I have a question I hope I can get answered here, is like a 16/8 intermittent fast just skipping breakfast and eating healthy food, or is there like a real process to begin the fasting process? Or is there a better fasting cycle that is better for weight loss?
Personally the fasting window was essentially a mindset shift. It allowed me to reconnect with my body as I grew more attuned to listening to hunger cues and being okay with not giving into unhealthy cravings. I guess it was a step towards intuitive eating as it helped me develop a healthier relationship with food? Also about regaining control over my bodily needs and not the other way round.
If we want to condense the concept of IF, the Skip-a-meal and eat-healthy-food sounds about right.
To get started that is about all you need and it probably will yield results over time. The more knowledge you gather about what works for your body, your life and your schedule, the more efficient you can get with it.
I have started out on my IF journey with the 16/8 - skip breakfast plan and no prior knowledge about IF, simply because mornings were the most busy in my schedule and I already skipped breakfast often.
I’m 16kg/35lbs lighter at 22 weeks and I gathered knowledge along the way. One thing is for sure though. The closer you get to your goal weight, the slower the progress can get, where the gathered knowledge really starts to matter.
But yeah, to start out that really is the general concept. Maybe add “be consistent” to the list ;)
Hi! You could look at it more scientifically, but honestly, “skip a meal and try to eat healthy” is pretty much accurate :D Gotta love how simple IF is, right?
I think 16:8 is a good place to start. I personally started with that, but skipped dinner instead of breakfast, because I love breakfast and dinner+ late snacks were the problematic part of my diet. So really it’s quite flexible, you can find what fits your lifestyle best.
Perhaps just a word of caution - the amount of food (calories) you eat remains important with IF. Meaning, if you skip breakfast, but eat twice as much during the remaining two meals, you might even gain weight! While it is argued that IF gives you an additional boost in loosing weight, that has not been conclusively proved in scientific research yet. So the best bet is to skip one meal, and keep your remaining two roughly the same size and, as you said, overall try to go with healthy choices. This also saves you the trouble of calorie counting.
In terms of best fasting cycle for weight loss, I do see a lot of people on this sub who successfully lost weight go with OMAD (one mean a day). It’s probably best you start with something more neutral, like 16:8, stick with that for some time and then modify it according to how your body feels.
I liked this video by Jason Fung explaining how/why IF works, you can check it out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nJgHBbEgsE&ab_channel=CrossFit%C2%AE
Best of luck on your journey!