I am new to IF and only just learned of it a few days ago, that is in the context of using as a weight loss tool.
I have been struggling with weight since my late teens and am now 34 and utterly sick of this.
I am currently 278,5 lbs and would love to get to 165 eventually, right now I am shooting for a whooping 250 and will be proud when I get there.
I started with Fast 5 yesterday, managed 17 hours then and 19 hours today, when I broke my fast at 2 pm. But I am aiming for a 5-10 pm window and will get there gradually or modify my approach as I go along.
I look forward to sharing this journey with you all,
Oh, SWEET! There is an active thread! I searched through them all and finally found it.
I discovered IF recently and just bought and read Brad Pilon's book ESE. I completed my first fast 2 days ago and it went very well! I have about 15-20lbs of fat left to burn. I began New Rules of Lifting for Women 5 weeks ago and will be finishing stage 1 next week. I plan to begin Chalean Extreme in July for 90 days. I really think ESE and strength training will finally bring me to my goal body fat percentage. I still calorie count at the moment but once I hit maintenance I will start to ease out of it.
I look forward to being a part of the "group" here :-)
Welcome Devine. You can do it! It just takes the first step and you've already done it.
Kristi I was thinking of doing Chalean Extreme as well. I liked it when I did it a while ago. Keep us updated on how it works for you with the fast.
I am working on getting back to 19 -24 hours. I had an unsuccessful 24 hour fast Wednesday. I ended up stopping 18 in. I am going to try again this next week. What I do love about IF is that it gets those stubborn spots like my chin fat. My face looks a lot slimmer.
i have been doing IF for many years, only i didn't know that's what i was doing. and i guess i really was just feeding into my eating disorder. binge and then control my weight by fasting. about nine years ago i got fed up with my weight. i was right at 300 lbs. i started fasting, and lost 167 lbs in just short of a year. i most definitely starved myself. wouldn't eat for days sometimes, others i would have a low cal salad. a lot of my hair fell out and i know i was very sick.
sooo...i have regained and lost...only to find my weight really creeping up lately. i've got right around 70 lbs to lose. i can make excuses, and i have some good ones. loses of two very-much loved ones has led to a lot of comfort eating. i'm very unhappy with myself though.
i recently discovered IF, and have been doing a lot of reading. i've been so excited! my new year's resolution was to eat healthy and lose weight. since then, i have continued to gain. since i have become better informed on how to do IF the right way, i think i might actually be able to lose, and keep it off this time. i started two weeks ago tomorrow, and have lost about six lbs. and on top of that, i just feel fantastic!! knowing that i can eat a heartier meal in the evening and still be legal has made it so much easier to make good food choices.
i'd like to ask a couple of questions...does anyone have suggestions on what to do for nausea when fasting? i had surgery for a hiatal hernia in sept, and ever since i have had an issue of getting very nauseous when i don't eat.
and...i was wondering if there is anything acceptable to drink, beyond water, coffee, and diet soda. i don't care for tea at all, but i suppose if it were beneficial to the fast, i could give it a try.
thank you all so much for listening to my story. and a big High Five to you all!!
Hello, everyone. IF is working fine for me these days. When combined with calorie counting, it is very effective. I find that I can take a break for a week and eat over my calorie budget without gaining. That is important to me, because sometimes you just need a week off without wiping out your progress.
This weekend I realized that I have lost my wedding rings. I don't wear them often, because during my pregnancy, I developed an allergy and they do horrible things to my finger. The engagement ring was my husband's mother's, and I am absolutely sick about it. I want to throw up and cry.
As far as IF and nausea, I also can get very nauseated. My advice to you is make your pre-fast meal very high in protein. If I eat a lot of carbs the night before, I will get very nauseated late in my fast. I would also recommend that you begin with a 16 hour fast for several weeks before going straight to fast5. I do a 16 hour fast daily, and once a week, I attempt a 24 hour fast. The author of leangains even advises that women can succeed with a 14 hour daily fast. The key is finding something that works for you and doesn't trigger binging behavior. If you are so starved that you binge on the nearest buffet at the end of your fast, then you are not going to lose weight, and you will be very frustrated. Be kind to yourself and take it in stages.
As far as liquids during a fast, I have read that it is okay to drink broths, as long as they are below 25-50 calories. For example, boiling a chicken boullion in a mug of water is no worse than a cup of coffee. I have not done it, but I have told myself that I will if I need it to help me through a 24 hour fast.
Also, I can't say this enough: if you really want to see changes immediately, work out at the end of your fast. Whether it's a quick walk around the block, jumping jacks, or hardcore on the treadmill or elliptical, even 20 minutes of cardio can help you dip into those fat stores.
Good luck to everyone this week!
Please pray that I find my rings.
Kristi I was thinking of doing Chalean Extreme as well. I liked it when I did it a while ago. Keep us updated on how it works for you with the fast.
I most definitely will! It's my summer project
Today is my 3rd 24 hour fast. All them have gone very well and I reached 24 hours without much difficulty. I DID notice some binge behavior a couple days last week... but my daughter's birthday brought in more junk in the house than usual. Not that it's an excuse but I need to watch that I don't undo all my hard work!
wow this thread is just plain awesome!!
and...i was wondering if there is anything acceptable to drink, beyond water, coffee, and diet soda. i don't care for tea at all, but i suppose if it were beneficial to the fast, i could give it a try.
I stick to plain water, tea and lemon water. I like using the "True Lemon" packets and a splenda with how water. It sounds strange but feels soothing and cleansing. They also make a raspberry lemonade flavoring packet for water that is only 5 calories. It shouldn't break a fast.
that's awful about losing your rings! i will keep my fingers crossed that you find them.
thank you so much for your advice. i like your suggestions, and will definitely see what will work for me. i like the idea of broth. i know when i've been nauseous in the past, something salty will usually make me feel better. so i am anxious to see if that will work for me now!
i know you are so right about the exercising. getting myself to do it is another matter though i always use the excuse that i'm active enough at work, which is almost true. but my job is only occasionally physical. the hardest part is the walk from where i park my car. it takes about 10-15 minutes, depending on how tired i am.
summer is here, and it's not climate controlled at my job, so i'm hoping the heat will help as well!
again, i will be thinking positive thoughts about your rings. i'm sad to hear you can't find them
I stick to plain water, tea and lemon water. I like using the "True Lemon" packets and a splenda with how water. It sounds strange but feels soothing and cleansing. They also make a raspberry lemonade flavoring packet for water that is only 5 calories. It shouldn't break a fast.
i've actually meant to try lemon in my water, but i keep forgetting. i remember an old diet that called for warm lemonade. i figure it must be good for a person! i've been drinking some crystal lite-type drinks. i think they are about 15 cals a serving. the tropical punch is really good.
i'm happy to say that i've been doing really well with drinking water. i used to never get enough, but since i started fasting i'm drinking constantly!
Welcome to all the new people. I'm back from a couple weeks of vacation.
mrslynah - sure sorry to hear about the rings! Hope they are found by now.
Just a comment about BCAA's... My son has been doing leangains and loving it for about a year and a half now. He does the BCAA's and the heavy lifting, but the interesting thing he said is that he likes the BCAA's because they really curb hunger. I thought that was interesting. I don't have issues with hunger until right before my eating window opens, so haven't tried it. I thought I'd mention it though since it might work that way for others.
ennay, thanks for the Dr. Weil link. It's nice to see some people coming around. I was interested to read some time ago that Dr. Mercola is an IF'er too.
gosh i put on 3 lbs this week. despite doing three 24 hour fasts. i guess i am WAY overeating on my eating days. i'm still exercising and lifting. sigh. i feel quite disappointed and... no its not time of the month either.
i don't really calorie count and i just eat whatever i want on my eating days. i guess that needs to change. so this week i will calorie count. fingers crossed xxxx
My dad came for a visit this weekend and I couldn't handle telling him about IF so I ate a bit outside the window as not to arouse suspicion (I sound all mysterious don't I). I'm keeping this to myself for the moment, not because I don't think they won't support me but because I don't want to let them, as well as myself, down one more time.
So, for now, IF is my little secret.
This hasn't really been this hard and today I am going for 24 hours drinking only water. (My hunger is at probably 6/10 and I have peed A LOT but I'm hanging in there)
I have to tell you though that I must be some special kind of stupid, cause in the past when thinking about a 24 hour fast I always thought to myself 'I just can't handle not eating something for a whole day!' and then yesterday I thought 'well if that were to happen (not eating for a whole day) I would have to fast for 36 hours and that's not my intention' so I finally realized that a 24 hour fast is to eat dinner at 6 pm and then eating after 6 pm the next day. I just always forgot to include the hours I would spend sleeping!
What IF has actually done for me most, since I don't have any weight loss to report, is make it real clear to me that I am terrified of hunger!
Who knew? I sure as heck didn't.
I feel real physical and mental discomfort at the thought of going hungry or denying myself food.
I think this is a feeling that I need to examine as this might actually be the reason behind my current and past struggles with weight.
i always use the excuse that i'm active enough at work, which is almost true. but my job is only occasionally physical. the hardest part is the walk from where i park my car. it takes about 10-15 minutes, depending on how tired i am.
