i just started the 16:8 fasting. so, i fast for 16 hour each 24 hour period and do all of my eating within an 8 hour window. so, i eat from 10:30/11:30am to 6:30/7:30am. i am finding that i am naturally eating less during that 8 hour window because there is only so much i can eat in a shorter period of time. in the first week i am down 3 pounds (i have 25ish to lose).

Anonymous wrote:How do you manage to do this and also prepare food for your kids? Making Mac & cheese while fasting sounds like torture!

I do something similar to OP, and the first couple times I did it, it was hard to prepare food for my kids. So I did fall back on crappy food like mac and cheese for them. But now I am both more comfortable and more conscious of that mistake. Now I am fine with it. I tend to prepare simpler meals while I'm fasting, but generally things like roasted chicken with grape tomatoes and apples, which is a favorite of my children.

PP, I'm not sure a 24-hour fast is the way to go. You have a lot of responsibilities and to just shut off calories for 24 hours seems drastic.

I know you didn't ask for advice but here's mine -- make sure you are getting some exercise. Figure out emotional eating and portion control. Some type of fasting might work, like 600 calories 3 days a week, or maybe weight watchers. That's what I'm doing now and it's working. GL!

Trying to revive this old thread to see how people faired on this diet, if they are still doing it, etc. I am trying out a version of this, and want to hear some real life experiences on this. I did my first fast day this week starting Monday 6 PM (no dinner) until dinner on Tuesday. Will be starting another 24 hours tonight.

I've hit rock bottom on my weight issues- after having two kids and not watching what i eat I am the heaviest I've ever been. Can't seem to stick to any eating plan for longer that a few weeks. This week my 4 year old told me that she thinks I am "bigger than daddy, even though he is taller". And the other night as we were laying down for bedtime she said I'm like jelly. Ugh.

Okay... I am the OP so I have only been at this a month now.

This week I've been doing spiralized zucchini meals for fast days, again w/my berry dessert (one cup mixed berries, 2 tbsp whipped cream, 1 tbsp mini choc chips). Here are two recipes I did on fast days this week and really enjoyed:

2nd recipe on this page: http://www.inspiralized.com/2014/01/26/spiralized-pasta-carbonara-two-ways/

http://www.inspiralized.com/2013/08/25/skinny-sunday-avocado-basil-zucchini-noodles-with-chile-lime-shrimp-corn/

For non-fast days, it's harder to say. Since there are no rules about it, I just eat whatever I want. I almost always have pumpkin overnight oats for breakfast.

http://mywholefoodlife.com/2013/09/14/pumpkin-pie-overnight-oats/

Lunch might be salad & bowl of soup, or rice and some sort of bean. This week we had a little more time to cook, so we made some fantastic barbecue chicken and slaw from scratch the other night.

Because I do have a sweet tooth, I always have some treat on non-fast days - a cookie, cupcake, ice cream. I am trying to curb this habit though and eat more fruit as a sweet ending when I need one. So far, I haven't been able to.

Another con of this diet though is that I find it harder to eat leftovers... I have never minded eating food the next day, but when you get two days down the road for some things, it's not as great anymore! So I have to be more careful about how much I make, knowing I will only eat it for one meal (unless I know my husband will keep eating it, like some chili we made over the weekend).

Yet another thought to add: I do find that at least for a while, there IS a "binge" mentality for me on non-fast days. It's fading now, but definitely in the beginning I had this feeling that I needed to eat everything on non-fast days while I could! An example is my favorite Trader Joe's roasted veg pizza. I ate an entire one (750 calories) one night because I knew I could not have the one leftover piece the next day.

The science behind this claims that most people will eat about 110% of their usual intake on non-fast days, which averages out over the week to lower caloric intake. Sometimes it does not feel like it to me, but it must be working somehow since I've lost weight.

I would love more examples of what you eat on both fast days and non fast days.

I'm another who has been doing a form of alternate fasting. I've been doing 4:3, so only fasting Monday Wednesday Friday. I started the beginning of June and have lost 10 pounds, so it has been a very slow but steady loss. I think that's good though. I have found that fasting has really made me think more about nutrition. Before this diet I ate healthy, but now I find myself thinking a lot more about what I'm going to put into my body. I'm more aware of making sure I get enough of the healthy stuff before I even consider a treat. I am also doing a lot more weight training because cardio can be hard to do on a fast day. I think that is also good though because as I lose the weight I'm really starting to see the muscle definition in my arms, stomach, and legs and I could never really see that before.

Let me know if you have any questions. In the past I have never been able to stick with a particular diet for more than a month, but this has just felt easy and I plan to continue it. On the days that I am fasting I know it is just temporary and the next morning I can wake up and have a delicious goat yogurt and berry smoothie.

Anonymous wrote:How do you manage to do this and also prepare food for your kids? Making Mac & cheese while fasting sounds like torture!

Well, not to be overly critical, but I certainly do not prepare such unhealthy food for my children ...

This is interesting.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZZWOXhoFpo

OP again: Also, at least at my age (40), with my body - 7 pound is pretty good in less than a month, I think. It takes a lot of work to lose 1 pound/week even. I think that people who are heavier lose weight a little more quickly, for whatever reason.

I've had a terrible time trying to get back to my weight from before I had a child 4 years ago. Part of this might be the fact that I quit smoking, but it's not due to inactivity - I have run a marathon, done a 200-mile bike ride, and regularly did Crossfit for two years during that time.

Diet, from where I am now, seems to be more key to me. I have never been one to drink sodas or eat fast foods, but I do have a sweet tooth. I am hoping that this way of eating will help me get control of those 15 pounds that have stubbornly stayed with me since I had a kid.

I am the OP, and it hadn't been a month when I posted that.

I have not tried many diets, other than trying to eat vegetarian or vegan and a couple Whole 30s (which I think less about being "diets" but just a way of eating/cleaning things up).

It's not dangerous at all. I don't really feel lightheaded, like I mentioned, except when my hormones get a little whacky. But I have always felt lightheaded around that time.

And I don't have any problem not eating when I make food for others. The only problem I have with that is stopping the near-automatic reflex to lick food off my fingers, or try a bit for taste/heat, etc.!

It really feels good after the first week. It's not for everyone, and I can understand how you might be critical of something that looks "extreme" if you've never tried it. I do like it, and it appeals to me as a long-term management tool. It also appeals to me as a health care provider - intermittent fasting has been researched fairly well and has shown a positive influence on important markers.

In any case, the old adage that your mileage may vary applies here. I was relating my experience for those who were curious. No need to hate on it.

How do you manage to do this and also prepare food for your kids? Making Mac & cheese while fasting sounds like torture!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seven pounds in a month is not much of a loss. Unless you were quite thin to begin with.

What planet do you live on?

I'm not that pp, but I think the point is that 'regular' diets often result in 1.5-2 lbs loss/week - this diet seems drastic but isn't resulting in anything different than a typical diet (WW etc).

It seems so dangerous to me to do this while driving, taking care of kids, etc. The lightheadedness is just too risky.

What lightheadedness? I have been doing this for months and have not had that occur ...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seven pounds in a month is not much of a loss. Unless you were quite thin to begin with.

What planet do you live on?

I'm not that pp, but I think the point is that 'regular' diets often result in 1.5-2 lbs loss/week - this diet seems drastic but isn't resulting in anything different than a typical diet (WW etc).

It seems so dangerous to me to do this while driving, taking care of kids, etc. The lightheadedness is just too risky.