Over the last year I took up fasting, and I’m feeling really good about it.
This year I have taken up a gym membership. I’m really new and slightly anxious about going and have been watching ‘beginners guides’ on youtube.
Most of these trainer types are talking about eating four times a day and supplementing myself with wheys and shakes.
Can I get some advice from the crowd here on how I can safely work out around my fasting schedule? I have a physical job as well and sometimes have trouble even just with that. I get the ‘eat a snickers’ thing from my coworkers around a certain level of activity and they are right.
I’m not trying to showcase gains, just lose weight in general and be smart and safe about it.
Fasted weight training is challenging the first few weeks, it’s OK though, it will pass. Focus on eating protein, veggies and fruit. I typically exercise in hour 17 or 18. By the time I end my fast I destroy a ton of veggies and some lean meat. DO NOT forget to stay hydrated…half or near half your body weight in ounces.
If you’re trying to lose weight, fasted exercise is actually a great choice. (If you haven’t read Jason Fung’s “The Obesity Code,” I really recommend it for detailed explanations about how fasting works, physically. Gin Stephens is also great for that.)
But pay attention to nutrition, too — you don’t have to eat four meals a day, but the meals you do eat will really affect your body. In my experience, if I get a little nuts with sugar during my window, my next exercise is just … harder. It’s like a sugar crash hangover for me.
So it’s going to depend a little bit on your goals, are you trying to continue to lose weight or want to start to focus on muscle growth? The sub r/leangains is focused on fitness with intermittent fasting, might be helpful to look into.
Here’s my general advice.