When IF does it matter if you fluctuate on the time you eat or should you eat at the same time everyday?
I think (uneducated opinion)… as long as the fluctuation isn’t making the fasting window smaller and smaller.
If you ate at 5pm, then 1pm the next day, if you can push the next day back to 2 or 3 or later again that’s good, because then technically you’re doing a 24hour fast.
It’s kind of how I am trying to schedule - I’ll keep to the late afternoon for most days, but then I’ll eat a little earlier one day and push the next day back to the normal time or later.
But, if you stick to a strict schedule there could be more benefit in training the body to expect food at that time and not before so you don’t get hungry early.
If your goal is to lose weight, the biggest thing is sticking to it. If you have to be flexible with your time that’s fine, but make good food choices and monitor your calories in vs out.
If you’re fasting for the other benefits 16 hours between your last food and your next meal is kind of the minimum based on studies done on fasting for other health benefits