Intermittent Fasting

[hawkinsblake]

Hello,

Hey everyone just wanted to start a quick topic to see if anyone else has tired, failed, or is curious about Intermittent Fasting. In the case of intermittent fasting (IF), the "diet" actually refers to periods of fasting, meaning you are restricted to eating very little—or nothing at all—for periods of time lasting anywhere from 16-24 hours. It may sound a little crazy, but intermittent fasting has been suggested as an effective weight loss tool, with research supporting its ability to increase fat oxidation, reduce body weight, and accelerate fat loss. 

The central idea behind the implementation of intermittent fasting is to reduce overall calorie consumption, ideally resulting in weight loss. Typically, IF protocols will have the individual undergo a period of intentional severe calorie restriction (ranging from 0-25 percent of the individual's normal daily caloric intake) for a period of 16-24 hours. Following the restrictive phase, the individual returns to relatively normal energy intake for 8-24 hours, depending on which version of IF they are following.

I am doing the 16 hour fast where I consume nothing but water and a cup of black coffee in the mid morning to hold me over. Then I eat my normal range of calories for the day in an 8 hour window. For me this is from Noon to 8pm. I am on my 5th day so can't atest to being an expert but I am loving all the research I have found and was just curious to see if there is anyone else out there.

[divedragon]

I use both a juicer and a blender.  For beet juice I use the juicer to juice: beet root and greens, sweet potato,radish, red onion, yellow bell pepper, mango, watermelon (rind included)  peach, carrots, celery, ginger and lemon.  I do enough to fill up a quart mason jar.  When I prepare to drink, I add about 4 oz to blender with 2 oz of kefir and about 1 cup of pomelgranet arials plus a scoop of protein powder, some dragon fruit and an occassional banna.  I also make a cruciferous vegetable juice with spinich, sweet potato leaves,califlower, brocoli, bok choi,onion,apple, celery, cucumber, lemon or lime and orange.  I do the same in the blender, but instead of pomelgranet, I add blueberries.  I do the two juices as the beet based is for raising testosterone and increasing nitric oxide for circulation.  The cruciferious juice is to help the body metobolize estrogen.  I typically beet with first meal and crucifeous in evening

[divedragon]

Day 2 of intermittent fasting.  I ate about 1800 calories yesterday with 106g of protein and 91g of carbs.  Just prior to breaking fast, I did 30 minutes of resistance exercise and throughout the day I walked 18333 steps.  Today I'm feeling a bit lethargic and hungry.  I got over 8 hours of sleep last night and this morning I had to get up and clean up the back porch in anticipation of pressure washers coming this afternoon and this is when I started feeling the lack of energy.  My dinner meal last night was a 10oz steak and corn on the cobb with about 8 oz of whole, raw milk. 

I will break my fast today with a lunch of liver and onions and fresh beet juice with added protein powder.  I'll still shoot for 15k on steps today, but no resistance training.  I weigh on Fridays, but as only  two days this week in IF, not much credit will go towards tomorrows weigh in, but between this weeks and last weeks, it should give me an indication as to its effectiveness. 

[divedragon]

This is probably looking like I'm keeping a log here on fitbit.  I just wanted to provide some feedback as to how things were going in getting started with this, but this will most likely be my last post except for weekly updates.  I am keeping a daily log, so if anyone is interested, I'd be happy to share.  Probably wait until I'm more established in IF.

Day 3 of IF and I feel less lethargic today.  I'm having some black coffee this morning which I normally drink with cream and stevia.  Going to try and make the conversion permenant and get away from non-calorie sweetner. My calorie profile yesterday was about 1800 calories with 100g of protein, 85g carb and 56g fat

Today is also weigh in day and I'm highly disappointed as my weight remains the same from last week.  I increased my activity significantly this week as well with a full weekend of garage and basement cleaning and averaging around 16k steps a day vs previous 11k.  In addition I added some resistence training 3 days a week for 30 minutes.  Last weeks weigh in only had me losing about 1/2 lbs and this week nothing.  Increased acivity and average about 1500 calories a day with no weight loss.  I'm really hoping this IF will kick in and I'll have something better to report next week.  

[hawkinsblake]

Hey man sorry to hear you're struggling with starting IF my first 2-3 days
were rough and it took me at least a week for my body to accept then the
results came. Its all about getting your body into the new flow or feeding.
Get on YouTube and check out IF videos from Kinobody. The guy Greg
O'gallagher is annoying little brat but he has good advice and tips. He's
been doing IF for 5 years so he knows what he is doing

[divedragon]

I'm doing better now.  My feeding time has shifted somewhat and is now 6pm to 11pm as Friday night I actually caved in around 1 am and ate some pistachios, so I just made sure I had 16 hours until my next meal.  I ate somewhere between 19 and 22k Sat and Sun, but only in those hours.  I think I'm shifting to a 20/4 shedule.  My energy is back.  I'm hungry some of the time, but not weak.  I did 30 minute resistence today and have 12k steps in so far.

I don't know if I'm losing yet, but I "Feel" thinner.  I'm working up to starting some HIIT, but finding it difficult as I'm so out of shape.  I'll keep working towards it though

[hawkinsblake]

Yes! Glad to hear that you have found something that is working. Some days
I want to attempt a 20/4 type schedule but some days by 1 it can be a
little much and the constant temptation working in an office I think would
make it even harder. Wonder what would happen if I did it like 3 days a
week or something like that and continue 16/8 on the other days in
between!? Yeah I highly suggest getting some interval cardio in as it seems
to be the proven cardio method for weight loss and endurance. I would take
it easy though. I like to think I am pretty good with my treadmill sprints
but some of those HIIT workouts will drain all your energy. It's important
to find the right balance. I have worked up to a 5 minute warm-up, 30-40
minutes resistance training, and a 30 minute interval cardio session and I
am enjoying that quite a bit. Remember Rome was not built in a day so don't
injure yourself trying to do 12 mph sprints but work your way up. I stick
to a 30 sec sprint followed by 1:30 minute rest inbetween and that kicks my
butt but I feel amazing after I am done and showered. It's crazy how
exercise gives you energy for the day? Good luck! Keep me posted on your
progress. I had a nice 4 day break while in Puerto Rico and did manage to
get in a nice hike and some horse back riding but all the fried food I ate
allowed me to bring back around 4 pounds back home. But was back at the gym
this morning and back on my IF so shouldn't be too big of an issue to get
back down.


Blake

[divedragon]

Thanks!  I did a little HIIT this morning.  I walked for about 15 minutes, then started sprinting for 30 seconds at a time.  I did 6 intervals over a 2 mile walk.  I had horrible sleep last night.  I had to fly down to Sarasota for work.  Went out last night and ate some raw oysters, seared tuna and steamed brocolli.  I had a couple of drinks, then came back and went to bed around 9:30 and woke up around 3 and wasn't able to get back to sleep, so about 5:30 I went out for a walk/jog.  I'll get more steps in walking through the airports this afternoon, but am really looking forward to sleeping tonight.

[hawkinsblake]

Yes I had a layover Monday and was stuck in the Ft. Lauderdale Airport (aka
hell). I tried my best to walk around and at least get my steps in. UPDATE
and might by TMI but I made a couple trips to the bathroom yesterday and my
4 pounds I thought I had gained while in PR is no more and down another
pound! Very happy to know that even with my 4 days off of IF I didn't gain
any of the weight back which is astounding with the mere fact I ate a bunch
of bread and fried foods the whole time. Today was leg day in the gym (THE
WORST) but I made it out alive and am close to my 10k steps this morning so
relieved I will not have to do anything after work today and can get some
rest and relaxation in. Good to hear that your HIIT went well. Keep it
up!!!!

[divedragon]

Glad to hear you kept it even and still enjoyed your get away.  Did you do a lot of walking in PR?  Or at least stay pretty active? 

I just hit my 10k walking circles around while waiting on my flight here in Sarasota (getting strange looks from people as I walked up and down the concourse).  With 10 in the bag, the walk through the Atlanta airport should seal the deal for today.  Scheduled to go into B gate in ATL, but I find myself secretly hoping we get diverted to like E concorse.  It's right a a mile hike from E concorse to the front doors of the terminal.  Today is supposed to be a weight day, but not sure I'll get that in today.  One reason I attempted the HIIT this morning.  I can hit the weights first thing tomorrow morning before office.  Won't get home until 7.  Good thing I left some homemade chicken salad in the fridge!  Guess I'll chow down on that for my dinner.

I think the biggest motivator of IF is how good that evening meal is after not eating all day.  I am reminded of an incident in my army days when I spent a week in the woods in January where it rained constantly and was about 40  degrees.  We ate one cold C-ration per day (about 3k calories each) all week and this one day we had a mission at dusk, so we ate dinner while the sun was up.  This allowed us to heat our meals using the famous heat tab.  I had a can of spagetti and it was the best **ahem**  spagetti had had ever eaten or have ever eaten!!!  It's all relative!

[hawkinsblake]

That's an awesome story. I bet it was the best thing you have ever eaten!
You got a workout in today and that's all that matters. As long as you do
something you are a "step" in the right direction. Even on my "rest days" I
have to get out and walk around to get at least my 10k steps. Why have a
fitbit if I am not going to reach the goal?

I stayed as active as possible on the trip since I knew I was going to be
breaking my diet. One day we went hiking and I about killed the girlfriend
with all the trails I was forcing her to go on. We did one huge one all the
way to the top where you are pretty much in the clouds and got about 165
flights of stairs registered on the fitbit tracker. A lot of walking around
on the other days. I had one day that I only got 4k steps but sometimes
it's good to just relax and give you body a break. Hey muscles grow when
they are repairing (resting) not when you are actually working them.

I will say I agree with you on the morning meal. You will find the meal you
break your fast with to be okay and your body is happy you are eating but I
am usually stuffed pretty fast and with very little food when I first break
my fast. My last meal however I am always looking forward too and I have to
say my favorite part of IF is when the last meal comes I usually have so
many calories to play with and still have a deficit that it makes dieting
easier in my opinion. I don't eat anything bad but it's nice to eat
something I was upset about eating with the classic 6 small meals a day.
When you want a 600 calorie burrito on IF that's okay and you usually still
hit your deficit. Weight loss is simple. More out then you bring in and I
don't think it could be any easier then with IF. Didn't mean to write you a
whole book. Safe Travels!

Blake

[elliewc]

I tried the 5:2 diet aiming for 600-800 max cals on the fast days and initially lost 2-3 kilos and then another 2 and then stuck. I tried this for 7 months! and when I asked my doctor why I wasn't losing weight any more, she said that all of her patients who had tried it found the same thing. An intial loss and then nothing.

so having stuck for months I have strated with the fitbit and so far in 2 weeks have lost .6 kilos. not a lot but I am very satisfied indeed to start losing weight again. I find the idea that if i do more exercise I get more to eat very comforting... even if I don't necessarily do so! I try to keep under the daily calorie allowance but my daughter says (eating psychologist) not by too much....

I am looking for friends still to help me maintain my motivation as I have yo-yo dieted since I was 14!

[divedragon]

Seems its just you and I keeping this thread alive, but maybe it will help someone else in the long run.

OK, today is weigh in day and I just got off the scales.  For the last two weeks, I have been stuck at 214.7 lbs.  The second week of that, I had even increased my steps by 50% and still remained the same.  It was Last Thursday when I did my first fast and have stuck with it.  Todays weight....wait for it... 211.7.  IF kicked started my weight loss and I was rewarded with a 3 lb loss.

It has gotten easier too.  In fact, last night when I came home from work, I was thinking about eating, but realized I wasn't hungry at all.  I did end up eating some chicken, but it was more to force myself to eat.  I do get hungry - or at least my stomach growls a lot - during the day, but then I guess it gives up at some point.  I do have to confess I got plenty of bad calories as my neighbor stopped by and we drank a couple of scotches as we caught up.  I also had a couple of slices of cheese on healthy, whole wheat crackers, but in total, less than 1k calories last night.  That's not something I want to continue as it will eventually affect my muscle retention too.  I only include it as an illustration to others who might be interested in trying this, that it does get easier as your body become conditioned to it.

I was bragging on this IF at work yesterday and it met with some skepticism.  Guess I'll send out an email telling of my success!

[hawkinsblake]

Elliewc,


We are all here to support each other. Sometimes you hit the road bumps
along the way that make you feel like you are talking steps back.......as
long as you are taking steps you're doing something. Just stay motivated
and reach out to me anytime you need the encouragement. Congrats on
starting to see some results. It can be frustrating when you put in the
work and the body doesn't reward. You just have to adapt and try something
else. But always be doing something! I send you a friend request on Fitbit
so you can join some of the weekly and weekend challenges. I don't always
win but I do get competetive so it's nice to have others that keep pushing
me to get off my butt everyday! I don't know too much about 5:2 so can't
confirm or deny why it didn't work for you but like I said in an earlier
post. Weight loss although extremely hard is also extremely simple. Burn
more than you take in. Sometimes you want the cookie and not the broccoli
but that one minute of satisfaction from the cookie doesn't even come close
to the long run of filling your body with the nutrients it wants. It's a
daily struggle of You vs. Time vs. Food Marketing but you can do it!!!!!!!!
Thanks for you post

Blake

[hawkinsblake]

divedragon,

I feel your pain. With anything that seems out of the ordinary you will get your skeptics! We also on a subconsious level participate in diet sabatage where we internally are jealous of someome taking control of their lives and in turn respond with "That's not healthy", "That doesn't sound like it would work", and my favorite with IF "What do you mean you don't eat breakfast? It's the most important meal of the day." To which I usually respond with yes it is the most important meal of the day I just happen to have breakfast at noon instead of right after I wake up. 

Congrats on the 3 pounds! I will attach an image of just 1 pound of fat to give you perspective and just to think you lost 3 of what is pictured. It's crazy and really hits home when you see it. I hope this will work for you as it has for me. Don't beat yourself up about the scotch. Live you life and enjoy it just in moderation. Don't think I didn't have a beer with Dinner every night in Puerto Rico haha. I would watch the intake or lack of intake. It can be time consuming but I log my food into the Fitbit dashboard on their website to get a as close to acurate number of how many calories I am taking in VS how many I am burning. Under 1k sounds a little dangerous especailly if you are exercising. Don't go crazy and blow 2k but in my opinion you're not eating enough. 

Glad things are going well though! Hope to hear some more exciting news from you. I starting getting a scratch in my throat when I woke up this morning and about died of exuastion in the gym so I am currently DayQuiling it up in hopes of not having to sit on the bench due to being sick. I will use this oppurtunity to rest tomorrow (aka excuse to sleep in)

Blake

[hawkinsblake]

[elliewc]

Hi divedragon

thanks for the support and I have 'agreed' to be your friend. I really want to 'talk' to people and gain support as it is lonely on your own, and good to hear other people's stories. I tried Weight Watchers but it was too much fuss and the people there were not really like me...I found the leader talks very basic indeed and once you've been there a while, very repetitive.. and as I plateaued..

I do find that using the fitbit to see how many calories i've burned is an incentive - so far - but it's still a new toy. Let's see what happens when it's an old toy! 

I've walked nearly 6000 steps today, burned 1386 calories and climbed five flights of stairs - and did a 30min workout in the gym - it only gave me 73 calories, so I'm sure that's not right...Still I need to find a better equivalent for what i did - rope and squats with my trainer.

[elliewc]

Is that a pound of fat! euegh

[hawkinsblake]

Divedragon,

How is it going? I lost 3 more pounds recently!!!! 

[divedragon]

2 weeks in a row I've lost 3 lbs.  Now down to 208.7   I was traveling this past week and on client site so I didn't get as much activity as I do at home, but I did manage two days on the road of an hour each in the morning and some light walking in the evening to include some HIIT and weights.  I also ate out in restaurants which got my calories as high as 2k, but it still was enough.  I was also a bit worried as I got less sleep too.

I do still get hungry during the day, but I've learned to embrace that feeling and see it as a fat burning signal rather than hunger.  I imagine the blood coarsing through my veins, breaking down the fat and filling with ketones.  I have 28 lbs to go to reach my goal weight so I am half way there.  I began January at 240 lbs. so I had 60 bls to loose and to date 32 are gone!  I've only been doing IF for 2 weeks now and lost more within a two week period than in any other two week period just trying steps and calorie countrol.  I also found it way more convient an eating schedule while on the road.  Basically an evening meal and a few snacks/drinks after with colleagues. 

I'm pretty much sold on IF now.  I intend to make this my lifestyle, albeit with a few more calories when I'm at weight.   Love 'pigging out' everyday and food taste so much better now.

[Jayla]

Hi there ... I am new to using the fitbit and new to if. I am a woman but I am still going to give it a shot. When I was younger I would only eat one meal a day due to my busy schedule and I always felt good and healthy. Now that my life is so different and I eat whenever, I have packed on the pounds and I now need to lose about 40 pounds. I have been looking in to the effects of eating once per day since it use to be my way of life and learned that it is basically IF. So I think I will start with the 16:8 but do the 24 hour fast a couple of times a week.

I think the it worked for me in the past is because I am really short and honestly I can not eat that many calories before I start to gain weight. I set the fitbit up and said I wanted to lose 2 pounds a week and according to their calculations, I can only have 200 calories per day if I don't work out at all! Haha I guess I better get on the tread mill!

I have tried the low carb diets and I honestly I feel like I might die before the 1st day is over. How important do you think the keto part of your IF is to your weight loss success? I had not planned to eat low carb .. I was just thinking to try the IF but I may give the keto a try. Also I don't have a juicer but I do have a vita mix .. and I think I should dust it off! 🙂

I would love to continue to hear about your success and also any advise that you have for me! Thanks a bunch! 🙂
Jayla