My 8 weeks of dieting - results and my intermittent fasting experience.
Right then, this is it. It's the end of February and I have been dieting for two months. As I've said in previous posts, I just cleaned up my diet in January and was conscious of what calories I was consuming. I lost my 'Christmas weight' in January, dropping from 11st 7lb to around 11st 2lb, and I also lost 2" off my waist. In addition, I spent a lot of time researching different dieting techniques and the benefits of intermittent fasting. This is my third year of having the knowledge and drive to get ripped over the summer months, the first year I over-dieted, and although I lost a lot of weight I lost muscle mass too. In the second year of dieting I lost weight again but retained muscle mass; I used a carb rotation in this period of dieting and ate every two and a half to three hours. Although both dieting techniques worked I was constantly hungry even in the second year when I was eating every three hours, they were only small meals and never seemed to quell that feeling of wanting to eat.
Having read a lot on the internet I decided to give intermittent fasting a try. I know this sounds pretty hardcore, but I can honestly say it's one of the best dieting choices I have ever made. I will try and explain the thinking behind it and then talk about my results and how my experience with it has gone.
There are a few different ways of intermittent fasting - partaking in one or two long periods without food to lower your average weekly calorie intake, or, as I have done, eating in an 8 hour feeding window, allowing another 8 hours for absorption and having 8 hours in a fasted state.
A lot of people believe that breakfast is the most important meal of the day - I agree, but what I have learnt over this month is that it is when you are breaking your fast, and what you are breaking it with, that makes it the most important meal. Although in my opinion all meals are equally important, you may even say the the post workout meal is the most important, but I digress - it makes no odds really, and at this rate I will be writing this all through March, I haven't even got started yet! I think it will work best if I show you how and when I have eaten over this month.
0630 2 pints of cold water and a handful of BCAA (Click this link for info on BCAA -branch chain amino acids)
12:30-13:00 Break-fast - usually consisting of a chicken and bacon salad, some cottage cheese and some fruit, averaging about 400 calories
16:00-17:00 second meal/pre work out - two slices of wholemeal toast with peanut butter and honey, and either some more cottage cheese or a protein shake and a banana, averaging about 550 calories
18:30 Post workout - either scrambled eggs and a hamburger as well as some toast, or a mass gainer shake roughly about 550 calories (I only have this meal 3 time a week when I lift weights)
19:00 Cardio (but only on a non-training day)
19:00-20:00 Last meal of the day - something wholesome; fish pie, lasagne, spaghetti and meatballs - anything really, usually averaging 600-700 calories
Training day Calories = 2150 net
Cardio days = 1640 net
So from this you can see that on a training day I have roughly 2150 calories, which is about 300 over my limit for the day. However, on a cardio day I have 1640 calories, about 250 over my limit due to the 350 calories I burn off running and doing body weight exercises. My week goes on like this, eating above my calorie goal on a training day and going under it on a non training day. Of course it doesn't take a genius to work out that over the course of the whole week I will be well under my target for calories, so on a Saturday evening I have a cheat/re-feed meal which takes me well over my target for the day but brings my weekly average to pretty much on the money. Simples!
Here are a few of the claimed benefits of intermittent fasting:
The biggest benefit is that intermittent fasting helps you keep the weight off once you lose it. As previously mentioned, intermittent fasting cultivates insulin sensitivity. It changes your body
chemistry so that your body stores less fat. Here is how this works:
chemistry so that your body stores less fat. Here is how this works:
The main role of insulin is regulation of your blood sugar, but it also has other important roles aswell, including increased lipid synthesis and esterification of fatty acids (essentially making more fat tissue). Over time, and also depending on other factors such as obesity, the body can develop more resistance to insulin. This means that more insulin needs to be released in order to regulate the blood sugar effectively, and the byproduct of that will be that more fat gets stored. Consequently the reverse is also true; increased insulin sensitivity means less insulin and less fat. This is an extremely simplified way of looking at a very complex physiological process, but you get the idea...
Here are the things I have found with intermittent fasting:
Compared to eating lots of small regular meals and keeping my blood sugar levels constantly high I have found Intermittent fasting a lot easier, as when I eat it's something substantial enough for me to feel full, as well as taking longer to eat, which contributes to that feeling of fullness. This is a great advantage compared to basically grazing throughout the day and never getting the feeling that I had eaten a good meal.
I do feel I have had more energy eating like this - I remember that last year I would often feel really drained and lethargic in work and not really want to go to the gym.
I feel a lot stronger and committed to having a good workout in the gym, considering I'm in a calorie deficit. This is probably due to consuming all my calories around my training session.
I have lost body fat and retained muscle mass, and for me this was most important. I really didn't want to lose any of the muscle mass that I worked so hard building over the winter months.
I have been more productive in the mornings due to being in a fasting state.
The first few days of breaking my normal routine proved difficult; it's a big change not eating when you usually do and breaking a routine that you may have been in all your life! It was more psychological; every hunger pang I was having only lasted a few minutes, and when I was busy or just pre-occupied (well basically not thinking about food) I didn't feel hungry at all.
I did do a 24hr fast from last Saturday night to the Sunday night without even thinking about it. I was busy all day and was due to be having a large meal on the Sunday night, so I saved my calories up for the day and enjoyed my meal guilt free-ish. I don't think I would want to do that on a weekly basis but when needs must it is an option.
I feel I'm in control of my eating and it really doesn't feel like I'm dieting because of the three large meals I'm having (four on a training day).
I have found a diet and way of life that has longevity, and I also think that going through a bulking phase (or even just a maintenance phase) eating like this would be really enjoyable !
The two month cutting phase results!
To continue to monitor my calories and what I'm eating, and to continue to eat 'clean' for no other reason than I enjoy it, and it makes me feel good about myself.
To alter my macro nutrients to a higher carb/lower fat ratio to see how my carb tolerance levels have changed through intermittant fasting.
To continue to lift as heavy as possible.
To carry on creating a weekly calorie deficit for at least another month and then look at upping my calories to maintain that weight.
To acquire a video camera so I can make some videos for the blog.
I really hope you can take something away from this week's blog, even if its just that it's what you do over the week that's important not just on a individual day by day basis.
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Some good Intermittent fasting sites and books
Some good Intermittent fasting sites and books
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