The Science of Fasting (1 Viewer)

[Gump]

I've stalled out at 180#. Still want to lose another 15-20, but haven't had the desire to do an extended fast. At least I've got my routine set so I am not gaining anymore which is equally important to me.

Maybe this weekend I'll buckle down and do a 3 day.

Have you recalculated your macro's?

 

[Tapxe]

Have you recalculated your macro's?

I don't know what that means.

 

[kcirdor]

yep, me either. I hear it being spoken about when listening to a youtube channel I ran across one day with a pair of twins that have an annoying gimmick but some nice short videos focused on different topics. Guess, I need to learn about macros that aren't in Excel.

 

[Zack Lee]

I don't know what that means.

unfortunately whether you calculate it in macros or micros, its still going to be 180 when you convert it to pounds. But anything is worth a shot.

 

[Tapxe]

yep, me either. I hear it being spoken about when listening to a youtube channel I ran across one day with a pair of twins that have an annoying gimmick but some nice short videos focused on different topics. Guess, I need to learn about macros that aren't in Excel.

I've heard of macronutrients, but just in passing. I suppose that could refer to carb/prot/fat intake. That would make the most sense, but I heard a good nutritionist podcast from the art of manliness where he blew up the whole low carb argument. He said the body doesn't process fat better or worse if you have carbs. You lose weight because cutting the carbs cuts calories. Getting and staying in ketosis is simply the result from having less overall calories to burn.

 

[Gump]

I don't know what that means.

After people lose a good bit of weight, they no longer need the old calories they were taking in. So, to effectively lose weight,they need to reduce their caloric intake.Let's say you were taking in 1700 a day.....You lose 35 pounds.. You'll need a new caloric deficit because you would be taking in too many calories resulting in a plateau. Instead of 1700,try reducing to 1500 or 1400. Hope this helps.

 

[Beast]

I've heard of macronutrients, but just in passing. I suppose that could refer to carb/prot/fat intake. That would make the most sense, but I heard a good nutritionist podcast from the art of manliness where he blew up the whole low carb argument. He said the body doesn't process fat better or worse if you have carbs. You lose weight because cutting the carbs cuts calories. Getting and staying in ketosis is simply the result from having less overall calories to burn.

Yes, macros is short for macronutrients. Every gram of protein, fat and carb you take in counts towards your total caloric intake for the day. Protein and carbs are multiplied by 4 to get calories. Fat by 9.

As far as low carb vs standard diet goes, if you're doing any sort of fasting, intermittent or extended, you'd probably do much better and have an easier time of it by going low carb. Depending on your body fat percentage, you could have 10s of thousands of calories stored on you as fat. By going low carb, getting into ketosis and becoming fat adapted, your body will turn those fat stores into ketones that it can use as fuel. Once fat adapted, it's much easier to not eat. I've lost 100 lbs by doing low carb and lifting weights, with a little intermittent fasting here and there.

I agree with Gump on the macro issue. You're not losing weight b/c you're not in a caloric deficit. It's also possible that you need to eat at maintenance calories for a week or two before going back to a deficit.

Also, protein is king for optimal body composition. Anywhere from .8 to 1.2g per pound of lean body mass is recommended.

 

[Beast]

You should figure out your body fat % (look up US Navy method, use calipers, get a Skulpt, or have a DEXA scan done), then use that in a BMR / TDEE calculator to figure out your maintenance calories. Then create a deficit diet from there. It takes a 3500 calorie deficit to lose a pound of fat.

 

[kcirdor]

After people lose a good bit of weight, they no longer need the old calories they were taking in. So, to effectively lose weight,they need to reduce their caloric intake.Let's say you were taking in 1700 a day.....You lose 35 pounds.. You'll need a new caloric deficit because you would be taking in too many calories resulting in a plateau. Instead of 1700,try reducing to 1500 or 1400. Hope this helps.

My plateau busting method is to eat a little more, gain a couple pounds then get back on the deficit. Seems to work like a charm each time. Of course I am not trying to lose all my weight in a few months like I see some people do which to me seems crazy to but that's just me.

 

[Zack Lee]

man I feel great doing this diet. I am on day 6 and have not really struggled with it to speak of. Hunger hits me sometimes in the morning but it isn't too deep and is not hard to overcome. I have decided to not check on measurables until three weeks are up but I have never felt like I could literally feel weight loss after such a short stint.

 

[Zack Lee]

I went from 184.5 to 177.2 in a week. That hardly even seems possible.

 

[mt15]

Great job!!

 

[Tapxe]

I went from 184.5 to 177.2 in a week. That hardly even seems possible.

This is motivating me. You're still doing the 18/6 with cardio?

 

[Beast]

I went from 184.5 to 177.2 in a week. That hardly even seems possible.

Awesome! Congratulations!

Do you have any idea on your body fat % when you started? If so, you can figure out your approximate TDEE. For instance, according to my last Skulpt scan, I'm approximately 16% body fat at 187 lbs. My TDEE should be roughly 2100 calories. That's essentially what I could eat daily without exercise and not gain fat/weight (i.e. maintenance calories).

If you're only eating 800 - 1000 calories and then doing cardio, you're likely in a steep daily deficit (1200 - 1500 calories depending on body fat % and cardio intensity). So then you'd add your daily deficit up over the 7 days and divide by 3500. That would be the maximum lbs you could lose in fat. The rest would likely be water weight.

I would also say be careful doing too much cardio or too high of an intensity with that large of a caloric deficit. Overdoing intense cardio on a large deficit diet can really wreak havoc with your metabolism and actually prevent weight loss.

 

[Zack Lee]

This is motivating me. You're still doing the 18/6 with cardio?

yes. All calories have been between 12 and 6pm. I did have to adjust my window Monday and Tuesday because my work schedule did not allow me to get to my last meal at 6. I also feel great. I am not struggling with the not eating in the morning hardly at all. I also love the mental aspect of it. It has made me far more in tuned with how I eat and the few times that I have experienced hunger it made me more aware of my mental and physical states and the hunger fades. I also know that there is probably some skew in the numbers because of water loss but I have lost weight many times but never actually felt myself losing it like this.

Awesome! Congratulations!

Do you have any idea on your body fat % when you started? If so, you can figure out your approximate TDEE. For instance, according to my last Skulpt scan, I'm approximately 16% body fat at 187 lbs. My TDEE should be roughly 2100 calories. That's essentially what I could eat daily without exercise and not gain fat/weight (i.e. maintenance calories).

I have not figured all of that out yet but I likely will. I am going to cut back when it just feels right. Maybe try to maintain with 2 or three days of this a week once I hit around 170. I am concerned about the deficit. I'm not really cutting back on how much I eat much other than what happens naturally because of the window. I still eat three meals a day but after that first one, the second and third are naturally smaller since I just ate 3 hours before. I have been careful with what I eat though. Its been nothing but lean proteins, fruits, vegetables and low GI carbs like whole oatmeal. I have kept watermelon and pineapple freshly cut up in the fridge for snacking in between the meals. I was pushing the cardio upwards around 1000 daily but I have scaled that back to no more than 8 to 850.