I vary the eating window each day based on how I’m feeling, what’s going on, etc. like today, work got busy so I didn’t end up eating until like 4:30 and did an omad. Two days ago I felt run down so I had first meal at 11am. I used to do the strict start time but I feel like I do better and am much less likely to go off the rails if I just eat when I’m hungry.
I’m still pretty new to IF, but I’ll throw in my 2 cents anyway. I really just listen to my body, it let’s me know when it needs some food. I’m OMAD and there are days that I need to eat after 18 hours and there are days that I don’t break my fast for 30 hours. If your body is telling you to eat, don’t ignore it. Just take a bit and make sure it’s actual hunger and not emotional hunger. Don’t know if this is what your looking for, but I hope it helps.
I break fast a little while after I wake up and I’m not usually hungry in the morning. Sometimes I take my time when I wake up and might start eating about 1/2 hour past my starting time. I give myself a 4 hour window to deal with OMAD, so if I’m cooking something complicated I might eat an hour or 90 minutes later. I like the boundary of ending the fast at or before my end time everyday though. I kept a shorter window for a while but it could become hectic trying to prep and cram everything in my face in time. Giving myself some leeway makes it less stressful and makes it feel like less of a restriction.
I wait as long as is feasible—the longer the fast, the better, but it’s counterproductive to wait so long that I either feel bad or wind up stuffing myself with whatever junk food might be on hand. Normally I do 16:8, with a couple days a week at 18:6–but today I have a bunch of errands and appointments that are going to swallow my normal fast-breaking window. So I’m just going with a 14-hour fast I’ll break in a healthy, enjoyable way, instead of driving through Burger King later. TLDR: Longer fasts are better, but sustainable habits and healthy eating is best.