Couple of questions for those of you doing IF

spingirl605
spingirl605 Posts: 181 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been toying with the idea of doing IF. I would probably do the 16:8 to start, and my window would be 10-6. I have a tendency to graze at night, which often puts me over my calorie goal, so I think committing to this would help with that respect. Also, I've been on a 6-month pleateau (probably for the reason I just mentioned) so I want to shake things up. Here are my questions:

1. During the fasting portion, does this include all liquids (except for water of course)? Like no coffee until 10 and no wine after the kids go to bed? lol...I'm kidding on the wine, but not on the coffee...
2. Do you IF 7-days a week, or do you pick one day where you don't follow your window?
3. Is this something you will do for the rest of your life, or are you using it as a tool to help get you to your goal?
4. If something happens one day where life just got in the way, and by the end of your window, you aren't at your minimum cal goal, do you just say "oh well I'll eat more tomorrow", or do you say "I need to meet my goal, so I will eat outside of my window.

Thanks all for taking the time to answer my questions...
Have a great weekend!!

Replies

  • elcapitanp
    elcapitanp Posts: 6 Member
    edited June 2017
    1. I don't have any calories whatsoever outside my window. I do drink a diet soda here and there. I allow black coffee.
    2. There are times when I allow myself to cheat, but mostly I find that I don't want to. My body has adjusted to this and I actually look forward to my fasting periods.
    3. Now that I am doing it, I can see myself doing it for life. It has done wonders for my acid reflux issues, so that is a personal reason for me. I don't eat after 5.
    4. There have been times when I forget to eat and look up and it is 5pm. In those instances, there have been a few times where I have moved my window to 6 for that day just so I can avoid any serious hunger pangs later.
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    I follow IF, 16:8 most days... Because it fits my schedule and leaves me lots of calories for later in the evening when I like to eat - I've followed a similar eating pattern to lose, gain and maintain.

    I also have a life, and I'm not so tied to IF that I'll not eat outside my eating window. (considering meal timing is pretty irrelevant to weight loss, it doesn't really matter)

  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    edited June 2017
    I decided to start skipping breakfast as a way to save up calories for lunch and dinner. I don't consider it to be IF. I wasn't aware there was any magic to it- I thought it was just so you could eat more calories for your other meals. I don't eat until noon. But I still drink coffee in the morning. With half and half and sugar, which is supposedly not allowed in the IF rules.

    I get hungry in the mornings up until lunch time. If my body gets used to it and I start to not want breakfast, like other non breakfast eaters, then I will stick to it. (After im done losing weight)
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    spingirl605 wrote: »
    I have been toying with the idea of doing IF. I would probably do the 16:8 to start, and my window would be 10-6. I have a tendency to graze at night, which often puts me over my calorie goal, so I think committing to this would help with that respect. Also, I've been on a 6-month pleateau (probably for the reason I just mentioned) so I want to shake things up. Here are my questions:

    1. During the fasting portion, does this include all liquids (except for water of course)? Like no coffee until 10 and no wine after the kids go to bed? lol...I'm kidding on the wine, but not on the coffee...
    2. Do you IF 7-days a week, or do you pick one day where you don't follow your window?
    3. Is this something you will do for the rest of your life, or are you using it as a tool to help get you to your goal?
    4. If something happens one day where life just got in the way, and by the end of your window, you aren't at your minimum cal goal, do you just say "oh well I'll eat more tomorrow", or do you say "I need to meet my goal, so I will eat outside of my window.

    Thanks all for taking the time to answer my questions...
    Have a great weekend!!

    1. Any non caloric liquid. Black coffee, unsweetened tea ,etc.
    2. You can, but it's not critical
    3. Yes because it's extremely convenient for me
    4. If you are hungry, eat. If you aren't, don't. It's not a super strict, critical thing.
  • spingirl605
    spingirl605 Posts: 181 Member
    Thanks guys! I think I'll give it a whirl without obsessing over it. I am just struggling at staying within my goal at the end of my day. Half the time, I'm not hungry, just picking at things I shouldn't be picking at (kids snacks, leftover food, etc). I gained 5lbs at Christmas, and just trying to shed those before summer really hits. I need to tighten up my logging and stop going over every day!
  • tjones0411
    tjones0411 Posts: 179 Member
    I have a cup coffee with a couple of T of half and half a few hours after waking. Yes, it has calories, but it's not like consuming that 35-50 calories is going to throw me out of some sort of magical fat-burning mode. So I stick with just the coffee and sparkling water until around noon to 1pm and still consider myself to be in a fasting window until lunch. Sometimes, if I feel shaky/super hungry, I'll grab a quarter of a protein bar. All in, still less than 100 cals.

    I do it most, if not all, days of the week. It's become habit and it allows me to have a larger lunch/dinner/snacks later.

    I started it as a tool to help me reach my goal, but I think I'll stick with some variation of it for the long term.
  • silcoxjh
    silcoxjh Posts: 1 Member
    I've been doing the 16:8 IF for about 10 months now and it's worked really well for me. Down almost 20 pounds since August.
    1. I will have a diet soda in the morning, then start on my diluted Crystal Lite. Nothing with calories until noon.
    2. I follow the IF 7 days a week and will work out fasted in the morning. On my long run days (Sunday) I will have a GU gel and count the calories, but that's it. I'm hard pressed to run long without a bit of calories before and during.
    3. I'll have to see once I get to maintenance, but I don't have a problem with doing it forever. It helps me keep to my calorie goal when I only eat during those 8 hours. Otherwise I tend to overeat.
    4. I try not to be more than 150-200 calories under my 2000 calorie goal. I eat dinner early though, so if need be I could have a snack to make up the difference, but most of the time I'm pretty full after dinner, so I don't worry about it. I start the slate clean the next day, so I'm not trying to make up the difference from the day before.

    Good luck, I think you'll enjoy it once you get into it!
  • ashjongfit
    ashjongfit Posts: 147 Member
    spingirl605 wrote: »
    I have been toying with the idea of doing IF. I would probably do the 16:8 to start, and my window would be 10-6. I have a tendency to graze at night, which often puts me over my calorie goal, so I think committing to this would help with that respect. Also, I've been on a 6-month pleateau (probably for the reason I just mentioned) so I want to shake things up. Here are my questions:

    1. During the fasting portion, does this include all liquids (except for water of course)? Like no coffee until 10 and no wine after the kids go to bed? lol...I'm kidding on the wine, but not on the coffee...
    2. Do you IF 7-days a week, or do you pick one day where you don't follow your window?
    3. Is this something you will do for the rest of your life, or are you using it as a tool to help get you to your goal?
    4. If something happens one day where life just got in the way, and by the end of your window, you aren't at your minimum cal goal, do you just say "oh well I'll eat more tomorrow", or do you say "I need to meet my goal, so I will eat outside of my window.

    Thanks all for taking the time to answer my questions...
    Have a great weekend!!

    1. black coffee and water is fine, some people also use stevia/ other no calorie sweeteners in their coffee.
    2. Yes 7 days a week. Sometimes life might happen, say a wedding or something where eating might fall out of my window, in that case I don't sweat it and move on the next day.
    3. I will likely always eat like this, many people naturally do. I have found bigger meals that keep me very full are so much better for me than smaller meals.
    4. It depends on if I'm hungry. If I was then I would eat regardless, if not I'd make up the next day.

    If your prone to night eating, maybe extending your window to a later time would help. Say if you are in bed by 10 pm, end your window at 8pm (12-8pm) then you'd be full and likely make it the two hours before sleep without eating.
  • DaintyWhisper
    DaintyWhisper Posts: 221 Member
    edited June 2017
    I accidentally started to follow intermediate fasting because it fit into my work schedule. I typically eat the majority of my calories between 2pm and 8pm. I'm usually not hungry for a few hours after waking up anyway. But, I don't starve myself. If I feel weak or my mouth feels gross and dry, I will eat a low calorie snack to hold me over. (Usually 200 or less) So, I think having coffee in the morning is fine! The main reason I eat this way is because I like to eat a lot at once, especially at dinner. And it helps keep me from mindlessly grazing on food all day, which is where my problems started to begin with. I don't think it should be a super strict diet where you're a failure if you eat out of your window. If you have to force yourself to stick to it, then it's probably not for you. I don't have a problem with not eating all my calories. Lol. But if I had some left, I'd probably eat out of my window if I was hungry or just forget about it and eat normal the next day. Good luck! ^.^
  • spingirl605
    spingirl605 Posts: 181 Member
    You are all so awesome!! I love all of your comments. Thanks for sharing your input!
  • WJS_jeepster
    WJS_jeepster Posts: 224 Member
    There is an IF group in the "Groups" section that has the answers to a lot of these questions and more that may come up. It is helpfully called "Intermittent Fasting"
  • sunflowerhippi
    sunflowerhippi Posts: 1,099 Member
    1. I drink water, crystal light, diet soda, black coffee, sugar free gum. I treat it as things under 5 cal I will eat/drink.
    2. 7 days a week, unless something pops up like breakfast plans on weeeknds or something.
    3. Both, my life is busy in the AM so most days I don't get to eat anyways till close to lunch.
    4.I will put it away for later the next day, or have ice cream or something else.
  • StarvingDiva
    StarvingDiva Posts: 1,107 Member
    I drink strictly water during my fasting window, but that's because I don't like tea nor do I like black coffee. I have been doing IF for awhile and my window is the same as yours, but it honestly kind of fits my eating, I'm never really that hungry in the morning, and I'm not a big snacker so just having mainstay lunch and dinner is good. Sometimes I snack at night I think it's more out of boredom and then I just move my window back the next day. I do it every day, again it just comes naturally for me. I also prefer to workout fasted, eating anything prior to working out, makes me super nauseous, so when I found leangains a couple years ago, I was like "perfect"
  • court_alacarte
    court_alacarte Posts: 219 Member
    spingirl605 wrote: »
    1. During the fasting portion, does this include all liquids (except for water of course)? Like no coffee until 10 and no wine after the kids go to bed? lol...I'm kidding on the wine, but not on the coffee...
    2. Do you IF 7-days a week, or do you pick one day where you don't follow your window?
    3. Is this something you will do for the rest of your life, or are you using it as a tool to help get you to your goal?
    4. If something happens one day where life just got in the way, and by the end of your window, you aren't at your minimum cal goal, do you just say "oh well I'll eat more tomorrow", or do you say "I need to meet my goal, so I will eat outside of my window.

    1. i personally drink tea with two half 'n' halfs and sweet 'n' lows. it only amounts to 20 calories, and there are some IF proponents that say you can have up to 50 calories in the morning and still stay in "fasting mode". however it just depends on how hardcore you want to be. i'm hoping to get to the point where i won't need any pick-me-ups in the morning, but baby steps over here.
    2. right now i'm striving for 16:8, but the last few days i've had total caloric bombs for lunch and so end up doing a 20:4 kind of system. but tonight is girls' night which will include some wine, pizza, and ice cream and i predict the wine at least will last past my window :p i will definitely make exceptions for wine.
    3. both. i really like it and will strive to make it a lifestyle, at least the skipping breakfast part. it helps me not feel so constrained for calories. and eating less has helped me... eat less... for when i do have meals LOL if that makes sense.
    4. depends on what goal you're trying achieve. my goal is for weight loss, so if i happen to be low one day, i would say "eat more tomorrow" or "more room for wine friday night" ;)

  • spingirl605
    spingirl605 Posts: 181 Member
    Wow, I am loving all the feedback!! I think IF is the perfect fit for me. I don't eat early in the morning and I think I can force myself to stop grazing at night if I tell myself, "no you're IF, no food allowed if you've hit your daily goal!"

    I appreciate everyone's insight. I am just going to do it!!!! You have all been very supportive!!!

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