I've just read Dr Eades blog on IF, and was wondering if there are any people here doing it. If anyone has links to prior discussions or threads, I'd really love them!

Thanks!!!!
Sueparl

There is a thread in the General LC forum and I believe a thread in the Buddies, Countdowns & Challenges Forum.

I'm basically doing informal IFing with Atkins. I fast approx 18 hours and eat for approx 6 hours. I break my fast around noon each day, and eat dinner around 6 pm. If I get hungry in between I eat, but usually I don't. I really like it. It meets all my needs:

-I'm not hungry in the AM anyway, so I don't eat
-I like eating bigger meals, so I get to eat 2 bigger meals per day, instead of 3 smaller ones.

Someday, I would like to eat just one large meal a day, but I can't do that right now. I need the emotional release of a lunch. I know it sounds weird, but with 3 little kids, getting to eat to a nice lunch makes me feel better! Maybe when they all get in school, I will strive for 1 large dinner a day.

Anyway, check out those threads.

I thought and have read that eating 5-6 small meals a day is better in order to help your metabolism. So can someone explain how fasting or only eating 1 large meal a day is better for you? And does fasting work for everyone? I know that I have a problem fasting because I am always hungry and usually eat several small meals a day.

Way back in the day, when our ancestors had to hunt for food. They did not eat 3 meals a day with in between snacks. You can only stand so much jerky.
They probably never ate more than once a day. No doubt there were times when they ate even less. If you think about what foods they most likely ate, they were able to keep their insulin/glucose levels in tip top shape.

As I considered this I began to conclude that my insulin is much more stable, perhaps even a little lower than what it was when I was just plain old low carbing. Up to a couple of months ago, I was eating atleast 4 full meals a day and a small snack. Although low carb, My eating habits kept me hungry.

It began to occur to me that my digestive system was not completing its job between meals. Perhaps this is what a healthy diet is lacking. By eating before everything had a chance to digest, just might raise insulin levels, cause constipation and other digestive relatied annoyances. I thought about the digestion issue because I noticed that now that I have included IF to my WOE, I have a nice BM within an hour after my first meal of the day...everyday. My tummy area doesn't expand as much towards the end of the day. AND, my waist is measuring 1/2 inch smaller than it did a couple of months ago, and I lost around 8ish lbs since April. In addition, my TOM, so far seems to be about 3 days shorter. This is great since it was lasting for about 6-7 days.

So by allowing my gut to fully digest a day's worth of food, I think that I am improving insulin/glucose stability, bowel function, and female hormonal issues by not eating so often. I make certain that each meal is healthy. All meals have protein, veggies/fruit and fats. An I have had mcuh welcomed results.

I can't imagine that ANY one way of eating could be right for everybody. We all have different physiologies.

I know that I personally fare much worse when I try to fast. I end up getting overly hungry and I eat even more later in the day, plus I end up feeling weak and dizzy the entire day, even after I've broken the fast.

Have you wondered if that's why you're always hungry?

Its a chicken or egg situation. When you fast the nagging hunger disappears

I know its been a while but, for me, I need some time to pass before I have new comments. Shoot, I just ate my first meal of the day today at 2:00 and dinner will be ready at 6:00 and I definitely do not think that I am going to be hungry. My first meal consisted of a 6 oz piece of steak, 10 small shrimp, turnip greens with turnip roots mixed in. I also had an 8 oz glass of coconut/fruit smoothie. Yet, I am not stuffed but I am definitely full. I noticed that I lost another 2 lbs last month I workout at Curves and I have been walking. I exercise during my fast and do not eat until an hour after my workout.

I've IFed out of necessity for most of my working life. I cannot eat while working as I work in an isolation chamber and it would take too long to decontaminate and get to food - so I have 8 - 12 hour fasts every working day as it is. The times I miss breakfast I fast for 23 hours straight. This happens more often than I'd like.

But I have never, ever stopped being hungry during the day. It's been years of this schedule and my body has never liked it and probably never will. When I eat at 7am and then again at 7pm I'm okay, but still not great. My body simply prefers more, smaller meals throughout the day. I wish it were different because it's darn inconvenient, but this is the way it works with me.

I'm really glad to know that it may be prolonging my life though!!

That's a good plan; I often start eating as soon as I am done exercising, but I workout at home.

I think the hunger issues are directly proportional to the amount of carbs consumed. Exercise also seems to be a factor, at least for me. If I bike in the evening I am starving the next morning. I am working on increasing protein by having some sardines with my meals or Jay Robb's protein powder if I get less than 80 grams / day.

Maybe someone can provide the link to that blog. Dr Mike explains it pretty well. It's a well-documented phenomenon, that IF improves all blood levels and overall health, while most of the time reducing weight. No one ever suggests you fast longer than 48 hours, at which point the body will likely begin to access it's on muscle protein.

Here's the link
http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/?p=278

the thing that makes SO much sense is how paleolithic humans had to eat. They went quite a long time before meals (no drive thrus, you know) and not much in the way of carbs. Gotta go out, hunt it, kill it, drag it home, prepare it, eat it, then digest.

makes soooo much sense!

Elle, do you drink anything other than water during the fasting time?

Nope. Just water, and lots of it! I usually drink 32 - 40 ounces before I break my fast at noon.

That may not seem like much, but for someone who STRUGGLED to drink 8 - 12 ounces a day, it's a tremendous improvement, yes?

I hate the feeling of water AND food in my stomach...it's either one or the other for me. So, once I start eating, I start sipping, and I get another maybe 16 ounces the rest of the day. Still not the "recommended" 64 + ounces, but I'm very comfortable with my water intake now, whereas before I knew I was doing my body a disservice, not drinking enough.

Here is the main IF thread (over 100 pages long!). Drop in, have a read and ask questions, the IFers posting there are both knowlegeable and helpful.

There's also another smaller thread here .

Look forward to seeing you over in the main IF thread

I'm with Ruthla on this...I have generally about 5-6 small meals a day....fasting not a good thing for me...

To each there own!!!