Introducing intermittent fasting

[StuntNun]

This thread is for Bootcampers that are interested in introducing intermittent fasting. There are a myriad of health benefits from fasting and it is particularly useful for anyone who is likely to be insulin resistant (diabetes, prediabetes, PCOS). It can also be useful for reducing overall calorie intake if you are hoping to lose weight more quickly, you are in an extended stall, or are close to your goal weight and weight loss has slowed.

If you're like me and you've never skipped a meal in your life then fasting may sound daunting but it really isn't difficult. It only takes a matter of days to get used to the feeling of hunger rising and then passing again. If you already miss meals or find yourself not feeling hungry at breakfast time then it will be even easier to introduce intermittent fasting, you're just formalising something that is already happening.

You should wait until you are at least two weeks into Bootcamp to start fasting and some people may need to wait for longer. Once you are fully adapted to burning fat your hunger levels rise more slowly and you have access to your fat reserves to get you through a longer fasting period without much hunger.

The method that combines best with low carb is intermittent fasting 16:8 where you have a minimum of three 16-hour fasts per week. This is usually by missing breakfast so if you have finish dinner at 7 p.m. then you don't eat again until at least 11 a.m. the next day. You can also miss dinner and fast from lunch to breakfast instead but most people find that less convenient; it depends on your lifestyle.

The easiest way to introduce fasting is to give it a try. Make a note of what time you finish eating and see when you get hungry the next day. If you're naturally getting hungry after 12 hours then aim for 12.5 or 13 hours for your first fast and build up to 16 hours gradually. It's fine to have a cup of tea or coffee (with milk not cream) during your fast period. At your usual breakfast time you will probably feel hungry. Have a hot drink and/or a big glass of water and usually the hunger will subside and then rise again later in the day. You don't need to fast every day to get the health benefits so if you're particularly hungry one day then just have breakfast and aim to fast the next day instead.

Oh and there's no way I would have said no to that curry

Hello, thank you for this thread, not sure why i missed it earlier.

LCHF is working really for me and skipping a meal (without obsessing about food, without wanting to snack a lot and without making up for it at the next meal has been a revelation. I so recognise what others have mentioned about eating in order to avoid myself getting hungry, before discovering LCHF

Great explanation about the process of adaptation, thank you Stuntnun et al

Hi Finally, I agree. I think LCHF lends itself to IF as you're not hungry all the time. I tried 5:2 a couple of times a few years ago and it was awful. I would feel shaky and crap on a fast day. Also, had to choose the days carefully - couldn't do it on a too busy day as I wouldn't feel well enough to work; couldn't do it on a quiet day as I would sit there and just obsess about food. Now, can go long periods of time without food and feel fine and definitely not as obsessed.

Not fasting today. I had a spicy chai latte (with almond milk) between about 9-9.30pm last night. If I was at home today, I would do it as I think I could leave lunch until 1.30pm. However, I'm at a learn to knit workshop and I know there is a set half hour for lunch, which I suspect will be before then. Also, it says lots of tea, coffee and biscuits provided. I obviously won't have any biscuits, but I am going to take cream with me to have in the coffee, so I don't feel too deprived.
Will fast agin from after dinner tonight

Good morning all. I ate dinner a lot later than usual last night but was hungry this mornings so am having some yogurt. I only had to go till 12 30 which is about my usual time I eat anyway. I wonder if usually knowing I can eat earlier makes it easier for me to wait, so I end up going to eighteen/nineteen hours without thinking about it. Sorry waffling.

I'm the same today, flummoxed. Ate dinner at 9.30 because we were out with friends, and this morning I just felt hungry and didn't want to wait till 130. So I've also just had some yoghurt.

For those of you wondering about the mother - here's mine. I Mix it with olive oil for salad dressings and dilute it in water like squash. I used to find it tart when I first used to drink it (pre-locarb). However now I'm off the sugar it tastes nice.

My Aunty always starts the day with a mug of boiling water + ACV + honey + lemon juice. It does taste nice but I'm not sure the hot water is good for the probiotics. I'm guessing they are Lactobacillus sp. so anything >50C will probably kill most of them.

In the name of science I just tried a desert spoon neat. It did provoke a slight "cat's bum face" response but it wasn't really unpleasant.

The mother is the murky, muddy blob in the bottom of the bottle. It doesn't look very appetising but it's the important bit!

Thanks Sheepy sheep. Mine is unpasteurised but got no mother so I'm definitely getting a mother with the next one. (What a sentence).

Hi, does anyone know whether we are supposed to eat/drink the mother part?

I have been buying apple cider with a mother from a farm in Somerset which I used to drive past on my way to work. Would live to know whether to strain it, or just use whatever pours out. I tend touse it mostly in salad dressing. Thanks in advance.

Up until now I've just drunk the mother (another weird sentence!). It hasn't done me any harm....! I didn't really notice the cloudiness but we live on a farm and our water isn't the clearest to start with so maybe that's why. Oh well at least ACV has antimicrobial properties 😂

Can I join please.
I've been doing the Mediterranean LC diet from the BSD book for the past 2 weeks.
It's going well and I have been leaving about 14 hours most days between dinner and breakfast.
I'm 9lbs down (not all in the last 2 weeks)
I'm a bit fed up of eggs though.

I have some ACV with the mother in my cupboard.
How much should I have a day?
Thanks.

Thanks sheepysheep. I will keep on using it, without bothering to filter. I really like the taste, so it's great to know it's also good for me.

I ate dinner late last night so I'm aiming for 1 o'clock today. What's everyone else aiming for?

Had an early diner last night, finished by 6.30. So, I could break my fast at 10.30. However, won't be in a position to eat then, so it will be later.
Welcome ihate I seem to be the only one not having ACV, so I can't answer. But peer pressure and all that...

I'm taking ACV for the probiotic benefits. I have a mild intolerance of dairy so I'm trying things that might help my gut. I've tried kefir and kombucha before and I'm taking probiotic capsules at the moment too. I am concerned about the effect on my teeth so I'm going to try a spoonful straight this morning (with the mother mixed in) followed by lots of water.

Well that was... bracing! I put the tablespoon of vinegar in a shot glass and downed it then followed up with a pint of water. It was better than mixing it with water but still pretty nasty. I don't think I'm going to be able to make a habit of taking ACV.

Loving the picture in my mind of Stuntnun downing a shot of ACV and slamming the shot glass back down onto the kitchen worktop. [with apologies if you are actually in a bona fide ACV bar...]

Finally Maybe that can be the new, trendy thing: an ACV bar.
No-one has convinced me to give it a go yet, health benefits or not.

Actually Finally that was exactly how it happens. I'm not doing it again, the after effects were not nice. It left me burping - proper big belches that impressed my DSs, and feeling a bit queasy. I don't think I'm going to be able to keep drinking the stuff but I will try making salad dressing with it.

Yesterday was a bit of a messed up day, really, and trying to decide how to deal with today. Had lunch at 1.30 yesterday, then had a 6 hour drive to do. Was planning to have dinner when I arrived here (about 9.30), but was shattered, drive had been horrible, pelting rain the entire way. Just had a quick shower, cup of tea and fell into bed. I'm reasonably hungry right now, but if I eat it's going to give me another very long eating window today, so as I'm so near a 24 hour fast, wondering if I should just wait and let that happen. Also headachy because I didn't drink nearly enough yesterday because of driving. Blah. Last week generally wasn't great. Stayed completely low card, but felt food was uninspiring, not very healthy, and was eaten simply because there was nothing else rather than because I'd chosen it. (I know, very first world problem, saying that makes me sound a spoiled brat). At home all this week, so hope that will put me back on a better eating cycle.

OK, I did the 24 hours. And as I'm sitting here on mumsnet and not stuffing my lunch down my throat, it obviously wasn't too bad at all. I've tried 5:2 before, and I just couldn't do it - eating 500 cals on your fast days just made me miserable, and I found it horrible to wake up in the morning and know I had a whole day to get through. But having a late and substantial lunch, then not eating till it was time for a late lunch the following day was surprisingly manageable, perhaps because you are doing it in chunks. Anyway, off to make an omelette and a big green salad with oil and ACV dressing. :)

Well done Cherries. It's interesting how much less of a problem hunger is, isn't it?

I managed 15-16 hours in the end (I'm not sure exactly what time I had dinner last night). It wasn't as easy as some days last week but my hunger levels rose and fell through the morning. I wonder if this is what normal people feel like?!

Here's an interesting article on hunger caused by conditioning

hi all mind if I join? I have done boot camp and IF in the past but fell off the wagon and piled the weight back on! doh! now I am seeing this as a way of life and have begun experimenting with new recipes and strategies etc.

I am keen on fasting in general for the health benefits esp as cancers run in the family and I smoked for far too long.

I started this round of low carbing 4 weeks ago with a 3 day water fast - it was supposed to be 5 days but 3 days was my limit! I did the one month free trial at diet Dr website and there is a series of presentations by Dr Jason fung on the topic - it was really informative.

I try and eat in 11-6 eating window. I have been much more sucessful on the diet this time around. I have lost 10lbs in 4 weeks and it feels much easier.

contemplating doing another 3 day water fast with each stone I lose. I have an awful wrinkly belly ( 2 MASSIVE BABIES) so I dread to think what it will look like when it's slimmer and I am hoping through the mechanism of autophagy it will help prevent/ reduce loose skin ( really hope so)

good luck everyone.

Well done ilove
Stunt very interesting article. I have been pretty astounded at how much less hungry I am on fast days as opposed to non-fast days, especially as I didn't feel as if I was getting particularly hungry anyway.
It feels like a light bulb moment akin to when I started low carbing. Definitely feeling very positive at the moment.
I did an 18 hour fast from last night to lunchtime and can genuinely say that it was only for the last 20 minutes that I started to feel properly hungry.