I’m a woman in my late 30s, average height, 140lbs currently. Looking to get back to my pre-pandemic weight of about 125 lbs. I don’t use a scale normally but I can tell that I gained pandemic weight because my clothes don’t fit anymore and I’m larger in certain places.
I’ve used keto a couple times previously and I really enjoy that diet. I drop a lot of weight early in the first two weeks and then it’s pretty ok to maintain. I’m aware that’s mostly water weight in the beginning but I still look better and feel better when on keto. The problem with keto for me is that it’s really difficult to keep it up while visiting friends and going out to eat together.
So I’ve seen many women in this subreddit with similar body shapes as me and they lose weight with casual 16:8, so I’ve been trying it too. The last seven or so weeks (plus before Christmas) I’ve been doing 16:8 every weekday and then been eating normally on weekends. I cannot continue fasting on weekends because eating breakfast with my partner on weekend mornings and drinking wine together in the evening is a way too large life quality for me to give up. I need those moments for my own sanity in this crazy world.
I eat dinner around 7 or 7:30pm and make sure to not eat anything after 8pm. Then I don’t eat anything again until 12 pm next day. Except for drinking water, chamomile tea with no cal sweetener, and half a glass of those Gatorade zero sugar drink mix in the morning. Maybe also one sugar free extra gum. I don’t eat more than usual which is not a lot.
Am I doing anything wrong? Why am I not losing anything? Should I go back to keto instead? Please no suggestions about starting fasting on weekends, because that’s not doable for me.
Thank you so much for your help
You may have to start counting calories. Some people are fortunate enough to maintain a calorie deficit by simply limiting their eating window. Others (myself included) have to track calories.
I’ve also found that subsequent attempts to lose weight—particularly once I hit late 30s—are a LOT slower and don’t include the initial “whoosh” of water weight like I’d get the first week or two of starting keto. It sucks. It all just seems to take a lot more time and effort. But it does eventually start to come off.
IF works primarily by lowering insulin, similar to keto. So it could be that your insulin just isn’t getting low enough (you could test this by eating low carb foods in your window, or by lengthening your fasting times to 20/4). You could also try cutting out the sweeteners/Gatorade and see if it makes a difference.
Alternatively, it could be that you’re eating too much food in your eating window. Some people try to “make up” for the meal they skipped, but you shouldn’t do that - just eat until satiety with natural, whole foods.
A third thing that I rarely see mentioned is sleep. Are you getting enough sleep, at reliable times? That’s such a huge part of healthy weight loss. Personally, I saw a big difference on the scale when I started taking my sleep schedule seriously!
I do a cheat day myself on the weekends but only one cheat day, not two.
If you are going to do 2 cheat days then I recommend an OMAD or even a 24 day fast after the cheat days to reset your system.
If you are going to have some cocktails, try to drink vodka/gin with diet soda/diet tonic or reduce the wine intake so that if you have wine, try to drink it earlier in the window. The insulin spike that you get from wine intake makes returning to ketosis harder.
You can combine keto and IF. I recommend it with a decent amount of exercise before your first meal. Perhaps change your window to 18:6 or 20:4 if possible?
Skip breakfast and lunch and have a snack in late afternoon if you can’t wait until dinner. Don’t drink coffee or anything else that has calories outside of your eating window. Counting calories isn’t that important IMO as long as you’re obviously not overdoing it or just eating junk food during your window. If you have a small afternoon snack and a normal dinner you’ll be just fine. Normal dinner meaning a main course with two sides (preferably lean meats with veggies, etc.). Cut back on sugars and fried foods. Try to get in light exercise in some way or go for a walk everyday if possible. I usually do 18:6 or 20:4 because that’s what works with my lifestyle.
I’ve done this with very minimal exercising and I’ve lost 30+ pounds in the last 6-9 months.
Keto + IF is a great combo.
Weight loss is slower the closer you are to goal.
I would cut carbs and change your window to 18:6, maybe do some longer fasts too.
When you did keto did you do that 7 days a week?
I’ve read that eating things that taste like sugar, even if they’re not sugar, can break a fast. I would try cutting out the artificial sweeteners, Gatorade drink mix, and sugar free gum for a week or two and see if that helps.
Don’t eat after dark. Not the darkness, but that time of day you’ll go to bed with food still digesting and that energy WILL be stored (fat). Make your eating window the first hours of the day and you’ll be back to thank me.