I have been IFing with 6 hour eating window & 18 fast. I keep forgetting to eat enough & have to get something quick at the last minute. So used to 400 or less calorie meals spaced out it's hard to convince myself it's ok & necessary to eat 600 calorie meals.
My other issue is I HAVE to have breakfast right after I get up or I feel sick. Luckily I am a housewife with no kids so I can get up at noon or 1 without many problems so I can go to dinner with friends occasionally.
I do sometimes get hungry late at night before bed. It's annoying.
I measured myself today! So far I've almost lost an inch off my hips, which is great!My hips are my problem area. No changes on my waist or bustline just yet, but thats no big deal. I'm actually seeing some very slight results in just three weeks time. That's pretty impressive!
I got myself back on track today. The past week was troublesome for me as I kept snacking around 11 PM-12 AM, but I have no plans on doing that tonight!
I'm just hoping I can resist snacking when I go to see Avengers on Friday!
I recently started fast-5 and love it! I tried it about a year ago but life got in the way and it just didn't work out (mainly because of my night time binge eating- I'm not a breakfast person in general). My window is from 12-5p. Since starting fast-5 on Monday I haven't had a binge night which is amazing for me lately (and I'm even dealing with TOM right now)! I'm combining fast-5 with insanity (I'm almost through week 3) and just loving it!
I do have a few questions- does anyone on here combine fast 5 with ESE? I stopped eating last night at 4 because I was full and didn't want to just eat because I could. As of right now, I'm not hungry at all. I guess my plan is to go until 4p making it a 24 hr fast and then only eat from 4-5 and resume fast 5 tomorrow at my regularly scheduled time. Is there any reason why I shouldn't do this?
Another question- how many of you go by the suggested weight in the book? According to it my weight should be 112lbs. I'm 5'5" and have a small frame (wrist is just under 5.75"). My original goal weight was 135 which I hit about 9 months ago and then focused on maintaining. Recently I decided to lose some more and am down to 129.0 with a goal weight of 125 (and an ultimate "holy crap!!" goal weight of 119 lol). Just wondering if his book goes along with what other people would suggest or recommend.
I hope everyone is having a great day and I'll be thankful for any answers to my questions!!
Last edited by Kendrab1223; 05-03-2012 at 12:17 PM.
Just remember that calories always matter. So depending on what you eat it is still possible to gain weight or fail to lose it with only 1 big meal and a snack a day.
Definitely!!! Luckily, what is a "big" meal to me is a LOT smaller when I fast all day.
Blah--I feel awful. Today at work we had a luncheon and I decided that since IF was so flexible, I'd go ahead and eat the lunch. My normal window of eating is usually 4:30 until 8:00 (because that's really all I want, as my 4:30 meal fills me up pretty well).
Well, I am paying for it now. I feel lethargic, just like I used to feel all afternoon after eating lunch. WOW, can I tell how much better I feel while fasting. I used to rely on coffee midmorning and again midafternoon, after the post-breakfast and post-lunch slumps. With IF, there is no slump.
I knew I felt good, but in comparison to how BAD I feel today, I realize just HOW good I've been feeling!!!
Do you think anyone would notice if I crawled under my desk and had a nap?
JohnP- Thanks for the great info. And the big meals would be even as much as 2500 calories, which I know is crazy! This was a long time ago and the food choices horrendous, like a whole pizza or huge plate of cheesy nachos. With more thought I realize that ensuring healthy choices it would be nearly impossible to way over do the calories, even with a big meal.
Ennay- Thanks for the running info. I am really interested in trying this out. Right now I am trying to tackle eating the right foods and stying in a calorie goal. I have so long ascribed to the "load up" before I run method that the idea of setting off on a long run while fasted is kinda scary. I do want to see how this works though. But at the moment still on the fence.
Thanks again for those that gave such great info to my questions.
One other question:
I was reading about weightlifting fasted and from what I read I need to take some kind of amino acid supplements before and after lifting if lifting in a fasted state? I am current doing the new rules of lifting for women program. I lift weights three days a week. The author really stresses getting a post workout meal right away, and I am aware this could be one of the fallacy types of thinking that proponents of IF type lifestyles tell you to disregard. But it makes sense to me that feeding the muscles post lifting can be important? And honestly I don't know if I like the idea of taking amino acids. Just from a cost perspective.
Just a quick Fly-In. Great to see so many new faces. I've been very on track with my IF and food choices. Went out to lunch today with some friends, so my window is moved up. Will have a light, early dinner and then will be done until tomorrow afternoon.
Just registered for this forum and was looking at doing IF. I see most here either do Fast-5 or ESE.
I've been reading up on both and find both appealing, although I think that Fast-5 would be easier for me, as most days I don't eat breakfast anyway - also most days I don't eat lunch until 1pm or so.
My goal is to lose around 50 lbs...I know that will take time and and not looking for a quick fix. Comments/suggestions?
I was reading about weightlifting fasted and from what I read I need to take some kind of amino acid supplements before and after lifting if lifting in a fasted state? I am current doing the new rules of lifting for women program. I lift weights three days a week. The author really stresses getting a post workout meal right away, and I am aware this could be one of the fallacy types of thinking that proponents of IF type lifestyles tell you to disregard. But it makes sense to me that feeding the muscles post lifting can be important? And honestly I don't know if I like the idea of taking amino acids. Just from a cost perspective.
BCAAs (amino acids) are not needed at all. The "leangains" method is where that comes from and is designed for very lean people to become even leaner while keeping all their muscle.
Aside from that - when you eat really comes down to context. If you're looking to build muscle eating a meal within an hour or so of working out is probably a good idea. If you're simply looking to preserve muscle 2-3 hours is probably adequate. It also matters how much fat you have to lose.
Having said that, lifting fasted makes me very hungry so I couldn't possibly go more than a couple hours after lifting. YMMV
Well, I made the mistake of weighing in today! My TOM came to visit this morning, and it was not kind to the scale. I gained about 2.5 lbs today. I know it's just water weight, but it's kind of a downer. I'll just make sure to chug a lot of water the next few days, and weigh in a few days after it's over.
The good news is I managed to get my butt to the gym today, and the normal PMS cravings I do get are no longer an issue for me. Normally I want to eat sweets like nobodies business. I'm pretty sure I can thank IFing for that.
Thanks again John!
I do want to gain muscle. I realize this is nearly impossible on a calorie restrictive diet. I have probably at least 20 lbs of fat I want to lose. My guess is I could stand to lose more like 30lbs. Ideally I would like to be 18-20% body fat. I am just getting into lifting heavy weights again and am already loving how its making me feel. I have intentionally kept my calorie deficit fairly mild because I would like to be putting on muscle, and at the very least not losing that which I have while I get some of this fat off.
This week I started implementing HIIT training, which for now I am going to do once a week in addition to lifting three times a week and other cardio three times a week.
Honestly the working out part of the equation has been great for me. It's keeping my calories below 2100 (1800 is what I shoot for, but I allow up to 2100). I have been overshooting that mark everyday and IF seems a very good solution to my overeating problem.
Thanks so much for asking that question, wannaBfitnessbuff and JohnP for answering it. I saw other IF users mention bcaa so I was wondering the same thing as wannaB because I do want to start lifting again.
I am still IFing so far and the "reverse" (got that idea from arcticmama, i think) IF really helps on some days. Feeling great but I have not measured myself. Maybe I should so I don't only depend on what the scale says.
I have been off ESE for several months due to diabetes-related issues. I'm happy to say that I've figured out how to deal with the issues, I'm off medications, I've lost 10 lbs and my blood sugar is nearly at normal levels again. And I can do ESE again!
I've had to modify it so that it doesn't affect my blood sugar adversely. When I was doing it before, I had stopped losing weight altogether after a bit. I figured out that the combination of fasting and late higher carb dinners was causing my blood sugars to rise really high in the morning and remain higher throughout the day. I had to go on medication for a few weeks, but that made me feel really awful and I had gained weight on it as well. Made my appetite go through the roof and caused me to experience a lot of vertigo-like symptoms that prevented me from exercising at all. Plus, I felt very dull and thick-headed and couldn't think to work.
But once I took myself off the meds and got them out of my system, my appetite decreased, I got my brain back and I can exercise again. I figured out that I had to quit eating by 6 pm and I needed to keep my carbs really low, like under 25 net grams a day. And just this week, I figured out that I could just have a cup or two of coffee in the morning with real cream and that helps my blood sugar stablize in the mornings, so I can extend my fasting period to 18 hours.
Looking forward to hanging out here! Are any of you on Venus Index too?
I've been a hit-and-run IFer in the past and had mixed results (mostly good), but I'd like to try again and give it a fair trial this time. I'm going to give it at least 8 weeks before coming to any kind of preliminary conclusion.
My weight has gone back and forth quite a bit since 2010, but most of that has been gaining (I'm over 30 lbs heavier than I was 2 years ago ). I've tried both ESE and Fast 5 but I wasn't very consistent with either.
One of my biggest problems with food and dieting in general is that food is a huge comfort source for me (and an easy way to distract myself if I'm anxious or upset), and it's so hard to give that up. I'm also tired and dragging most of the time and sugar/fast food/junk food seems to be an immediate mood-lifter and gives me a sense of happiness and well-being... temporary, I know, but when I try to adjust my diet I end up craving that feeling and caving in to temptation.
I'm hoping that IFing can help me become more disciplined, as long as I can stick it out during the initial adjustment phase. Here's to better health
I love Fast 5! Today I feel like myself again. After yesterday's lunch misadventure, I am happy to report that we are having a "tea" in the conference room all day (lots of munchies) and I walked in, looked at it, and walked right out. It's easier to NOT eat than to eat and pay for it the whole afternoon by feeling lethargic.
I don't know if you remember that in my introduction I said I had put away the scale...that didn't last. I am still weighing every day. I just can't make myself stop--every time I've ever put the scale away for a period of time, my weight always goes UP. So I am victim of a catch-22: I need the feedback to make sure I am on the right track, but I get obsessed with what the number says every day. Sigh. I'm sure many of you can relate.
No changes on my waist or bustline just yet, but thats no big deal. I'm actually seeing some very slight results in just three weeks time. That's pretty impressive!
I gained about 2.5 lbs today. I know it's just water weight, but it's kind of a downer. I'll just make sure to chug a lot of water the next few days, and weigh in a few days after it's over.
I am still weighing every day. I just can't make myself stop--every time I've ever put the scale away for a period of time, my weight always goes UP. So I am victim of a catch-22: I need the feedback to make sure I am on the right track, but I get obsessed with what the number says every day. Sigh. I'm sure many of you can relate.
