I have been on Atkins since 2/1/07, and lost a total of 25 lbs. My problem is that I have been stalled for about 6 weeks now, and getting really discouraged. The only time I have cheated is last week, and it was a small cheat, and did not show a gain at all. I have been in Induction since I started.
My question is this.....I have been thinking about doing a fast for a couple of days a week in the hopes that it will break my stall. Has anyone ever done this? It seems like I only eat one meal on weekends, and always show a loss on Monday mornings. Then I eat regularly the rest of the week, and the pounds come right back on.
Will fasting a couple of days hurt me or help me?
Trisha

There are some members here who follow a technique called Intermittent Fasting. If I understand it correctly, you eat one meal every 24 hours, but don't quote me on that. It isn't something I have ever explored seriously, because that's how I used to eat, and I ended up in Starvation Mode from not getting enough calories every day. However, that may have been totally unique to me. You may not react in the same way at all. I can't give you any directions on how to find the IF folks, but I've seen them around.

Not sure about fasting, but I eat Warrior-style (One large meal once every 24 hours at dinnertime). When I would crash diet in the past, fasting just caused me to binge, so I'd personally stay away from it.

Trisha,

Have you ever considered going up to the next level of Atkins? A lot of people find they do stall if they stay on induction for a very long time. Often going to the next rung of Atkins and adding in the proper carb reboots their weight loss. You might want to think about giving that a try instead of fasting.

one thing i have learned along this long road with LC, is that i have to experiment with my body. there is a chance that it might work or you may starve yourself for a few days just to gain it all back once you begin eating again. i know personally that fasting did not work for me. i felt like crap and gained back every single pound i lost during it. good luck with whatever you decide.

Here is the thread on Intermittent Fasting:

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthre...75&page=1&pp=15

If you have a look at the link in the first post of that thread you'll find a lot of good information there. Note that IF is a healthy eating approach, rather than a weight loss tool, but for the overweight, it may well be useful for weight loss too.

Personally, I've found it to be great for both energy levels and weight loss but it's important that you make sure you eat enough when you do eat.

However, do keep in mind that it is not for everyone. I have seen a few people on other boards with a history of obsessive dieting say that they think IF would be a slippery slope for them so they're staying well away from it. I think that's probably really good advice for anyone prone to obsessive thoughts.

Emma

Exactly what she said!

Thank you for posting that link. I might just want to give this a try and see how I do with it. I'm not sure my stomach will be able to handle all the meds I take, unless I take them with food, but I can always give it a try and see what happens.

I'll give it some thought.

I am doing it but not one meal a day. I fast from 14-16 hours. When school is out, I will fast longer. I work for the school district and will be off for the summer soon. It helps me to keep my meals down to 3 times a day instead of 4, which is how I ate up till a few weeks ago. Each meal is nutritious and full of protein and fats. I want to keep my insulin stable so protein becomes even more important. If I understand correctly there are many of us who eat more than one meal but it is within a particular period of time. For example, eat all you want during a 6 hour window, then eat nothing again for 24 hours. My way has helped me to shave off 8 lbs. I also put coconut oil in my morning coffee to give me an energy boost. It helps me to make it till 10:30 AM, when I eat my first meal. Eventually I will make it to 12:00 noon then 2:00 PM. But the goal isn't to NOT eat. The goal is to eat less and to make your body complete the process of digesting each meal.

Last month TOM was shorter. It makes sense to me to experience shorter menses. I have uterine cysts which feed on stored fat which harbors estrogen. I have the feeling that by eating less and stabilized insulin levels is lowering my estrogen levels. But that is still in the experiemental stages. My last TOM was a day shorter. I hope the next proves to be shorter.

Hi Kisal. Here's a couple of things to think about if you are considering trying Intermittent Fasting. The only way anyone ever 'loses' bodyfat is if it's burnt for energy. That's why your body puts it there in the first place - as a supply of future energy. The human metabolism prefers to burn alcohol first, then carbs, then dietary fat, and only then bodyfat. If you eat excess protein, some of it will be converted to carbs, and they too will be burnt before bodyfat comes up for grabs. Low carbing certainly takes dietary carbs out of the picture, but there is usually plenty of dietary fat in there to almost guarantee that bodyfat stays right where it is. If you eat regularly, and those meals contain fat, why would your metabolism bother mobilizing bodyfat? You certainly won't tend to store any excess dietary fat, but you equally certainly won't lose bodyfat either.

But the less often you eat a low carb meal, the more likely it is that bodyfat necessarily becomes part of the energy equation. Your mitochondria have to run on something after all.

Also fasting periods up to fortyeight hours simply cannot lead to what is referred to as the 'starvation response'. Fasting for longer than a couple of days or long term reduced calories, ie a 'weightloss' diet (of any macronutrient approach), will certainly induce a metabolic slowdown (ie mild 'starvation response'). That's why losing bodyfat by inducing a long term calorie deficit (by any means, including a low carb diet) is so difficult. Your body knows and makes adjustments.

But if you only eat once a day, and that meal is low carb, not only will any excess calories not be stored as fat, but about five hours into the fasting period you will be burning bodyfat.

So Intermittent Fasting combined with low carb is the best approach for bodyfat burning for the human body. You can also do the CR thing, but that leads to apalling bodycomposition changes (you lose muscle and endocrine fitness - in short, you look like you are starving - our very own CR proseletyser, 'Whoa', is a perfect example of why you shouldn't do CR ) The other thing about CR is that the herculean hunger control necessary is beyond most people's self control.

The beauty of IF if you start gradually, and gradually ramp up the fasting period to one meal a day is that it is really quite easy. You will discover that the 'normal' hunger pangs you experience at 'normal' meal times is purely habit. I've been IF ing for seven months now, and I never feel hungry while I'm fasting. Of course you are looking forward to eating when mealtime draws nigh. But you do that now anyway, before every one of those regular meals

Once you're at goal, the most comfortable way to IF is to eat normally (ie low carb regular meals) one day , and then fast until your one meal the next. That way you eat every day, you get the full health and longevity benefits of IF, and you keep your body firmly in the dietary fat/bodyfat burning mode.

Anyway, check out the IF thread sometime. If you are stalled on low carb, you can tweak your dietary carb levels till you're blue in the face, and frustrated to the end of your wits, or you could save yourself the agony and introduce yourself to the astonishing world of Intermittent Fasting.

I used to do a lot of fasting, and for one year I only ate one meal a day...and no, I didn't have a weight problem during that time!

That said, please pay attention to your body and how you feel, especially in light of the fact that you take a lot of meds and mentioned you weren't sure if that would be a problem...

Have you researched whether the meds you take may be slowing down your weight loss? If that is the case fasting may not help.

Another thing to consider is eating your meals earlier in the day and then not eating again until the next day---kind of like some of the suggestions here of a modified fast, but a few meals each day instead of just one large one, so you would be able to take the meds when you need with food.

I generally don't eat after dinner, which can be as early as 3-4pm, as late as 6-7pm, so I have a period of time between 15-20 hours between when I eat and the next day when I eat. It keeps me from being focused on food, as night time snacking was my demise before..and has probably helped my weight loss as well.

It's good you're looking at different things, good luck!!

Thank you all so much for all of the great information. I think I am going to take your suggestions to heart here. Eating once a day seems like it will fit what I am trying to do, instead of an all-out strict fast. I only eat once a day on weekends, and feel great doing it that way, plus always show a loss on Monday mornings. I certainly don't want to slow down my metabolism, which is what everybody at work is telling me will happen.
Anyway, thanks...you guys are the best.
Trisha

I have lost 3lbs in the last week after having a stall for a couple of weeks. I'm doing meat, eggs, fish & fowl, basically cutting out all carbs. I have been cheating slightly and still having my coffee with cream in the morning and having cheese so I think it's cutting out the salad with mayonaise thats helping. I've also started adding more butter to my cooking too. Try cutting your carbs right back for about 4 days & if that doesn't work, try introducing more carbs. This is why it can be difficult because everyone is different. I considered the fat fast mentioned in DANDR but couldn't make head nor tale of it plus I have done fast in the past and I don't loose anything. I think my body goes into starvation mode and clings to the fat for dear life!!!

Lucklisa, congrats on breaking your stall! One thing I have done is cut back on the amount of protein that I have been eating, which is a tough thing for me --> meateater!
Also, for lunch, I only basically eat if I am hungry. I can take it or leave it most days. If I am going to skip a meal, it will definitely be lunch instead of dinner. As far as cutting out the carbs, I have been having between 15-18 per day. I know people say that I should INCREASE my carbs, and they may be right. But it just doesn't seem that I should increase my carbs when I am not losing with what I eat now! I could be totally wrong, one of those gray areas for me.
My main goal right now is to just break this frigging stall. I would be happy with losing 2 pounds per week, if it would just stay off. I am definitely on the zigzag thing right now and it's really discouraging.
Anyway, thanks for the advice, much appreciated.
Trisha *hugs*

zig zag is totally normal.....just never give up girlie

try decreasing carbs then if that doesn't work try something else!

good luck!