Intermittent Fasting

It'll be interesting what happens when you stop doing it. I hope you will be able to maintain the weight loss.

areful! Doing this turned my low blood sugar levels into type 2 diabetes. Narrow your fasting window.

I know someone like r1.%0D %0D You can say anything to him, and his reply will be a negative one, for no other reason than having found something negative in what had been said.%0D %0D Good for you, OP. Sounds reasonable. Might pick it up during Lent, as a short term project.

Oh, you said fAsting.

R1, how fat ARE you?

29pounds in two month is way too much weight loss. You're going to die.

It's a serious fat burner. Good job, OP. I've tried it, but I don't have the discipline to keep at it for too long.

I've read a bit about intermittent fasting, OP. It's something that the dedicated paleo people (not me) do. But I think it's more of a several times a week kind of thing for them. If you continue you daily regime, I hope you continue to thrive. I know that such a rapid weight loss can be thrilling, but personally I would be concerned about that. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to decrease the frequency of your fasting periods.

Eat the same amount, spread out evenly over the day and you will lose even more weight OP. Food triggers metabolism, when you fast in the middle, your body shuts off the fat burning mechanism.

This is really the only way I can lose weight. If I go from, say, 6:00 pm until noon the following day without eating, I will lose weight even without reducing calories. When I eat breakfast and / or late at night, I don't lose weight. I have no idea why. Of course, it's hard to do.

You are lowering your metabolic rate. If you ever eat normally again you will be Mama Cass sized in no time.

I DO eat normally, hon. It's not written in stone that one must eat three squares a day, small meals ten times a day, or any other manner of "must". What works for some may not work for all.%0D %0D You are probably fat, yes?%0D %0D FWIW I started off at 220 pounds so that is why I lost so quickly. I expect this to slow down as time goes on, and that's being realistic. It's not even for weight loss anymore, because I have reached my goal (exceeded it, actually). I just feel better, more energetic in the afternoons/evenings, more stamina for sex, and wake up more alert and solid than if I'd eaten a snack in the afternoon...as most people do...and a big meal in the evening. Which most Americans follow with an evening snack as well, if not drinks, too. %0D %0D Yes, I am quite satisfied with myself.

I thought this thread was called Intermittent Fisting. Oh well.

It's fabulous!

And it's all to increase your chances of getting laid.

[quote][R1], how fat ARE you?

I am not fat. I'm an avid runner with a runner's physique. OP is the one who is fat. As I said, I hope he can keep it up, but I doubt he will be able to do it for the rest of his life. What happens when he stops, and he will when he reaches his ideal weight... is what I questioned.

So R1, let me guess. You eat a very high carb diet, even eating pounds of pasta at a time. %0D %0D You look older than your age, with thinning hair and skin, and are sinewy.

It doesn't have to be so severe. I try not to eat anything at night and that works for me. If I go out with friends I'll break the fast with something light, and then get back to fasting the next night. It really does work. You can eat almost anything during the day (within reason), and still lose/maintain this way if you have a halfway decent metabolism and do some moderate exercise everyday.

The NYT's bestseller "CLEAN" incorporates this type of fasting. Their concept.. along with the proper diet is that 12 hours must go by inbetween meels. %0D (done at 6pm.. no consumption until 6am)%0D %0D it's then followed by%0D liquid breakfast%0D senisble lunch%0D liquid dinner%0D %0D

The body loves fasting.

It turns to its own muscle and organ tissue for protein in response - and the body loves protein and fat. Fasting overwhelms the body with protein and fat... its own protein and fat. This creates a sense of euphoria. But it's temporary.

Then the body decides to stop cannibalizing itself, and you just get cranky and tired.

So unless you value your muscle mass and organs, fast away. Or you can enjoy a nice, rare steak and enjoy the same sensation, and more health benefits.

Starving your body for 16 hours a day just triggers starvation mode whereby the body stores fat and burns lean muscle.

It might "feel" differently but the science is against you there, OP. It's not about the time of day that you eat, it's about what you're eating.

God R20 and R21 you are both so ill informed except for R20 and the eating a rare steak part. That, I do, and do often (6 oz portions).%0D %0D %0D Starvation mode may or may not be a myth, #1. SURE your body will feed on itself via muscle after a period of true fasting. But I eat every day, and eat plenty. Then I let my stomach and digestive processes rest. One's body doesn't NEED to be constantly consuming and processing food in order to have a healthy metabolism.%0D %0D I last ate at 2 yesterday - a 7 oz filet of salmon cooked in Kerrygold butter and a huge pile of baby spinach. I was quite stuffed, but ate a deviled egg to stay satisfied. It's now almost 8 am and I am still not hungry.

You sound like you're on the verge of developing an eating disorder.

On the verge? This isn't classic anorexia, but it surely counts as disordered eating.

He has an eating disorder. He is losing muscle weight and pretending it is all fat to justify his disorder.

I think op is stupid. He thinks he is a large cat or a polar bear.

When you starve yourself your body tries to protect itself by not burning calories or burning them more efficiently. Also, starving yourself play havoc with your digestive system. OP is an anorexic...trying to make sense of why he is starving himself.

OP, like the people cheering him on, has an eating disorder. It's prevalent in the gay male community because of the obsession with thinness and an accompanying self loathing. You need to feel "in control" and depriving yourself of food does that for you.

I'd suggest therapy OP, and concurrent with that, getting hooked up with a good nutritionist. You might also want to consider "Over-eaters Anonymous", a program that encompasses all eating disorders despite its title. Good luck.

Oh and...judging from the many threads I've seen here suggesting body dysphoria, obsession with weight, etc., I'd say this is the last place on Earth you should be having this conversation. Except that you're looking for reinforcement, and this is the best place in the worlds to have an eating disorder reinforced (assuming it's in the anorexic, bulimic mode) Get to a nutritionist that your MD recommends.

INTERMITTENT fasting and anorexia/ED are not the same thing. Sorry, they just aren't!!!

Intermittent fasting as part of a healthy diet appears to have some scientific foundation, though OP's daily regime is extreme. Here's a Wiki page on the subject, and there's a lot more info available by Googling:

Internet 'info' is often not reliable or accurate.

Comments like "Internet info is often wrong." or "People that think about what they eat too much have eating disorders!" are truisms that when universally applied protect people from the painful task of sifting through evidence to come up with actual conclusions based on facts, rather than accepted wisdom. I've fasted every day of my life between 8 pm and 10 am. Because I don't eat breakfast until late in the day and I can't sleep well on a full stomach. Do I have a eating disorder? I look forward to the diagnosis the our crack team of amateur psychologists.

Thank you R32 - common sense.%0D %0D Yesterday I finished my normal last meal of the day around 3 pm. I drank tea and water throughout the evening and slept great not having a full stomach. %0D %0D I ate at 11, a big 900 calorie 'break fast' of albacore, 3 boiled eggs, several chili peppers, chopped cabbage and a bit of mayo and mustard. I'll eat again near 3 or 4 today and be done.

Keep burning that muscle tissue and pretending it is fat R33.

I linked to a Wiki page that has citations with links to the studies, R31.

Do you have any real information to counter those? Pony up if you do.

I used to parrot the same line as is R34.

I read your Wiki studies and they are missing a LOT of information.

The percentages of fat/muscle loss was one statistic not mentioned...

Another one and the MOST important was who paid for the study.

Also, see Mark's Daily Apple for ripped ass dudes who follow an intermittent fasting way of eating.

So, R36, etc., is that a "no" answer to the question as to whether you have any real information to counter-offer?

I am quite aware that studies rarely offer complete and conclusive evidence, that their published conclusions are sometimes at odds with the data they collect, and that their impartiality is sometimes tainted. This will, of course, work both ways.

[quote]I've fasted every day of my life between 8 pm and 10 am.

Not eating between 8pm and 10am is not the same as not eating between 2pm and 8am. Surely you can tell the difference.

4 years ago, I started fasting on weekends until suppertime. I was a solid 215 (@ 6'1") then. Continuing to fast, I'm now a little under 160. Changed from a solid physique to one that's pretty lithe.

x

So much ignorance on this thread. Read 'Why We Get Fat' by Gary Taubes, and learn how your metabolism ACTUALLY works. Approaches like the OP's works because fasting allows the body's insulin levels to drop, which in turn allows the body to effectively use stored fat. You don't need to eat regularly throughout the day; humans didn't evolve doing that, and don't need to do it to be healthy.

Congratulations on your success! I hope you keep us up on your continued progress.

I fast every day until dinner.

Well, OP?

OP died 7 years ago and no one noticed.

I do what OP does more-or-less, because my doctor told me recently to go at least 8 hours between breakfast and lunch, and then a very small meal for dinner early in the evening. This is part of the new thinking about healthy fasting.

I had been doing this all my life, without knowing it had a name until a few years ago. I always had to "gag" food down in the AM while young. Once on my own, I began skipping breakfast altogether as I am not hungry in the morning. I prefer a late lunch around 1:30-2:00, and have dinner at 8-9. Rarely on weekends, I'll have a "Brunch", but it really is not different calorie value wise than my lunches, just a bit more for a cocktail or two. I eat whateve I want, and at 50, only am a few pounds above average or mid BMI.

Regimen, R8.

R11, it is most certainly about the time of day you eat. Please read up (not on the internet) about biorhythms. This is established science and not in the least bit fringe element stuff.

Intermittent fasting is fine. The human body evolved to be used to it as food supplies were not at all regular before the advent of agriculture. The evolution of our bodies since that time has taken on different aspects in different regions of the world. Add that into the fact that no two people digest the same and that chronic health issues are also affecting digestion and you do not have a one size fits all concept regarding what is right or wrong about fasting. As long as OP is mindful of how he feels and has learn to read his body's signals, he's doing fine. No need to diagnose an eating disorder or get ugly around what you thing his digestion will be like.

Sorry, R11. I was addressing someone else.

OP, I would advocate seeing a dietician or an Ayurvedic practitioner. Both are great at helping to maintain a weight loss regimen and when to slow that down. You get a good baseline, defined goals, and a better handle on your body type going into the future. Intermittent fasting helped me finally achieve a weight loss goal after age 50, which wasn't easy. It proved to be, along with certain breathing techniques, the key to ramping up metabolism without taking on a grueling exercise routine that my battered body couldn't handle.

frau here - i do it 2 days a week. it is so so much easier than dieting

r49 He's British so it's fine.

I've read that intermittent fasting has anti-inflammatory benefits, and there have been studies that show intermittent fasting has a positive effect on cells parts involved in neurodegenerative disorders.

I feel better when I stop eating earlier in the day, around 6pm, because I sleep better. I dream less (or my dreams are of forgettable nature). Interestingly, I do not wake up hungry and so I don't eat till lunch time. But I'm not consistent, so I've never lost weight this way. Perhaps I should stick to a schedule.

I thought it said "Intermittent Farting."

It's good for you

Another name for anorexia.

God no R57.

R57 Why the fuck should people be eating when they are not hungry? You make absolutely no sense. Perhaps creative anorexics could use this as an excuse for not eating at all, (like many others) however it is ridiculous to tell people they need to constantly be digesting and processing the resultant waste all the time. In a nation of many overweight people, more should try this.

r59 types anorexic.

[QUOTE]But I'm not consistent, so I've never lost weight this way. Perhaps I should stick to a schedule.

Yeah, there’s no benefit unless you do it on a consistent basis.

R60 I love to cook and eat all sorts of decadent foods.... I drink and smoke still too. I am not depriving myself of anything, and am considered a bit over the middle-range of the BMI chart. I simply am never hungry in the AM, and feel sick trying to force myself. My late dinners are fairly fattening, and I NEVER have counted calories. If you were accustomed to dining between 8 & 9, you might not be hungry mornings either.

If I don't eat until 9, I get woken up by heartburn around 1 or 2.

Many have this problem R63.... I have only experienced it three times after spicy food. I never go to bed early either, so plenty of time for my dinner to digest. I do not recline, or lie down after dinner either. I never eat the foods which produced the heartburn on those three occasions (Buffalo Chicken Wings, Too many Thai green chiles and Bird's Eye Chilis, as well as a certain greasy pizzeria)

I love it! I do it once or twice a week. Go 20 - 24 hours without any food or drink besides water or tea. It actually feel more energetic those days

I have never gone longer than 17 or 18 hrs R65, but enjoy feeling "cleaned" out before my next meal. I have a rule to never eat if not hungry. I also cannot fathom people who eat a huge breakfast upon waking up before having an elimination or BM either. The body indeed needs a break in between, and rewards one with energy and good feelings when he complies.

I don’t think fasting makes you lose muscle mass. This guy, Thomas DeLauer, is a big proponent and he is STACKED.

He’s also got great genes, probably no real job (no stress, no binge-eating) and a lot of free time. Doesn’t mean IF will necessarily work for you.

R67, I watch some of his videos. He's very informative, but he needs to edit. He sometimes drones on for far too long.

It's pretty much how I eat every day. I don't eat/drink until 1p (Bulletproof Coffee). Eat Lunch at 2p and Dinner at 5. Then I just drink tea/water/seltzer the rest of the evening. Done until 1p the next day.

He's married, R67?

Yes, his wife is in several of his videos.

He ruined Kombucha for me.

He has a small head.

I've seen that guy's videos at r67. So many commenters call him out for using steroids. His body is likely not natural, and he gives endless advice on how to eat, exercise, etc... ridiculous.

A lot of info here about the various plans and strategies some celebrities use when fasting.

Mike Matthews from MuscleForLife like fasting as well

Video on it here

It just seems silly to me. You can't eat a whole 10,000 calorie pizza & bread sticks buffet & then think you're not going to gain weight because you stopped eating for a while longer. I suppose if it lowered your hunger hormones (gherilin or leptin - i forgot which) - that might be interesting.

No one is arguing that R79. Most of the benefits indeed come from managing not just hunger hormones but also insulin levels. Which play a huge role in fat creation and mobilization. No one says it allows you to lose weight on a bad diet, but it can noticeably boost your fat loss

Google Dr Fung, Rhonda Patrick, and fasting. Also, Thomas DeLauer on YouTube. Horizon BBC show on fasting is a good one too.

Every diet has to be based upon the First Law of Thermodynamics. Like it or not.

Then the next consideration is macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients.

Intermittent fasting is just a way to simplify the process of cutting calories. It’s like scheduling fat loss in your Google calendar. Giving your body a habitual break from digesting food. For some people (like me), this works best since we’re creatures of routine.

It is NOT however an excuse to eat more calories than your body needs. And if you’re prone to binge eating, whether out of boredom or for emotional reasons, then intermittent fasting is probably not for you. You should already have your shit together for the most part (and if you’re eating a 10,000 calorie pizza and breadstick buffet then you don’t have your shit together). If you treat eating food like some sort of activity rather than merely providing fuel for your body, you should stay away from IF.

Some of you are complete idiots.

NO food does NOT help your metabolism speed up. You are stuck in the 90s idea that 6 meals a day will help. It doesn't. And, no CARBS ARE NOT NEEDED. Holy crap, some of you are idiots.

Intermittent fasting is the way to go. Been doing it since I was 18. Not bc I was fat. Just bc it makes one feel great. Five years later, I have zero fat and a lot of muscle mass. I feel great all of the time.

Geez, do some reading dudes.

Reading assholescence such as that put forth by r84 REALLY makes me want to fast intermittently. And to fast completely from his rageohol.

IF can be very difficult. I had to change the way I looked at food before I could endure the absence of it. But there are hundreds of ways to lose weight and/or keep it off. One person might find more success eating four meals a day. There is no one shot for everyone. Anyone who pushes intermittent fasting on you as a magic solution is lying or ignorant.

You have to experiment with different things and find what works best for you. Or maybe it’s a combination of things. Maybe all of this eating window crap is still too complicated and you just tell yourself you’re going to start eating dinner earlier and won’t touch food after 6pm. That’s simple enough. That’s what my father did and part of the reason why he maintained a decent body composition into his old age. Of course he didn’t call it “intermittent fasting,” it was just sensible living to him—the way people used to live when they weren’t up all night on the computer or watching Netflix.

No idea about IF but every successful dieter knows not to go to bed on a full stomach.

I was introduced to IF by a friend who had PCOS and could not lose weight on any diet. She started last October and lost close to 50 lbs. I started it in January and am down 20. I open my window around 4 and close it at 10–I just love eating at night. It seems to be working for me. It allows the body to heal, reducing inflammation. I do watch what I eat but I’m not dieting.

So with all the grammar trolls on Dataounge, not a single comment on all the weird "%0D %0D" symbols in OPs posts?

They're just something that didn't translate from one version of the software to another since 2011, r89.

R82, the 1st law of thermodynamics applies in the realm of physics, not biochemistry. Your body is a stew of hormones like insulin, estrogen, testosterone, leptin, etc. Gary Taubes covered this in Good Calories, Bad Calories.

So do you count calories then, and if so, roughly how many calories can you have? I'm asking because I made the (exaggerated) "pizza buffet" comment - mostly because the 1 person I know who does IF eats like a pig and then says "it's fine as long as I don't eat until 3 tomorrow!" so ... that's all I know about it. I am more well versed in keto and paleo than IF....and those also affect insulin in positive ways. I know IF is good for insulin, insulin resistance, and possibly the hunger regulation hormones - but I just wondered if you are also cutting calories intentionally or unintentionally.

R85 please do fast. Just dont do it intermittently. Do it till you are gone. Buh bye.

R92 there are some schools of thinking that say calories don’t matter—you’re addressing the issue with insulin resistance. But others believe that counting calories is important and all intermittent fasting does is allow you do enjoy foods you want because you’re limiting your meals. I suggest anyone who’s interested in learning more should join the many Facebook pages where they can see people talk about how they do it. Dr. Fung has a page... also, Delay, Don’t Deny is a good one.

Show us how, R93.

R95 you are too fat and indulgent to even try. Sorry bruh.

Bye 2U2, Anna R96.

I thought the video at R78 was a comprehensive explanation.

R97 are you stroking out bro? Doesnt make sense, dude. Have a cheese burger and fries.

R98 yes... but the Facebook stuff has people posting real life experiences. Some people have had tremendous success, while others not so much. It’s good to look at the different stories and figure out what lifestyle might be best for you. It’s actually the only reason I’m on Facebook lately.

R91 - Read my post again. I made it clear there were other considerations when it comes to diet. Yes absolutely there are hormones which can prevent you body from effectively turning food into energy. Now were back to the First Law of Thermodynamics.

I plan to doit. I noticed I had a few bouts of flu last year and one this year, and I always lost weight so nicely just after a couple days of not eating.

R2 It's genetics. My dad eats like that naturally. Not trying to get thin, he just likes having really big meals with large periods of times between them. He can easily go for 12 hours without food. His blood sugar is just fine.

Just watched a documentary about fasting yesterday. It was about days to weeks of fasting. One of the studies involved chemotherapy. The study shows if you fast before chemotherapy you have less side affects and the chemo seems to work better. Fasting seems to help those with arthritis, asthma and other problems. Will be interesting if they do a study comparing fasting with limited calories.

What’s the name of the documentary?

There's a whole subreddit devoted to this shit, because of course there is.

[bold]Fasting boosts stem cells’ regenerative capacity[/bold]

This was also doing the rounds on the main science subreddit this week.

[quote]This age-related loss of stem cell function can be reversed by a 24-hour fast, according to a new study from MIT biologists. The researchers found that fasting dramatically improves stem cells’ ability to regenerate, in both aged and young mice.

[quote]“Fasting has many effects in the intestine, which include boosting regeneration as well as potential uses in any type of ailment that impinges on the intestine, such as infections or cancers,” says Omer Yilmaz, an MIT assistant professor of biology, a member of the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, and one of the senior authors of the study. “Understanding how fasting improves overall health, including the role of adult stem cells in intestinal regeneration, in repair, and in aging, is a fundamental interest of my laboratory.”

[quote]The findings suggest that drug treatment could stimulate regeneration without requiring patients to fast, which is difficult for most people. One group that could benefit from such treatment is cancer patients who are receiving chemotherapy, which often harms intestinal cells. It could also benefit older people who experience intestinal infections or other gastrointestinal disorders that can damage the lining of the intestine.

The Science Of Fasting R105.

Don't you'all get seriously hungry?

R109 I used to but now I don't. You'd be shocked what your body can adjust to if given a regular pattern

How is intermittent fisting?

R106, the results in those photos seem really dramatic

[quote]You'd be shocked what your body can adjust to if given a regular pattern

But this is not anorexia. No.

R113 it is NOT anorexia. Read a little... or even a tiny bit.

I've been doing it for less than two weeks. Without modifying my diet I have lost body fat.

That should be: I've lost body fat without modifying my diet.

Just by nature I've never liked to eat past 5 or 6 pm, not as a child, not as a teen or young adult and not now, in my early 60s. I am also not a morning person. It was torture enough for me to get up for school and work without having to eat too. So basically most of my life I have eaten nothing between about 5:30 pm on average and noon the next day so I pretty much fast give or take 18 hours a day most of my life. I've also had a weight problem most of my life and now that I'm very inactive due to spine problems I'm about 25 pounds overweight. I've changed what I eat for lunch and dinner to a salad and some plain chicken, given up bread, have limited all other carbs. I never drink juice or anything with calories. For dinner I have a small amount of carbs, usually 1 cup of pasta or a small potato. I have not lost a pound. I figure my calorie total on most days and it's between 1000 and 1200. I'm 5' 9" or I was. I think I've shrunk a couple of inches because of my spine.

Fasting, not even intentionally, has gotten me nowhere for most of my life and now I'm actually gaining. Fucking frustrating as hell.

Maybe you need to trick you body, R117, by changing your eating pattern. Eat in the morning, for example, and see what happens.

R117, are you extremely sedentary? There is almost no possible way you could be eating 1000-1200 calories a day and be overweight unless you have an endocrine disorder or never move. I’d bet there are a lot of hidden carbs in your diet.

Sorry, I just reread your post and realized you are inactive. You’ve got to find a way to lose the extra weight. It’s the main contributor to the diseases that kill people of you age.

Yep, never move about describes me. I've gotten to where I need a home health aid just for the activities of daily living, a totally humiliating way to live, but grateful for the help Medicaid gives. I'd end up in a nursing home without it and that would be a horrible death. I don't mean that literally. I do get out of bed and with help walk to the bathroom and the kitchen and to my living room. Actually I have a studio apartment so it's not much of a walk. I do need a wheelchair to walk more than 1/4 of a block outside. It's about as close to never moving as a living creature can get.

I really can't eat in the mornings. I'm up early enough these days, I just can't get it down, not even tea or coffee. I do eat salad but I avoid carb heavy vegetables like carrots and beets. I account for my carbs at night even having my helper weigh or measure the pasta or potato and I don't put stuff on it, a little olive oil and salt on the pasta and a teaspoon of butter on the potato. It's not just a diet thing. I have to make my food really stretch as I am on food stamps. I think I make as healthy choices as possible given the amount of money I have to spend on food and never buy junk food or soda or anything that doesn't give me a nutritious bang for the buck.

Still, I'm the heaviest I've ever been in my life. When you lay around like bump on log you really can feel that extra 25 pounds. Being elderly doesn't help much I guess.

or·tho·rex·i·a ˌôrTHəˈreksēə/Submit noun an obsession with eating foods that one considers healthy. a medical condition in which the sufferer systematically avoids specific foods in the belief that they are harmful. noun: orthorexia nervosa; plural noun: orthorexia nervosas

Less than a month on 16:8 and I've noticeably been losing body fat.

Why all of this controversy? Intermittent Fasting for most people just means skipping breakfast. It's no big deal.

I've been doing it forever. I just don't need to eat in the morning. I do have a black coffee however.

I have lunch at 1pm.... and finish dinner by 8 pm.

That means I go 17 hours without eating. It's no sacrifice.

Thomas DeLauer is the patron stud of intermittent fasting

Just don't eat at all. Why bother? It's expensive and then you have to poo after. Food-free is a very liberating lifestyle.

I'm back doing Jenny Craig again; it's a bitch, the first week, at least; once you're into a few weeks it starts to really kick in; especially for men.

I heard a story about a bunch of soap actresses yakkin' it up in the makeup room talking about how to lose weight for bikini or bedroom scenes and one's saying 'diet and exercise' the other 'no, it's just diet' and one walks up later and calmly chimes in 'I find what works best is not eating'

I’m back on the Jenny!!

Trying to do the 18/6 a few days a week to ease into it.

[bold]Daily fasting works for weight loss[/bold]

[quote]Daily fasting is an effective tool to reduce weight and lower blood pressure, according to a new study published by University of Illinois at Chicago researchers in the journal Nutrition and Healthy Aging.

[quote]The study is the first to examine the effect of time-restricted eating — a form of fasting that limits food consumption to select hours each day — on weight loss in obese individuals.

[quote]To study the effect of this type of diet, researchers worked with 23 obese volunteers who had an average age of 45 and average body mass index, or BMI, of 35. Between the hours of 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. the dieters could eat any type and quantity of food they desired, but for the remaining 16 hours they could only drink water or calorie-free beverages. The study followed the participants for 12 weeks.

R131 - It's important to note that the people in study were eating less. Also it is one study with 23 participants.

Like many people say if it works for you - go with it. I think the study shows following the 16:8 schedule results in people cutting back on food consumption. What no study has shown is weight loss through intermittent fasting without a reduction in food consumption.

I'm still doing it and I don't find it hard at all. It feels good to go have several hours of non eating before going to bed and I don't ever wake up hungry.

I just started to do this although I put milk in my coffee, probably 3/4 of a cup all up. Does this ruin my fast??

r132 You can't really conduct a study like this with thousands of people. 23 is more than enough.

It also clearly says it's the first study of its kind so saying there's only been one study is kinda bizarre, honestly.

Not sure what your pint is R135. The researchers who did this study admit the sample size was small. I think the fact it is one study bears repeating. I don't see how you can claim 23 people is enough - especially considering all 23 participant were 45 year old obese men. . . One of the interesting things about this study is that only the times people ate were controlled. For example cholesterol levels didn't decrease. One of the biggest flaws in the study was data was collected by self-reporting.

I think even the researches admit the big result from the study is that more study is needed. For example animal studies.

Again like many people say, it it works for you great.

It's like the International Penis Size Report - WHO thought self reporting would solve anything?

A.K.A. Intermittent Stupidity

I've done it and it's worked for me. Maybe 5 days a week going 12-14 hours without eating - usually 8 p.m. to 9 or 10 am. Can get tricky when I go out. Let's say I go out during the week and have a few drinks after my usual 8 pm end time and finish at 11 p.m. Then I'll usually wait until 11 am or noon the next day when I eat lunch and then regroup by ending at 8 pm again. One weekend day I usually won't fast in the same manner because I'll inevitably eat later than I usually do. Usually ends up okay since I'm not hungry in the morning, but occasionally I'll turn around and eat not that long after getting up. I'm not neurotic about it. If the "fast" is only 11 hours instead of 13, fine. Yeah, sometimes you feel hungry, and usually I get through it, but if it ever gets overwhelming, like I feel weak or I can't concentrate, then fast over, no matter how short of the normal time might be. Situations like that helps me learn what and how much I need to eat during the eating window. It's a useful tool for me, but I don't take it to extremes. Most normal days when I'm fasting from 8 pm until 9 or 10 the next day, the only time I want to give in is usually around 11 pm or so, even though I ate right before 8. I get this intense nighttime hunger that usually subsides in an hour or an hour and a half. It's intense, but it's different than hunger where I feel weak or light headed - which would make me end the fast.

For Sweet Gesu's sake, if one makes ANY changes in one's diet, whether it's all-grapefruit, or all protein, or low-fat, or high-fat, or igneous rocks...you will lose weight...for five minutes. Then the body adapts and you're right back where you started. There's one--and ONLY one--method of weight-loss that works in the long run--and you know what it is: less consumption, more energy expended. Period.

Right, and fasting is way to eat less.

I fast from my dinner until about 2pm in the afternoon. Because I eat low carb I don't really get hungry so intermittant fasting is easy. I don't know that i could do extended fasting though.

Excuse me, will you be needing that fly?

It's all yours, Darfur Orphan.

R140, I lost my weight via intermittent fasting years, continued the process, and have kept off the weight. I get your point if people are treating this as a diet, rather than as a life change. As a life change, I'm proof of its success. And beyond the weight loss, and not regaining the weight, is the increasing documentation that this life change is thought to be successful at keeping diseases at bay.

I suspect you lost the weight more because you are actually eating less calories in total than you use to eat with your former eating schedule.

July 1st, I weighed 266. August 1st, I weighed 242. I'm 6' 4" .

I ate one meal a day, early morning. Chicken, green salad with tomatoes and Greek yogurt.

Only Coke Zero and bottled water, no alcohol.

How do you have energy if you're not eating for so long?

10 Evidence-Based Health Benefits of Intermittent Fasting.

My diet: no more than 20 carbs daily; less than 1000 calories consumed; wine/vodka as desired. 4-5 miles walked a coupla times a week, optional.

"Last Tuesday at 11:09 PM For Sweet Gesu's sake, if one makes ANY changes in one's diet, whether it's all-grapefruit, or all protein, or low-fat, or high-fat, or igneous rocks...you will lose weight...for five minutes. Then the body adapts and you're right back where you started. There's one--and ONLY one--method of weight-loss that works in the long run--and you know what it is: less consumption, more energy expended. Period."

And, if you stop less consumption, less energy expended, you'll gain weight.

R150, how are you keeping your daily carbs <20g if you have wine (which has sugar) as desired?

R152, I can attest that the low-carb diet works. Wine is NOT part of my diet. I do have vodka. The lovely thing is that one drink and I’m pleasantly tipsy; your tolerance is so low in ketosis.

I “spend” my carbs on nuts and yellow peppers.

Regular dry wine (I drink chardonnay) has miniscule carb content per glass, r152. And I easily polish off at LEAST a bottle daily. I don't say this to gloat but because...

Bump

How do you get your engine started in the morning? Don't you need something to be able to do nr 2 before you head out the door? Or will caffeine alone do the job?

R156, for me, coffee with heavy cream is filling and gives me energy. I don’t get hungry until 2:00.

I"ve been doing this for a week but haven't seen any results. Does it take a while to kick in?

Any diet for me ALWAYS takes two weeks to show some results.

Anyone else still doing this? what’s your eating schedule look like?

R160 I'm do water fasting for 4 days, eat one very high nutrient, low carb "feast meal" on the fifth day, rinse, repeat. I have lost a lot, and nope, never hungry. Once in a while I will fast for five days and then eat my feast meal two days in a row. I find my mind is much clearer, it's almost a bit of a high. Also, it is nice not having all of that "food noise" in my head every day. "What should I eat, when, how much, how little, yadda"

R160, I'm about to enter my 13th year (6th year, everyday) of intermittent fasting. Very happy with the effects of this lifestyle change.

I've been doing this as advised by my doctor and have lost 11 lbs. in the past six weeks. I put on over 20 lbs during the past year, and am recovering from an injury so not working out as much. I'm doing a 16/8 schedule, consuming 1400 - 1500 calories a day between noon and 8 pm. Goal is 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat. It hasn't been difficult and I rarely feel hungry except right before dinner. However, today I woke up starving and basically consumed all of my calories in a 2 hour window. I have felt sick all afternoon. Hope to get back on track tomorrow and lose another 10 lbs over the next few weeks.

A water fast for four days makes me hungry just reading about it, r161

Wow. This thread began almost 11 years ago. That's some crazy shelf-life!

I was surprised there were no recent threads on this topic, r165, esp. with all the COVID weight gain.

R166 Oh hell. If there was a recent thread on this topic, that asshole troll who complains about multiple threads would be whining about it! His whole purpose in life is to be sure that every thread has not been duplicated in the last fifteen years.