16:8 any success?

[iddybiddymum]

I've been doing 16:8 Monday - Friday for 2.5 weeks now . I pretty much eat what I like between 12-8 ( not in excess and mostly healthy).

I didn't weigh myself but do feel clothes fit slightly better and feel
A little less tired.

Does anyone have any success stories at all? Would love to hear!

Hi all - can I ask if anyone on this thread has suffered with anxiety and/or depression but still successfully doing 18:8?

I have been thinking about doing it and heard lots of stuff about the benefits for women, especially during menopause. However, I have also read a few things that suggest is can trigger anxiety/depression if you have suffered these previously.

Just wondered if anyone had any experiences, good or bad?

@HUCKMUCK - Sorry no, I have neither - I hope you can find an answer. There's another 16:8 thread on the go in the fasting / 5.2 diet topic - maybe worth asking on there?

@VanGoghsDog - from what I have seen on Reddit, it's quite normal to stay the same or even gain after the first couple of weeks and suddenly, usually there will be a woosh weightloss of more than normal to make up for it.

Have you read The Obesity Code? The guy who wrote that doesn't believe in calories as the body metabolises them - it will metabolise a 500 calorie Kale salad differently to the way it metabolises a 500 calorie piece of cake.

I've ordered some new scales as mine are quite old now and I fancied some which measured body fat (I do love a gadget) but I'm terrified now that when I get them set up, they'll weigh heavier than mine do...

This isn't the first couple of weeks, it's the sixth week. I've lost five pounds overall.

I went 168lbs, 162lbs, 165lbs, 163lbs, 163lbs.

I agree the body doesn't metabolise all calories in the same way. But I think it's reaching a bit to consider this means calorie control isn't the key to weight loss for the vast majority of people.

Regardless of 16:8 I have cut out all snacks, biscuits, cake etc, and lowered carbs significantly. And having two rather than three meals. That's got to mean I've dropped about 600 cakes a day if nothing else. But I guess that's just staling any further gain rather than enabling loss.

The Fibogel has done its work, which is good!

Evening all
@HUCKMUCK - welcome. I have suffered with probably more depression than I have admitted to. I also know I am an emotional/comfort eater - so when I am feeling better I can more easily make 'good choices' - but I also know I must not be too hard on myself. Not sure if that helps.

@VanGoghsDog. I, too have been on 16:8 for about 3 weeks and have prob only lost 3lb. I am refusing to calorie count or do 500 or 800 days. I know (for me) I would rebel and end up gorging on all the wrong things. I am keeping to an 8 hour eating window but it is often 7hours. I do know I am snacking a bit - but considering the victory of not snacking after dinner before bed. Definitely easier on working days. Today I was so busy I was v hungry but could not stop for a drink. I did have lunch but then nothing until dinner. My fav lunch is homemade lentil & tomato soup - really thick & filling. V full after that. I think my next step is to make sure no snacks between lunch & dinner - even on non working days. - Yes- that is my commitment for the next 7 days - I'll report back.

@ScarletPower - I'm keeping going with The Obesity Code. Not got to the end yet.

Thanks everyone for being there for support

I'm having a late breakfast of either scrambled eggs and poached salmon, or fried mushrooms, then supper of grilled chicken and salad or steamed veg. Fruit and nuts after.

But today I also had a hot chocolate made with oat milk, raw cocoa powder and agave syrup. It was delicious!!

And I had sweet potato curry and quinoa for supper. The former from the freezer, the latter because it's more likely to fill me up than rice - more protein. Nothing really fills me up. I'm never not hungry.

Same again tomorrow, the tub from the freezer had two portions in.

And I'm not working so not much to distract me!

Morning all - day 18 of Fast800 and I’m 10/11 lbs down. It’s really astonishing that I don’t feel hungry. I’m not the slightest bit tempted by all of the sugar and salt I used to crave!! I’m very happy that all of the weight has come from my fat tummy, rather than off my boobs!! I no longer look 5 months pregnant 😂

Hope today goes well, all.

162.2lbs this morning. So back to my 'low'. Hopefully stay down now, no more blips!

@HighlandPeach - it's amazing isn't it? You feel like you can resist any temptation easily if you're not hungry. I think my body clock has been re-set. My eating window is 1100-1900 but I don't usually eat until 1300 as that's when I tend to start getting hunger pangs and again I get hungry around 1800 (I have my evening meal at 1830).

New scales came and I do love a gadget. These measure body fat and visceral fat etc... Thankfully I haven't gained any weight with them, in fact I've lost although I had an impromptu long fast yesterday because I had a gallstones attack - only a short one thankfully - lasted a couple of hours - haven't had one in a while despite all the crap i used to eat - a high fat diet is usually to blame so I hope this way of eating which is the only one I have found where I lose weight isn't going to end up causing me loads of pain. Ironically yesterday was one of the lower fat percentage days I've had while i have been doing this.

I last ate at 4pm yesterday so could have broken my fast at 8am today but am going to keep going til I get hungry.

Anyway total loss so far (day 18) is 5.6kg which is 12.3lbs.

@ScarletPower Sorry to hear about your gallstone attack. You have all of my sympathy, as I had mine out about 12 years ago, but I’ve never forgot the pain of each attack (every month for a year before I saw a consultant). I was a lot thinner then though, so don’t think it was fat related back then. Hope you’re feeling better now

P.s. please can you share the link to your new scales? I’d love to find some that measure fat, too

@HighlandPeach - Amazon have loads of scales that measure body composition and they're reasonably priced too. I went for these - www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07HH6DJHH/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?psc=1&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&ie=UTF8

The figures really shocked me though - I have a lot of work to do, not just losing weight. They measure weight, BMI, Body Fat Visceral fat, skeletal muscle, muscle mass, water, bone mass, protein, BMR and metabolic age.

Scales moved downwards again today - 5.8kg altogether (12.7lbs).

I was a bit nervous about eating yesterday but am pleased to report all seemed okay with no pain although I can feel my gallbladder is a bit tender today

I had a few more carbs yesterday (74g - 15%) I normally try keep below 50g and I've been quite hungry this morning, not sure if I have been in ketosis and this has kicked me out.

Thanks @ScarletPower for the link. I’ll have a look through the different ones available. Slightly scared about metabolic age lol.

Well done on your amazing loss! I’m 5kg (11lbs) down. Only another 16-20kg to go!! I’ve got another 9 weeks left on the Fast800, so hoping to ditch another 10kg by then and it won’t seem so daunting 😊

My Metabolic Age is 52. I am 45 - I thought that wasn't too bad but when I clicked on it for information it said ideal was 2/3rds of actual age which is about 34.

The only one I actually score good on is Muscle Mass which is in the high range.

Oh well, that means there's lots of room for improvement.

@HighlandPeach - are you managing to stick to 800 cals per day?

Oh wow, I reckon mine would show as 84 😂

Yes, I’ve followed the meal plan from the Fast800 book. Over the 3 weeks, I’ve had 4 slices of bread that I shouldn’t have had. Otherwise, stuck to plan. It’s quite easy, as I’m never hungry 😋

Afternoon 😊 Day 22 today, so I’ve done my 3-week weigh in and I’ve lost 5.8kg (just under 13lbs) with Fast800. So happy with the results so far. I’m wearing size 14 clothes today that are quite lose. I’m 18lbs down since the start of lockdown, as I’d lost 2kg due to not snacking as much as I would have done at the office.

I’ve still got 18kg to go till I’m back to my pre-baby weight. I’ll have to buy all new clothes, as I don’t have many non-work clothes in that size anymore. Excited!

Hope everyone’s doing well 😊

Hi all

Thanks @HighlandPeach & @ScarletPower for your encouraging posts. They are keeping me going even though my weight loss is not very much. I am still going but unlike you have not gone for the v low calorie options as well as 16 hour fasts. Day at home today, then 2 days at work then a fortnight off. Will do another baseline measurement on Saturday morning....and keep on going

Afternoon all - well done @HighlandPeach on your fantastic loss in three weeks - that is a good amount. I dream of being a size 14......

I've had a disappointing week - I've stuck to it 100%, tracked daily on MFP, and was losing weight daily but I got on the scales yesterday and had managed to somehow gain 0.8kgs, which is like 1.7lbs overnight!!! No rhyme or reason to it, and I know weight fluctuates but it's disappointing when you've lost it once and now you have to lose it again.

Got on the scales this morning hoping to have lost that gain, but I'd only shifted a measly 0.1kg. This means in 1 week I only lost 0.1kg in total.

I saw a graphic on another site which showed on a fasting diet losses in weeks 1-2/3 tend to be water, weeks 3/4,5 are called 'healing phase' and fat burning doesn't really start until week 6. This was the end of week 3 for me so I will carry on plodding away.

End of week 3, total loss 5.1kg which is 11.2lbs.

I'm taking tomorrow off work to do some batch cooking cos I'm getting sick of salads.

11.2lbs in three weeks is masses! Well done!

Anyway, I am a pound down this week at 162lbs (from weigh in last Wed). So, six pound loss so far, in - I dunno.......six weeks maybe?

Snacks have crept back in a bit and am now at sister's for a few days then mum's for a few days where the 16 hour fasts are going to be a challenge, let alone anything low cal. Sister is on a low carb diet so I have to eat like that here, but she scoffs at my sister hour fasts. 🙄
Fasting a bit easier with mum as she won't notice I don't eat breakfast and she has dinner at six. Low cal impossible though!

Scales shifted in the correct direction and I'm now back to what I was on Monday before the scales inexplicably went upwards. I didn't do anything any different, just carried on as i had been doing.

I had the day off work to do a load of batch cooking for freezer meals do there's now 24 tupperware boxes of 5 different meals which should keep me going for a while.

I was sick of cooking and didn't want to eat anything I'd made for me tea so went out for tea and had a carvery (without Yorkshires, stuffing or potatoes) and didn't feel deprived or missing out at all. I can have willpower of iron if something is working for me.

PS - my dad has Type II diabetes and in March, I was interested to see what my sugar level was - it was around 9 (although I'd had 4 kit-kats through the day). Today we measured it again and it was 6.3 - (about 2 hours after a cup of tea with cream in it and a hunk of double Gloucester) he tells me that the normal range is 5-8 so I'm very pleased with this.

Hello, I'm new here! I've been doing IF for about two weeks. I haven't weighed myself (I find weighing can become obsessive), and I'm not really counting calories, carbs or anything! I did a lot of intuitive eating for a while, and I'm really keen to continue with it while doing IF. I am really very overweight (BMI 40+). So far I feel ok! Some days I eat more than others, which is normal. I certainly feel less inclined to snack, and the 8pm cut off has put an end to my evening snacking.

Planning on weighing first week in August.

Welcome @ChipsyChopsy

Morning all - I just did my morning weigh in and I’ve lost 14lbs since starting Fast800. Delighted. It’s day 26 today. The most amazing changes are that I no longer crave sugar or dairy, I don’t feel tired during the day and I don’t feel hungry (I have to remind myself to eat). This is astonishing for me, as I used to snack all day long and always nibbled food whilst preparing things for my little one’s dinner etc. And the physical change is that my tummy is nearly flat again and I don’t look pregnant or bloated 😊 I’ve still got 8.5 weeks to go on this plan, which hopefully takes me much closer to my pre-baby goal weight!

Happy weekend all x

@HighlandPeach - well done on losing that first stone, you must feel great! How much do you want to lose?

@highlandPeach I dont get hungry at all, but I must have re-set some internal clock because without fail around 15 minutes before 1pm and 6.30pm, I get gentle hunger pangs as if my body is reminding me it's nearly meal times.

I'm on 5.9kg loss now - I'm sticking with it because it's working and despite not calorie counting, I'm not gaining weight. Of course, I know how many calories I am eating because I am tracking it on MFP but I'm ignoring them. I'd really like to lose 0.5kg by 24th July as that is the end of my first month.

I really wanted to kick my sugar habit and I've definitely achieved that today is day 25 and I haven't even been tempted to snack just keeping to two meals a day.

@ChipsyChopsy - welcome to the thread and to IF. I'd like to break my dependence on the weighing scales but I'm terrified of leaving it a month to get weighed, finding out I haven't lost anything or even worse put weight on and not had chance to do anything about it.

Hi Everyone & welcome @ChipsyChopsy

@HighlandPeach & @ScarletPower you are so inspiring with your losses and how your approach to food has changed. Well done.
I am keeping to the 8 hour window for eating and when at work it is often nearer 6 hours because lunch is later. I also think you are winning because you are just having the 2 meals in your eating window and no mid-way snacking.
On the days I have stuck to that I feel great and the weight drops at up to 1lb a day.
Because I am such an emotional eater then, with stress, comes chaos. So I am still yo-yoing with only about 3lb total weight loss.
I'm keeping carrying on - but this week ahead I have a few days holiday - walking, cycling with my DS and probably (certainly) too many pub meals. Will plan to finish reading The Obesity Code and do a lot of thinking. Not taking the scales away with me so will weigh again next weekend.

Hi I'm joining too. I'm on day two and finding it easy really. I gave up sugar back at Easter so no problem there. Just eating lunch and dinner with maybe a snack before my window closes.

Has anyone found success doing it this way, eating healthily but not doing fast800? I don't want to drop to 800 kcal a day, it's too low for me.