Post: #176

IF saved me during my last semester at uni. I was eating out a lot, and my workouts were far from where they should have been. Somehow I managed to keep my abs.

Thankfully once you start IF it is easy to do. I actually started about two years ago. I went through a bulking phase where I was trying to eat 3 times a day but I couldn't do it. It just seemed superfluous. I can switch the timing of my meals to the point where it isn't really IF, but I can't do more than two meals. I don't know if I could ever go back.

I hate lifting in the morning anyway.

The best timing for me is to have coffee for breakfast. Then after I hit the gym in the afternoon it's the perfect time for a meal. Sometimes that's enough. Sometimes I will have a dinner.

Post: #177

For already lean individuals, the coolest thing about IF is not how it helps you get leaner, but how it helps you stay lean.

Post: #178

I want to report back on my IF experiment. It started on September 9, 2014. At the time I weighed 187 at 5'8" with an estimated 17% bodyfat (it was checked using one of those inaccurate hand held devices). Today I weighed myself and the scale registered 181. The results are visible throughout the body and I can see more definition in the abs, whereas prior to IF the abs were barely visible. There has been no loss of strength. Along with IF, I've cut out grains and sugar, however I still have around 3-4 beers per week.

IF definitely works. My window to eat is between 12:00-8:00pm. There's no problem whatsoever skipping breakfast and I never feel fatigued when working out in a fasting phase. Prior to IF I was a believer in eating a large breakfast. Now I see that it's unnecessary. This will now be a habit for life.

Post: #179

I'm gonna try this.

Word is, IF increases sex drive, too. Can anyone here confirm that?

Post: #180

(01-23-2015 07:14 PM)Flint Wrote:  I'm gonna try this.

Word is, IF increases sex drive, too. Can anyone here confirm that?

Not being always digesting something and not being bloated off carbohydrates overeating (I define overeating as anything beyond 20gr of carbs per day) definitely increases sex drive, especially when you are over 35y.

Post: #181

CaptainCrazy,

Would you mind sharing with us your daily diet? If you can keep under 20 grams all the time that is pretty impressive.

Post: #182

OK, here's my story.

I always wanted to get to the "small male fitness model" look. Not bulky, not skinny, not fat, clear ab definitions that I can keep consistently.

Some data: male, 38 y.o., height 176cm, weight 75kg, bodyfat ~10%.

This works for me, it might not work for you though. The biggest thing is not be dogmatic about your diet and training.

The keyword is keto.

The thing I noticed about myself is, I alway go better on low carb performace-wise and bodyfat-wise. I've been on and off a few times but really got serious around six month ago.

First thing I implemented is a Sunday fast. Saturday evening I had a dinner and I would only eat next time after the workout Monday morning.

My workout (for the last seven years) is whatever WOD happens in my local CrossFit box 5 times per week.

This got my fat burning going pretty well but I hi a ceiling after a few month. So, I went keto.

Not a big fan of Reddit but read http://www.reddit.com/r/keto and http://www.reddit.com/r/ketogains to get an idea.

First few weeks is a "dropdown". You will feel like shit, your performance in the gym will turn to shit too but it's a detox from carbs. Like quitting any drugs, it takes a few weeks to get the shit out of your system.

I went on total no carbs (as much as possible) cold turkey. Essentially I'd have bacon and eggs for breakfast with a bit of mayo. Then steak with a slice of full fat butter for lunch and another portion of egg with mayo (hard boiled or fried) for dinner. When I fry I only use organic coconut oil. Snacks are full fat cheese (mostly Jarlsberg). Since I eat almost no veggies, I take high doses of multivitamin, fish oil, glucosamine, magnesium and extra vitamin D.

I experience all symptoms of keto-flu. Headaches (fixed by drinking two cups of chicken broth per day), keto-breath (no fix except chewing gum, it went away eventually), red rashes on skin (went away eventually). All these symptoms will tell you to quit. Don't. I drunk (and drink now) tons and ton of water. It helps.

After approximately two weeks the miracle happened. The performance in the gym shot through the roof. The head cleared up. The brain fog disappeared. I could focus on work consistently (I spend 8-10 hours per day on a computer). And I started to notice I shred bodyfat.

Then, in our gym the trainer hired a company that does DEXA scan and I decided to continue but now with scientific measurements. In eight weeks my weight didn't change at all. However, according to DEXA scan (I have prints to prove it), I lost ~400gr of fat and put ~400gr of muscle. So, I am sticking to thins thing.

Now I am less strict with the food but still keep it as low carb as possible.

My main secret is ricotta cheese (home made from cheap milk I buy that near expiry date).

Here's what I eat most of the time.

Breakfast: Eggs boiled or fried with mayo. Then a bowl of ricotta cheese.

Snack: A bowl of ricotta cheese.

Lunch: steak or fish with two-three baby cucumbers and one-two cherry tomatoes, mayo or butter. Then a bowl of ricotta cheese.

Snack: A bowl of ricotta cheese.

Dinner: Same as breakfast.

I am more relaxed with some extra carbs though. I sometimes snack on nuts (they have some carbs in there). I add a small amount of stevia and sour cream to ricotta cheese to make it taste better. I can have a cup of cappuchino with almond milk (like 8gr of carbs per shot).

Generally speaking, it always less than 40gr (20gr or less most of the time) so I stay in the keto-zone.

I still drink alcohol but only spirits with sugar-free mixers (whiskey and soda most of the time to be safe). No beer, no wine. Wine is for pussies and beer is for the belly fat anyways.

Sometimes I bake keto-cookies with almond meal, stevia, baking cocoa, butter and eggs. Tastes pretty awesome.

And I quit Sunday fasts as I went keto. Too much strain on the body, IMO.

If you have questions, shoot.

Post: #183

CaptainCrazy nice post. I am wondering if you considered carb cycling?

Like remaining below 20g on rest days and eat more carbs (100g+) on workout days? This is assuming you train 3 times per week which is not much, but that will allow more no-carb days.

Post: #184

IF was also great to me when cutting. Meal timing was 11:30am -5:30pm. Lost some strength, but really cut down my fat pretty quickly.

Post: #185

I've given this a go recently. As a previous poster said, I was a believer in a decent, 800 calorie breakfast. I'd happily miss lunch after that, but anyhow. Turns out I feel sharper in the mornings if I just have my two cups of coffee. Nice one.

Post: #186

(01-26-2015 11:03 PM)FretDancer Wrote:  CaptainCrazy nice post. I am wondering if you considered carb cycling?

Like remaining below 20g on rest days and eat more carbs (100g+) on workout days? This is assuming you train 3 times per week which is not much, but that will allow more no-carb days.

As I said, YMMV. For me, carbs make me feel bloated and foggy in the head. I don't see a point of taking 100gr to improve performance in the gym. In fact, CrossFit style stuff for me is easier on no-carb. I can go through the workout without any significant drops of energy. On carbs it's like when you run out of "fuel", it's all over.

Post: #187

IF is really working well for me. I'm a fat guy. 3 weeks ago, I weighed 318. Today, I am 287. All I have been doing is IF, no sweets/snacks/sodas, eating healthy, and walking alot more. I got to start hitting the weights. I feel great. Thanks RVF!

Post: #188

I am doing IF with a mix of atkins (just cutting out carbs). It only works because I love meat, cobb salad and buffalo wings.

I've lost a few lbs and looking a bit more cut up. I stopped boxing 6 days a week doing every other day and lifting the off days. My endurance for boxing is affected a bit, since I have no carbs in me. Best I can do is 5 rounds of mitts these days. And I start feeling it around round 3/4.

Once I am ready I am going to use that caffeine, yohimbe hcl and l-tyrosine stack on my boxing days to make the final push to cut.

Post: #189

(01-31-2015 03:07 PM)samsamsam Wrote:  I am doing IF with a mix of atkins (just cutting out carbs). It only works because I love meat, cobb salad and buffalo wings.

I've lost a few lbs and looking a bit more cut up. I stopped boxing 6 days a week doing every other day and lifting the off days. My endurance for boxing is affected a bit, since I have no carbs in me. Best I can do is 5 rounds of mitts these days. And I start feeling it around round 3/4.

Once I am ready I am going to use that caffeine, yohimbe hcl and l-tyrosine stack on my boxing days to make the final push to cut.

if you are going to do this, try carb backloading

Post: #190

It looks like I am on it as well. I remember when I was younger I didn't have any interest in eating breakfast and was able to easily eat 1st meal around 3 pm. Of course later I was pressured to change my eating patterns to more "normal", so kind of feel like I am coming back to my natural state. I eat reasonably clean, problem is that I don't have a clear goal for working out, I just had enough of sitting on my ass so much.

Today I "survived" 17 hours without meal (from 5pm yesterday to 10 am today), but my friend pointed out that not having a meal after a evening workout (finished it yesterday around 10:30 pm) is not smart, even if I don't like to eat so late (I go sleep not earlier than 1:00).

So will try to modify it next time when having late workout (Tuesday and Friday).

Also tomorrow morning, after another 16 hours window, will have a 1st workout (based on freeletics) when fasting. Should be interesting.

Will try to do it without BCAA for now, but I'm ready to get it if necessary. At the moment water or water with lemon seems to do okay, but will learn more about myself in next few days.

Post: #191

What would be best, no eating at all in the morning to prolong your fast or just take a protein shake with bcaa's in it?

Post: #192

Whoishe, definitely eat after working out.

I plan my eating window to occur after working out. I pop BCAAs before working out. It might be overkill, but I am a bit older and I'll what I have to do to protect muscle mass. I think it was Rio or Kosko that mentioned you really don't start eating muscles until a long long long time later.

Rottenapple, I think a protein shake is gonna break your fast.

Post: #193

Just take 10g of bcaa and workout faated like martin recommends. Also mikecc (i believe) is on point with if...listen, IF isn't a diet, its a way to eat, a way of life after a while. Its the best thing you can do to adhere to any diet. I personally only eat once a day. Takes me about 30mins to ingest 1800/cal. Done. For the rest of the day i do t even think about food. I cook for my kids and NEVER get hungry. If for some odd reason an apitite spikes, i just drink diet soda, sugar free gum. If im on a cut i.e. caloric deficit i take ec which literally destroys any apitite i may have. Yes i fast for 23.5 hours EVERYDAY for the last 3 years. A lot of people on here seems to just need to remain consistant and dedicated and you WILL have the body of your dreams. Dont knock a program if you do t try it FAITHFULLY to the T for at leat 90 days.

Post: #194

Listen to your body, learn to understand it's language. This will determine when and if you should do IF.

There are a lot of guys who do IF + Keto then pass out in the gym (and people laugh because they think they OD'ed on roidz like an amateur).

You should start by not eating dinner on the days you don't work out. Then gradually experiment (preferably on weekends if you don't have to work/school) on excluding breakfast or lunch some days. If you don't have blood sugar crashes or massive carb cravings, then it is OK to increase the intervals to working days and after 2 weeks try working out on IF now that your body has adapted.

Don't be that dude that passes out in the gym. Obamacare does not cover n00b mistakes.

Post: #195

Agree with listen to ur body.
disagree with skipping dinner. DONT DO THIS.. skip breakfast if anything, that way when u wake up u will already be in a fasted state. Contrary to popular belief, the more FREQUENT you eat the hungrier you get. The less frequent you eat, the more appetite suppression effects you get. So i would recommend u skip brrakfast, any snacks in between that. Dont eat until noon time (at least) shoot for a 14-16 hr fasted state. It WILL be hell for 1st couple of weeks. Get through that and the appetite suppression kicks in and you feel sooo much better.
NEVER work out (gym) without the proper amino acids in you. You can take 10g of bcaa and not break your fast. Just dont workout without those 3 aminos, Very important. They WILL get you throufh ur workout without you collapsing like previous poster stated. More info read through martins site http://www.leangains.com

now...this is all assuming you kno ur maintence calories. If ur on a cut, eat 30% below maintence on rest days and -10% on work-out days. One of the benefits of fasting is u wony even feel like ur on a calorie deficit. On a bulk eat maintence on rest fays and +30% on a workout day. Dont work out more than 4 times a week. (I work out just 3 times) trust me when i say less is better. I thought i was gonna melt my muscles right off when i first began, boy was i wrong! And shoot for 1lbs of fat loss per week. Or if bulking shoot for NO MORE than 1lbs of muscle every2 weeks. Yes thats it! Bulk slowly and watch how easy it is to eat your favorite foods and keep the muscle on amd fat off!

Post: #196

So many people say to me, "I could NEVER do that! I need breakfast. I'd get way too hungry not eating until noon/2pm/4pm!"

My response is always: "How do you know? Have you ever TRIED? I agree it'll be hard the first couple of days. But your body acclimates quickly to feeding times. If you eat breakfast every day, you will feel hungry when you don't get it. But if you stop eating breakfast, guess what? Your body will get used to the new meal timing. You won't get hungry until noon or later.

TRY IT for a week and tell me how it goes."

Of course, most people never even give it a shot. They close themselves off to the idea completely and close their minds. To them, it is "impossible". What a load of crap. Intermittent fasting is one of the best changes I've ever made to my lifestyle and got me into the best shape of my life. While still letting me "pig out" with huge meals every night!

Post: #197

I'm down to 267 on IF. I cheated a bit this week but still losing weight with just IF and walking more.

Post: #198

Is there anyone who could answer some questions I have about IF via pm?

Post: #199

I've been doing http://www.leangains.com for a while, shoot me a pm if you'd like.

Post: #200

I have to admit I am quite enjoying it and can see myself doing IF for a long time. I've started IF at the beginning of February and adjusted very easily. Only issue for me is that I have two pre afternoon and three evening workouts during one week, so my 16/8 windows are moving up and down a little bit, but it's definitely doable and I am just staying for >16 hours in fasted state when necessary. Base eating window is 13-21 and I am not taking any supplements (at least so far).

I was worried about working out in fasted state, but it isn't causing me any problems. I also were able to adjust to huge evening post workout meals 3 times per week. Even if I don't have a clear goal for my workouts/IF it seems I am slowly dropping weight (around 6-7 pounds so far). I am quite strict about taking less carbs during non-workout days though and during workout days I prefer to take carbs afterwards (I am feeling "heavy" eating them before going to gym).

BTW, I am doing Cross Training (which seems to be a mix of Cross Fit and Freeletics), which has to be considered my 1st time ever for regular workouts (yeah, I know...). Really enjoying it at the moment.