Intermittent Fasting?

Ehh, I pretty much do this. I don't really eat in the morning and prefer to run on an empty stomach, so I basically only eat at night. I've never had any problems with it as far as energy levels and what not, and I've gotten to the point where I can do up to 20mi runs without eating beforehand.

As far as the benefits though(?)...I wouldn't really say there are any. If you are trying to lose weight a better way would be to just cut back your calories a bit. I eat this way only because it's what I adopted naturally over the course of 4-5years. I still eat whenever I am hungry - but usually that's 5pm or so.

I too do this all the time. Heck, I've been doing it since HS. I regularly eat a large dinner and then usually skip breakfast and then eat lunch and dinner. Fasting 16 hours a day is easy.

Fasting is very beneficial for your body, however, if you're running 70-100 mpw I wouldn't recommend it b/c you need a lot of calories.

Also, I often train on a very empty stomach. I.E. train after not eating in 12 hours or more. This helps 2 fold: I don't have stomach problems. And it teaches your body to burn your glycogen and then fat.

Look up Nolan Shaheed - holder of many AG WRs.

kanny wrote:

Look up Nolan Shaheed - holder of many AG WRs.

That reminds me, the guy who has the AG WR for the Marathon for over 100 years old - British Indian guy - says he eats green and yellow curry and often fasts. Bone strength of a 25 yr old.

kanny wrote:

Look up Nolan Shaheed - holder of many AG WRs.

Shaheed's reduced workload applies to the quality as well. "I'd do 20 quarters in 65 seconds each 10 to 15 years ago, but if I knew then what I know now, I'd have stopped at 12," he says.

Although he doesn't count miles, Shaheed estimates that he drops down from 50-55 to about 35 miles a week during the track season. However, to the extent that high mileage training helps burn calories and keeps the weight and body fat percentage down, Shaheed apparently doesn't need the mileage. When running, he eats only one meal a day with no snacks the rest of the day, just water. During his one-month off from running, he eats only one meal every other day. At 5-foot-9, his weight has remained at 123 pounds since his high school days. "But I have begun eating a little fat now and then, avocado and whole milk, that kind of thing, and I think it has helped me somewhat," he says. 'It's really hard to know for sure."

This is something I have been experimenting with for the past 3 months, however, I am taking a slightly more specific approach in that I am concentrating on a low carbohydrate diet. The as a result of processing fat very efficiently I have stopped finding myself hungry during the day and consequently am fasting for over 16, sometime 24 hours a day with no issues.

In layman terms your body will enter ketosis and be forced to process fat far more efficiently. After some time, approximately a week your body should be able to metabolize fat almost as efficiently as carbohydrates. Also since you have an abundance of fat you should not feel the hunger to the same degree and you energy levels will remain relatively constant throughout the day. Our high carbohydrate diets often result in high glucose levels in our blood resulting in peaks and troughs in our energy level. I have become a fan of the low carb diet mainly for this reason.

I would like to point out that currently I am not training to the same level as I have in the past. I have been averaging 50 miles over the last 3 months, less than my standard 85 miles. I would think that this diet may breakdown when I am running 80 plus miles.

Please, for your own sake, do serious some research on ketosis before you attempt it. It's incredibly dangerous and only beneficial for a very, very small portion of the population.

I have found success with an interval eating approach. I allot myself a two-hour eating window in both the morning and mid-day and then take a longer eating window of 3-4 hours in the early evening, during which I consume calories in the form of protein and carbohydrates, and a small proportion of fat. Sometimes, when needed, I skip the morning eating window. The key is to place limit on yourself in terms of the total calories consumed during each window in consecutive daily periods. I find that if I eat fewer calories than I expend for a sustained period, say a week, then I tend to lose weight. A large negative difference between calorie intake and caloric expenditure often results in feeling of lethargy and lack of energy during hard workouts. But, you need to experiment and find what works best for you.

Interval Eater wrote:I have found success with an interval eating approach. I allot myself a two-hour eating window in both the morning and mid-day and then take a longer eating window of 3-4 hours in the early evening, during which I consume calories in the form of protein and carbohydrates, and a small proportion of fat. Sometimes, when needed, I skip the morning eating window. The key is to place limit on yourself in terms of the total calories consumed during each window in consecutive daily periods. I find that if I eat fewer calories than I expend for a sustained period, say a week, then I tend to lose weight. A large negative difference between calorie intake and caloric expenditure often results in feeling of lethargy and lack of energy during hard workouts. But, you need to experiment and find what works best for you.

In summary, you eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner. When you eat less, you lose weight. When you eat a lot less, you don't feel good.

Nobody has ever thought of this before. Write it up. I see a PhD thesis.

I have experimented with a 9 and 8 hour feeding window for the last year. Since the release of the Panda et al (an ironic name for a diet study in animals) work on intermittent fasting in rats in early December.

In terms of weight management I have found it a useful tool. The 9 hour window left me lean and strong, the eight hour window left me light and weak.

In terms of performance off 9 hours: 2013 late Aug 10K 33:48 2015 early Sept 10K 32:55. From placing 3/4th to regular local wins on road and trails. Male, 34, 6ft 0ins, was 11st 7lbs, raced best at 10st 7 lbs.

Off 8 hours: 10st 0lbs and laid up in bed for two days.

This was done with constant 60 min running - every day - at 6:30 down to 6min pace, to remove any variables. I kept the courses the same. My mileage had been the same for three years with stagnation in performances to that point in time.

The diet in the window was anything and everything. I didn't change my diet. I mainly ate junk supplemented with five fruit and veg an AZ, DHA/EPA and ferrous sulphate 200mg. Only the period allowed to eat the food was shorter, much shorter.

I'm a scientist by trade (PhD in aerosol physics) so my testing was reasonably robust and scientific as a case study of n=1. My hypothesis is that 9 hours allows the growth hormone peak and cell multiplication cycles that we'd look for, but the 8 hour window is too narrow and your left with malnutrition.

Anecdotally, the eight hour window left me drained most of the time. Also, with the eight and nine hour window you have to eat large amounts in that window to function and train. Failure to do so leaves you hungry during the night and can cause sleep disruption and then lead to cortisol issues.

The best results could be seen by cycling in and then out of the feeding windows. For example: 9 hours for 4 weeks, 12 for 2 weeks, then 4 and so on. Which is what I may try next.

Socially, a 9 hour feeding window is a problem. Especially with all the travelling I have to do in my job. Note I also had to do once a day running. I had a once a day regime established for 12 weeks before I experimented with the feeding windows. Twice a day refuelling would be very difficult.

In short: from my experience you can have success with intermittent fasting - but it has to be used with caution.

good explanation of intermittent fasting:

http://www.apexpredatorpaleo.com/#

!Intermittent-fasting-the-key-to-fat-loss/c137b/55d1e9760cf2d847c54eba07

I just want to be good wrote:

bigbig wrote:

Coffee is a drug, it's bad if you have to rely on it for energy. Energy is measured in calories and there are zero calories in a black coffee no sugar. All it does is stimulate your adrenaline glands, you might as well shuv a cattle prod up ur butt I'm sure you'll have newfound energy that way too.

I use it more as a way to suppress appetite, though it helps me stay alert if I'm low on sleep as well.

Also-in response to others: IF is by no means a magic bullet, but if you ARE trying to lose weight, it's a good tool if you're able to have a 2000calorie meal at night, as well as maintain muscle easier (theoretically) due to boosts in HGH secretion.

The people that do the coffee-only routine typically end up with gastrointestinal issues. Try to tell them there might be some relationship to their health issue and their eating habits....??? Oh no... Not me.

It's perfectly fine to monitor your caloric intake. Moderation being the key concept. Some of these posts are not moderate. Unfortunately, it's quite common in endurance athletics.

Stagger Lee wrote:

I've been doing IF for about a month now. Gotta say, I'm pleasantly surprised. My energy doesn't yo-yo throughout the day and my focus seems to be better. My running is unchanged but I don't get acid reflux, gas, etc., because my belly is always completely empty (I run 15 hours in). I don't bonk on my runs either.

I've been doing IF for many years, long before it became a fad diet. One run a day on empty stomach, no breakfast or lunch. Eat from 4pm to 8pm.

I originally started it to lose some excess weight (which worked well), but I became a fan when I noticed the changes in my energy levels and how I felt. I stay focused throughout the day on an empty stomach. I work through lunch and never get hungry.

I haven't been as strict as a I used to be, but I'm at my ideal weight and I really only run for enjoyment (30-40 mpw), not currently racing. Never ran more than 50 mpw while IF.

The one thing I've continued to do is no breakfast or lunch. Sometimes I'll grab a granola bar during the day, but not because I'm hungry, mostly because there are a ton of free snacks at my company.

There was an adjustment period, maybe 2-3 weeks where I got hunger pains. They went away completely after a month. I will never go back to eating 3 meals a day.

Great thead!

Final bump before this thread falls back into the deep hole that is the search bar