I started OMAD to lose weight. That was 4 years ago. Lost my weight in 6 months and kept going.
Why? I hugely prefer it to frequent eating. I eat one delicious, mostly healthy meal every day. My sense of taste is amplified. And I get to get full every day. Not wasting time dealing with small meals and snacks all day long. I have no hunger or cravings. No will power needed. This is life enhancing. I wouldn’t go back to my old way of living and eating even if I knew my weight wouldn’t budge.
Then there’s all the other benefits. My immune system works great. I’m never sick. Dr. happy with my bloodwork (vs before wanting me on statins and such). I love to be active. Run, swim, elliptical, hike, bike, I’m up for anything and do something nearly every day. Because my body wants it. It’s not a habit, it’s a joy. My Aussie is the most walked pup around. At least 200k steps a month.
My weight dropped 50 lbs, and my biological age dropped 20 years. I feel like 40 not 60. This is like the fountain of youth. Never going back to the old me!
I fast for discipline. I’ve always had an unhealthy relationship with food, and I find fasting has helped me change my mindset where food is concerned. I’m getting better at seeing food as FUEL and not so much as ENTERTAINMENT.
Allergies, IBD, asthma, eczema, psoriasis, chronic urticaria (hives). Fasting has literally saved my life, as I have been able to get off Prednisone for good, along with 9 other different prescription pills, 2 different injectable drugs, and dozens of prescription creams, ointments, and shampoos. Curious to find out if anyone else here gets relief from these diseases by fasting??
I’m fasting to lose weight and heal my body as well as get off sugar etc so that when I start eating again my taste is reset and I can eat clean without the constant cravings for sweet comforting food. I also am just learning to have more discipline. 😁
It’s a tool that I thought could help discipline by eating Behavior since I never grew up with that tool. So far it has worked very well for me and I feel much more in control. Also the weight loss helps.
For mental clarity
Giving my stomach a break from food
Trying to challenge myself to go without food for some post apocalyptic world where food is limited
Autophagy
I don’t want to get diabetes when I’m in my elder years
I also fast for religious reasons
I could keep going but I’ll leave it at that.
I started out looking to lose weight. But I’m sticking around for all the other benefits. I’m quite disabled and without being able to afford medical care, I want to be able to give my body every advantage of being able to repair itself.
It took me a full year of IF before I could trust my body well enough to do longer fasts. Learning which cues meant what and how different compositions of my last meal can help me get through different stages easier. Currently I’m at 2 days and my goal is 4 days by the end of the year. My ultimate endurance goal is a 30day! But that’s probably a few years away for me haha.
Because I want to overcome the psychological dependence of hunger. I want my body to truly tell me when it’s hungry, and not just bored or something else. So pushing my ability to fight hunger to its absolute limits, fighting gut wrenching stomach pain, and then of course experiencing the health benefits.
Idk.
I’m 38 years old, on metformin, a statin and blood pressure medicine. I am only 10 kilos overweight according to BMI. So I fast to lose weight and hopefully reverse all these diseases so I can get off my medication.
Intermittent fasting (20/4) let’s me get the nutrients I need. It also keeps me from snacking unnecessarily.
I have tremendous energy during the 20 hours with only coffee (1-2 cups) and water/electrolytes. Otherwise, food mid-day makes me feel sluggish (regardless of the kind of meal) and it’a too fast-paced of a work environment for me to feel even mentally sluggish.