12 to 14 Hour Fasts, Do They Work?
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AquaMeow
Posts: 296 Member
So I have been fasting from 7pm to 7am for the past few weeks and at first it was tough (because I feel the hungriest in the evening).
I was wondering does anyone fast on here and has it helped or hurt your weight loss goals. And what do you do to beat your evening cravings if you happen to have nighttime munchies lol.
Comment Below
I was wondering does anyone fast on here and has it helped or hurt your weight loss goals. And what do you do to beat your evening cravings if you happen to have nighttime munchies lol.
Comment Below
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Replies
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They only help if they help/aid your diet and exercise goals. Other than that, there is no magic to them. Some people like the structure fasting gives and they have good success with it. Others don't and don't. But it's not the fasting that works or doesn't work, is whether or not fasting is a good fit for the person.15
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Enough food so you feel full until bedtime.3
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I just naturally don't eat from about 6:30 pm to about 9:30 am. I don't consider it a fast. That sounds silly to me. It's just my downtime.11
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The only reason to engage in any type of fasting is if it makes things easier on you. That is the only proven benefit right now. If it makes things harder you don't need it. What it does or does not do for anyone else might be interesting but it is not a reason to do it yourself.
All you need to do to lose weight is maintain a calorie deficit.7 -
If you want to try it move your hours back. Maybe 9pm to 9am. My fast is between 7pm and 11am. It took me a few days to get used to not eating after 7pm but I soon adjusted. Pick the hours that suits your schedule.1
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Fasting does not do anything special for weight loss. It's just one way that some people prefer to eat while in a calorie deficit.
There is nothing wrong with eating at night if you want to. The only reason not to eat at night is if it puts you over your calorie goal or makes it hard for you to sleep.
I guess technically, not eating from 7 pm to 7 am is a fast, but I generally just think about it as not eating while I'm asleep 12 -
I technically fast in that I don't eat for 12 hours after I've gone to bed most of the time. It's made no difference to weight loss.
I eat my dinner late to beat late night cravings, I usually eat around 8:30/9pm. Lost 35 pounds doing so, because it helped me remain in a calorie defict. (regained some since but unrelated to this topic).5 -
Been doing IF 16:8 (11 am to 7 pm eating window) for 4 months, in conjunction with strict calorie logging to hit my MFP-supplied calorie deficit. It was a hard adjustment at first, but it's gotten really easy, with less appetite and less food obsession than in the pre-IF days. Allllll those wasted calories that used to go into nighttime snacking are now applied to real food at real mealtimes, leading to much larger, more satisfying meals while still being able to hit the calorie target. Those big meals have led to less craving to go off plan for cheat meals, so there's hardly ever an off meal now. Which has led to very steady, consistent weight loss. I really like the whole approach. I don't buy into the New Age/pop theory stuff about IF somehow losing weight faster than non-IF - I think it's just a good way to structure the eating day. You basically get two "real" meals instead of 3 diet ones, and you learn to be a little hungry some of the time, which is a useful skill to have.
Every time we (my wife and I) have gone off IF for a day, it's led to the depressing cycle of binge eating, blowing past the calorie target, etc. For whatever reason - and I don't claim to know what it is - IF keeps us engaged with our diets in a positive way. I would like to keep doing IF forever, I think it's just a good structure for consuming food.6 -
A 12 hour "fast" is completely normal life for many people. That's finishing dinner at 8pm and having breakfast at 8am.13
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if fasting is not eating for 12 hours, most of it sleep time, then I've been fasting all my life! haha11
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As long as you're not eating over your calories in your non-fasted hours it will work. Its still all about CICO. Fasting is just another way to control calories in, but you still have to watch your calories.3
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I’ve never been someone who snacks in the evening. Never wake up and have to have something to eat, a drink of water, yes, but don’t feel the need to eat. As others have said, 7:00 pm to about 7:00 am is a natural fast time for me.3
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So I have been fasting from 7pm to 7am for the past few weeks and at first it was tough (because I feel the hungriest in the evening).
I was wondering does anyone fast on here and has it helped or hurt your weight loss goals. And what do you do to beat your evening cravings if you happen to have nighttime munchies lol.
Comment Below
If I don't have a bed time snack I wake up hungry in the middle of the night and that messes up my next day.
How many pounds do you want to lose total and what weekly weight loss goal did you chose? You many be hungry at night because your calorie deficit is overly aggressive for the amount of weight you want to lose.
Or you might not being getting enough of a particular macro that you need to feel full. For me, that is protein (and fiber).2 -
I currently "fast" for 16-21 hrs/day. Only started doing this 6 wks ago but I did not find it difficuly to do. Lost 8#/trend wt in that time. So, it has worked very well for me. However, results for others surely will differ.3
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I accidentally began mild fasting due to GERD. I have to stop eating at least 3 hours before bedtime. In the morning, I have to wait at least one hour to eat after taking meds. But one hour after waking, I am busy getting ready or doing other things, so breakfast is usually around 9 am. So, about a 14 hour fast for the past 1.75 years.
I would not say that a slightly longer than normal overnight fast has made much difference for me in being able to lose weight. Certainly, it made less difference than the large variety of foods that I had to stop eating.
I'm hungry by 8 PM, and I continue to be hungry until I eat breakfast. But, I am used to it.1 -
I have been 16:8 IF for about 3 years. It doesn't seem to make me lose weight faster per say, but what I find very helpful is that it contributes to me staying in control of binge eating which will happen for me quickly
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Been doing IF 16:8 (11 am to 7 pm eating window) for 4 months, in conjunction with strict calorie logging to hit my MFP-supplied calorie deficit. It was a hard adjustment at first, but it's gotten really easy, with less appetite and less food obsession than in the pre-IF days. Allllll those wasted calories that used to go into nighttime snacking are now applied to real food at real mealtimes, leading to much larger, more satisfying meals while still being able to hit the calorie target. Those big meals have led to less craving to go off plan for cheat meals, so there's hardly ever an off meal now. Which has led to very steady, consistent weight loss. I really like the whole approach. I don't buy into the New Age/pop theory stuff about IF somehow losing weight faster than non-IF - I think it's just a good way to structure the eating day. You basically get two "real" meals instead of 3 diet ones, and you learn to be a little hungry some of the time, which is a useful skill to have.
This is exactly my story. I've been doing IF 16:8 for about a month or so (10a-6p) and the weight has been coming off steadily. I don't think there's any magic with IF (based on my experiences) but this method keeps me from over indulging at night and I tend to eat meals that are more filling during the day.
Actually when I recall the last time I lost a significant amount of weight it was sort of IF based. I watched portion sizes, ate healthier meals and snacks and never ate after 6:00 pm.
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I just naturally don't eat from about 6:30 pm to about 9:30 am. I don't consider it a fast. That sounds silly to me. It's just my downtime.
Yeah, me too.
I don't snack, so I don't eat after dinner (I do usually eat dinner kind of late). Increasingly I've been skipping breakfast if I don't work out first thing in the morning, just because I'm not yet hungry. I don't find it makes a difference for me whether I eat breakfast or not, except that I can eat more at my other two meals if I don't eat breakfast.
I don't snack after dinner since I don't find snacking a satisfying way to consume my calories.1 -
I have been on what's called a 16/8 fast. On Monday's and Thursday's I do what's called 5/2 where I only eat 600 calories on those days. In between I eat well and exercise a lot. 25 lbs lost in 3.5 months. There are good days and bad days. Try to have a lot more good days than bad. It's not for everyone, but it works for me.1
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kshama2001 wrote: »So I have been fasting from 7pm to 7am for the past few weeks and at first it was tough (because I feel the hungriest in the evening).
I was wondering does anyone fast on here and has it helped or hurt your weight loss goals. And what do you do to beat your evening cravings if you happen to have nighttime munchies lol.
Comment Below
If I don't have a bed time snack I wake up hungry in the middle of the night and that messes up my next day.
How many pounds do you want to lose total and what weekly weight loss goal did you chose? You many be hungry at night because your calorie deficit is overly aggressive for the amount of weight you want to lose.
Or you might not being getting enough of a particular macro that you need to feel full. For me, that is protein (and fiber).
My calories is 1,240 daily and my goal weight is 120.1
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