quads are still sore but I can walk down the steps without grimacing and moaning. I haven't done any resistance exercise since but I'm still working on getting into a routine. I might stick to resistance bands and the weight bench for a while. Obviously my heavy body is too much for me. LOL.

How's everyone else doing?

Hi Everyone,
Day 2 feeling energized and hopeful.
Alternating:
24 hour fast day 1
Eat between 12pm -7pm day 2
What is the best ratio for protein/fats/carbs on my eating day?

Hello, everyone. I'm loving all the helpful information. I'm just starting out today. Have already found out that I need to do a better job planning my food at work to avoid snacking on junk. I'd love new IF friends to share advice, so add me if you like.

Hi all! I'm new to MFP but not new to the weight war. I started IF about six weeks ago and I love it! Truly. I need simple and IF is simple, at least the way I'm doing it. I eat no more than 2000 calories between 11am and 7pm. Most days I'm well under that and not feeling like I'm suffering. I'm down 13 lbs but more importantly I just feel better. I know there are a million ways to go about this and I'm on the first rung of the ladder. I'd like to try 24 hour fasts once a week but I have to admit that most days I'm really hungry by 11 or 12. Ironically about as hungry as I used to be for breakfast, now it's lunch. Is it really as simple as just going longer? I'm not doing anything different now except just not eating till 18 hours is up. And drinking water, which I always do, so that's not new. Am I missing something?

Hi, I'm new to IF and am just beginning and have decided on 16:8 as well. This sounds like such an overall benefit -
both weight loss and better health - and I'm so glad there's a group here on MFP!

Hi All, I've been doing IF (16:8) for almost 2 weeks, and I usually stop eating around 6pm and break my fast around 10 am the next day. So far, it's not hard at all. I'm starting to "feel" the hunger, as opposed to eating mindlessly at my desk throughout the day at work (boredom and habit). My clothes are already starting to feel less snug, yay!