Intermittent Fasting
Brossja
Posts: 10 Member
Just wondering if anyone has had any success with intermittent fasting?
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Replies
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I only just started; but have found it is helping with keeping within calories and not worrying so much about how much I am eating. I do find I am sleeping a bit better too. Science is still not 100% on this yet so maybe good to talk to your doctor about whether it is right or not.2
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Thank you, Tilly. I am also wondering if anyone has tried Capsaicin supplements to boost metabolism0
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I am curious to try this myself./ Good luck!
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Just wondering if anyone has had any success with intermittent fasting?
I have been doing the 16:8 plan for about 30 days. I honestly dont know if it is helping as I have also reduced calories - it does make it easier to not snack at night. The first few days were rough because it was habit to have a coffee (with cream) first thing but now I drink tea (black) first thing. I havent been hungry outside of my eating hours and I am on a pretty low calorie plan.2 -
The only thing IF does, is make it easier for some people to stick to their calorie goals.
nothing more, nothing less.
I guarantee you, I could eat a WHOLE LOT in well, any time period, really.
The key in losing weight, and take this from someone who has lost over 189 pounds, is to make small, SUSTAINABLE changes. this is a long term effort. not a sprint. you will not lose weight fast. you will not lose weight every week. you will have weeks on end with NO weight loss. its normal. trust the process.
my main tips:
learn how to weigh (on a food scale) your food properly and find ACCURATE database entries now. I don't know what your starting weight is, but at first you may have a lot of room for error. but as you have less to lose, you don't. If you learn how to do things properly from the beginning, it means you don' have to RE-LEARN how to do it later.
Find an activity you ENJOY. You don't have to be a runner (ew). You don't have to work out at all to lose weight (weight loss happens in the kitchen). BUT... physical activity does have a LOT of benefits. Both mental and physical. It can be as simple as a leisurely stroll a few times a week. And as you lose weight, you may find (I did), that you WANT to do more. Simple, little things like parking a bit further out in parking lots. Taking stairs instead of elevators. walking to your mailbox instead of pulling up to it in your car as you are pulling in your driveway. Small things. Every bit counts.
Understand that you do not have to give up your favorite foods or any food groups to lose weight. You DO need to learn how MUCH you can eat. Portion control. This goes back to my first point. For the most part, I eat the same things I always have. Just less of them. I eat burgers and pizza and chips and cookies. Just ... not all in the same day
well, I might could get away with it if I planned it out REALLY well. And stuck to the plan with NO deviation. Maybe. LOL
And lastly, you will have 'bad' days. Whether its a holiday or just a ... bad day. Life happens. you will go over. It is NOT the end of the world. You will not ruin your deficit with one bad day. The problems come in when that one bad day becomes two, becomes 3, becomes a week, and goes on....
You've got this. Take it one day at a time, and each day, try to do a little bit better. Don't try to do everything all at once. Don't try to make 1000 changes all at once. Most people who burn out, do so because they try to do too much, too soon. start small. build from there. You did not gain the weight quickly. You will not lose it quickly. Better to lose it slowly, and KEEP IT OFF, then lose it quick, and gain it all back and more!
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Thank you, callsitlikeiseeit. Congratulations on your weight loss!
I have been down this road before, have lost and regained this weight (this is the 3rd time now). I am doing all the things you have suggested. I am looking at this as a lifestyle change and health journey, not a diet. It's just the last 2 times I lost this weight I consistently lost 2 pounds per week. I have lost 27 so far in 103 days but the last 2 weeks have stalled. This past week I haven't been able to do cardio work due to injuring my foot but have continued to do strength training. I'm older now and it is proving to be so much harder as I age. Note to self, don't gain it back I have also lowered my blood pressure from 135/85 to 107/66 and cholesterol from 239 to 164! That makes me happy.
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I've done IF on and off for various reasons over the years. There is nothing magical about it...it's just a way to possibly control calorie intake by only eating in a certain window of time. I have lost weight, gained weight, and maintained weight doing IF...all dependent on my calorie intake.2
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Thank you all for your comments.0
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I have been doing IF for 10 months now. I loss 50 pounds and I am at my goal weight. This has been the only time in the past 10 years I have successfully loss this much and maintained. (I took a few months to maintain before continuing).
I used a 20:4 schedule most of the time. I started with 16:8, then went to 18:6, then 20:4. Sometimes I did ADF, or OMAD. I did a few 72 hours also. I guess I mixed it up depending on how I felt.2 -
Just wondering if anyone has had any success with intermittent fasting?
yep! like @fr3smyl above me, I've been doing it for a few months with great success...almost 40 pounds since May 2nd...18 pounds from goal! (4:3, usually feast days falling within a 16:8 schedule...with one day a week eating later to have a dinner out with my husband) I've pretty much stopped counting calories at all... though I do have to adhere to a strict calorie number on "fast" days.) Saw my doctor last week and she's thrilled with how I'm doing. Weight, bloodwork, etc.
I think IF works well for people who don't want to nickel/dime every morsel they consume (which for me makes me obsess over food rather than have a good healthy relationship with it). My sister is another example, who's been doing OMAD for 6 months (after failing at calorie counting/ww/keto etc) ...she literally eats whatever she wants during her eating window each day (and says, "I just love not having to count anything..just eat at 'this' time that's it!) She's down 50 since March. (and near her goal)
I think it boils down to personality (which is of course different for all of us) Studies are showing some pretty cool stuff for IF though (like, keeping metabolism churning with IF vs. very low calorie consumption) Look up Michael Mosley and his studies..pretty cool stuff.
I'd say try it if you want to..it suits many of us well..others not so much. But, never know if you don't try Best of luck to you!
ps- be aware speaking of IF here on MFP will likely bring about many "disagrees" ..but don't let it stop you from trying it. If there was one magic "diet" for everyone, there would be one magic website/solution...everyone is different in how they tackle their own eating challenges. I've dropped my paid sub to this site due to the negative "my way or the highway" attitudes... but glad I logged in today and saw your post to give a thumbs up to IF as a possible avenue for you to pursue! 6 -
IF makes it easier for me to stick to a deficit calorie goal, since dinner can be bigger and normal sized then.
Normal breakfast I'd attempt usually made me tired, same with lunch - and being pretty sedentary during the day, just don't need food then.
But I also have no problem eating too much even in a 2-4 hr window which can end up being the case with a schedule sometimes.
So it's not magical for weight loss - it may make it easier for YOU to arrange how you eat your calories so you can adhere to the goal better.
But plenty of folks did that type of schedule without calling it IF - and gained and maintained being overweight.
So just have the proper perspective on what's it's doing and not doing, as several comments have explained already.1 -
I have started the IF again, and I feel so much better, and less feeling bloated, so there forth I feel better. I haven't been a breakfast person since before I started school 70 plus years ago, as it always has made me very sick, so it I do eat it, it has to be several hours after I get up and about.1
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Thank you, Tilly. I am also wondering if anyone has tried Capsaicin supplements to boost metabolism
Survey/summary of research:
https://examine.com/supplements/capsaicin/
Probable minor effect at best. Personally, I wouldn't bother. YMMV.0 -
Blaming or crediting changes in metabolism due to fasting, food type restrictions, etc., for weight gain or loss is just fantasy. Tooth fairy type fantasy.
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One of the Buff Dudes liked IF, the other did not:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntVykcueZE8
Entertaining and informative, even for someone like me with no interest in IF.
From the comments:
Joe Rogan: Have you ever heard of intermittent fasting?
Bill Burr: Yeah, it's called sleeping.4 -
Sleeping haha I love it, that funny and it allows a person not to actually think, or indulge in critical thinking. Par for the course here.1
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I did IF rigorously (monitoring the clock) for awhile and it really didn't make any difference.
Still do it now, less rigourously by just eating one meal per mid-day (most days) and am still able to maintain my weight by continuing to log all cals in MFP daily.1 -
I fasted for approximately 15 months and it was great in the beginning and middle part of my fast. I did the 20 hour fast 4 hour eating window and OMAD on different days of my fast. I felt amazing and lost a lot of weight and even gained muscle but then it started affecting me by losing focus at work and getting sick often. I had an extremely busy schedule and was sleeping very little during my fasting days so I’m not too sure to what extent fasting and lack of sleep affected me individually
But even now after sleeping regularly 8 or 9 hours I still lose focus incredibly quick when I attempt to fast. I’m no longer able to fast so I would advise anyone to be cautious with it. It’s good for short term. I’d say no more than 6 months but it isn’t ideal for long term in my opinion.
As we all know, each person will react differently so that’s just my experience with fasting.6 -
It works for me.
I play around with 16 / 8 and 20/ 4
I don't do it every day and I have days off for socialising etc ..
I try to keep it fairly low carb ish and try to eat wholefoods.
I enjoy wine and carbs on weekends and aim for IF Sunday - Thursday.
I'm far from perfect at it - but it is brilliant for keeping my calories and appetite in check.
I'm 37 lbs down so far
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