Hi. I’m 32, female, 5’6”, and my weight fluctuates around 190-196lbs. I was 135 for most of my adult life. Then my doctor put me on a medication with weight gain as a side effect. At the same time my then husband left me and eating sweets was my only comfort. One the past 4 years I’ve been trying to lose weight, but barely getting anywhere.
My mom recommended IF to me and explained the benefits and how it works, but every time I try I can I start to get extremely hungry and then cave. I think one of my biggest problems is that I tend to get hungry before bed (or wake up in the middle of the night) and can’t fall asleep until I eat something.
Another thing that I think makes it difficult for me is that I usually don’t get very hungry during the day. I’ve never had a big appetite, so I’ve always had a habit of eating slowly over the course of a day and it’s very hard for me to not do that.
If anyone has any ideas on how I can make this work, I’d really appreciate it!
Ease Into it. Go an hour longer each week. I fast for 22 hours a day and in the beginning I had trouble making it to 11am. Since you like to be full at night (sounds like it soothes you and I can relate) eat your biggest meal at night before bed. Prioritize fats and proteins, it will keep you full longer and make it easier to fast the next day. In the end it all comes down to calories in vs calories out. Start tracking your foods on an app. Weigh it all out and play with macros until you find your sweet spot.
I’ve struggled with an eating disorder for a few years now. I was naturally 93 lbs at 5’6” (I know, weird) throughout my entire life, but then started binge eating and purging after a very stressful relationship. I’m now at 126 lbs and, while I’m not fat, it’s not my natural body type so it looks badly proportioned. I’ve just recently started getting my binge eating under control. For me, what works best is waiting until night to eat. A lot of people struggle with eating normally throughout the day but then binging at night. That’s why I think it’s wise to just not eat anything during the daytime, but then have a massive meal at night (I guess like an OMAD). I also have that same issue with not being able to sleep due to hunger. I recently started drinking diet drinks for the first time in my life, and I’ve found that it helps if I can’t sleep. The only one I can tolerate is diet A&W root beer, though. I’ll just chug one and then go back to bed, but only if I’m starving.
Simple - move your eating window to the evening hours so you don’t go to bed hungry, & fast during the day. For example, if you go to bed at 11pm, stop eating at 9 or 9:30pm, and then fast ‘till 1pm or 1:30pm ( for a 16:8 schedule, for example). It doesn’t really matter what time of day you eat, as long as you fast the #of hours necessary after the last meal.