It’s been about 4 months since integrating the principles of Intermittent Mini Fasts (IMF) into my fitness plan. With such a flood of inquiries regarding “how’s it going?” via emails, forum postings, and conversations, I thought it would be a worthwhile project for me to sit down and document my experiences and thoughts.
It will allow me to chronicle – in retrospect – the experience, the benefits (of which I have come to experience and believe there are many), and a few of the specific details about implementation and results. And I hope it is of benefit to other women who are exploring this avenue as a way to increase their health and fitness as well as improve their body composition.
How It All Came About
I’ve previously written about my discovery and investigation of Mini-Fasts, which you can find at my blog entry here:“5 Reasons To Try Mini Fasts”. A read of that article provides some background. But there have been four months of water under the bridge since then. Let’s take a look…
What My Mini-Fast Schedule Looks Like
I devoured not only the read but the audios that came with Brad Pilon’s ebook, Eat Stop Eat. This spurred me to read even more, including investigation into professional journals regarding recent work regarding fasting. A review of the literature, as well as Brad’s down-to-earth, body and mind friendly approach, inspired me to try the mini-fast schedule as Brad outlines in his book. This means 2, 24-hour fasts during the course of each week.
The beauty of this approach…
You never have a day without eating. In other words, your 24 hour fast window can be from dinner to dinner (my choice), lunch to lunch, or any other similar profile. The idea is to create a 24 hour window so that you create the desired hormonal profile, among other things.
In my experience, sometimes it was 24 hours, sometimes it was 21 or 22 – and in the beginning stages, I did work my way up to the longer time periods. I was entirely comfortable with this somewhat loose arrangement, having cleaned my OCD (obsessive compulsive dieting) skeletons out of the closet some 10 years ago. It was wonderful to be relaxed and have a fresh approach to the whole process.
Also, there is not a laundry list of what to eat, when to eat, how much to eat, what to eat when you break a fast, blahblahblah. Brad’s text and attitude are wonderfully liberating in that regard, which is one of the reasons I so highly recomment his work.
I selected Mondays and Thursdays as my fast days. For the past four months, this schedule has worked beautifully for me. There have been several occasions when, due to an event or schedule conflict, I needed to shift this schedule out by a day or 2 in either direction. It has been completely doable and caused me no conflict or consternation in the process.
The Benefits I Am Experiencing
Though it can be difficult and almost impossible to isolate one variable from others (one of the boondoggles of human subject research!), these are the benefits and changes I have noticed since the beginning of the 4 months.
1) Though not overweight and maintaining a size close to my ideal following my 50 lb weight loss over 10 years ago, I found that I dropped about 1/2 inch in my waist and belly during this time, and it was easier than ever to maintain. Of course, there were other factors to consider, most notably that at about the same time, I started lifting heavier weights as part of my fitness routine in an effort to grow my strength. Thus, my weight stayed about the same (within 2-3 lbs) but my bodyfat obviously diminished. This I could tell by visual check as well as decreased measurements in areas that are more prone to be deposit spots for bodyfat: waist and belly.
2) My fasting triglyceride count, though quite favorable prior to the 4 month timespan, dropped another 15 points.
3) My sleep patterns improved, meaning that I perceived more consistent better rest and deeper sleep.
4) Appetite in general showed moderation. This surprised me in that I had anticipated I might quite possibly become excessively hungry and have “make up eating” on non-fast days. This did not happen. I also noticed that my dinners on fasting days were fairly, consistently normal. I was not able to overeat nor was I compelled to do so.
5) Energy on fasting days is excellent, another surprise. Often, I will even do workouts on fast days and it is no different than “eating” days. As a matter of fact, in some ways it is better – and perhaps it is because my energy is not diverted to digestion – ?
6) Meals are even more enjoyable than before – dinners on fast days are extraordinarily delicious, a feature I fully enjoy.
7) Overall, I have detected an improvement in digestive patterns. Perhaps this is because the digestive system is given a good rest regularly?
As you can see, this is all experiential – with the exception of the triglyceride reading, which of course could have been a normal fluctuation.
Yet for me, the experience has been completely and totally positive. I intend to continue with the Intermittent Mini Fasting schedule, though may well consider switching it to one day a week as that is recommended in Eat Stop Eat for “maintenance” when considering weight/fat loss, and I may not want to lose any more. Yet the other benefits of this schedule are so enjoyable to me, I may find my way through that and just see how it goes!
Truthfully speaking?
From my experience, which includes apparent improved body composition profile (loss of bodyfat) without “dietary backlash” as reported above,
I can’t help but think that the “starvation metabolism” that we’ve been cautioned about in the fitness industry for years may be a myth worth debunking when it comes to intermittent mini fasts. The research literature that I have been investigating bears this out – the concern is only elevated with long term fasts, and by that I mean days and days, and weeks.
The “metabolic slowdown” (in terms of muscle mass energy demand) occurs with loss of muscle mass, and muscle mass is protected by sufficient challenge to the muscles as well as sufficient nutrition. A few hours of no nutrition coming in a couple of times a week, when the overall drop in caloric intake is not drastic over the course of the week or month, apparently does not do the damage that we have been led to believe. I am currently reviewing the literature myself and will report in right here in the future.
Perhaps you’ve tried an approach other than that in Eat Stop Eat. Perhaps the fasting process itself is not for everyone. Yet in my experiences with clients who have opted to try this schedule, I have found their experiences brilliantly beneficial.
I’d love to hear about YOUR experiences with IMF – please share in replies below.
Lani, It’s really helpful to have you sharing about your personal experiences. What great information you deliver! Thankyou. K.
Kathleen, I’m so glad that we can connect here so that we can all work together to move forward in fitness – and our lives! It means more than anything to me that you are feeling supported and informed – and I appreciate that you took the time to tell about it.
Thanks!
Lani
Lani,
I am finishing up my first fast and it has not been very difficult. I am making my way through all of the information and will be in touch once I get down the road some. Thanks for introducing this method on the T-tapp forum.
Allie
Hi Allie!
Thanks for the positive report. Don’t you find that reading the book makes a big difference in your outlook?
I’m glad you’ve had a good experience and look forward to updates.
I appreciate you taking the time to post in comments about it!
Lani
I am going to try the Eat Stop Eat program, I am fed up with other programs like Weight Watchers, they make me more obsessed with food than when I am not dieting.
Brenda
Brenda,
Please keep me posted on your progress and feel free to pop up questions if you have them! I’ll do my best to field them, and I in contact with Brad as well should any questions arise.
Are you coming to the Conference Call on Feb. 21? We’re talking about the new “How Much Protein?” book but I know Brad is always good for questions on ESE, too!
Lani
I’ve been following Dr. Esselstyn’s diet since mid September, and I’m struggling with hunger and overeating. He mentioned fasting to me recently and I was afraid of it until I read this and your other posts. I’m going to get the ESE book and read that. I’ve been feeling discouraged lately at how hungry I feel and how many cravings I’m having. I had a heart attack a couple years ago, and I’m afraid I’m not going to be able to be successful on this diet. I have lost 99 pounds since the heart attack, but have been stuck for over a year. I must lose another 100 pounds. I’m hoping that reading your blog and web site will help me. Thanks for posting your experiences.
TD, thanks for telling your current story and searching for assistance.
Fasting can be a good way to realign your tastes – I call it ‘realimentation’ but it is not necessary for weight loss unless advised, of course, by your physician. I do not know Dr. Esselstynn’s reasons for advising fast, so of course can’t speak specifically to that.
When someone tells me they are struggling with hunger, I first ask at what point during the day. Then I ask about what they had for breakfast, how long it was after they got up that they ate, how long until they next ate, did they experience hunger in between and what they did about it – these are for starters.
What I usually find is that people are not eating enough, and on time, early in the day. It results in what I call ‘stored hunger’ and heaven help anything that gets in your way when it’s time to do make up eating.
This is just a tip of the iceberg of that picture, but it conveys the message. Eating eough early and often is the best preventative for eating too much. From there, keeping only the approved foods around is very helpful. You may be trying to do too much with the dietary change and fasting (though you didn’t say how much). Eat Stop Eat is a great book for understanding the mini-fast experience. I haven’t done mini-fasts now in a long time, just haven’t felt like it and I enjoy eating so much the way I do no while staying trim.
It can be easy to get hooked into a stuff-starve cycle with fasts. Just speaking from my experience. And you can end up overeating and staying the same weight or gaining. I’m not sure if this is what is happening in your experience, I’m just speaking from my own. It may be time to back up and focus on getting really good at the food plan, and then tinker with fasting later. OR if you are really motivated, then read ESE and pick one day a week. Start with 16 hours and then work up to the 24. Yet if you do, be very clear about why you are doing it and strategize for success.
Working through all the confusion can be daunting and paralyzing when you are trying to lose weight, I know! That’s why mindset and mastery of psychology are important, and why I stress them so much. Read my recent posts on Willpower. They are all linked here: http://www.lanimuelrath.com/stress-management/5-minute-anti-anxiety-paint-and-willpower-workout-how-to-meditate-in-5-simple-steps/ . Check out Boot Camp Mind.
Are you exercising? Moving your body boosts your feel-good mechanism and helps with focus. You’ll read about it the the Willpower articles.
And finally, you have taken an important step by speaking up. In Boot Camp Mind, one of the Tools is Getting Support. When we let ourselves get isolated and just keep ‘trying harder’ or worse yet ‘trying harder’ in the midst of chaos, there seems to be no way out. Winners ask for help when they need it. It’s one of the ways you show support for yourself.
Lani
Lani,
Thanks for your reply! I did get Boot Camp Mind. I’m working on lesson 1 now. I am very motivated – just not successful – yet. Some clarification: I am exercising daily. I do 40 minutes minimum either on the exercise bike or walking outdoors when weather permits. I also attend a Strong Women class for strength training twice a week.
I think one problem is that my food is quite restricted now. As you know Dr. Esselstyn’s plan permits NO meat, No dairy, No oil or added fats, No nuts, olives or avocados. In addition, I am allergic to wheat, tomatoes, mushrooms. He has also removed pasta and bread from my approved list since I haven’t lost any more than 10 pounds since beginning his program. He has alos told me to eat 6 servings of dark leafy greens per day. He also has limited me to 3 fruits per day. When I started the plan, it felt freeing not to have to measure, etc…but now I’m just feeling restricted alot. No boxed cereals – everything from scratch, it’s a lot of work. No dried fruit – I do cheat and eat raisins. I also cheat ans eat non-dairy chocolate chips – 1 TBSP per day. He wants me to use unsweetened almond milk and I have not been able to make that change – it tastes really bad to me. I have to find some way to do these things and be successful.
About the hunger – I have 1 cup of old fashioned oats in the morning with 1 cup of almond milk original and one cup of frozen blueberries for breakfast and a cup of green tea. I then have a cup of coffee midmorning with 1/2 cup of almond milk. Then for lunch at around 11:30 or noon, I have a cup of brown rice cooked the Barnard style (boiled, drained and rinsed), plus 1 cup of peas, 1 TBSP Flax seed ground, 1/8 tsp sea salt, mixed up – then a banana, 2 cups of cabbage slaw mix with vinegar, a serving of kale, and a cup of chocolate lite soy milk. This is where I often overeat…going on to add another cup of rice, raisins, almond milk, etc… Dinner is at 5:30pm and usually consists of 2 cups of broccoli, a spinach salad with veggies, McDougal split pea soup, potatoes & kale or sweet potatoes and black beans or some other entree, plus the TBSP of chocolate chips and 1 cup of frozen cherries or an apple and a cup of black tea with 2 TBSP almond milk. I track my food with a computer program and if I can follow the plan I’m scheduled to get around 1800 calories with 10% fat and 10% protein and the rest carbs. I usually end up eating around 2500-2800 calories or more.
One more piece of the puzzle is that I am diabetic. Not taking much insulin, tho scores are creeping higher. I use exercise to reduce the scores when I can – if I can’t get it down in range, then I take a short acting insulin. This happens once or twice a week about.
I am hoping that I can learn from you how to manage my food so I can lose weight and stay alive. I’m not being successful yet. PS. I never overeat on fat or meat or dairy. The problem is the fruit and sugar items (Never chocolate chips) and sometimes plain sugar. Sometimes I make cookies from gluten free flour – no fat. Sometimes I use splenda. I hope this gives you some useful info on where I’m making mistakes and answers your questions. I’m desperate to succeed.
TD, are you working personally with Dr. Esslestynn? From your references, it sounds like possibly so. If this is true, then addressing your questions to him would be first in line.
Next, 99 time out of 100 when women come to me and say they are hungry later in the day and can’t seem to catch up with it, I suggest that they look to early in the day and eat more then to stay ahead of their hunger. Breakfast, you say 1 cup of oatmeal – is that cooked or pre-cooked? I always recommend almond milk as only a condiment as it will give you calories without a lick of satiety. Switching out those calories for more food with fiber makes a big difference.
There is a reason for starting to hunt, peck and nosh later in the day. Usually this is borne of, as I mentioned, not eating well enough early in the day, and 2, withdrawal from foods and tastes that we have become accustomed to and love, but that aren’t on our new ideal way of eating. Sugar, fat and salt are the big 3 that ring the bell there. It takes some time for the draw of these to work their way out of our systems, and to keep having a little each day keeps the desire alive and actuallly makes the journey more difficult . I would rather someone eat a little too much of the foods they want to incorporate than nibble on the edibles that can so easily hook our cravings and pull us back in. Making highly concentrated treats like cookies from fruit and flour, sweetener, and other ways to try to appease concentrated food cravings will make it difficult.
With the complication of diabetes, I would be sure you are working with health care provider supervision and rather than think in terms of ‘forever’, it can be helpful to give yourself a window of time, say 21 days, to be true to the plan that you set up for yourself. Be sure to be well fed on all the right foods.
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