The Scale Finally Budged

I mentioned in my last post that I was considering starting fasting and was going to research for a possible start this week. I watched a lot of videos about fasting and kept coming out the other side feeling confident that it would be a good thing for my body. Who hasn't heard the advice to stop eating at least 3 hours before bedtime? I always thought it was because our metabolism is slower at night (which is true) but never knew it was so much harder on our liver when we eat after dinner. I have been very closed to the idea of fasting in the past because I don't like the feeling of hunger and mistakenly thought that fasting would slowly metabolism down even more. There are times when that can happen but I am not an extreme athlete nor do I plan to go more than 16 hours between meals, and probably less in most cases. I am just seeing how it really improves your ability to burn fat for fuel and reduces insulin resistance and its symptoms. Researching got me excited and I gave it a try a few times last week. I started slow, just pushing my bedtime snack ahead by an hour and a half. That was a 10 hour fast by the time I ate breakfast. Another night I did a 12 hour fast and on Friday night into Saturday I unexpectedly got to sleep late for the first time in months and that ended up being a 14.5 hours fast. That didn't really bother me that night because I ate out Friday afternoon and had a burger and fries so I wasn't really very hungry the rest of the night and not eating was easy. I lost 3 pounds last week. It's been a long time since I could say that. One YouTube channel I was following for a while said if you fast every night it WILL eventually slow your metabolism so he recommended doing it only a few times a week to ensure you are getting enough protein. He is a keto guy so I can't say if the same is true for all diet types. His name is Thomas Delauer if anyone is onterssyed. His videos are very scientific but I stopped following because every day there's a new next best thing and I am somewhat easily swayed. He recently posted a video wherein he goes against some things he was previously saying about keto and intermittent fasting and for me, the more conflicting info I have the more it interferes with me having a strong plan and sticking to it. I want to try to just stick to 12 hour fasts for now, but might slowly increase it. I have heard that a fast that lasts more than 14 hours can mess up a woman's menstrual cycle and yet there are studies that dhow we get the most benefits from fasting around the 16 hour mark. There's also fasting based on sunlight, which is becoming popular now. In that method, you should only eat during the hours that the sun is visible, not before dawn and not after sunset. This is the time when our bodies are primed to use fuel ans it's reported to help with resetting our circadian rhythm and helps with sleep. During winter in Wisconsin, sunset can be around 4 or 4:30 P.M. and sunrise after 6:30 or 7:30 AM. I think it's great in theory but I just want to get a handle on what I'm doing before complicating things. I am doing really well with staying on track with food Monday-Friday until my late afternoon "dinner" out. This is planned and I don't mind eating something off-plan because I know I will likely not eat again until the next morning. Saturday I cook a family dinner. This past weekend was our 1 year anniversary of the day we got the keys to our house, so I cooked fresh salmon and wild grain rice and had some watermelon for dessert. With the rice, that was a little higher carb but not like a pile of french fries or sweets. Sunday we ate out too, we were out for a drive and stopped for a bite. That was another burger and fries and I fasted that night too. I am not trying to fast to make up for eating poorly but more to offset the higher calorie meals and give my organs a break after having a heavier task to complete. We don't eat out every Sunday but it happens more in summer because we are typically out and about doing stuff. I do think I should try harder to make better choices and only have the one meal per weekend that is high calorie, but for now I'm OK seeing how it goes. Thomas Delauer said it's not uncommon for people to lose 50 pounds in 6 months with keto and intermittent fasting combined. That would put me in a pretty comfortable place, close to the weight I was when I graduated high school. I would be ecstatic to lose 50 pounds. Right now I feel positive. I was getting so discouraged that the weight just wasn't coming off and I think if I keep trying fasting and sticking to clean eating most days, I am going to be happy with the eventual results.