Intermittent Fasting - my result so far

[robnplunder]

I have started intermittent fasting (google it if you don't know what it is) to lose some weight and live healthier. In just over two months, I lost 10% of my body weight. It is now what it used to be about 20 years ago. My BMI, skeleton muscle percentage, body fat percentage, visceral fat level all improved drastically. I feel like I will live longer & healthier.

The only drawback is, I am hungry much of the time. Although, it makes me savor food when I eat.

Anyone wants to share their results, progress, etc..?

 

[audreyh1]

Wow!

Are you just skipping the occasional meal or fasting for longer than that?

I've done a little - but just the occasional skip of dinner or breakfast.

 

[donheff]

I long ago rejected any dietary approach that leaves me hungry - no way I would keep that up for long and it seems unnatural. For me high protein, high fat, lowish carb left me feeling sated and resulted in an 18% drop in body weight in a few months. I've been able to stay at that ideal weight for going on 5 years now without ever going hungry.

Your fasting appears to have worked as a weight reduction diet. Congratulations on that. Now is the time to experiment with macro nutrients to find a way of eating that will allow you to stay where you are without hunger.

 

[athena53]

I've been doing this for years, on a modified basis. Two days a week I cut my calorie intake back to about 1,000 calories. I keep fresh veggies around for when I get hungry and I have a bowl of Greek yogurt that I sweeten with honey before bedtime, which keeps me from waking up hungry. My daily cardio workouts burn about 700 calories so restricting my intake to liquids only would probably be going too far.

Over a few years I dropped from 147 to 127 (I'm female, 5'7") and have kept it off. I have gained a couple of pounds (literally two pounds, per the scale at the blood bank each of the last two months) so I need to tweak it but I am VERY happy at this weight.

 

[Ready]

I've used my free time post working world to increase the amount of time I spend exercising. I'm swimming an hour a day now, and walking at least an hour. That has allowed me to drop a lot of weight and kept me at a healthy BMI level.

I've also modified my diet a bit though by keeping my breakfast and lunch meals relatively light and eating more calories for dinner. It works best for me because I don't like to exercise after eating a lot of food. I rely heavily on protein bars to keep me from getting hungry during the day. They are easy to digest, keep me energized, and don't interfere with my exercise routine.

I have tried fasting a few times over the years and never really liked it. My blood sugar drops and I don't feel like I have a lot of energy. For me the difference in how I feel between eating nothing or eating a 200 calorie protein bar is night and day.

 

[Dawg52]

From the below site, here are 3 common methods of intermittent fasting. I occasionally only eat 2 meals a day. A late breakfast and then an early dinner. Guess that doesn't qualify but it has helped in losing a pound or two. I could probably do the 5:2 method without suffering too bad.

The 16/8 Method: Also called the Leangains protocol, it involves skipping breakfast and restricting your daily eating period to 8 hours, for example from 1 pm to 9 pm. Then you "fast" for 16 hours in between.
Eat-Stop-Eat: This involves fasting for 24 hours, once or twice a week, for example by not eating from dinner one day until dinner the next day.
The 5:2 Diet: On two non-consecutive days of the week, only eat 500-600 calories. Eat normally the other 5 days.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/intermittent-fasting-guide#section3

 

[flintnational]

The 16/8 Method: Also called the Leangains protocol, it involves skipping breakfast and restricting your daily eating period to 8 hours, for example from 1 pm to 9 pm. Then you "fast" for 16 hours in between.

We do this most days. We are not hungry (maybe because of our low carb diet?). We eat lunch around 1130 and dinner at 5. Our shift to low carb several years ago led to weight loss and improvements in health. We are not noticing any benefits from the fast but we are not hungry and it can't hurt to reduce total food intake. On the rare occasions we are hungry in the AM, we eat.

Congrats to OP!

FN

 

[MRG]

DW and I lost almost 30% of our combined weight by counting calories. Like other folks we found adjusting the macros toward higher fat helps hunger.

Congratulations on your loss. That's awesome.

 

[audreyh1]

From the below site, here are 3 common methods of intermittent fasting. I occasionally only eat 2 meals a day. A late breakfast and then an early dinner. Guess that doesn't qualify but it has helped in losing a pound or two. I could probably do the 5:2 method without suffering too bad.

The 16/8 Method: Also called the Leangains protocol, it involves skipping breakfast and restricting your daily eating period to 8 hours, for example from 1 pm to 9 pm. Then you "fast" for 16 hours in between.
Eat-Stop-Eat: This involves fasting for 24 hours, once or twice a week, for example by not eating from dinner one day until dinner the next day.
The 5:2 Diet: On two non-consecutive days of the week, only eat 500-600 calories. Eat normally the other 5 days.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/intermittent-fasting-guide#section3

Unless your late breakfast is not really late, and your early dinner is not really early, I think it should qualify?

If you fast until say 6pm the night before, until 10am the next morning, that's 16 hours which meets the first criteria. I don't know if you have to do this daily. I read somewhere a recommendation to do this up to two days a week.

I find that skipping a breakfast or dinner occasionally helps me recover from brief overindulgence or feeling like I am in a rut. Or sometimes if my tummy is not feeling 100%. I think it gives your digestive system a chance to heal.

I really don't feel much hunger from skipping meals like this.

 

[nash031]

I've done IF, but not for day/days at a time. I have purposefully skipped meals to change things up with my metabolism over time. Now, I don't have body weight to lose, but it's more keeping the metabolic fires going, reminding my body to burn fat stores, and just listening to my body as I've gotten older. If I'm not hungry, I don't feel the need to eat something just because it's noon. So, some days I'll deliberately skip dinner, or lunch. I've never skipped a morning meal.

I'm a believer in IF for those who need to lose weight as well, but can't vouch for it personally. Just my limited experience.

 

[nash031]

DW and I lost almost 30% of our combined weight by counting calories. Like other folks we found adjusting the macros toward higher fat helps hunger.

Congratulations on your loss. That's awesome.

I've had great success managing hunger with higher fat. Again, not a weight loss thing for me but just a general health and lower calorie consumption - a body composition maintenance thing. I've found it's easier to maintain my body weight on higher fat diets than on my former high carb diet, even when training. Obviously, when I get into running/tri season, I have to jack the carbs up somewhat, but I don't go over the top like I used to.

The biggest change I made was my breakfast, which went from 800 calories of mostly carbs to about 500 calories of mostly protein and fat, and keeps me sated nearly twice as long, no longer needing a mid-morning banana or snack to get to lunch.

More on this here, in the "Why We Get Fat" thread.

 

[audreyh1]

Hugh Jackman made the news with his intermittent fasting to lose body fat for his Wolverine character: DOES INTERMITTENT FASTING WORK? - A LOOK AT HUGH JACKMAN'S DIET | Fit'n'Flexed

 

[mystang52]

If you can keep the weight off, then this is a successful approach, I guess. But why not consider just eating smaller portions, vs skipping meals?

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

I have started intermittent fasting (google it if you don't know what it is) to lose some weight and live healthier. In just over two months, I lost 10% of my body weight. It is now what it used to be about 20 years ago. My BMI, skeleton muscle percentage, body fat percentage, visceral fat level all improved drastically. I feel like I will live longer & healthier.

The only drawback is, I am hungry much of the time. Although, it makes me savor food when I eat.

Anyone wants to share their results, progress, etc..?

Would you mind sharing which fasting program you are following? Seems to be a few choices. I think I could do the 16/8. Are you allowed to drink water during the 16 hours?

 

[flintnational]

If you can keep the weight off, then this is a successful approach, I guess. But why not consider just eating smaller portions, vs skipping meals?

From what I have read, IF may do a few things that calorie restriction may not. First, it lets your body use its fat stores since it does not have incoming calories. It helps your insulin levels come down. It may help with cellular repair (your body recycles damaged proteins). But I am not an expert. If interested, please read up on the topic or wait on the experts to show up.

FN

 

[audreyh1]

If you can keep the weight off, then this is a successful approach, I guess. But why not consider just eating smaller portions, vs skipping meals?

There are apparently some definite health benefits to skipping meals. flintnational gave some of the good ones. Another is that it boosts your metabolism.

Counterintuitively, during fasting the metabolism does not slow right away. It speeds up at first along with your body burning fat. It's only when fasting is extended for a long period that the metabolism slows.

 

[audreyh1]

Would you mind sharing which fasting program you are following? Seems to be a few choices. I think I could do the 16/8. Are you allowed to drink water during the 16 hours?

Yes - any non-caloric beverage.

 

[robnplunder]

Would you mind sharing which fasting program you are following? Seems to be a few choices. I think I could do the 16/8. Are you allowed to drink water during the 16 hours?

I am doing a variation of 16/8, more like 18/6. That is, I eat twice a day in 6 hour window. It turns out to be brunch and dinner. For the remaining 18 hours, if must, the program suggests drinking/eating specific items - tea, soy milk, etc.. I stick to drinking tea, coconut juice, or other light drink. But once in a while, if I get too hungry, I will eat something light.

 

[robnplunder]

From what I have read, IF may do a few things that calorie restriction may not. First, it lets your body use its fat stores since it does not have incoming calories. It helps your insulin levels come down. It may help with cellular repair (your body recycles damaged proteins). But I am not an expert. If interested, please read up on the topic or wait on the experts to show up.

FN

+1.

For me, my other motivation was to reduce visceral fat that isn't good for health. I could not get rid of it with exercise, and other diets. The fasting worked. My beer belly is gone.

 

[rodi]

The 16/8 is interesting. Salk Institute is studying diabetes/metabolism and something similar to the 16/8... Apparently type 2 diabetes drops off dramatically if you restrict your eating to 8 hours a day. Apparently sleep issues and obesity are all positively impacted with this limitation. (All this is based on mouse studies... they're just starting on human studies.).

So I'm now delaying breakfast and making sure not to snack after dinner.

Salk study may offer drug-free intervention to prevent obesity and diabetes - Salk Institute for Biological Studies

 

[robnplunder]

The 16/8 is interesting. Salk Institute is studying diabetes/metabolism and something similar to the 16/8... Apparently type 2 diabetes drops off dramatically if you restrict your eating to 8 hours a day. Apparently sleep issues and obesity are all positively impacted with this limitation. (All this is based on mouse studies... they're just starting on human studies.).

So I'm now delaying breakfast and making sure not to snack after dinner.

Salk study may offer drug-free intervention to prevent obesity and diabetes - Salk Institute for Biological Studies

When I did MY mouse studies, I found that there are far more benefits of the intermittent fasting than harmful side effects (potentially, constant feeling of hunger, losing strength, etc..). It also made me eat smaller meal. No more stuffing myself until I can't eat no more. That probably led to more weight loss, not to mention smaller restaurant bills.

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

Yes - any non-caloric beverage.

Thank you

I am doing a variation of 16/8, more like 18/6. That is, I eat twice a day in 6 hour window. It turns out to be brunch and dinner. For the remaining 18 hours, if must, the program suggests drinking/eating specific items - tea, soy milk, etc.. I stick to drinking tea, coconut juice, or other light drink. But once in a while, if I get too hungry, I will eat something light.

Awesome, Im going to try this starting today.

 

[Dawg52]

+1.

For me, my other motivation was to reduce visceral fat that isn't good for health. I could not get rid of it with exercise, and other diets. The fasting worked. My beer belly is gone.

Did you eliminate beer too? I can't do that entirely. I have cut back as I no longer keep any at home. I do meet friends 1-2 times a week for a couple of cold ones. My biggest problem are snacks. I've got to replace bad snacks with more healthy ones. I like apples so I need to simply eat a few slices of one instead of a choc chip cookie. Sounds simple but I'm weak.

 

[sengsational]

I've been moderately successful going with one "real meal" per day. Eliminating breakfast has been effortless for me. At about 2pm (like about now), I'd really like to eat something. Some days I do get a snack, other days, I can make it until 5:30 or 6pm for an early dinner. And I don't hold back on dinner...I eat until I feel completely full (not stuffed or uncomfortable). BTW, I did not and will not give up beer! But as a caloric beverage, it counts as "eating".

I adopted this routine a few months ago, without reading anything about fasting...so it's nobody's "plan" except mine.

Doing this has made me feel better, in general.

For the last month, while traveling, all bets were off; you can't go on a cruise ship and not eat! I just got back from a month away from home, half of that on the ship. I gained about 2.5 pounds, but that's kind of normal variation, and it's the same as when I got off the ship last year at this time.

 

[LOL!]

In contrast to what others have posted, I added real breakfast to my intake. I cook about 1/2 c of oatmeal, then add walnuts, craisins (or berries), plus protein powder to make it edible and a small glass of milk. I don't eat a lot at lunch or dinner, but avoid carbohydrates during those meals (no rice, potatoes, pasta, breads). That doesn't mean I won't eat carbs, but not like in the old days.

I went from about 165 lbs to 145 lbs, losing about a pound a week and I am rarely hungry at all.

And one more tip: I don't want my food to spend time in my intestines where it has a longer chance to be absorbed into my blood stream, so I'll eat chocolate with almonds anytime I want. There is no doubt this pushes things through. So much for carbs. I actually lose weight eating the chocolate w/almond bars.