Intermittent fasting

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kellsey4955
kellsey4955 Posts: 19 Member
in Getting Started
I’ve been reading about IF and it’s potential benefits and I think I may start the 16/8 approach. What sort of times have people found to be most helpful to eat within? I’m going to try 12 until 8 today.
I am still able to drink during the 16hrs, correct?

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  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    You can eat and drink whatever and whenever you want. To stay with the 16:8 protocol, you have to not take in any calories outside your "window" - water, diet soda, coffee, tea is ok. To control your weight, you have to take in the correct amount of calories over time.

    I would eat breakfast around 10AM, lunch around 1PM and dinner around 5PM. I stuck to that for about a year. It helped me realize that meal timing isn't that important after all.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
    edited September 2018
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    kommodevaran wrote: »
    You can eat and drink whatever and whenever you want. To stay with the 16:8 protocol, you have to not take in any calories outside your "window" - water, diet soda, coffee, tea is ok. To control your weight, you have to take in the correct amount of calories over time.

    I would eat breakfast around 10AM, lunch around 1PM and dinner around 5PM. I stuck to that for about a year. It helped me realize that meal timing isn't that important after all.

    12 pm - 8 pm works better for me because I generally go to bed late and don't like going to bed hungry, so I prefer a late dinner and time for an evening snack (ice cream!) afterwards. I'm not particularly hungry in the morning, so it doesn't bother me to not eat then.

    With that said, I've lost weight, gained weight and maintained weight while doing IF. As you said, meal timing isn't that important after all - it all comes down to how many calories, not what time you eat them.
  • kellsey4955
    kellsey4955 Posts: 19 Member
    edited September 2018
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    RonyMack wrote: »
    Yes. But please don't drive after drinking for 16 hours. :/

    I think drinking for 16 hrs may kill me off 😅
  • kellsey4955
    kellsey4955 Posts: 19 Member
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    I’m trying to lose some of the control I have over food, I’m very set on timings and have had problems with eating disorders (linked to binging, starving, purging etc.). I’m really wanting to find a healthier mind set towards food and adopt some flexibility... I’m hoping this will help!
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    kellsey4955 wrote: »
    I’m trying to lose some of the control I have over food, I’m very set on timings and have had problems with eating disorders (linked to binging, starving, purging etc.). I’m really wanting to find a healthier mind set towards food and adopt some flexibility... I’m hoping this will help!
    I think that eating is one of the areas that we need to exert some control over, but not too much, and where we can have a great deal of control, but not complete control. Eating regularly is generally a good idea - associated with healthy eating habits - but eating regularly can mean so much. Random and specific things will always be alluring to us who have OCD tendencies. But IF actually helped me get some emotional distance, made me more aware of what's what - hunger and satiety and cravings and food cues - made me more confident I can wait to eat, and conversely, that eating too much now and then is not a problem, as long as I eat enough but not too much over time. And that a middle ground is solid ground. I guess you can say it taught me patience and self love.
  • kellsey4955
    kellsey4955 Posts: 19 Member
    edited September 2018
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    First day has gone well, stuck to just over 1500 calories, no binging and terrible guilt... hopefully this will be a positive new direction. 12 - 8 worked too 😊
  • showjack70
    showjack70 Posts: 57 Member
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    kellsey4955 wrote: »
    I’m trying to lose some of the control I have over food, I’m very set on timings and have had problems with eating disorders (linked to binging, starving, purging etc.). I’m really wanting to find a healthier mind set towards food and adopt some flexibility... I’m hoping this will help!

    I also have a history of binge eating. I have loosely used IF for years. Couple of things. IF may have some minor health benefits, but it is no magic bullet. I hate to be Debby Downer, but IF is not a fix for underlying food addictions/disorders etc.

    Having said that, I am a big believer in self experimentation (within reason), so give it a shot and see how you feel about it :)

    Good luck!
  • kellsey4955
    kellsey4955 Posts: 19 Member
    edited September 2018
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    showjack70 wrote: »
    kellsey4955 wrote: »
    I’m trying to lose some of the control I have over food, I’m very set on timings and have had problems with eating disorders (linked to binging, starving, purging etc.). I’m really wanting to find a healthier mind set towards food and adopt some flexibility... I’m hoping this will help!

    I also have a history of binge eating. I have loosely used IF for years. Couple of things. IF may have some minor health benefits, but it is no magic bullet. I hate to be Debby Downer, but IF is not a fix for underlying food addictions/disorders etc.

    I’m lucky, I’ve got a ED therapist that I’m working with too, so I’m trying to treat the whole person. My knowledge of calories and ‘healthy’ (more like not so) eating has ended up shooting me in the foot so many times 🙄, so anything has to be better then my current eating patterns 😅.
  • showjack70
    showjack70 Posts: 57 Member
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    kellsey4955 wrote: »
    showjack70 wrote: »
    kellsey4955 wrote: »
    I’m trying to lose some of the control I have over food, I’m very set on timings and have had problems with eating disorders (linked to binging, starving, purging etc.). I’m really wanting to find a healthier mind set towards food and adopt some flexibility... I’m hoping this will help!

    I also have a history of binge eating. I have loosely used IF for years. Couple of things. IF may have some minor health benefits, but it is no magic bullet. I hate to be Debby Downer, but IF is not a fix for underlying food addictions/disorders etc.

    I’m lucky, I’ve got a ED therapist that I’m working with too, so I’m trying to treat the whole personal. My knowledge of calories and ‘healthy’ (more like not so) eating has ended up shooting me in the foot so many times 🙄, so anything has to be better then my current eating patterns 😅.

    That's fantastic that you have a therapist!

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