Intermittent fasting is a fancy term for a very simple activity: grouping all your meals in a narrow time interval. Instead of spreading your eating across the entire day, you decide to eat only between certain hours and you stick to that routine. There are quite a few benefits for doing this, but I'll get back to that later on.
Since December 2017 I'm on a 20/4 intermittent fasting routine. It means that I'm consuming calories only during a 4 hours time window, and for the rest of the day, 20 hours, I'm fasting. I usually have the first meal between 1PM and 2PM and the last one between 5PM and 6PM. In that time window I have no restriction to what and how much I'm eating (other than keep being a vegetarian, that is).
So, there are basically 150 days since I'm doing this, or 5 months.
In this post I will try to sketch a little bit of a report about this habit, how I locked it in, what worked and what didn't.
Disclaimer And Precautions
Although there are benefits to this routine, please consult with an accredited physician before trying intermittent fasting. We're different human beings, we have different metabolisms and different states of health, and what's working for me may not work for somebody else.
Getting To The Optimal Time Window
It's important to know that I didn't get to the 20/4 routine just like that, from the day one. I came to it after a few months of trials. All these trials were basically 30 days challenges. I'm a big fan of 30 days challenges and, if you follow me on Steemit for more than a few months, then you remember that I did quite a few 30 days writing challenges here.
The first 30 days challenge had an 8 hours time window. I had my first meal of the day at 10 AM, and the last one at 6 PM. Nothing before and nothing after. It went very well and I had no difficulties sticking to it. As a matter of fact, it didn't felt like a challenge, but rather like a small adjustment to my eating habits.
After this first challenge I got back to "normal" eating, for 30 days. Meaning I didn't have fixed hours, I was eating whenever I was hungry. Then I started the second attempt, this time on a 6 hours time window. I had the first meal at 10AM and the last one at 4PM. This 30 days challenge was a bit more difficult, but also more relevant. I did noticed some patterns and, at the end of it, I decided to go for a 4 hours time window (of course, after another month of pause).
So, in December 2017 I started the 20/4 routine and I found it the most beneficial. It's basically my normal eating routine now. And even though I went through Christmas and Easter on this 20/4 window (and these holidays are heavily related to ingesting large amounts of food in Romania), the benefits are way too consistent to give it up now.
Cheat Days
It will be wrong to assume that I've been robotically on a 20/4 window. I do have what I call "cheat days", or days in which I eat outside the window (most of the time the "outside" is on the evening end of it, I find sticking to the first par - meaning not eating until 1 PM - relatively easy). But I don't have more than 2-3 cheating days per month and there are strings of 2-3 weeks going on without any cheat day at all.
Also, during travel I had to adjust this and I had a couple of consecutive cheat days, but I tried to make it up for that by lowering the amount of calories (and intensifying exercise) after I adjusted to the local cuisine.
Main Benefits
The first, and most important benefit, is, as you may imagine, weight loss. I wasn't overweighted when I started it, but I was on a 3 months pause from running and that kinda showed up on my body. So, the first thing that I saw on this routine was that the internal fat was trimming down. It's not the fat that is on the outer side of the body, but the one which is "invisible", hidden inside and covering your internal organs. I was able to observe this because, although I didn't have a six pack yet, my teeshirts became kinda loose and my pants were suddenly a bit large.
It may seem a bit counterintuitive to lose weight on a regime where I don't limit calorie intake (like I said, during the eating window I don't have any restriction and I often indulge in whatever I want to eat) but it does work. And the reason it works is because, during the fasting window, the body is forced to tap into fat reserves in order to survive (since it doesn't have access to a constant influx of calories). Overall, this kinda balances the metabolism and the body starts to function better, which has a boomerang effect on the whole thing: it burns whatever it burns more efficiently, it doesn't send signals of hunger so often, and so on and so forth.
But the most important benefits, at least for me, are not related to losing weight (although I do enjoy being slim and all). The most important benefits are related to sleep, concentration and emotional balance.
From the first days of this experiments, even when I was on a 8 hours window, I noticed that my sleep improved dramatically. Going to sleep at least 3 hours after the last meal made a big difference. I fell asleep more easily, the sleep quality was better and I needed less sleep than before. Now, I can go to sleep at 10:30PM and wake up at 6:00 AM without any alarm clock, refreshed and recharged.
And then there is concentration. I work a lot with my brain (my day job is being a programmer) so focus is very important. And I noticed that, during the first part of the day, I am way more productive than before. Probably because there aren't any activities related to food in my body, since I don't have breakfast, the whole thing is steadier and I have a much clearer mind. This also extends to the entire day, which goes on without any significant somnolence or lack of energy. It feels like I have less to manage unconsciously, so I have more energy to direct to the task at hand.
Closely related to focus is the emotional balance. Since I'm on this routine, I have a much better grip on my emotional reactions (being them constructive or destructive). It comes easier to control my auto pilot responses to various stimuli and it's also easier to chill and just be relaxed. The fact that I'm doing at least one and a half hour of yoga each day (under the close supervision of my teacher, @raluca) may also have something to do with this, I admit it.
Caveats
There are few caveats to this.
First of all, it took a while for the body to find its balance. During this time, I was more sensitive and my immune system wasn't at its best.
Also, from a socializing point of view, it can be a bit challenging to go to a dinner with somebody else after your time window and not eat anything. I try to offset this with just a beer, but, I don't know why, it seems to make things even more awkward...
Current Status
As I wrote above, this is my natural way of eating now and I see no reason to stop it.
Again, if you plan to start something similar, do consult with a qualified physician. What worked for me may not work for you.
I'm a serial entrepreneur, blogger and ultrarunner. You can find me mainly on my blog at Dragos Roua where I write about productivity, business, relationships and running. Here on Steemit you may stay updated by following me @dragosroua.
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Agreed... Also a new study from Harvard researchers has shown how fasting can increase lifespan, slow aging and improve health by altering the activity of mitochondrial networks inside our cells.
I've never heard of intermittent fasting, how do you deal with liquid outside your windows? Water and tea mainly, I assume you are not drinking sodas if yippy are fasting.
I drink tea and coffee in the morning, other than that nothing. The idea is not to ingest calories during the day and group meals within a smaller time window, to force the body to tap into fat reserves.
Well done on changing your habits - that in itself is a challenge for many.
I've never tried the intermittent fasting, but I did do a 7 day water fast (no food at all, only water for 7 days straight) a few months ago.
I'd researched a lot into fasting, and decided to go the whole way and try the water fast. It was good for losing weight (as you'd expect), shedding body fat (I was, and still am overweight - although not massively).
The 7 day fast was also good for my skin, and concentration - which was a massive benefit for me.
I chose the water fast because of its detox/reset properties, and because of what I'd read about Ketosis.
I was surprised that after the first day, I wasn't really hungry. I did still feel a slight hunger (it never completely went away), but I didn't necessarily want food. And at the end, I felt I could continue longer, but didn't want to go too extreme on my first fast (I'll be doing another in the coming months).
It might be something to look into, but I think it's only really beneficial if you have enough body fat to convert to energy (as that's the fuel your body uses instead of calories).
General advice: check with your doctor if you have any medical conditions, and take the proper precautions if you choose this route.
Agree on that, otherwise it will start cannibalizing own protein, which is quite damaging.
100% agree.
Congrats on the 7 days water fasting, it's a huge!
That's a nice writing, to see the experience of somebody who went through intermittent fasting. It is interesting to see that you were able to handle intermittent fasting with a 4 hours window, that is quite challenging!
I wanted at some point in my life to start intermittent fasting, but I never got the discipline necessary to stick to the eating windows. I imagine that it is pretty effective since you decided to keep the intermittent fasting after all this time, with a window of 4 hours, that is a big achievement in my opinion :)
Once the habit kicks in, it's not really difficult.
Interesting to hear your intermittent fasting story @dragosroua. It's a shame you didn't separate the yoga from the fasting though. I would have been interested to see what effects doing one and a half hours yoga had a day without changing your diet,
I did the 5:2 fasting for about three years and found it quite easy to stick too. I've not tried the eating in a time window one though although I know a few people trying it at the moment.
First, I didn't change the diet, only the time when I'm eating, that's an important detail. Second, I would think that yoga in itself is beneficial without intermittent fasting, but probably the effect is bigger when both are combined.
Yes. I should have said eating habits rather than diet. That's what I meant! That's the best bit about intermittent fasting as far as i'm concerned - you don't have to alter what you eat! 😁
Thanks for the article. It is always good for me to learn that I am not the only person following a strange diet.
Currently, my intermittent-fasting window is from 11 am through 7 pm. Which is easy to follow when I am on my own. The only reason to eat outside of that window is to fit in better with society :)
I noticed the same thing; your sleep improves quite a lot when you do intermittent fasting.
Your article inspired me to try a smaller window. I will probably change to six hours.
I have pretty much tried every single way of eating out there. Not for weight loss purposes, but as part of a health quest. I wanted to feel my best and get rid of heartburn and muscle aches. I experimented with everything from veganism to Atkins.
Finally, I found the right combination that works for me and it includes an intermittent fasting lifestyle. I have been eating this way for the past 2-3 years. I don’t do it every day, but 4-5 times/week. When I don’t do it, I only drink a green juice or a protein smoothie in the morning, so nothing very heavy or hard to digest.
I have worked this several times in my life and am currently using an 8 hour window, taking one or two meals in between noon and 8pm.
Yes the weight does leave, sleep improves and the concentration is greater.
But for me the greatest benefit is feeling empowered, not being a slave to a clock or urge for food. It frees one to go through a day less encumbered and accomplishing more. And as I am also a prepper type, it is preparation for diminished food supply instate of emergency or turmoil.
Do you have more energy? Maybe I will start trying this in the morning or evening.
That's a very interesting personal experience description. Never tried fasting before but after reading your post I may decide to try it for a while and see my body reactions. I have been into mindfulness for quite a while after discovering a free online 8 week course from Dave Potter
I was also part of a group which helped translate the Spanish version of the course
It was a great experience and ever since then I try to do my 10 to 20 daily minutes, I have experienced some of the emotional reactions you describe.
Thanks for sharing
Congrats on keeping the mindfulness routine! Keep it up :)
Wow...My First Time seeing you post a long one. Cool for a change. But would you call this fasting? It's called hunger strike. I think fasting is used in religion alone. .
Coool benefits though. Same as when you chose to do ketogenesis I.e staying away from carbs.
Interesting choice of words. I agree that the religious meaning of fasting involves other components too, such as refraining from negative thoughts. I think I'm closer to that meaning as what I'm doing involves a lot of mindfulness.
This is an effect i can attest to
For me i dont mind intermittent fasting, but my parents think i have to eat all the time, that im too skinny
It must be hard eating only vegetables and I assume supplements only 4 hours a day. I tried 18-6, though I find it beneficial, I'm already skinny so I'll stick to my bulking plan. Keep up the healthy life!
Ofcourse the stops are highly important. One month challenge, one month pause. Cheat days are just inevitable too except you’re a robot which your not.
I naturally do not usually feel like to eat in the morning. Then I start to take all sort of food from say 12 PM to 8PM. All sort of food but in small quantity.
Without a plan, but, when I plan, then hunger starts at 10:30 am. Like an hour or more before it. I guess it is a kind of game my mind pulls. The last time I tried was January. I and a couple of steemians chose the month to have fasting and prayers for positive results as the year kicks off! With team work I did it. I ate only between 6pm-12am. Next time I can make the hours even slimmer.
This is so true. You won’t eat but you’ll have a beer. They will have to respect your standard though. You choose what you ingest and when and stick with it.
You just know what works or what?Cause my trick is tea with bread or biscuit early like 8a.m and i go 6hours without food..
Focus and quality sleep is vital to productivity..Funny how fasting can make you better at this..Food is one less distraction to worry about..
Discipline massaged with self-care..Me and you both pal...You rock
Are you sure it's good for your health ?
Positive :)
This is very interesting, I’ve not been a very good fan of fasting of any kind. Infact I eat anytime I feel like chewing something and this has got an effect on my packs. Yeah I have a round pack now instead of six but i think I’ve got to inculcate the habit of fasting, intermittent fasting to be precise. Thanks for sharing your experience. It’s quite helpful to me cause I want my six packs back 🙈
I want to do more fasting from time to time, gotta be more disciplined.
It's a great job and great habit.
It has a lot benefit for your health. And also scientifically proved.
Am sure this would be hard for me, i eat when am hungry and there is no real routine about that. Its hard to plan how i eat, I wish i could
The first, and most important benefit, is, as you may imagine, weight loss.
Then its very benifitial for me I think, I should give it a try.
Fasting helps to lower blood pressure, weight loss and cholesterol control. Other than that immune cells are renewed by replacing old ones to the new ones.
Very informative, thanks! I've been thinking about trying this for a few weeks now. But reading this pulled me over the line. Would you recommend to directly start with a 20/4 schedule or first try a lighter on like you did at first? All of these more or less fit fine in my daily routines.
I started with a gentle routine and observed how I adapted. As it's not a diet, but mostly a habit, it helps starting on an easier routine, just to be sure the habit sticks.
Great, I'll start today with a simple plan to get adjusted and used to it. Thanks for the advice! :)
An amazing post!
I belive if wasnt that easy at the begining of this new lifestyle, but if its wotking well for you - that is most important.
Do you dink tea or coffee during your 20hours of fasting, or just water?
I would love to give it a try once, but I'm caffee maniac, can drink coffee instead of food :D
I drink coffee in the morning.
Fasting is really beneficial for health. Being believer we keep fast for one month during the holy month of Ramadan
This can be a new chapter of a person's life and new secrets and experiences a person have during this intermittent fasting. I am happy that your health, sleeping patters and concentrations have improved a lot due to it.
Great experience you shared great to learn from your experiences :)
Greeting from morocco as I muslim we fast 1months in the year
its Ramadan :)
Fasting, by taking a completely different approach,it is much easier to understand. It is so simple that it can be explained in two sentences: Eat nothing. Drink water, tea, coffee .
Que bueno hermano que hayas conseguido esa estabilidad. Primero emocional de estar en equilibrio contigo y después de aprender a usar tu organismo de manera eficiente.
Yo siempre fui delgado, en especial cuando corría maratones y pasaba horas en la bicicleta recorriendo las calles. Es bueno cuando describes que estas mas despejado y debe ser también que no comes cosas que te intoxican el organismo...
de vez en cuando es bueno hacer el habito de tomar cosas en ayuno. Como por ejemplo el agua de brocoli o el de berenjena por siete días... eso te ayudará a fijar el hierro de los alimentos que consumes. Ya que gastas mucha energia en las carreras y reponer el potasio y el magnesio. Bueno saludos espero todo vaya bien con el estilo de via de comida ya no es dieta es saber vivir en armonia con uno mismo. Te quería preguntar cuál fue la última falla de la aplicación suya??? vi que tuviste unas horas fuera.
Ya creo es la segunda en corto tiempo abra algún algoritmo de programación que te provoca la falla, estarás pidiendo mucha glucosa jajajaj un abrazo... que sigas disfrutando de tu pueblo.
This is true sir @dragosroua, I am from India and its in our religion to fast on certain days. This is very beneficial as our system also needs rest for a day.
There are times when we have to fast 2 or 3 days consecutively and after that we do feel weak sometimes, but the body is relaxed and calm.
You gave us information about such an important topic. Thanks for your efforts and time.
A great habit and great work.
its really graet content for health ,,i agreed 100%
thanks for this post.its really necessary,,no doubt,
its so great post oh based health,,it really necessary to a healthy life,,by which we get a happy life
its need to time to time taking a routine such take food or care ownself.
yes its important for helth, great post dear.
Helpful Post sir ..thanks for share
I got such alot of information from this post !
Thank You !
Dear, I'm new here ,Can I get support from you ?
. Before intermittent fasting: After five-months of intermittent fasting
Interesting term, intermittent fasting. I think I like the meal grouping idea better, even though you are abstaining from consumption much longer than you are eating. Not sure if it's just the idea that eating seems more of a positive thing to me than fasting or abstaining from eating does, but hey, it's your deal. :) I thought this might be about a fast system where you fast for one day, eat, and then fast, then eat, or something along those lines.
I like the idea, though. I would hope that there would also be an added benefit of time management. Not sure how you do things, but if you're constantly starting and stopping throughout the day to prepare a meal, morning, noon and evening, you have to try to confine your other activities within the times in between. Whereas, if you know you're going to start eating at 1-2 pm and finish between 5-6 pm, you have all the time beforehand and all the time after to do whatever, while potentially sneaking in more than just meal preparation, consumption and cleanup in between.