Hello I’m new here, I’m 19 and I am 300lbs (136.08kg) and I’ve been trying to fast for 24 hours for a week now, I keep breaking the fast. The longest I’ve gone is 18 hours, I am so disappointed in myself and desperately want/need to lose weight. It’s been so hard to find motivation, and it feels like people in my life who I talk to about fasting doubt me and just discourage me from doing so. My goal weight is 200 for right now, I know I am able to work to lose weight, but I am struggling greatly to find the motivation to keep going.
First of all, take a deep breath and be easy on yourself.
Second of all, you may read through that sub and think everybody’s a superhero who can fast at will and keep at it for weeks at a time, but that’s definitely not the case. Fasting is hard. Make no mistake about it.
Luckily, fasting is also a skill. The more you do it, the better you become at it, and the easier it becomes. So think of your “failed” attempts as practice and keep failing, and soon enough, you’ll be doing extended fasts without much difficulty.
Is a 24 hr your first go at fasting? If not, starting with 18:6 intermittent fasting (essentially what you’re doing now) is a good place to start and you will still lose weight. I started at 18:6, then 20:4, then two days, then 4 days overtime. You will get there.
You most likely need to correct your diet first. Cut out all breads, pastas , sugar, cereal, fast foods basically everything that is junk food. Lower your carbs more and more.
Slowly replace the junk with more protein lean meats , leafy veggies I recommend spinach salads w sesame seeds or sunflower seeds. And slowly get your fiber content up to 100% recommended levels. I recommend ground flax seed meal & chia seeds.
Exercise every day even if it’s just for ten minutes. Obviously build up your time to at least 30 mins .1 hour would be better.
After you’ve set these habits up you will find starting a fast is much easier.
Good luck.
It is a journey and not easy. I am still at about 24h again but it took me about three weeks of 18 and 20 hours fast. Your body needs to learn.
For me, the biggest motivation the first time around was reading a book, and understanding the process benefits, myths, and science of it.
Most people don’t understand since they are fed the lie that we need to eat 5 five meals with snacks.
Hey, you made to 18 multiple times, congrats and slow and steady it will keep it away. Fast and loose works but if you don’t make it a lifestyle change, it will creep up.
Keep it up!
Its ok to not go the full 24 hours. If you can go 18 hours, do that regularly to build up confidence. Something is better than nothing! Additionally, Im not sure what your diet looks like, but eating whole foods, increasing protein and fiber, and moderating carb consumption makes fasting significantly easier
My stats are the same as yours I was 290 in December. I’m 250 now.
Easy into it friend. Start with things you can stick to. Start with fixing your diet and what food you consume. Start getting used to a keto diet.
Keto diet will help you stay fasting longer because eating fat suppresses hunger longer and keep you in ketosis.
My current process is fasting for at least 24 hours, I try for 36, then eat keto so I’m not hungry then I fast another 36hr if I can.
Another important thing, motivation only lasts you so long, eventually you have to start depending on willpower and dedication. I lost my motivation at the end of Jan. I’m still not going to quit. Goals need to be met.
You’re young too. You don’t want to be this big in your 20s trust me, I was. 20s are the years when you are discovering yourself and it’s hard to do that when you are a person and a half.
Look into adding bulletproof coffee or something like that. If I want to go 24 hours or longer for health reasons, I take a little bit of coconut oil, dip it in salt, and I feel a lot better and I can push past those few hours.
18 hours is great! You should be proud of what you’ve been able to do, goals are just a target. You’re also learning how to do it and how your body reacts. I remember in the beginning it was more difficult because I was acutely aware of hunger. Now my body naturally suppresses hunger and even when I feel it I take that as a reminder I’m currently losing weight. If you like coffee, I find that helps. I drink it black. Also water with mio or lemon juice in it can be something to look forward to. Also, for OMAD I don’t track the time closely. I choose one meal (dinner) and eat it sometime in the evening. Sometimes that’s more or less than 24 hours, doesn’t make a difference.
It is tough brother, if it was easy everybody would be lean like Christ. Whenever you are struggling, go do something. Walk, bike or even praying. If you really want this you will do it. There is nothing you can’t do. Keep the faith 💪🏻👊🏻❤️