Intermittent Fasting

For the next couple of weeks I’m going to be experimenting with different crash diets and diet cultures. Intermittent fasting is probably the most popular part of diet culture amongst my friends. Some do it to keep their body clean, some do it for weight loss, some to maintain their weight, and some do it on accident. I wanted to try this one out because I used to do IF but was never really strict with it. For five days, I made sure to track the times I ate and fasted on the stopwatch on my phone. I also followed a certain eating routine and did not fluctuate during the week. Therefore, I did the 16/8 fast. That means I fasted for 16 hours and had an eating window for 8 hours. Here’s what I learned, what I liked, and my struggles.

What I learned

I tend to eat a lot. Usually, it is because I’m hungry so I don’t usually overthink it but when I was fasting I really noticed the amount I eat is insane. I normally wake up at 8am, if I’m working out then 4am, and immediately have a meal. Then at 11am I usually have a snack or protein shake, if I’m working out I also have another snack at 8am. Therefore, before noon I will usually have eaten 2-3 times in the day. It doesn’t stop there though. At around 10pm I’m usually still awake and will have another snack and if I’m still up around 12am or 1am you can bet I’m eating one more snack before bed. When I was fasting those 3-4 extra snacks a day vanished, and guess what? I wasn’t too hungry without them. I also started eating less at my normal meals. I went to a buffet with a friend and usually I will eat 3-4 plates full, a couple of cookies, and lots of other snacks that the buffet provides. I ate 1/4 of a normal plate and was already full. This just showed to me how I eat way too much than I actually need to eat. All of my snacking was just a habit that was unneeded.

What I liked

I did love the freedom that this way of eating gives. When you look at most diets similar to this they are very restricting. Never at one point did I feel restricted, except for the first day of VeggieWorld and I couldn’t wait to try all the free samples. I was able to eat whatever I wanted inside of my eating time. If I wanted pizza, I could have pizza, if I wanted a salad, I could have a salad. It was that simple. I also enjoyed being able to notice the changes in my body very quickly. My appetite had changed and by the end of the week I was no longer craving to eat as often as I used to.

What I disliked

The only restriction this diet gives you is the fact that some parts of the day you are not able to eat. I made my eating time 1-9pm, which meant that setting up plans with people were not the easiest. If I wanted to get lunch with someone I had to make sure it was 1pm. I could not go and have breakfast with friends but also when I would have a late night I had to refuse eating with others as well. The social aspect of it was the only issue. But, even then most people didn’t mind and have other friends in their life do IF.

Did I lose weight?

Since this type of diet is sometimes used for weight loss I did track my weight. On the start of day 1 I was 62kg and on the last day I was 60kg. I lost 2kg in five days which is most likely water weight but was still surprising.

Would I do this again?

Yes, I plan on keeping most days on a 16/8 fast as it was very easy for me to maintain. I also found that my energy levels tend to stay more balanced during the day. Overall, intermittent fasting was a lot easier than I expected and enjoyed the results I received.