I’ve been doing IF for 16 days now. Originally, I lost a few pounds but have since gained it back. Seeing other people have had significant progress after 2 weeks and having no significant change myself has me feeling discouraged. Anyone else have a slow start to progress?
Comparing yourself to others is always going to end in discouragement because there is always going to be someone doing “better” than you, in IF and in life in general. Comparing yourself to others also isn’t fair because you don’t know what they’re starting with or what their life circumstances are; it is not a level playing field.
I’m a slow loser like you, and a couple pounds in a couple weeks is what I expect to see for myself. The trouble with only losing a couple pounds is that water retention can easily “hide” that loss making it look like you’ve not lost anything or have gained. You have to look at the trend over the long haul and 2 weeks just isn’t long enough to start revealing that trend.
Having said that, are you certain you’re eating in a calorie deficit? Because if you’re not, you’re not going to lose weight, even with IF.
It happens, there is a ton of water weight that will come and go, don’t go by the weight, go by how you feel and how clothes fit you.
Also, this journey also helps you work on your own image of yourself, and your mental fortitude
If you think you are not making as much progress as you want, check if you can change what you eat when you break the fast, or make a longer fast.
I am currently on a flunctuation, they do happen. Just keep it going, I want to take 20 pounds off in another 3 months, so i don’t worry about by slow progress
there’s so much to factor in such as what you eat and when. but two weeks is nothing. if you are only doing IF (or ANY diet) temporarily you can expect the weight loss to be temporary. my advice is find a schedule that works for you permanently. IF, for me, was a lifestyle change. i eat 1 to 1.5 meals a day now and usually within a 4 hour window. sometimes i do an all day fast. when i first started i was doing more frequent longer fasts. challenge yourself to extend your fasting window. but do it slowly and incrementally. try a24 hour fast, then a 36 hour fast. but remember: it’s a marathon not a sprint.
one other personal note: i never weighed myself. i didn’t want to obsess over a number. it’s good to have goals. but i could see my clothes getting looser and have shrunk an entire size in two years.
keep it up!
Also depends on how heavy you are, male/female/nonbinary, the whole picture. I am IF to control insulin fluctuation, so I wasn’t paying attention to weight loss until my elastic band pants stopped stretching around my belly and made them VERY long down to the floor. I think that’s the best way to measure progress.