Originally Posted by BigSky:
@KTucke7 Thanks. Some would say late night eating is a no-no or that breakfast is the most important meal but I know both are myths. I've done tons or research and the body could care less when you eat your calories. The author of Fast-5 says the eating window is simply for calorie restriction, which is what it all comes down to.
Can you please tell me how long your window has been 5-10? Have you been doing this just for weight maintenance? Or did you lose your weight this way? I too am a night eater. Maybe I should try 5-10.

Right you are about the myths. I've been doing 5-10 PM since I started IF in March of 2011. I actually did lose about 10 pounds the first couple of months, though I wasn't really trying to. I lost 100 pounds in 1995-96 and until I found IF it was a constant battle to maintain. I exercised an hour every day, watched my calories like a hawk, did various things, but the point is it was always on my mind and controlling my life. I wish I had known about IF back when I lost the weight. I think it would have made that journey much easier. However, most anyone you talk to who has lost a substantial amount will tell you that the initial loss is easier than the maintenance (at least over time). With IF, that doesn't have to be the case!

I finally did it! I got over my fears of IF and managed to fast until 2:00 today. I made my eating window 2:00-7:00. This fits my schedule pretty well as I work from 8:00-3:30. I used some green tea (my first time drinking it) and some black tea with Sweet-n-Low, plus lots of water to get me through. I felt hungry at times, but I distracted myself by researching all of the different IF plans (and working). I think that will be the key to my success, distraction. I didn't do well for dinner, though. I had some Costco pizza, thanks to my husband who was home with back pain all day and was ravenous. But, I was able to talk him into doing the plan with me. Hopefully the meals during my 5 hour eating block will be healthier from here on out.

Good for you Tina! I drink green tea with splenda (and diet pepsi) during the day too and it helps. So does staying busy as you said. I don't even think about eating during the day anymore while I'm working. On the weekends it is harder, but you get used to that too.

Originally Posted by Tina239:
I finally did it! I got over my fears of IF and managed to fast until 2:00 today. I made my eating window 2:00-7:00. This fits my schedule pretty well as I work from 8:00-3:30. I used some green tea (my first time drinking it) and some black tea with Sweet-n-Low, plus lots of water to get me through. I felt hungry at times, but I distracted myself by researching all of the different IF plans (and working). I think that will be the key to my success, distraction. I didn't do well for dinner, though. I had some Costco pizza, thanks to my husband who was home with back pain all day and was ravenous. But, I was able to talk him into doing the plan with me. Hopefully the meals during my 5 hour eating block will be healthier from here on out.

Just my opinion, but I personally would not advise anyone to start intermittent fasting who has not already established good dietary habits for the exact reason you have just had happen.

Research indicates that when you skip meals you're used to eating you are more likely to make poor choices. Granted, research in this area is pretty slim but it makes sense. Read this.

Pizza is rediculously high in calories. Terrible choice. On top of it all, you're blaming your husband for your decision to eat pizza. Own it.

Intermittent fasting is a great mechanism to help control calories but if you don't have good dietary habits coming into it the results can be a disaster. I've seen it happen as people on various forums have thought intermittent fasting would be their savior and continued making poor food choices which ultimately led them to worse dietary habits than they started with.

Good dietary habits include having a plan in advance for what you're going to eat. Not 100% of the time but if you don't plan out what you're going to be eating the odds of making a poor choice increase significantly as hunger increases.

Goodluck.

Originally Posted by SouthernMaven:
(She was very thin, btw - but I attribute that to the fact that she eats when she's hungry, which is what we are all supposed to do!)

That's a nice theory but as a species if we weren't hard wired to get fat when food is plentiful we would never have survived.

My point is I take large exception to your statement "supposed to do". Is that a moral imperative or what exactly are you getting at? I'm not "supposed" to eat a bag of chips because I feel like it and I like chips?

I'm all for people doing what they want but I confess I get pretty snarky when people start telling others what they are "supposed" to do so if it's an innocent comment than I apologize for my venom. It's like people so enamored with paleo eating that they start preaching it. These paleotards are truly annoying especially when there is no basis for anything they believe to be true about the true paleo diet.

For the record I always tell people who want to lose weight and aren't interested in counting calories that they should follow the Paleo diet - so I'm not against the diet, I'm against the rediculous claims that are made by Paleo evangelists.

Can someone send me in the direction of some good information on IF? When I google it, I don't come across anything that goes into how to get started or how to decide on a good plan and such. It sounds like something that interests me very much. I'd like to combine it with calorie counting. I've always gravitated towards eating fewer larger meals instead of many small ones, and I don't like snacking as it makes me more hungry.

I don't have a job atm, so my sleeping schedule is crazy and goes into the P.M. I'm thinking of eating twice between 3 p.m. to 10 p.m., but would I eat all my calories in this window, split into 2 meals?

"Paleotards" Giggle Snort.

I am "officially" (BMI) normal again!

Yes, Tina, pizza is a horrible choice... for me. We just had a fight this week and are not on speaking terms at the moment

Good morning!! I'm new on the board, but not new to IF. Though I haven't been fasting for a while, I want to start to do so again.

I've lost @60 lbs in almost two years. Just taking my time and learning how to keep off the weight. Don't want to gain this all again.

I work night shift, so I'm not sure how this is going to work. Going to try to eat during the hours of 4:30 - 9:30. As long as I don't get any headaches at work I will be okay.

Have a great day!!

Originally Posted by JohnP:

My point is I take large exception to your statement "supposed to do". Is that a moral imperative or what exactly are you getting at? I'm not "supposed" to eat a bag of chips because I feel like it and I like chips?

I'm all for people doing what they want but I confess I get pretty snarky when people start telling others what they are "supposed" to do so if it's an innocent comment than I apologize for my venom. It's like people so enamored with paleo eating that they start preaching it. These paleotards are truly annoying especially when there is no basis for anything they believe to be true about the true paleo diet.

Wow! Hit me over the head with a frypan! :frypan:

It really was an innocent comment, John. Believe me when I say I completely forgot where I was when I was posting this - the IF thread, where people are deliberately ignoring hunger. Sheesh! I should stay where I belong.

I really had no intention of telling others what to do, please take my word on that. I know IF has worked and is working very well for others, and it was not my intention of stepping on toes. But it's been my experience that most naturally thin people do this the great majority of the time, and they really don't give food a second thought. It was just a thought I had when I was thinking about the experience, and I threw it in there - innocently, believe me! (I'm going to take it out).

I will say here that I felt like she was telling me I should eat breakfast (although she didn't say it). I can't imagine another reason for her pointing out that my gall bladder was full of bile...

I wonder how her day would have gone if she'd had nothing but IF practitioners as patients all morning??? That would have been interesting!

It's my kids' birthday party today. The only thing on the menu is pizza, cake, a fruit platter and a veggie platter.

I'm just gonna skip the lot. Should be home by noon anyways!

Pizza dangerous!

Happy Birthday to the kiddos! You know if you skip the whole lot... ma's gonna get harpy at ya ;)

Gah, I don't like cake. I especially hate bday cakes with 4 inches of frosting on top of them. Even as a kid... Just GROSS to me. It seems to be a mortal sin to turn down cake at a party.

No, thanks. WHAT?? WHY?? What do you MEAN, you don't LIKE cake??

I've learned to just take a small piece and leave it laying on a counter somewhere near the dirty dishes...

Originally Posted by SouthernMaven:
It really was an innocent comment, John. Believe me when I say I completely forgot where I was when I was posting this - the IF thread, where people are deliberately ignoring hunger. Sheesh! I should stay where I belong.

I apologize I should have just assumed it was an innocent comment. Funny enough I wasn't set off by the thought of deliberately ignoring hunger but rather the idea that I should only eat when I am hungry. The opposite of what you suspected set me off. I guess I just wanted to eat some chips or something!:dizzy:

Originally Posted by Samantha18:
Can someone send me in the direction of some good information on IF? When I google it, I don't come across anything that goes into how to get started or how to decide on a good plan and such. It sounds like something that interests me very much. I'd like to combine it with calorie counting. I've always gravitated towards eating fewer larger meals instead of many small ones, and I don't like snacking as it makes me more hungry.

I don't have a job atm, so my sleeping schedule is crazy and goes into the P.M. I'm thinking of eating twice between 3 p.m. to 10 p.m., but would I eat all my calories in this window, split into 2 meals?

There is no guide as you suspect because intermittent fasting is not a specific plan. It's just sometimes not eating. So if you count calories and want to eat two meals between 3 and 10 PM you're now intermittent fasting with the best of them.

Goodluck

Originally Posted by :
Happy Birthday to the kiddos! You know if you skip the whole lot... ma's gonna get harpy at ya

I ate nothing at the boys' party, came home and just ate salad.

Mom didn't notice. Dad now wants to go on a diet. Wife still mad.

Originally Posted by IanG:
I ate nothing at the boys' party, came home and just ate salad.

Mom didn't notice. Dad now wants to go on a diet. Wife still mad.

I wish I could be so laconic.

Good job staying strong. Do you find the anger fuels your resolve? I know a lot of folks find negativity makes them dive into food but for me the more someone tells me I can't the more I am going to prove them wrong.