I have finally found what works for my body!

2»

Replies

  • dramaqueen45
    dramaqueen45 Posts: 1,009 Member
    LivingtheLeanDream wrote: »
    msalicia07 wrote: »
    dramaqueen45 wrote: »
    msalicia07 wrote: »
    dramaqueen45 wrote: »
    This resonates with me so much. I joined MFP for real in 2014, lost 55 pounds over the course of a year and a half through careful calorie counting, and did an okay job of maintenance until the fall of 2018 when a huge amount of stress hit my life and didn't let up and THEN we all went on lockdown. Someone on Facebook mentioned a book called Fast, Feast, Repeat by Gin Stephens and how much they loved this way of eating, so I ordered it and started reading.

    I, too, remember when I was younger and was effortlessly thin, and I remember that I would accidentally fast for long periods of time. I never ate breakfast and sometimes only ate maybe an orange and some popcorn during mid-day and early afternoon and then ate a normal dinner. I didn't count calories, and I wasn't hungry. I was able to easily maintain a healthy weight back then doing IF, eating intuitively until I was full but fasting from about 6-7 pm until 12-1 the following day.

    So I'm back on that-- I haven't been able to give up sweetener and sugar free coffee creamer yet but I'm trying to wean myself off of it (her book preaches black coffee in the morning if you need coffee). Back in college when I did IF without knowing it I just didn't even drink coffee. I tried that one day and found myself really missing it and watching the clock until I could break my fast. I wasn't even hungry that morning, but just seemed to miss having something besides water. I used to just eat a granola bar in the morning, so it's not like I'm cutting that many calories out in the morning, but now the thought of anything in the morning, especially something so full of sugar just doesn't even sound good at all. After gaining 40 of the 55 pounds back I'm back to calorie counting with IF. I plan to maintain by keeping the IF and eating intuitively. Going for a loss of 30 pounds because at the lowest weight I was a bit too thin (even though it's higher than when I was at my thinnest). Seems that an older person needs to carry a little more weight - even my husband said - don't lose that much this time.

    I’m not there yet, so humor me... but why is that?

    I'm 53 now. When I was 21 I weighed 117. Losing 55 pounds a few years ago got me down to 125 and I found that brought out a lot of wrinkles in my face and neck. I wasn't even thinking of the health benefits of carrying a little extra weight as mentioned above. My "ideal weight" according to the doctor is anything from 110-140. I definitely think 110 has always been too small for me, even being a small frame person. 117 was fine when I was young and had the elasticity in my skin. Now- 130-135 would be a nice, sustainable healthy weight. 140-145 is a bit too heavy for my small frame IMO. And when I was 125 - like I said- I was a bit too wrinkly, AND it was a bit too low to try to maintain my weight without continued strict restricting and counting. It's all individual- I'm still trying to figure out maintenance, but with the plan of IF I think I may be able to do it this time when I hit my goal!

    So for you it was purely aesthetic. I completely get that! Thanks so much for the insight. Now you got me thinking...

    If, say, I was 117 lbs at 53 years without losing weight, would that make a difference in the way the wrinkles looked or sat on my face? This might be a really good incentive to keep my weight in check in the future if so.

    I'm another one who finds that being 7-10lbs heavier than my lowest goal weight actually mean my face looks younger/less lined - I'm 51, 5ft 2, being at my lightest weight of 124lbs for a few years ended up making me look very gaunt and older looking imo (plus friends were always commenting that I had lost too much weight). Its only looking at photos now that I can see I look healthier and more vibrant being a little bit heavier. For so long I just wanted to see a certain number on the scale! thankfully for me it now more about how my clothes look/feel and the amount of muscle I have built that feels more important and the nice bonus of having youthful looks now too :smile: .

    I'm also an IF fan, 16:8 have been using that method of keeping my calories in check for over 6 months - personally it feels pretty easy.

    Congrats OP on finding a method of losing weight that works for you.

    @msalicia07-Like I said- it's all individual and how and where you carry weight. I think I just was a little obsessed with seeing a number on the scale - more so to see if I could actually see it than anything else. When I look back and photos of myself at 125 I can see that my face and neck just look a bit gaunt and wrinkled. I now know that I'll be fine at 130-135. Plus most of my clothes will fit again- I had given away all my fat clothes and now I'm limited on my wardrobe because I've gained weight back. :/ But my mantra is now- I did it before- I can do it again. Better days are ahead, the pandemic is on its way out, the situation at my place of employment has taken a much better turn so I'm on my way.

    @LivingtheLeanDream - are you still losing at the 16:8 method? I was reading Fast, Feast, Repeat and it says that you probably won't lose weight with that method and they recommend a much smaller window like 18:6 or even 20:4. I'm pretty much trying to keep it at 18:6 or sometimes 19:7. I've only just started so we'll see. Today I'm trying hot tea instead of coffee - so zero calories in the morning (still a little splenda) so we'll see how that goes.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    @dramaqueen45 I am using IF to maintain my weight as thats my goal, a smaller eating window than that would likely lead to loss because it would likely lead to one less meal.
    Theres nothing magical about meal timings or fasting, its all about creating calorie deficit in order to lose (if that's the goal).
  • nklp
    nklp Posts: 62 Member
    edited January 2021
    LivingtheLeanDream wrote: »
    Theres nothing magical about meal timings or fasting, its all about creating calorie deficit in order to lose (if that's the goal).

    @LivingtheLeanDream I think there may be slightly more to it than that. Hormones definitely also play a role, having a huge influence on whether you can actually maintain what you're doing.

    If you are constantly eating really low calorie foods, but never actually feeling full, eventually you are going to snap because your hormones are constantly telling you that you're starving. However, if you eat until you're completely full and then wait until you are completely hungry before refeeding you definitely feel most satisfied and the way of eating is more sustainable.

    By allowing myself larger meals, I also find that I don't mind skipping some even if I am a bit hungry, because I know that my craving will be met eventually, and it helps me not feel panicky about food and food shortages.

    There's also some research that fasting - and the hormonal changes that come of it - can help with slowing aging, reducing type two diabetes, and reducing the risk of alzheimers (something that runs in my family and that I'm very frightened of).

    That's not to say that it's magic or that calories don't matter - they obviously do! It's just that it seems that human health is a bit more complicated than only cal in / cal out.

  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    @nklp I eat on average approx 1800 calories (don't measure/weigh any more so that's just an educated guess from years of weighing and knowing portion sizes and knowing calories in everything I eat). I always feel sated/full (until the next day when its close to my new eating window to start LOL). I feel 1800 is a good amount for someone who is small and older. I have 2 large meals and 1 small one in my eating window which is very sustainable for me. Personally I find it refreshing not to have to think in terms of calories all the time (which I had been doing since I started my weight loss journey here on Myfitnesspal in 2012, and in maintenance since 2013). What's more assuring is that my weight has been stable now for months and months :smile:

    There's no doubt that a large meal really does keep us fuller for longer.

    If Alzheimer's or diabetes etc can be kept at bay then eating this way is even more beneficial.
  • Ddsb11
    Ddsb11 Posts: 607 Member
    LivingtheLeanDream wrote: »
    msalicia07 wrote: »
    dramaqueen45 wrote: »
    msalicia07 wrote: »
    dramaqueen45 wrote: »
    This resonates with me so much. I joined MFP for real in 2014, lost 55 pounds over the course of a year and a half through careful calorie counting, and did an okay job of maintenance until the fall of 2018 when a huge amount of stress hit my life and didn't let up and THEN we all went on lockdown. Someone on Facebook mentioned a book called Fast, Feast, Repeat by Gin Stephens and how much they loved this way of eating, so I ordered it and started reading.

    I, too, remember when I was younger and was effortlessly thin, and I remember that I would accidentally fast for long periods of time. I never ate breakfast and sometimes only ate maybe an orange and some popcorn during mid-day and early afternoon and then ate a normal dinner. I didn't count calories, and I wasn't hungry. I was able to easily maintain a healthy weight back then doing IF, eating intuitively until I was full but fasting from about 6-7 pm until 12-1 the following day.

    So I'm back on that-- I haven't been able to give up sweetener and sugar free coffee creamer yet but I'm trying to wean myself off of it (her book preaches black coffee in the morning if you need coffee). Back in college when I did IF without knowing it I just didn't even drink coffee. I tried that one day and found myself really missing it and watching the clock until I could break my fast. I wasn't even hungry that morning, but just seemed to miss having something besides water. I used to just eat a granola bar in the morning, so it's not like I'm cutting that many calories out in the morning, but now the thought of anything in the morning, especially something so full of sugar just doesn't even sound good at all. After gaining 40 of the 55 pounds back I'm back to calorie counting with IF. I plan to maintain by keeping the IF and eating intuitively. Going for a loss of 30 pounds because at the lowest weight I was a bit too thin (even though it's higher than when I was at my thinnest). Seems that an older person needs to carry a little more weight - even my husband said - don't lose that much this time.

    I’m not there yet, so humor me... but why is that?

    I'm 53 now. When I was 21 I weighed 117. Losing 55 pounds a few years ago got me down to 125 and I found that brought out a lot of wrinkles in my face and neck. I wasn't even thinking of the health benefits of carrying a little extra weight as mentioned above. My "ideal weight" according to the doctor is anything from 110-140. I definitely think 110 has always been too small for me, even being a small frame person. 117 was fine when I was young and had the elasticity in my skin. Now- 130-135 would be a nice, sustainable healthy weight. 140-145 is a bit too heavy for my small frame IMO. And when I was 125 - like I said- I was a bit too wrinkly, AND it was a bit too low to try to maintain my weight without continued strict restricting and counting. It's all individual- I'm still trying to figure out maintenance, but with the plan of IF I think I may be able to do it this time when I hit my goal!

    So for you it was purely aesthetic. I completely get that! Thanks so much for the insight. Now you got me thinking...

    If, say, I was 117 lbs at 53 years without losing weight, would that make a difference in the way the wrinkles looked or sat on my face? This might be a really good incentive to keep my weight in check in the future if so.

    I'm another one who finds that being 7-10lbs heavier than my lowest goal weight actually mean my face looks younger/less lined - I'm 51, 5ft 2, being at my lightest weight of 124lbs for a few years ended up making me look very gaunt and older looking imo (plus friends were always commenting that I had lost too much weight). Its only looking at photos now that I can see I look healthier and more vibrant being a little bit heavier. For so long I just wanted to see a certain number on the scale! thankfully for me it now more about how my clothes look/feel and the amount of muscle I have built that feels more important and the nice bonus of having youthful looks now too :smile: .

    I'm also an IF fan, 16:8 have been using that method of keeping my calories in check for over 6 months - personally it feels pretty easy.

    Congrats OP on finding a method of losing weight that works for you.

    Makes perfect sense to me! Congrats on reaching your goal as well!

Categories

Do you Love MyFitnessPal? Have you crushed a goal or improved your life through better nutrition using MyFitnessPal?
Share your success and inspire others. Leave us a review on Apple Or Google Play stores!