So I am constantly unable to pass a 7 day fast due to complete boredom and exhaustion. By the time the weekend is around and I am surrounded by temptations..I give in. I am SO close to my goal weight but it’s been the HARDEST last 10-15 lbs to lose (struggle for a full year now).
HAS ANYONE tried eating once a week and re-attempting a fast?
Fast 7 days, eat, fast 7 days.
It sounds unhealthy but there are many other variations of IF and fasting- so I dont think this is too bad? (side note: i do not have ED. I am just trying to go back to my original weight at 105 before I gained all the weight from stress. The last 10-15 lbs has been tough because at 135, losing 10+ has been easy until I come to a point of extreme boredom and exhaustion after day 7. So please, no concerns. Just advice + share your stories of experience please!)
I have a few questions that would help me understand that last 10-15 of stubborn lbs. First, how are you breaking your fast when you “give in”? How many calories, what macros, etc. are you consuming during that first meal? Are you also exercising as part of your normal daily/weekly activity?
There is considerable evidence that once you are this close to your goal weight and also that low in overall weight (meaning you’re not obese trying to lose 100+ pounds), longer fasts can accidentally result in a lowered basal metabolic rate. That means, in the factory metaphor Fung likes to use, you’ve effectively lowered the amount of energy your factory burns each day which in turn reduces the output of the factory. When you break your fast and eat (even a normal 2,000 or 1,500 calorie meal) you’ve overwhelmed your factory with inbound energy supply and it chooses to store that excess energy (you hold onto weight or gain weight).
To me, the answer is way more fun. You don’t need to do 7-day fasts. You could easily switch to an 18-6 intermittent fasting schedule (no snacks, just 2 meals a day) and get your metabolism up a bit. Suffer less, burn more.
The question about exercise is an important one. In parallel to your fasting, if you’re also exercising in a way that builds lean muscle, some of those final pounds will be appropriately represented in muscle and you don’t actually want them to go away. Best estimates seem to point to about 6 calories burned per day at rest for every pound of muscle. Again, that’s at rest! So, build muscle, fast in far shorter cycles, eat quality calories, and boost that resting metabolic rate. If you’re fasting for 7 days, it is highly unlikely you’ll feel good enough to exercise.
My advice would be to enjoy eating again in tight feeding windows, get outside and exercise, build some muscle, burn fat while you sleep!
Since you’re on this thread, you’ve probably read one or more of Dr. Fung’s books, so you already know there is nothing unhealthy about that. You’d be slightly better off just doing a straight 14 day fast, but its very similar, so what’s the problem?
I only started this about a month ago, but I’m fasting more than I’m not. I don’t do a one day turnaround, but I usually don’t go more than 3 or 4 days eating (OMAD) before I start another 3, 5, or 7 day fast.
Non-fasting, I eat one meal a day and am careful to keep my calorie consumption up, so they are larger meals. Even, maybe especially, when I break a fast its a very large meal, never had an issue there.
My challenge is similar to yours in that the weekends are tough. During the week I work so much I could care less about eating. But I love food and want to enjoy good meals on the weekends. I could see myself settling into a schedule of four day fasts and eating on Friday, Sat, Sunday.
Point is, whatever works for you, go for it!
This mostly just sounds like a way to torment yourself. I would increase or change the type of exercise that you do first. (if you normally do cardio, switch to weights for a few weeks, or vice versa, or change the ratio. If you normally do one sport, try a different one.) If not that, then 5:2 eating (5 days on, two days fasted) is a more reasonable option.