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Anyone Tried Or Trying Intermediate Fasting

Discussion in 'Keep Fit & Maintain Shape' started by deepthivinayak1, Jan 22, 2020.

  1. Caughtinbetween

    Caughtinbetween Gold IL'ite

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    I have been trying IF on and off but mostly due to inconsistency didnt find much results yet.
    I often get headache due to hunger . I can tolerate pretty much all the other minor health issues , but cant put up with slightest of the headache . What do you people do for it during fasting ? My headache would not step until i take pills for it , no water , tea , sleep etc works . I am a breakfast person but can go for very late lunch .
     
  2. nuss

    nuss Platinum IL'ite

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    I think the beauty of IF is that you can adjust the window according to your natural clock. If you are a breakfast person, you might want to try eating between say 7-8 Am until 4-5 PM. After that, you can still eat whole fruit (apple for example) if you are hungry at 8 PM but no carbs/proteins rich food. Play with your timings a bit until you find a sweet spot.

    Of course, you don't want to take health advice from an online community, you might want to ask a nutritionist.
     
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  3. MalStrom

    MalStrom IL Hall of Fame

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    Read Dr. Jason Fung’s books on intermittent fasting. They should be available at the library. I do a 12-6 window but you can pick any time that suits you.
     
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  4. ashneys

    ashneys Platinum IL'ite

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    I started this about two years back. I have tried IF n lost about 18kgs in like 5-6 months. I still use that now (not as strict as while losing) to maintain the weight as well. I prefer this form to any other diet as it’s quite easy to follow n doesn’t require special cooking.

    About IF timing: So out of 24 hours, say you sleep for 8, you are left with 16, out of this you pick a window to eat. Like you eat for 8 hours n not for 16 hours. This time changes person to person.

    It’s easy to club the ‘not eat’ time with sleeping time. So you either eat lunch to dinner n skip breakfast, so you are fasting from after dinner to next day lunch or breakfast to lunch n fast after lunch to next day meal. Your sleep time makes it easier.

    So for me, I can live without dinner but not breakfast. There are others who can easily skip breakfast but not dinner. So I try to keep a 4-6 hours eating window n not eat the rest. Some days even one meal a day works, but only when feeling the energy. I was able to do that only after some weeks of slow start. I slowly increased the fast period only as my body adapted.

    If generally, you eat for 16 hours, start reducing by 1-2 hours slowly. N stick with a number that you are comfortable with.

    According to me, this works as
    I get to eat whatever I want as am a big foodie.
    Not a restrictive, special kinda diet or separate cooking.
    Feel more energetic.
    I personally felt free not to overthink about food, diet planning n eating every 2 hours or making special diet only for myself.
    As long as I am not loading up myself on cheese or sugar, n eating regular home made food, weight doesn’t hike. If I have to eat out, I balance it out the next few days.
    I followed IF everyday when I was losing n it became more of a lifestyle change rather than trying a trend. It became easier n I was able to see the difference in my health, it’s like a better version. Once I lost, I took it a lil easy, in terms of the eating window, which really doesn’t make u lose but helps in maintaining even when I binge.

    What to look out for ?
    It takes a bit of time getting used to.
    I am never a believer of over shocking the system so start slow, n it helps in not quitting too thus am continuing for years without an issue.
    It’s difficult to start, initially I think I had headaches almost every other day. Drink a lot of water during this time. But bcoz of the slow start i was able to pull through n it disappeared soon.
    May feel a bit low on energy or a bit irritable initially just due to the lack of food, keeping busy helps n all these side affects disappears pretty soon.
    Avoid junk completely initially or atleast reduce drastically, home cooked food worked for me.
    If you see this as a lifestyle change n not as some fad diet, it can really help.
    I am grateful I gave this a try n it truly helped me, even in terms of my health, both inside n out.

    you tend to lose more weight in the beginning since most of it will be water weight. Then it gets slower. I guess I lost about 3 kgs or so in the first 1-2 months, after that it was between 2-2.5 kg per month approx. That’s an average of 1/2 - 3/4 kg loss per week, which is healthy n consistent, no muscle loss or drastic changes. Plus it gets easier to follow, healthy n you aren’t torturing yourself.

    In short, Gradually increase hours, pick healthier food (this is important, add grains, veggies, millets) , be consistent. Some are good days n some aren’t, learn to differentiate between real n fake hunger. Yes that’s a real thing. Never starve when in real need of food. Listen to your body, it helps.

    Combine any form of exercise, even walking, sleep well, opt for healthy food, this IF is more like a balanced healthy life style change rather than some crash diet, don’t think it works well as crash diet.

    Ever since I have started this, my internal fat, visceral fat has reduced, n internal body age has also gotten younger. Healthier skin, hair, etc. Apparently it delays diabetes n more health related stuff like that. Which was what made me try this in the first place. N I can see the difference.

    It may work differently for each, So try in ways that is acceptable for your body n see what works for you as it’s all about respecting your body. See it as a lifestyle change for better results.

    sharing whatever’s on top of my head, will share as I remember. Feel free to ask more. Hope it helped you. Do share how it goes. Good luck.
     
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  5. SunPa

    SunPa Platinum IL'ite

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    @deepthivinayak1 I started about 2 weeks ago.

    Slow start, seeing how it goes. I do from 15-9 or even 14/10 now since I cannot do without morning tea. Typically fasting from 4 pm to 8 am, but have a small cup of tea(with milk) at 7 am. Break fast at 8 ish, small lunch at 12.30 then a small dinner at 3.45.

    My objective
    - to get rid of bloating in the evenings, snacking in general, and worse some days late night snacking urges.
    - Some fat loss - specially around the abdomen. In terms of weight 2-3 kgs would be good

    Pros
    I have reduced carbs in my lunch and dinner a little otherwise I feel too full . My main problem was snacking .Now the eating window is so much smaller, there is only so much snacking you can do, haha. If I snack after lunch then I cant eat early dinner, so that has automatically reduced. And no late night snacking, no ice cream after cycling at night. And since there is no diet restriction , I tell myself I can eat ice cream tomorrow, and so dont feel deprived.
    - Since I have dinner by 4 pm, I have no restrictions working out at night. Same for meditation. Earlier, If I exercise then my dinner would get delayed. Sometimes hunger was a excuse not to work out. So no more excuses :grin:

    Cons
    -it hasnt been too hard, couple of days I felt quite hungry close to midnight.
    -It is a hassle packing so 2 meals + fruits to work.
    -when I go for office lunches, it messes up my routine .
    -Cant stick to my lunch/dinner time at work place, sometimes it clashes with meeting then I land up eating a little later and delay the breakfast the next day. And office lunches , another hassle.
    -Need to remind myself not to put anything in my mouth when serving dinner to the rest of the family.My hand is so auto, even without consciously wanting, I would pop a piece of sweet potato or raw banana subji in my mouth, sigh.

    So do start. But like all have mentioned, listen to your body. Take it slow. Making it sustainable is more important than being very strict .

    Let's share our journey - ups and downs to keep ourselves motivated.
     
  6. Radha99

    Radha99 Senior IL'ite

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    I wanted to try so I searched internet a lot about Intermittent fasting and found that 12:12 or 14:10 is ideal for women as experts say more than that leads to hormone imbalance. For women already with hormonal imbalances it may get worse. I have endometriosis and perfect BMI but still dared and did a week of 16:8 IF. It was so easy, but I had pain at my Endo affected area. So I had to quit . I am trying celery juice detox method now.
     
  7. shravs3

    shravs3 IL Hall of Fame

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    Bought one last month! Yet to complete it
     
  8. shravs3

    shravs3 IL Hall of Fame

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    I’m doing IF on and off. But doing it religiously from past 2 weeks. I’m trying to do 16:8 ie mostly 12pm - 8pm window.
    But I’m getting hunger pangs around 10:30 - 11am. So I try drinking some water.
    But even if that doesn’t satisfy I break my fast.
    Also I recently started to follow Luke Coutinho. He suggests to map our Circadian rhythm with 12: 12 window.
    This looks better when you are new to IF.
    Intermittent Fasting And Circadian Rhythm: 10 Tips To Make Intermittent Fasting Work For You
     
    Last edited: Jan 23, 2020
  9. anika987

    anika987 IL Hall of Fame

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    I accept your point.Yes dehydration could definitely be a solid reason but at the same time certain symptoms are also reasons when the toxins Leave the body.Maybe not necessarily in her case.
     
  10. anika987

    anika987 IL Hall of Fame

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    Also just as a curious question how do working women manage with their food schedule?

    like for eg when you said you leave at 7 ,do you come home early?

    coz some women I know start at 9 and come back at 6..how they manage their breakfast,lunch and dinner for the whole family?Plus kids activities and their homework etc..sorry to digress this thread.

    I really would like to take some pointers coz sometimes it gets tough even being a homemaker.ij my case hubby leaves very early and comes late.No help with anything.Even working people when both come late..It must be tough to juggle everything..
     

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