Intermittent fasting schedule?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I started 5:2 yesterday. I tried it when it first came out and was ready to chew my arm off by 2 p.m.--but I'd eaten a tiny breakfast and a tiny lunch. After reading a bit more about it, yesterday I drank coffee with a little half and half plus water until about 12:30, when I had a 200-calorie lunch. Then I had a 300-calorie dinner. In both cases, 4 oz of protein and lots of veggies with a little oil. I felt really great this morning, with no urge to overeat.

Should I count calories on non-fast days? The book says no, but my TEED is 1500, and some FB posters say this is essential.

The book does say you don't have to, but I didn't lose weight until I did, unfortunately. My TEED is also 1500, so I stick to that on non-fast days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started 5:2 yesterday. I tried it when it first came out and was ready to chew my arm off by 2 p.m.--but I'd eaten a tiny breakfast and a tiny lunch. After reading a bit more about it, yesterday I drank coffee with a little half and half plus water until about 12:30, when I had a 200-calorie lunch. Then I had a 300-calorie dinner. In both cases, 4 oz of protein and lots of veggies with a little oil. I felt really great this morning, with no urge to overeat.

Should I count calories on non-fast days? The book says no, but my TEED is 1500, and some FB posters say this is essential.

The book does say you don't have to, but I didn't lose weight until I did, unfortunately. My TEED is also 1500, so I stick to that on non-fast days.

Thanks, that's very helpful.

[Anonymous]

On week 4 of 16:8 and I still haven't lost anything. I'm guessing the idea that you don't have to worry about calorie count on intermittent fasting is something of a myth. In the past I've only ever managed to lose weight by getting down to 1000-1200 calories/day, which I find kind of brutal to do on a long-term basis.

FWIW I am short and post-menopausal and carry weight mostly in hips and legs.

[Anonymous]

I am on week 4 of 16:8 IF and although I do not weigh myself, my clothes are fitting better. I do not eat poorly as a rule. I do not try to eat three meals within my 8-hour feeding window.

Until this week because I have had a cold, I have been exercising.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On week 4 of 16:8 and I still haven't lost anything. I'm guessing the idea that you don't have to worry about calorie count on intermittent fasting is something of a myth. In the past I've only ever managed to lose weight by getting down to 1000-1200 calories/day, which I find kind of brutal to do on a long-term basis.

FWIW I am short and post-menopausal and carry weight mostly in hips and legs.

It's not that calories do not matter for IF (obviously, science is science) but what a lot of people have found is that they are able to easily and naturally limit their calories to a deficit without having to be so diligent. If I ate 2 large pizzas everyday between 12 and 6pm, I would absolutely gain weight. The difference is that I get so full, I can't possibly consume that much. But again, this may not be the case for every single person - we're all different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On week 4 of 16:8 and I still haven't lost anything. I'm guessing the idea that you don't have to worry about calorie count on intermittent fasting is something of a myth. In the past I've only ever managed to lose weight by getting down to 1000-1200 calories/day, which I find kind of brutal to do on a long-term basis.

FWIW I am short and post-menopausal and carry weight mostly in hips and legs.

It's not that calories do not matter for IF (obviously, science is science) but what a lot of people have found is that they are able to easily and naturally limit their calories to a deficit without having to be so diligent. If I ate 2 large pizzas everyday between 12 and 6pm, I would absolutely gain weight. The difference is that I get so full, I can't possibly consume that much. But again, this may not be the case for every single person - we're all different.

PP whose clothes are fitting better. This has been my experience. I am not on a low-carb or low-fat diet but I am not eating to replace the meals and snacks that I have missed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On week 4 of 16:8 and I still haven't lost anything. I'm guessing the idea that you don't have to worry about calorie count on intermittent fasting is something of a myth. In the past I've only ever managed to lose weight by getting down to 1000-1200 calories/day, which I find kind of brutal to do on a long-term basis.

FWIW I am short and post-menopausal and carry weight mostly in hips and legs.

It's not that calories do not matter for IF (obviously, science is science) but what a lot of people have found is that they are able to easily and naturally limit their calories to a deficit without having to be so diligent. If I ate 2 large pizzas everyday between 12 and 6pm, I would absolutely gain weight. The difference is that I get so full, I can't possibly consume that much. But again, this may not be the case for every single person - we're all different.

But by "naturally limit" this means you still have to watch what you're eating and say no if you realize you're going over your daily alotment (for me, 1200 calories), even if you're still hungry. So I guess I'll have to decide, if it's a matter of cutting down the calories to 1200 no matter what, whether to spread those calories out between 8 hours or give myself a break and do it over 10-11 hours as I used to.

[Anonymous]

NP here doing IF and eating 12-6. So basically a huge lunch around 600+ calories and then a light dinner around 5:30. Unlimited tea and coffee with milk.

Naturally full means I feel stuffed after lunch and have no urge to eat a 3 pm snack and kind of force myself to eat the 5:30 meal.
When I was spreading out way.more calories over 12 hours, I was always craving more.

[Anonymous]

I'm the 5:2 PP who had her first fast day on Monday. My second was yesterday; I'll normally do Thursdays, but this schedule worked better this week.

Down three pounds already. I don't care if it's water weight; my jeans aren't tight for the first time since New Year's. I expect things that, with the two fast days being so close together, things might settle out and I'll be up a pound this weekend. I'll take it.

The amazing part is that I had 2 pieces of bread and a bit of chocolate on Tuesday. I'd been attempting keto beforehand, so to eat those without guilt was a great feeling.

I didn't have any urge to overeat Tuesday, and I don't feel it today, either.

I've tried and failed a million diets, so I'm still cautious, but so far, this plan seems to really fit my lifestyle and deliver what it promises.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On week 4 of 16:8 and I still haven't lost anything. I'm guessing the idea that you don't have to worry about calorie count on intermittent fasting is something of a myth. In the past I've only ever managed to lose weight by getting down to 1000-1200 calories/day, which I find kind of brutal to do on a long-term basis.

FWIW I am short and post-menopausal and carry weight mostly in hips and legs.

It's not that calories do not matter for IF (obviously, science is science) but what a lot of people have found is that they are able to easily and naturally limit their calories to a deficit without having to be so diligent. If I ate 2 large pizzas everyday between 12 and 6pm, I would absolutely gain weight. The difference is that I get so full, I can't possibly consume that much. But again, this may not be the case for every single person - we're all different.

But by "naturally limit" this means you still have to watch what you're eating and say no if you realize you're going over your daily alotment (for me, 1200 calories), even if you're still hungry. So I guess I'll have to decide, if it's a matter of cutting down the calories to 1200 no matter what, whether to spread those calories out between 8 hours or give myself a break and do it over 10-11 hours as I used to.

Not for me, no. When I said "naturally limit" I meant that without counting, I must be consistently below my daily allotment because I am losing weight. I have not had to calculate my calories because I just eat normally and stop when I'm full, eat between 12 and 8pm and the scale has been decreasing. But if the scale is NOT decreasing for you, it's a good idea to calculate your calories and see if that's still an issue. Because if you can only eat 1200 calories to lose weight, you're right, it doesn't matter WHEN you eat, if you exceed that, you won't lose weight. I can usually lose weight eating around 1400 - 1500. The difference for me is that I am less hungry and more satisfied on what is most likely 1400-1500 calories by only eating lunch and dinner. I am not 100% sure that's where my calories are but again, the scale is going down so I don't really care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm the 5:2 PP who had her first fast day on Monday. My second was yesterday; I'll normally do Thursdays, but this schedule worked better this week.

Down three pounds already. I don't care if it's water weight; my jeans aren't tight for the first time since New Year's. I expect things that, with the two fast days being so close together, things might settle out and I'll be up a pound this weekend. I'll take it.

The amazing part is that I had 2 pieces of bread and a bit of chocolate on Tuesday. I'd been attempting keto beforehand, so to eat those without guilt was a great feeling.

I didn't have any urge to overeat Tuesday, and I don't feel it today, either.

I've tried and failed a million diets, so I'm still cautious, but so far, this plan seems to really fit my lifestyle and deliver what it promises.

PP again. After my M/W fast days last week, I stuck to my TEED for a couple days but also had some days in which I just plain overate (not binged) and did not count. My favorite part is that on my non-fast days, I had food I hadn't had in months, like bread and butter and french fries.

This morning I weighed in and am up 2 lbs, which means 1 lb down my first week--exactly what the book claims is the average.

I'm really excited by this and am now motivated to track on my non-fast days to see what happens.