Anyone doing Intermittent Fasting (IF) while on Raw?

[Bihaku]

I think the reason I haven't been on this board in about 5 months is because I was trying to do a juice, smoothie or water fast and I just couldn't do that. I felt extremely hungry and weak and I kept failing by eating something. Out of personal shame, I avoided this site so I wouldn't have to have anyone ask me how my fasting was going, if I kept posting in other threads here that is "chewable" food related.

But I keep reading online about Intermittent fast of when people are only allowed to eat during the day within an 8 hour period. After the 8 hours is up, they can't eat anymore (for 16 hours) until the next day at your scheduled eating times. The only thing one can consume is water, unsweetened tea and coffee during the fasting hours. So basically, for example, if someone says that they will only eat daily from 8 am to 3 pm. Then from 3 p.m. to 7 a.m. they must "water" fast.

Anyone?

[qwerty988]

Michigan Roman has started the Monday Fasting Club which goes from 6 pm every Sunday night to 6 pm Monday night, which is another popular form of Intermittent Fasting -- 24 hrs broken into 2 days. Check out his thread!

Personally, I'm about to start fasting every day after 2 p.m. because I wake up very early and on days I eat after mid-day I feel like I've eaten too many meals.

I'm sorry you felt shame about posting here in the past! Fasting is difficult and can take time to master. Embrace your successes and focus on those! Nobody's judging you here, we're all only here for support.

From what I've read online, Intermittent Fasting is highly successful for weight loss and to regain control of the appetite. Personally I believe ANY kind of fasting is great for your body!

[Traceyraw]

I agree with Qwerty. The Monday Fasting Club is the way to start. Michagan Roman has tons of fasting info .

[Bihaku]

I tried intermittent fasting and ate dinner before 6 pm but by 1 a.m. I was really hungry. I broke down and broke the fast with a salad. I will try again tonight. So basically I have to make sure to eat a lot of food before my eating time is up, because I am training my body not to depend on snacking all night long.

[fastfreedom]

I've done IF before. And I still do it from time to time. It's not an intentional thing though, it just happens. I just go about my day and I'm not really hungry until late afternoon. I notice that when I fall into a cycle like this I have LOTS of energy all day, and then when I begin to eat in the evening I notice that I slow down.

[qwerty988]

I've been enjoying this so far. Yesterday I ate WAY TOO MUCH and stopped eating an hour before my cut-off time. I was full for the next 7 hours! I felt gross. But I could feel myself getting hungry again by the time I went to sleep, so that was good.

I can see the weight is starting to melt away due to this routine. Also I believe it's better for my body to put an end to my constant, endless snacking hahahahaa!

My weight has always fluctuated over the years.... during the years when I was thin, I'd experience physical hunger in some form just about every day. It was my signal to eat. During the years when I was overweight, I rarely felt hungry physically and was just guided by eating either by the clock or by cravings or to soothe myself.

So I'm happy to be following a program that allows me to experience physical hunger, as well as giving myself the healthy raw foods that both nourish my body and also let me indulge in things like fudge, milkshakes and creamy soups (all of which I had yesterday YUM!)

Anyhow, time for my morning smoothie! How's your IF going, Bihaku?

[mysticshore]

I IF every day. There is a fantastic app on itunes called IF. This is a 18 hour timer. I set it each day after my evening meal. About 7pm and then don't eat the next day until it's gone off. I love IF! I also like doing a 24 hour fast but find that can be a struggle at times. The IF is so user friendly and can be done every day with very little stress. The 24 does offer more benifits in terms of getting into that special fasting zone. It can be somewhat hard some days. Check out that app I'm sure you'll love it. If you want to start a IF thread, I'd post for sure.

[qwerty988]

I IF every day. There is a fantastic app on itunes called IF. This is a 18 hour timer. I set it each day after my evening meal. About 7pm and then don't eat the next day until it's gone off. I love IF! I also like doing a 24 hour fast but find that can be a struggle at times. The IF is so user friendly and can be done every day with very little stress. The 24 does offer more benifits in terms of getting into that special fasting zone. It can be somewhat hard some days. Check out that app I'm sure you'll love it. If you want to start a IF thread, I'd post for sure.

I love it that you do this every day! :dance:

How long have you been doing it? What are the benefits you've seen?

I also struggle with a 24-hour water fast. I can do smoothies or juice 24 hours no problem, but I can't function normally on just water for that long. I'm fine on water at night, but when I wake up in the morning I need LOTS of food or juice to get me going, it's unfortunately just how my body works. I eat most of my meals and calories in the first 4-5 hours of being awake....... it's weird but I've always been that way. So I can't really postpone eating until noon, I need to start early and end early!

Is there a reason for fasting 18 hours? I'm sure I do a few hours less than this....

[fastfreedom]

Just wanted to comment...... I've never understood following a schedule to fuel the body. My body is smarter than I presume to be. It will let me know when it needs something and it will also let me know what it needs. The thing to do is get out of the way and let your body guide you to inform you on what to fuel it with, and when it needs said such fuel.

[qwerty988]

Just wanted to comment...... I've never understood following a schedule to fuel the body. My body is smarter than I presume to be. It will let me know when it needs something and it will also let me know what it needs. The thing to do is get out of the way and let your body guide you to inform you on what to fuel it with, and when it needs said such fuel.

Agreed -- in a perfect world, one would view food simply as fuel and eat when physically hungry and stop eating when physically full. However many people eat for other very human reasons and can overeat. In this instance, following a set schedule is VERY helpful because it's a simple way to prevent overeating and allows the body to rest.

[Raw Angel Mom]

I am in the same boat as you do, lol....I try to learn what make me fail and i try again with a different plan. As for the negative message that i may feel, i change my focus and remind myself that i am worthy of success. Have compassion for yourself and feel proud of you that you keep trying and you are adding wonderful food in your diet. It is so normal, you are strong and don't ever doubt this. Fasting is a journey and what you are experiencing, is so normal. I love the one day fast idea.

You deserve to be healthy, beautiful and radiant of health.

[qwerty988]

Thank you for your message Raw Angel Mom!! :heart:

I've been experiencing intense detox this week -- napping and twice sleeping for 13 hours!! I think this is due to the combination of oil-pulling and the new fasting schedule, since my body's melting away those toxic fat stores.....

ANYHOW, all this napping/sleeping has thrown off my fasting schedule.

But today I'm back on board! :woot:

ALL HAIL THE YEAR OF THE FAST!!

[qwerty988]

Been back to my daily 2:00 cut-off these past 2 days..... FEELS GREAT!

:excited:

[Traceyraw]

HI guys. I have stopped eating after 5 pm. Only juice after that. Next week I am doing M_F with MR. Qwerty I might try this 2pm. Is it working good for you. I really don't want to wear a mom suite at the pool this summer. Is this helping with weight. But it doesn't look like you have any problems in that area.

[Raw Angel Mom]

Thank you for your message Raw Angel Mom!! :heart:

I've been experiencing intense detox this week -- napping and twice sleeping for 13 hours!! I think this is due to the combination of oil-pulling and the new fasting schedule, since my body's melting away those toxic fat stores.....

ANYHOW, all this napping/sleeping has thrown off my fasting schedule.

But today I'm back on board! :woot:

ALL HAIL THE YEAR OF THE FAST!!

I saw that you are doing the water. Wow girl this is great. Hold on for 7 days at least and expect miracle. I am having it tuff today, but i am happy because it means i am releasing. yeah! I have been so sleepy the first days and i was able to rest, thanks goodness. Don't forget to do enema and consider to book a colon cleansing at your 7th day. All the best to you sweet heart!

[qwerty988]

Raw Angel Mom, I'm only water fasting every day from 2:00 p.m. until I wake up the next morning (usually 3:30 a.m.)!! I WISH I had your strength and could do full day water fasts..... the most I've ever done on just water is 24 hours!!



HI guys. I have stopped eating after 5 pm. Only juice after that. Next week I am doing M_F with MR. Qwerty I might try this 2pm. Is it working good for you. I really don't want to wear a mom suite at the pool this summer. Is this helping with weight. But it doesn't look like you have any problems in that area.

Tracey believe me I DO have a lot of weight to lose! My goal is to lose the last 4 inches that stand between me and my ideal weight by June 1st. How I plan to accomplish this is (1) staying raw (2) some form of workout daily (3) fasting after 2 p.m. and especially (4) NO alcohol hahahahahaaa! That's pretty much my only cheat and it really packs on the pounds with me.

I have seen a significant weight loss since I started the IF. I measure myself once a week on Fridays and today I had lost 1/2 inch on waist, full inch on hips.

I want to be able to wear my favorite clothes again. I'm also hoping that if my dad sees a big change in me, he'll be inspired to try more raw (he is obese and has severe arterial blockage and has recently suffered strokes).

2012 THE YEAR OF THE FAST!!!!! :dance:

[Traceyraw]

ThanksQwerty, I hope you can encourage your father on the healthy path. Tell him to look up Bill Clinton. He is now a strict Vegan. Not raw but its a start.

Thanks for the encouragment. Now I am torn between the 2pm IM and the M-F juice fast. So you eat as much raw as you want until 2pm everytday then water. Maybe I could start with juice. Ill keep you informed.
2012 THE YEAR OF THE FAST!!!!! :dance: (copied you)

[qwerty988]

Bear in mind I wake up very, very early -- like 3 or 3:30 a.m.! So my 2 p.m. is probably more like your 6 p.m.

M-F juice fast sounds like an awesome plan as well! Either way -- WHATEVER WORKS!!! :cheer:

My dad knows about Clinton, has watched "Forks over Knives" and agreed to try a vegan diet. He also bought a vitamix!!! But he won't stick to even just a vegan diet and isn't losing weight or exercising...... I'm hoping if he sees a drastic change in me it'll inspire him! We'll see....

[Raw Angel Mom]

qwerty988, so sorry, i didn't read right. Actually, you do have more strength then me for being able to do this and be discipline this way. Water fasting is hard the three first day because the appetite shut down after. This is a wonderful plan that you are doing, this is amazing.

[qwerty988]

I have to admit it's a little challenging. It feels like I'm skipping my last meal of the day and I'm going to bed physically hungry. On the other hand, I know I've already eaten plenty of food by the time it's 2:00 and have gotten in all my greens and good stuff for the day....

On the other other hand, it's REALLY helping melt off the fat, so I'm committing to this for another week.

[Bihaku]

Intermittent fasting is so hard! I failed it since I made this thread. For me to do this I need a 12 hour span for me to eat. 8 to 10 hour is very challenging. I will start up Intermittent Fasting on Monday. My goal was to due this on the weekday, but eat whenever I wanted during the weekends, since I usually work on the weekends.

[Ucat]

Maybe it's too soon for your body to do intermittent fasting....? How is your diet otherwise? If you transition very slowly on your health journey you can enjoy it and not have to deal with so many failures. Make it easy for yourself! I'm getting good results on a juice feast now. Two weeks into it and I need less sleep, wake up feeling refreshed (I've been trying so hard to achieve this for years!), I have better moods, more energy, better concentration which makes the workday go quicker, and I also get nice 'tingly' feelings in my body, as if it's energy moving or something.

If you want, let us know what your diet is like now and what you want to achieve with the fasting... It is not necessary to feel hungry to clean your body, at least I feel it's not. I get all the calories I need from juices and still my digestion system is resting. Also, I buy pasteurised juices and only make some juices from fresh fruit and veg - that way I make it easier and cheaper for myself and can fast while working full-time, with no problems.

I think fasting can be good but I think it is a tool to be used wisely, and definitely not something to be used just to test your willpower! Personally, I think juice feasting is cleansing enough for me, but it is also comfortable and enjoyable!

Oh, and I would really really advice not to drink caffeine while fasting. It is like drinking coffee on an empty belly! And it messes up with the detox, taxes the liver, and stops you from feeling as energetic as you would without!

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[Ucat]

Tonya Zavasta claims that she only eats between the hours of 6 AM and 2 PM and then very little. She doesn't get nearly the normal amount of calories per day. And she claims that not eating is much more satisfying than eating. And she wrote a whole book about these benefits, which she calls 'Quantum Eating'.

BUT she warns that this is an advanced raw foodist technique and should not be tried until you are years into and well-versed in how your body behaves on raw foods.

A few random people I mentioned about raw foods told me that they thought raw foodists they had met were crumpy people. I did't want to believe it at first but then I started thinking about it more and more, as I experienced how pushing my own body too far could affect my moods. So perhaps there are many people who get crumpy because they are pushing themselves too far and their body and mind don't have time to adjust. (I've seen this in myself, although I thought I was transitioning slow.)

Some reasons why transitioning slowly is easier:
- Your brain chemistry gets used to releasing endorphins (and other happy hormones) according to certain triggers. E.g. dopamine gets released when fatty foods are eaten. Alcohol can also release dopamins (I think). Exercise produces endorphins, too, but the point is that when your body is conditioned to give you a nice flush of dopamines after you eat fatty foods, you can be miserable on a low-fat diet for many months before the brain chemistry adjusts and learns to produce the same chemicals from other triggers. If you transition slowly, your brain chemicals get a chance to adjust slowly as well.
- Your metabolism needs to slow down for low-calorie diets to work, this also assumes that your body is working more optimally in many other ways, e.g. your stomach acid levels have to be strong (most people's aren't).
- Your tastes change slowly, so you taste buds will learn to like your new diet but it takes time.
- To learn a new discipline and make it easy (to develop a habit) takes at last 30-days, perhaps more.
- It takes time to learn how your own body and mind specifically function, and to bring them to a balance.

If you want to fast, it might be easier to do a straight-forward water or juice fast for a longer period. It takes 2-3 days typically to adjust to the fasting and then it gets easier and you don't feel hungry anymore (apparently). Intermittent fasting, I would imagine, is a lot harder, as your body has to constantly switch between two different modes. Intermittent fasting is beneficial, sure, I believe that, but I think it is an advanced raw food technique.

Wow, ended up writing quite a bit of text. Hopefully it is not completely off the topic.... It's just mind-flow that seemed related to what you asked about....
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