What do you think of fasting/semi-fasting?
 

I'm trying to think of non-traditional ways to eat. I've been working so hard to break out of the three-big-meals-a-day mode, and instead eating like five small meals, and no heavy foods later in the evening.

I'm also predominantly vegetarian, and last night I got the idea of maybe doing a raw food thing for a day or two a week. I think a total fast wouldn't work because I'd get too hungry and might possibly binge, which is why I've been doing the raw thing. So today I've eaten a cole slaw I made last night from red cabbage, onion, carrots, and balsamic vinegar. And an orange. And coffee. The slaw is strangely satisfying. I may get massive heartburn later, tho!

But it seems like a lot of things I've read is about aggregate eating. Instead of looking at reducing calories on a daily thing, look at it from a weekly/monthly perspective instead. I don't know. It just seems more manageable like that.

Does anyone have any ideas on non-traditional ways to eat?

I'm a three meals and two snacks kinda person. It results in always having just eaten something or being just about to eat something. That works for me since I hate deprivation of any kind.

What are you trying to accomplish? Mixing it up for awhile to kickstart weightloss or are you trying to come up with something that will work longterm? Personally, I try not to do anything in regards to food or exercise that I don't think I can do forever.

You might look into intuitive eating. It's about really listening to the signals your body gives you. It's my eventual goal but I need more structure than that in the losing process.

Whatever you do, be sure to make sure your nutritional requirements are met. Fitday's a great way to be sure you're getting enough of everything you need.

I say a big 'no' on the fasting, or semi fasting. You need to think of your eating plan as something you can sustain for life. You can't fast for very long.

I am not sure what you mean by alternative eating, though. I am a 3 small meal 2 snack per day gal. I don't like to be hungry, and I don't like to be stuffed.

You might want to check out the whole foods section, or volumetrics for a different way of eating.

Yea, I don't really know what I'm doing. =D I'm trying to make dieting more ... interesting. And more of a choice. Does that make sense? I've done every freakin' diet in the book, and I never stay on for longer than six months, so I am looking for things that work for me long-term.

A couple months ago, I went vegetarian in our home cooking (mainly because I thought it would get my family to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, which it has). And it worked out well. Then, a couple weeks ago, we gave up fast food, because we were turning to that more often instead of making food at home.

So I'm trying to make a series of small changes.

I don't know. I think I could do a raw food day.

A lot of the raw foodists do juice fasts which they prefer to call "juice feasts".. If you have a juicer, you may want to look into that?

I'd love to be motivated enough to do the raw foods lifestyle, but I love chicken and seafood, and DH is carnivorous, so I just try to eat a lot of fruits and veggies.

As far as fasting, in general I wouldn't recommend it. DH and I do it for a MONTH (Well while the sun is out) for religious reasons, and it makes you feel pretty awful, and at the end of the day, even if you don't eat much you will probably end up gaining weight. I wouldn't recommend it!

Fasts are sometimes done short-term for cleansing, but I don't think anyone recommends fasting for weight loss purposes.

It's hard to keep going on any program for more than six months--people don't understand just what a challenge that is! But, many people here on 3FC have stayed on their plan for longer than that--some for much longer. So, what you need to do is find a way of eating that you can sustain in the long run. It has to

(1) Fit with how your household is eating,
(2) Fit with your own style--e.g., if you don't like cooking, then a program where you have to cook special foods all the time may not be right for you. And vice versa.
(3) Go with your life. Do you have a job outside the home? Can you take a lunch to work? Do you travel for work a lot? If you are someone who stays home, then sometimes it's easier to get things under control.
(4) Be something that's flexible enough that you can work around daily challenges and have some variety, but still restrictive enough that you can keep losing. Lots of members like calorie counting for that reason.

So, keep trying! If you want to do a raw foods day, that's fine--but try to keep it in the context of a bigger picture.

Be sure that your plan contains strategies for when you've reached your ideal weight and you want to mantain. That's the hard part. That's why "diets" don't work--people stop "dieting" and go back to old habits... :no:

Good luck! Keep on!
Jay