Specifically, to help get out of a certain weight range (mine being 140's) I mean, in terms of weightloss, is this a workable strategy or will I most likely see a slight loss only to come back when I resume normal calorie counting?
A couple of weightloss/bodybuilding guru's I trust seem to condone this every once in a while and I do wonder if it would really work...
I have done it and I always put the weight back on rather quickly.. it would take me 2-3 weeks to get down to 142 and then I would plateau and gain all the weight back within a week or so. So it does not really work for me.
I don't know if what I'm doing is considered fasting or not, but currently I'm eating very low calories three days per week and then on the fourth day I do a re-feed by adding a banana, 1 cup of veggies and a 1/2 cup of brown rice to my day. I lost 5 pounds in my first week and 2 more so far this week. Some of it will come back because it's just water weight. I plan to counteract as much as I can by adding an extra 100 calories per week until my body settles in.
I wouldn't suggest dipping too low though, not at all. It's not healthy and it's a set up for a good old plateau. I'm adding in the re-feeds to counteract that. My body gets efficient really fast.
My take on fasting is this: If you're putting the correct foods in to your body then there's no need to fast. Your body will function in the proper ways because it is getting the proper nutrition. IMO fasting is to clense the body of processed chemicals.
I don't have anything against it, it's just not for me.
Thanks everyone for your opinions and experiences!
Eliana, we seem to go about this journey the same way, I do zig zag my calories as well. I have two close to maintenance level days a week and the rest is 2 low days (1200-1300) to 3 inbetween days (1400-1500). Zig zagging works pretty well for me overall.
The 140's are always my toughest, it took me NO time to get the 3-4 lbs off to get to 149 and then it just went soooo unbelievably slow. I've been at it since the beginning of Jan. and while I am happy for the loss, I just want out!
I do eat my veggies, always but I admit during fall/winter I kind of just forget about fruits and water. Maybe once I begin adding those back in with my veggies and lean meats I can get my nutrition back to normal.
Like you my body seems to grasp onto becoming efficient before my brain even gets used to it!
I have fasted before, and while I lost weight quickly, I would not recommend it. I was literally starving for days on end, and gained it all back within a few days. If you want to clean out your system, and maybe loose some weight in the process, I would try a detox diet. Usually you still eat 1000-1400 calories on a detox, only the food are generally pure and mostly raw fruits and veggies. I am sure you could do a google search for detox diets and find a million of them! Good luck!
Here is the type of fasting I am currently experimenting with. It is fasted exercise rather than imposed long term starvation which I feel is dangerous on any level. Qny program that recommends fasting of any kind for more than 12 hrs is not safe since it is very easy for people to take fasting too far and after 24-48 hours fasting can begin to negatively affect your metabolism.
4 easy steps to a super simple pain free fast!
Step 1: Stop eating 2 hours before bed
Step 2: Wake up have a green tea or coffee
Step 3: Exercise for 30-60 minutes (this should be light cardio, a walk, easy pace cycling, climbing stairs etc. It should elevate the heart rate a little but still be performed at a pace that does not make you feel hungry)
Step 4: Eat breakfast, preferably this is 10-12 hrs after your last meal hence the fast takes place while you are asleep.
With this method of fasted exercise you teach your body to burn fat rather than the available glycogen in your stomach and can really help elevate weight loss during a plateau. Fasting without starving!
This really is only applicable to those who have a regular schedule which will permit this type of morning routine, if you eat your last meal at 12 and wake up at 7 obviously you will not be getting the full benefit of the 10-12 hour fast and will be going waaaaay too long without food in the morning if you do try to strive for that time frame making the whole process pointless and ineffectual.
Veela, that describes my normal routine. Except I'm able to go full force on exercise for an hour and fifteen minutes intense cardio, running and spin class. I've never been a breakfast person so this scenario is perfect for me. I can't push it past an hour and fifteen minutes though. I carry a banana in my gym bag just in case, in fact. But by the time I get home I am ready to eat whereas if I eat first thing in the morning I will likely gag on breakfast.
I guess I am unintentionally doing it this way too. Dinner ranges anywhere as early as 5pm but no later than 7, no more eating afterwards. Coffee is around 8:30am. Sometimes I eat breakfast a little later and sometimes I don't and just skip on to lunch.
The important thing with this type of fasting is that you do not go below 3 meals a day your should be having 3 meals spread out evenly through the day following the morning fast. I can't stress this enough do not skip a main meal since that is when your metabolism will start to become sluggish. Also the exercise in the morning is also very important since it teaches your body to turn to the energy stored in fat and thus burns fat.
I totally disagree. I have done fast-5 and Eat-STOP-Eat and I've felt wonderful on both plans. My cholesterol, blood pressure are lower and sugars are normal. I don't care what trainers say, the proof is in the pudding for me.
I will say that when I stopped fast 5 I gained some weight back but I only stopped it because I was on massive doses of steroids for a health issue and that caused the gain. People on prednisone gain an average of 50 pounds a year....
That said, on a lower dose I am actually losing weight now by fasting.
It's the only diet I can really stick to long term and I wish more people could have that. I guess every diet has it's critics... I can't stand the diets that are nothing but processed crappy frozen food but I'm glad that someone is getting to their goal regardless.
YES, Changed. Eat Stop Eat. look it up OP. i love it. luvluvluv. it's fairly flexible on how often you could fast. i fast twice a week, twenty four hours. so like...on sunday, i stop eating around five. monday...i don't eat until five. so i have one meal or so and on tuesday i eat normally. and you won't feel guilty if you ate a little more or something because you created a cal. deficit the day before!
and it's really not hard after the first few times. you're body learns how to deal with hunger and eventually ...get rid of that constant hunger. in combination with low carbing..it's a life saver!
also, when i am very virtuous, i exercise before i break my fast. the basic science is, after twenty four hours..even a little before that also, your insulin goes down. this is a good thing because that is when your body will say, okay...i will burn fat now. instead of...i am just gonna use the carbs that are being pumped into me constantly. it also has many other magical effects like longevity and increased immunity. because think about it, when youre not busy digesting food all day..your body can work on healing itself. it's beautiful.
there are also plans like the warrior diet where you eat one huge meal at the end of the day.
just be safe, listen to your body sometimes in the beginning you will truly be hungry and it's okay to eat. but it's also okay to fast. its practical for a busy lifestyle as it allows to time to just...get work done. just do your research
i am sorry this was so long but, the research for this is awe inspiring and i really think people should try it when they are ready.
I do have to agree that while I don't know much about using fasting as a weight loss tool, fasting is probably not going to do any major damage. Biblically speaking, it has been done since forever really. Not trying to infuse my religious beliefs here, but I think almost every religion has some type of fasting practice they lean on.
With that said, just off the top of my head, I wouldn't think fasting through breakfast would be a major issue if people fast 24 hours for religious purposes.
Doing it repeatedly several times a week, yes I do believe that might be harmful after a while. I try not to skip breakfast too many days in a row, I think I might do it 3 times on average out of the week, 4 tops, and I am trying my best to work on it. My 2 disadvantages: I just am not hungry in the morning like I am at night and also I am addicted to coffee which fills me up. I should probably work on the coffee addiction, but I am not ready to deal with that yet. Weightloss first, I can only take so many major changes at once, lol. I did kick soda for good!
I love skipping dinner on occasion although I don't do it for weightloss. Sometimes it's nice to give things a rest. I feel great the next morning. I can't skip breakfast or lunch though - it makes me bonkers
I read up on the Up Day Down Day Diet (forgot the Dr.'s name at the moment) but it's too restrictive for me.
How many featherweights have tried fasting?
Except I'm able to go full force on exercise for an hour and fifteen minutes intense cardio, running and spin class. I've never been a breakfast person so this scenario is perfect for me. I can't push it past an hour and fifteen minutes though. I carry a banana in my gym bag just in case, in fact. But by the time I get home I am ready to eat whereas if I eat first thing in the morning I will likely gag on breakfast.
