INTERMITTENT FASTING YES OR NO?

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gemtayls
gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi I promised myself years ago that I would not try any more 'fad diets' however my partner has been having great success with intermittent fasting and I am thinking of giving it a whirl to get 20lb's of baby weight off, I will then return to my usual healthy eating for maintenance?

What are peoples thoughts? Anyone tried it? Any long term benefits or worries?

Discuss..... lol
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  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
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    I am really struggling to stick within my calories so I might give it a go and that way I can look forward to a good feed and feeling full and satisfied without going over because I'm having to spread my calories out thinly between meals. Thanks guys. Even if it gives me a boost for a few weeks it may get my head back in the game. I work better with structure than left to my own devices calorie counting lol.
  • liz0269
    liz0269 Posts: 139 Member
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    I used to be part of an IF group on Facebook. There are a lot of people who have great success with it and adopt it as a permanent lifestyle change.
    Done right, it can be a real game changer. I loved fasting but I have too many other health issues so it was too stressful for my body.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    It's a maybe not a yes or no.
    Suits some (like your partner) doesn't suit (and may not actually be suitable) for some.

    Also there are many different types of IF which extends why it's not a binary yes/no, good/bad choice.

    Assuming whichever IF protocol you are thinking of provides you with an appropriate level of nutrition (including calories) over an extended period of time it's worth considering experimenting with it.

    You might like it, you might not, might make dieting easier, or might make it harder. You might learn something about your eating habits and hunger signals that is useful whether you continue with it or not.
  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
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    What are your calorie goals per day? Do you eat back exercise calories?[/quote]
    aes1219 wrote: »
    gemtayls wrote: »
    I am really struggling to stick within my calories so I might give it a go and that way I can look forward to a good feed and feeling full and satisfied without going over because I'm having to spread my calories out thinly between meals. Thanks guys. Even if it gives me a boost for a few weeks it may get my head back in the game. I work better with structure than left to my own devices calorie counting lol.

    What are your calorie goals per day? Do you eat back exercise calories?


    I try and stick to around 1800 cals each day, and exercise 3-4 times a week - two intense classes and two moderate gym sessions..... but I usually end up eating more like 300/400 more than that especially on weekends. I just can't seem to get in the zone!
  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
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    Thanks everyone appreciate your thoughts - I think I'll give it a go for a couple of weeks and see where it takes me :)
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 8,986 Member
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    For me personally - No.

    I do better eating breakfast and then having small portions throughout the day.

    Or Sometimes not, on weekends.

    But no timing rules about it.
  • mph323
    mph323 Posts: 3,565 Member
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    gemtayls wrote: »
    Hi I promised myself years ago that I would not try any more 'fad diets' however my partner has been having great success with intermittent fasting and I am thinking of giving it a whirl to get 20lb's of baby weight off, I will then return to my usual healthy eating for maintenance?

    What are peoples thoughts? Anyone tried it? Any long term benefits or worries?

    Discuss..... lol

    I may be misinterpreting what you're saying here, but I'm wondering if you consider eating in a restricted window less healthy than eating without regard to time? Are you planning on eating different foods until you lose the 20 pounds, then returning to what you were eating before? Do you have a plan to manage your calories at a lower level when you add back foods that you were restricting during your weight-loss?

    Questions to think about. While you're eating in a restricted time window you should be continuing to eat the same foods that you consider healthy (with potentially tweaks to manage trigger foods). When you return to your regular eating habits, you'll need to figure out how to redistribute your allotted calories over a longer time frame without just adding back a meal without adjusting the overall calories.
  • whoami67
    whoami67 Posts: 297 Member
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    It didn't agree with me, but I don't think it's really a fad diet so much as a fad of what time of day to eat. What you eat and how much you eat is your choice so you don't need to change that.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    edited July 2019
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    gemtayls wrote: »
    What are your calorie goals per day? Do you eat back exercise calories?
    aes1219 wrote: »
    gemtayls wrote: »
    I am really struggling to stick within my calories so I might give it a go and that way I can look forward to a good feed and feeling full and satisfied without going over because I'm having to spread my calories out thinly between meals. Thanks guys. Even if it gives me a boost for a few weeks it may get my head back in the game. I work better with structure than left to my own devices calorie counting lol.

    What are your calorie goals per day? Do you eat back exercise calories?

    Can you clarify what your calorie intake is?

    It sounds like your calorie goal on MFP is 1800 per day, which does not include exercise. You then exercise every other day. You also exceed your original calorie goal by at least 2100 calories per week, and probably more. It doesn't sound like you're burning 2100 calories in exercise each week. Depending on how much you're exceeding your calorie goal, you're therefore either in a smaller deficit than you expect, or not in a deficit.

    IF alone will not fix this problem. The only reason to do IF is if it fits how you prefer to eat. It will not do anything special for weight loss.

    To lose weight, you need to make sure that you consistently eat the number of calories MFP gives you plus your exercise calories. If you are using the MFP exercise database, many people find these estimates to be exaggerated and recommend only eating half the estimated exercise calorie burn. Since you have a relatively small amount of weight to lose, 0.5 lb/week is a reasonable pace to set in your MFP goals. Use a food scale to weigh all of your food in order to accurately track your calorie intake.
  • HereToLose50
    HereToLose50 Posts: 154 Member
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    I wouldn't consider it a fad diet at all. Many people eat this way naturally - at least the 16:8 way. You figure in 8 hours of sleep as part of the 16 hours of fasting and it makes sense. Some don't start eating as soon as they wake up so that time stretches out and other people start with breakfast and stop at supper time so either way the 16 hours isn't a big deal and easy to do.

    I began to eat this way without even noticing. I'm not hungry until around noon or 1 pm. Then I eat until late evening. It's not always exactly 16 hours of fasting but it's close enough to be 16:8. Now I usually do 2 bigger meals and lots of snacks and I notice it's easier for me to stay in my calorie range and not starve. 🤷

    In the past I did better with a large protein heavy breakfast (from eggs, meat, dairy. No powders or drinks) then wasn't hungry for hours and hours.

    The only constant has been delaying most of my carbs until later in the day. I'm not low carb at all. I found if I start my first meal carb heavy then I'm more hungry through the day. I save them for the evening meal and snacks. I eat pasta, rice or bread almost every night. Love oatmeal too. I eat sugar although mostly naturally occurring in foods and not much added extra. Honey is my favorite way to add sweet.
  • gemtayls
    gemtayls Posts: 42 Member
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    Thanks everyone. I think you’re all right and I am basically overeating for how much I train.... I set it at 1800 as I often find mfp and other sources give you an unrealistic calorie goal that just isn’t sustainable. I guess I’m just really struggling to stick to any kind of deficit at the minute - never mind a lot less than even I’m having now. I do appreciate that needs to be sorted in my head first but was thinking IF could be an easy way of getting back on track and managing to stay within my allowance... then when I get used to that I suppose by a normal healthy diet I mean eat a good breakfast lunch and an evening meal, not skipping meals or waiting for times that I can and can’t eat. I just think it might be a good way to give me some kind of structure and help put me back on track. Since having my son juggling him / work / gym etc is all tuff so through meal planning and calorie counting in there and it’s over whelming. I guess I thought this way I can just stick to a window of eating good foods and hope for a miracle before his first birthday in 5 weeks time haha!!
  • jeffjeff85
    jeffjeff85 Posts: 118 Member
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    My fasting is called sleeping
  • Nancy52781
    Nancy52781 Posts: 117 Member
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    @gemtalys
    I am currently doing IF, it’s always what has worked for me. I tried again last week to eat smaller meals to stay within my calories and it’s torture for me. I never feel satisfied on small meals and also feel like it’s so much more planning. The only time i will eat lunch is if I have an outing (picnic etc) with my kids but other then that I like to have a large meal for dinner and then snacks in the evening. I also feel much more energized when I don’t eat during the day, probably because I’m not crashing from all the sugar in the crap I eat!! Best of luck 🙂
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,389 Member
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    XxKIAxX25 wrote: »
    Worked for me I lost 20lbs in 3 weeks no dude affects that I saw so I say go for it you got this

    20lbs equals 3500kcal *20 = 70000kcal less eaten in 3 weeks
    -> per day that's 3333kcal less eaten.

    Sorry, that doesn't work unless you're morbidly obese. Or you lost a *kitten*-load of waterweight for one reason or another. It's otherwise impossible to lose that much actual bodyfat in such a short time.
  • wilson10102018
    wilson10102018 Posts: 1,306 Member
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    Its only been a couple of hundred thousand years since the human body was fit for fasting. You know, the cave man days when food came in feasts and famines. Calorie reduction, on the other hand, has only recently faded from being our most prominent evolutionary force. What are the long term consequences of intermittent fasting? No one knows.
  • Slowfaster
    Slowfaster Posts: 185 Member
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    wilson10102018 wrote: »
    Its only been a couple of hundred thousand years since the human body was fit for fasting. You know, the cave man days when food came in feasts and famines. Calorie reduction, on the other hand, has only recently faded from being our most prominent evolutionary force. What are the long term consequences of intermittent fasting? No one knows.

    LOL. I know! People call fasting a fad and "just a tool." Calorie counting is also just a tool. People managed to lose weight long before that little unit of energy was discovered.

    I did IF for 18 months and lost 60 lbs. Quit the plan. Regained. Now I need to go back to it.

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