re: 16/8 too good to be true?

quote:

---

A dietician friend of mine says to break your fast with a small portion of protein. Your cell walls are open and receptive after fasting, and they start to close around the first thing you put in your body. Protein is more friendly than carbohydrates as a first source of calories. She says to eat a piece of beef jerky and don't eat anything else for about 30 minutes after that.

---

Any studies to back that other than your “dietician friend” who was probably telling people to eat three squares and follow the food pyramid 15 years ago?

Fasting is simply kcal reduction. Same as “keto.” You all know that. You all know there is no magic to this.

For reference, I’ve been pretty much OMAD for the last year. I’ve lost 70 lbs and find it easy. There’s not some mystical metabolic change. I’m just eating at least 500 kcals less a day.

If I’m really hungry at lunch, I’ll eat something. The other day they had pizza at the office. I ate a slice. But as a rule I eat dinner.

And no, I didn’t gain five pounds of fat and water when I cheated.

quote:

---

How are you maintaining your current weight? How many calories per day are you consuming?

---

I eat around 2500 kcals a day. I’ve put on 5 lbs of fat in the last 2.5 months because I couldn’t exercise due to diverticulitis (which is NOT related to diet) and having 6 inches of my colon removed. So I gained some fat for sure because I didn’t change my diet.

I generally don’t “subtract” my kcals burned from my budget but being sedentary for weeks definitely caught up with me.

All of that said I still have twenty lbs of fat to lose. OMAD or 20-4 works for me. I don’t feel deprived and when I do I eat something.

I’m 47 and have tried everything including the 5 smaller meals a day to “keep your metabolism going.” Now that we have access to real data it’s pretty clear that it’s still simple thermodynamics.

If I eat breakfast, say on a vacation weekend, I’m hungry all day. Every time. If I don’t eat during the day I typically don’t get hungry.

If I go on a lunch date I want to sleep the rest of the day. Just how I’m wired.

Depends on the day. I try to keep my meals in line with activity for the day. If I'm having a lazy day, I'll eat 1800-2000. If I'm hitting the gym, golfing or going for a bike ride, I keep it around 3,000 depending on what I'm doing.

I've been doing this for 2 weeks now. I lost 25 pounds since 2021 by eating better and exercising. Now I'm home with a broken foot and wanted to try this since not much cardio going on.

Last few days I've shortened my eating window to 6 hours and the hunger hasn't been hitting me at all. Not much weight loss 1 pound in 2 weeks but I just want to maintain.

Going to return to gym next week and so some upper body weights now that I can get around a little better.

quote:

---

16/8 & 20/4 are supposed to be better for your gut biome.

---

Maybe. But 12/8 is the way.

quote:

---

e?
Just curious as to how this is going of you? I am looking into trying IF as well.

---

nothing special about IF, just an easy way to control calories.