Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent Fasting Explained
Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent Fasting, often shortened to I.F. is the process of fasting on a semi regular basis. The traditional approach to using intermittent fasting would be to to take a day off from eating every 48 hours. Simply explained this would mean you eat as normal on Thursday and then not eat on Friday but resume eating as normal on the Saturday, before again fasting on the Sunday. In this way the Intermittent Fasting schedule is restricting calories over the week by having periods where you are not consuming food.
Intermittent Fasting – Making It Work For You
Strict Intermittent Fasting as described above will produce weight loss, but in my view is too restrictive to follow long term. I myself find that fasting on the weekend would be impossible, and of course with the every other day fasting routine, you are going to have a day on the weekend that clashes with your fasting day. I believe that we have to fit our diet around our lifestyle, not our lifestyle around our diet. The key to using fasting for weight loss is flexibility. As you will see on this blog, I have experimented with my own intermittent fasting times . You can see the results of how much weight and body fat I lost in this post Intermittent Fasting Fat Loss
Intermittent Fasting What Works Best ?
Many who use intermittent fasting to control their weight do so using a condensed eating window . In my own experience I have found that a flexible intermittent fasting schedule will help in reducing body fat and help with keeping weight off. As we are all individuals with different daily lives, it is important that you use I.F. in the best way for you and not be restricted by any rules. Read my post Intermittent Fasting What Works For You For more details. Also please remember that if you are fasting for weight loss calories still matter
My weight loss success has been achieved by not depriving myself of the foods I love, and by allowing enough flexibility in my use of intermittent fasting over the long term. After trying different variations of I.F. I am of the opinion that the results achieved by fasting 24 hours once or twice per week ( In my case I use 2 ) are the best for both losing weight and keeping it off for the long term. Read my Eat Stop Eat Review for more detail on this method
Update On Using Intermittent Fasting - I have kept the weight I lost off now for more than a year. I also lost a further 10lbs on 2010 from my original target.
For me, the easy way to not only lose weight, but to keep my weight under control is with an intermittent fasting diet .
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{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
How do you feel about the Leangains approach to I.F.? You commented on a post of mine about fasting back in 2009, and while I never intended to put down I.F., you defended it anyway and opened my eyes about the possibility that fasting really could be useful for fat loss. Since then I’ve been studying many strategies for I.F. In particular I like the Leangains approach and was just wondering what your thoughts are on it.
Hi Steve,
Yes I remember that comment, glad to see you have looked into I.F in more detail. As you can see I am very much a convert. For me the results I have had in terms of fat loss speak for themselves.
In relation to Leangains, again I think the results Martin gets are impressive. I would say leangains is aimed more for someone training in the gym, there is a large amount of information on post workout nutrition for example, which was not the big focus for me.
I personally do not feel it is the best fit for me. Martin has a feeding window that does not include mornings, and I prefer a more flexible approach. My view is all methods of IF work, it’s just a case of taking what works best for your own lifestyle.
Yeh this is not new . Muslims have been fasting for centuries and the prophet Mohammmed advised people to fast twice a week in adddition to the month of Ramadan requires by the followers of Islam. Dah, If god already gave it as a commandment then it must be good.
I’m about to start doing Intermittent Fasting and I have a question I hope you can help answer.
If I take a protein shake before workout while fasting, would that considered breaking the fast?
I’m going to fast from 8pm to 8pm, and my workout time is usually around 4-5pm.
Your feedback is much appreciated.
@Nex, yes if have a protein shake this would be breaking the fast.
Thanks for the reply
Hey Nex, you should try taking a BCAA (branced chain amino acid) supplement before your workout. I use one that has zero calories but still the building blocks of protien that will help you to build and repair muscle
Hey Michelle,
I know Martin Berkhan at leangains uses BCAA, he explains it in his lean gains guide here http://www.leangains.com/2010/04/leangains-guide.html here is what he says in his guide on fasted training
Fasted training
Training is initiated on an empty stomach and after ingestion of 10 g BCAA or similar amino acid mixture. This “pre-workout” meal is not counted towards the feeding phase. Technically, training is not completely fasted – that would be detrimental. The pre-workout protein intake, with its stimulatory effect on protein synthesis and metabolism, is a crucial compromise to optimize results. The 8-hour feeding phase starts with the post-workout meal.
Sample setup
11.30-12 AM or 5-15 minutes pre-workout: 10 g BCAA
12-1 PM: Training
1 PM: Post-workout meal (largest meal of the day).
4 PM: Second meal.
9 PM: Last meal before the fast.
Calories and carbs are tapered down throughout the day in the example above
Hi. when you started fasting did you have issue with your stomach growling really loud? if so, did you find any method that worked for you to help?
@ Alessia,
Yes it would growl every now and then, and it still does ! I tend to usually just have a glass of water, or an americano coffee, 5 to 10 minutes and I find it passes. I have used intermittent fasting now for so long am I used to it and know that it will go away within a short time.
Ok Thank you! also, lately i havent been able to control my hunger. i was supposed to fast yesterday and only made it to 12 and began to eat. and today i tried again and only made it til 3 /; i been fasting since june/july and it was very easy for me, but suddenly i always feel the urge to eat… and im gaining weight because of it. and i try to eat more bc of the stomach growls. they happen durring class — extremely embarassing!
Just make sure you drinking enough fluids Alessia, often what we take for hunger is actually that we are dehydrated. This is very often the case first thing on a morning. A glass of water before doing anything else makes quite a difference. Actually Brad Pilon posted about this back in November , you can read it here http://bradpilon.com/weight-loss/breakfast-diet-hack/
When you only made it to 12, was this because you were smelling food ? say from work colleagues etc ?
yes actually, me and my friend went to starbucks to just get unsweetened iced tea and she ended up getting a muffin, and kept giving me a peice here and there /; i also tried taking coconut oil, but the day i took a tbsp of it i ate more then i ever eaten before.
Hey Dave and friends,
I am 6′ 4″ and was 372 pounds in June of 2009 and dropped down to 280 in January of 2010 after that I started road cycling quite a bit which resulted in me increasing my food intake, halting my weight loss.
I have gone though phases since then where I start cycling and put on between 4 and 10 pounds eating whatever I want and riding like the dickens. After a month or two of that, I stop cycling and start watching my food intake again which drops my weight down about 20 pounds at which point I lose resolve, hit a plateau or something and increase my food intake and start riding again to compensate — rinse and repeat. Fast forward, today I am 242 pounds (I am cycling, if I quit that it would probably go down to 230-238) and I have been in this same weight range for about three months — time to change that.
I have found, oddly enough, that a full on water fast is easier than restricting portion size — easier to not eat then to eat just a bit; unfortunately, it can also make you less than productive in the work place after four days or so and is counter productive to training for a century. So the solution that I think will work for me is IF (probably?).
I am on day two now and it seems to be fairly simple, I’m just concerned that I might be doing something wrong so I’m going to run what I’m doing by you all and please give me any feedback you feel is pertinent.
I am consuming 1 meal of 1300 – 1700 calories between 6:45PM and 8:00PM consisting of Paleo foods + black beans (not every day on that). Five days a week, directly before consuming said meal, I ride my bicycle on an indoor trainer for between 40minutes and 1 hour (when my cyclometer Garmin Edge 500 tells me I have burned 1000 calories). Granted, I’ve only done this for two days now. I felt hungry but good all the way through to my post work out, at which point I knew food was imminent and I became ravenous. ;p
For dinner tonight I had an apple (100), a banana (100), a hard boiled egg (100 had to get my BCAA!), two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (200), 1/4 cup of slivered raw almonds (200), 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and an avocado (300) on a bundle of red leaf lettuce with 4 skinless chicken thighs (500)and 20 steamed carrots (100). I round on calories pretty viciously but my mental math figures that out to be 1600 Calories.
I would love to have some feedback and advice on what I am doing (… good thing I proofread, that said “foodback,” projecting much?).
Thanks,
Ken
Hi Ken,
First let me say congratulations on dropping from 372, that is awesome.
In relation to your question, I don’t think you are doing anything wrong, so long as it works for you. I have played around with all types of I.F eating windows, and depending on circumstances I still change it up. The important thing is to find a routine that works best for you, and keeps you losing weight. If you like the fasting routine you are using, stick with it. If you feel it’s too restrictive, change it up, your weight loss routine should fit around what is best for you. Keeping calories around 1600 per day, and doing your cycling, you should have no problems dropping down. The time you want to start to take in those 1600 calories is up to you If you are burning more than you need, then you will be losing just fine !.
hope that helps.
Dave
Hi Ken,
To increase your weight loss, I suggest you look at doing high intensity interval training (HIIT).
It takes up less time than what you are doing currently and will increases your metabolic rate so you will more calories for longer. If you google HIIT you will find all sorts of variations. The key is to do two/three different HIIT sessions a week, If you only do two, try to do a high intensity cardio session (30minutes).
For example (minute – description – level)
0-3 – warm up – 3/10 (the level is specific to you and not to the resistance on the bike)
3-4 – High resistance – 8/10 (I increase my rpm as well as the resistance for this phase)
4-5 – Recovery – 4/10 (i decrease my rpm as well as the resistance for this phase)
And repeat so you do a total of 6 high resistance and recovery periods
Follow up with 3-4 minutes of a cool down on the bike.
Ken/alessia, i support your effort. Im trying to adopt IF into my lifestyle and whenever i thought i cant last for 24 hours, ill always come back to Dave’s blog for motivation. I dont count my calories, i just eat what i felt like eating when i break fast and im very sure i overate! I dont exercise except casual swims maybe twice a month.
I have not seen any major improvement in the mirror or from my clothes sizes yet maybe its still too soon or my calories in is still higher vs out. I did a 6p-6p next day. I have not experiment with other eating windows cos the 6-6 works fine but im travelling internationally soon (asia to states) so i wonder what time my fast will be and if my body can adjust to doing a 6-6p in the different time zone..
Ps-Big thanks to Dave who never tires in giving motivations and advices to all of us, even after 3 years!
Hi,
I’ve started IF today! Well, last night, I guess..I’m very hungry. Is it an obvious statement, as I’m not eating anything? Will it get easier? My plan is for 2x a week. I know a lot of it is psychological, but some is physical..
I’d like to lose about 10 lbs and then maintain (I’ve lost about 20 already-not though IF)
Anyway, thanks! (I guess the to the point answer is : Will the hunger pangs get easier to deal with/subside over time?)
HI Dave,
I just read a bunch of your question and answers from others, and got my answer..thanks!
Did my first IF ending last night-down 3 today! I know its not fat to begin with, but its a start! It was tough, but not too tough. I ate a normal dinner. Note to self; dont drink too much wine after a fast! argg…thanks
Love this blog! I am just now going to incorporate IF in my weight loss plans starting this week. Is it best to start with one day a week for your body to adjust, or should I just jump in with two days a week? Also has anyone that worked nights had any experience with IF? was it easier to fast on days you were working? or did you find that left you too tired and weak? Thanks for any advice.
Looking forward to results with IF.
@ Michelle,
Start with one, and see how you feel, bit it really is up to you, if after you have done one, you want to do another a few days later, then go for it. The only thing you don’t want is to feel it’s getting in the way of your normal daily routine.
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