Ask HN: What is your experience with intermittent fasting? - iamrobschiavone
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mswen
There are several variations that are sometimes called intermittent fasting or
IF. Daily time restricted feeding, alternate day fasting and 5:2 approach are
each sometimes referred to as intermittent fasting.

I have the most experience with time restricted feeding which is a daily
extension of the overnight fast until midday. Sixteen hours of fasting and a
window of 8 hours for eating or 16:8. I do this nearly every day. Sometimes I
will extend the fasting to as much as 22 or 23 hours and essentially eat one
large meal that day (OMAD).

That practice initially helped me lose weight. It works by making it easier to
eat less. I combine that practice with weightlifting 5 days a week.

I have been deliberately eating more the last year or so while lifting heavy
in order to build more muscle and try to hit a certain goal. So the practice
isn't exclusively for losing weight.

But doing this practice for years means that I feel much more in control of
eating and my weight. When I decide to cut again it seems pretty
straightforward. Extend my normal fast from 16 to 22 hours a day and eat one
large healthy meal a day (OMAD) and the weight will fall back off fairly
quickly.

I have, much more rarely, extended a fast to about 40 to 46 hours.

Having done a pretty fair amount of reading of scientific literature and other
people's experiences along with observing my own body I am convinced that it
is contributing in a very positive way to my overall health.

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QuantumAphid
I've had pretty good experience with it. I discount the touted magical
benefits and just focus on the practical results, which for me has been
increased hardiness/resilience with regard to energy levels.

My approach:

\- Follow a cyclical pattern. Your body/metabolism evolved to endure periods
of hunger as well as taking advantage of relative plenty. Try to flex your
metabolism each week by eating little or no food for 24+ hours, then eating
one meal per day (nutrient dense, see below), then eating two per day,
increasing until you eat to satiety (just before going back into the extended
fast).

\- This is a bit like treating each week as an annual seasonal cycle. For my
schedule, Sun night through Wed morning is Winter (mostly fasting), Wed/Thu is
Spring (one meal per day), Fri/Sat is Summer (two meals), Sunday is Autumn and
feasting before Winter comes.

\- You'll be eating much less in total volume, so focus on maximum nutrition
density when (re)feeding. This means eating things like (grass-fed) liver and
heart, wild-caught fish and bivalves, vegetables and leafy greens to replenish
nutrients and minerals. From a nutritional standpoint, this is not so much a
keto/hflc/carnivore/paleo approach, it's really just: Eat meat and vegetables.
During the Summer/Fall cycle of my week I'll deviate a little and add berries
or low glycemic veggies.

\- I exercise with high intensity twice per week. Once on Wed morning (ideally
fasted), and once on Sunday morning. The rest of the week I just do a bit of
stretching/mobility. This isn't critical to the fasting program, but I find
that the metabolism flexing through fasting is a positive stress that
complements the physical activity (also a positive stress).

So, that's it. The cyclical nature of it feels good to me, it feels a bit more
natural, the nutritional part feels really good, and I've had really good
results from an energy level and body composition standpoint.

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heardyousay
I saw on youtube that one of the biggest benefits of IF is autophagy. So
that's what I intermittent-fast for. Losing weight is not my priority. What I
noticed so far is noticeable improvement in my complexion. That likely
corresponds to some internal improvement/rejuvenation.

