Looking for advice how to increase from 16:8 to 20:4, because every time I try to do that I find myself hating life and then I overeat with unhealthy foods during the eating period. What has worked for you if you’ve had this problem? Thanks!
I’m only on day three of 20:4, so I’m by no means an expert, but I eat the same thing every day. Broccoli, a pepper, avocado, tomato, eggs, cheese, and toast. Knowing what I’m going to eat keeps me from spending the last few hours justifying potato chips. God I want chips.
Drink tons of water, replenish electrolytes and make sure you are VERY busy over the last few hours of your fast (if you can be out of the house, even better, then you get home in time to cook)
Also move slowly from 16 to 20hr fast, increase like 30min/week
Start by stepping to 18:6. Or even to 17:7. Add one or two hours of fasting at a time. Once you get used to that, add another hour. Proceed until you get to 20:4. Doing it in smaller steps makes it easier. Waiting one extra hour is easier than suddenly waiting 4 extra hours.
If you go keto/carnivore, you can get there pretty easily. If not, then drink black coffee or other beverages that have zero calories until you get to your new window.I wouldn’t intentionally go to a smaller window every day as much as really dial in the healthy food that you’re eating in that window
Run errands with walking, like go to a grocery store thats 20 minutes away on foot, buy a single item and then walk back home, that’s how you pass an hour pretty easily and it will help your metabolism too for IF…
And once you are comfortable you can stop and try to just do regular exercise at home, for example if you have a cardio machine it will only take you 20minutes to increase your metabolism
After which you can take a bath which will kill an hour and help you sleep later
You can watch TV earlier in the day I find that I unwind around 3pm-4pm right before the 4pm window opens…
And after my eating window 8pm I try to catch up on work again or whatever I put off during my eating window for 2hrs and then sleep
20 hours is super easy for me to do on a workday because I’m so busy. .. not thinking about food. On the weekends I’m less busy, but I drink a lot of water and seltzer water which quells any hunger pangs.