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Ready to finally lose the weight? My IMF Success Story

83,807 Views | 399 Replies | Last: 1 yr ago by Tailgate88
MW03
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AG
I was talking with an acquaintance recently who, at the age of 45, began competing as an amateur body builder. We were talking about how he got into that, and he started singing the praises of IMF. Serendipity had me finding this thread with his conversation in my mind and suffice it to say that Tailgate88 just sold another book.

It really does seem like the method easiest to incorporate into a busy life, and I am basically doing it anyway, just half-assedly so. Thanks to all for the posts, and I'm excited about making an eating change for the first time in a long time.
beanbean
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brucoh said:

Here's my story....I started doing the 16/8 fast everyday after reading this thread on April 8th. I was about 184lbs then and this morning I weighed in at 169lbs. Things I have definitely noticed...the brain fog I experienced on a daily basis has seemed to have lifted. I can think more clearly and focused. My productivity has increased tremendously. I have accomplished so many projects around the house that I have been letting linger on forever.

The thing that really gets me about all this is I did a round of whole 30 to the T last year which was a time consuming pain in the a** and didn't get this good of results. I was also lifting and running during that time. It all became too much for me and I burned myself out. Then I lost all my gains after a while. All that effort when it was just as easy as skipping breakfast.

Looking forward to where this goes from here. Getting ready to start adding back in some lifting and running to help speed things up a little.

I just keep thinking to myself, "what's the catch? This seems to good to be true." It's definitely opening my eyes to a huge industry out there that's lying to people and raking in huge profits from people who don't know any better.
So tomorrow will be a year since I started IMF. This whole year I have strictly done the 16-8 fast. Nothing more extreme than that. I started at about 190 and now I'm about 150. I've gained a little and dipped below, but I average about 150. Pretty much had to buy all new clothes this year. I don't wear anything I wore a year ago. This continues to be the easiest way I have ever lost weight and kept it off. I still eat what I want several times a week so I'm not the healthiest eater, but I stick to that 16 hour fast like clockwork every day of the week. I plan on continuing this for many more years to come.
Eliminatus
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AG
Well, after a very stressful semester and eating up all sorts of quarantine snacks, I am ballooning again.

Time to get back on this IMF it seems. (Been off it for several months now)

Because it just works.
chupacabra tacos
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AG
chupacabra tacos said:

Got my book today! I look forward to reading and starting this week.
First scan through looks great!


Update: Awesome! Thanks for putting this out there. I started off at 205 lbs at the start of the year. I am currently at 177 , with my end goal of 169 in sight.

The inches have fallen off and I feel great.

I've really just focused on not eating until after 4 pm. Don't really try to limit what I eat at dinner, but it's never a whole lot more than a serving. The biggest item was stopping the daily 2-3 beers.
It's been great. Thanks again.
jagvocate
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AG
I've been doing a 20:4 window starting at 3pm ... eat healthy as much as I feel like during the window and no beer. LBs have fallen off gradually.

Eliminatus
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AG
Eliminatus said:

Well, after a very stressful semester and eating up all sorts of quarantine snacks, I am ballooning again.

Time to get back on this IMF it seems. (Been off it for several months now)

Because it just works.
Ok, NOW I am starting for realsies. I promise. These past few months have been trying and I have been eating far more junk than I should have been.

Just posting this to keep myself honest.
Desert Power
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AG
First 24 hr fast. Feel great so far!
Eliminatus
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AG
How's everyone coming along?
gif
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Been following this a little while and decided to try out the 16/8, which shouldn't be too much of an issue since I rarely eat breakfast anyway. My biggest thing is cutting sweets. I'm trying to cut other heavy carbs as well(pasta, bread etc), but one of my biggest concerns is with working out.

I usually spin 5-6 times a week (30 min-2hr's/ride) with some light weight training mixed in. I'm not trying to get back to Ironman training, but I do plan on bumping up my intensity over the next few months.

With those of you who do IMF and train relatively heavy, what is your routine like? Do you wait until you've had food before you start working out? Do you have just a few carbs to help keep you from getting light headed?
Gilligan
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AG
Dog Faced Pony Soldier said:

Been following this a little while and decided to try out the 16/8, which shouldn't be too much of an issue since I rarely eat breakfast anyway. My biggest thing is cutting sweets. I'm trying to cut other heavy carbs as well(pasta, bread etc), but one of my biggest concerns is with working out.

I usually spin 5-6 times a week (30 min-2hr's/ride) with some light weight training mixed in. I'm not trying to get back to Ironman training, but I do plan on bumping up my intensity over the next few months.

With those of you who do IMF and train relatively heavy, what is your routine like? Do you wait until you've had food before you start working out? Do you have just a few carbs to help keep you from getting light headed?
The Bottom Line on Intermittent Fasting and Working Out:

While fasted lifting is a big fat mistake, fasted cardio is fine, and may help you burn additional fat. So for best results, schedule those lifting sessions during or after your feeding windows, and schedule cardio before them.
gif
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Great, thanks for the reply!
643coach
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Started IMF today. Just going to do the 16:8 fast for now. Going to stick to my 5-day split lifting routine for now and see how it works out. Also going to add some cardio 2-3 times a week in the mornings. Looking forward to see how everything goes!

Right now, I'm at 199 pounds. Goal weight is 180.
mrmill3218
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AG
I have been doing the 16:8 IF for three months now. Have not lost any belly fat. Have even ramped you my running in that time (I usually do CrossFit). Wondering what the deal is. Although I haven't lost any belly fat, my stomach issues have gotten better. Think I had a bit of IBS and IF has cleared that up, so pleased with that at least.
BamaAggies
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Thank you for taking the time to inspire so many. I really appreciate what you have done to help me when I really started to think there wasn't much more I could do. Your advice is working for me. Many thanks!
Tailgate88
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AG
BamaAggies said:

Thank you for taking the time to inspire so many. I really appreciate what you have done to help me when I really started to think there wasn't much more I could do. Your advice is working for me. Many thanks!
It was my pleasure and I'm truly glad to hear it. I was in the same boat as you - really starting to think there was nothing that would work for me. IMF was the ticket though!

643Coach and mrmill3218, be sure to let us know how it's going!
Pepper Brooks
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AG
Gilligan said:

Dog Faced Pony Soldier said:

Been following this a little while and decided to try out the 16/8, which shouldn't be too much of an issue since I rarely eat breakfast anyway. My biggest thing is cutting sweets. I'm trying to cut other heavy carbs as well(pasta, bread etc), but one of my biggest concerns is with working out.

I usually spin 5-6 times a week (30 min-2hr's/ride) with some light weight training mixed in. I'm not trying to get back to Ironman training, but I do plan on bumping up my intensity over the next few months.

With those of you who do IMF and train relatively heavy, what is your routine like? Do you wait until you've had food before you start working out? Do you have just a few carbs to help keep you from getting light headed?
The Bottom Line on Intermittent Fasting and Working Out:

While fasted lifting is a big fat mistake, fasted cardio is fine, and may help you burn additional fat. So for best results, schedule those lifting sessions during or after your feeding windows, and schedule cardio before them.
I personally disagree with this statement. I have not noticed any material difference when I lift fasted and speculate that I actually have slightly better workouts. Our bodies may just operate differently in this regard.
spadilly
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S
Starting IMF today.
209 lbs trying to get back to 185.
DeangeloVickers
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AG
Anyone do OrangeTheory and IMF?

Im addicted and do it 5-6 times a week and worried about how many calories I burn...one workout I typically do 900-1000 calories. Weights, cardio, and rowing.

Anything I can supplement to help? AMino Energy maybe?

Ive gone from 270 to 230 and wanting to try IMF to get below 200 as Ive stayed at 230 for awhile. (6'1)

bearamedic99
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AG
I bought the book. Haven't started IMF yet
bearamedic99
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AG
Also, anyone know if tobacco affects insulin levels?

I know I need to quit but am currently using Copenhagen.
sts7049
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AG
i decided to give this a shot this week. i'm shooting for the 18-6 plan, using an app to keep track of the times.

so far, so good. i'm getting used to the stomach grumbles close to lunch time but it really isn't that bad. during the work week it's easy to focus on work and not get distracted by thoughts of food.

i ordered a scale so hopefully in a couple days i can start tracking some progress.
Eliminatus
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Well, back at it. Another super stressful semester and my health went to garbage and gained about 15 pounds in four months. I do IMF a few weeks at a time to drop 5-10 and then derail.

I am also now on the wrong side of 35 and I know my metabolism tanked in the last two years. I am feeling self conscious in Tshirts again. So back at IMF with a goal of trimming up for the fall. And hope to maintain some actual discipline this time and keep on it for a while.

Y'all still trucking out there?
sts7049
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wow, forgot about this thread.

so far i've lost about 30 or 35 pounds. in the last couple months i've kind of plateaued on weight loss due to not working out as much but i've really found a groove with the fasting - for me it's pretty much just normal these days. i've migrated more to around a 16hr fast but here and there i'll stretch it to 18.

i think more than anything this helps challenge me and keeps me from eating more than i really need to.
texagco2003
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AG
Came across this thread and decided to give the 16:8 a go starting this past Tuesday. First 2 days I found myself dizzy and light headed but was ok after that. Felt great and more focused, dropped a pound over the 4 days.

Originally thought about just doing it during the week to start out to kind of ease into it, but yesterday was my first Saturday and I found myself pretty much within the bounds anyway so I'm going to stick with it with a couple of cheats on the weekends.

1. Allow myself to have the Dunkin' creamer with sugar in my weekend morning coffee. Always look forward to that and it makes the weekend feel like a weekend.
2. If we have friends over in the evening, will allow myself a drink or 2 after the cutoff time on Friday or Saturday (9:00 for me)

With those couple cheats, I feel really good about sticking to this for the long term.
Pepper Brooks
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AG
I've been doing 16:8 w/occasional cheats for 10 years. I generally don't drink M-Th unless I have a work event. Generally eat fairly healthy but go through phases on almost keto/gorging on carbs. Workout 4-6 days a week.

My weight has stayed between 175-185 for 10 years. I'll be interested to see how this tracks as I get closer to going over the hill.

Male; 30s; 6' tall
Dill-Ag13
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AG
Need a bit of help here digesting this thread (bad pun intended...)

Jumping on this IMF train after I do some more research and pick a plan. I'm 29 y/o and have 2 kids, 5ft10 male. Historically I've been a yoyo dieter moving between 140lbs and 170lbs. I've done simple diets and generally have lost weight through maintaining a calorie deficit by exercising. Over the last year my career has become more challenging and with two kids I don't have the energy to get up and exercise and burn 500+ calories in the mornings (think: triathlon training). I still make a point of getting up early each weekday and exercising, but nowadays that looks like a 20 minute jog or walk.

Some questions:
-Thinking about a 5:2 fast or an 18:6 fast. An 18:6 fast just seems like skipping breakfast... something a lot of people do anyways... right?
-Can I drink black coffee during a fast?
-On an 18:6 fast do you only eat twice or can you eat throughout the 6-hour window?
-Does anyone here exercise heavily on fast days or the morning after a fast day?

An 18:6 model for me would look:
11:30am brunch: a couple eggs, some fruit, greek yogurt, leftovers --> targeting ~700 calories
5:30pm dinner: whatever the family is cooking up --> targeting ~1300 calories
I'm not sure how effective this would be, seems like I'd be eating the same amount of calories just without breakfast..

A 5:2 model would look like this:
Mon, Thurs fast
The other days an 18:6 model --> mostly to gain some structure back in terms of eating (i.e. less grazing, target meal times, etc.)

Tailgate88
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AG
Dill-Ag13 said:

Need a bit of help here digesting this thread (bad pun intended...)

Jumping on this IMF train after I do some more research and pick a plan. I'm 29 y/o and have 2 kids, 5ft10 male. Historically I've been a yoyo dieter moving between 140lbs and 170lbs. I've done simple diets and generally have lost weight through maintaining a calorie deficit by exercising. Over the last year my career has become more challenging and with two kids I don't have the energy to get up and exercise and burn 500+ calories in the mornings (think: triathlon training). I still make a point of getting up early each weekday and exercising, but nowadays that looks like a 20 minute jog or walk.

Some questions:
-Thinking about a 5:2 fast or an 18:6 fast. An 18:6 fast just seems like skipping breakfast... something a lot of people do anyways... right?
-Can I drink black coffee during a fast?
-On an 18:6 fast do you only eat twice or can you eat throughout the 6-hour window?
-Does anyone here exercise heavily on fast days or the morning after a fast day?

An 18:6 model for me would look:
11:30am brunch: a couple eggs, some fruit, greek yogurt, leftovers --> targeting ~700 calories
5:30pm dinner: whatever the family is cooking up --> targeting ~1300 calories
I'm not sure how effective this would be, seems like I'd be eating the same amount of calories just without breakfast..

A 5:2 model would look like this:
Mon, Thurs fast
The other days an 18:6 model --> mostly to gain some structure back in terms of eating (i.e. less grazing, target meal times, etc.)



Congrats on giving IMF a try. Your summary is a good one. My life has been crazy for the past year so I haven't been on this thread as much as I should have, but we are about to empty nesters so I'm going to have a lot more time!

To answer your questions, Yes, 18:6 is just skipping breakfast. But believe it or not that simple change can have a profound effect on your health and, as a happy side effect, your weight. That is usually enough to maintain and lose a little if you are strict about what you eat too... and of course lower carbs and eating healthy carbs are always recommended. The magic is, your body is not spending so much time digesting food (thus producing insulin) and after some number of hours, it goes into "housekeeping" mode. digesting food (and storing fat) uses lots of energy. When your are in a fasted state (several hours since digestion ended) then your body can focus on healing and a bunch of other healing and maintenance tasks, and when it runs out sugar, it starts to burn fat. Weight loss is just one of many healthy side effects of having your body in a fasted state. Many people practice "OMD" or One Meal a Day - so essentially doing something like a 20/4 or 22/2. There are days that I push through until 4:00 my typical day is a 1:30 lunch and 7:30 dinner, so it's probably 18/6 or 17/7.

5:2 helps when you are trying to actively lose weight. Ironically one of my best friends who I have been trying to get to try IMF for years called me out of the blue yesterday. He pretty close to 300 I am guessing, but he said "Man, I'm a dumbass. I should have listened to you years ago. I've lost 15 pounds in 11 days." (His results are not typical and he also has cut out beer in favor of a vodka and water,)

I gained 25 pounds during Rona lockdowns and have dropped 10ish - we have family in town this week and then we are shipping two kids off to two colleges but in a couple weeks I'm going to be hardcore back on 5:2 to lose my 15 and get back under 200. If anyone wants to join maybe we can do a Zoom call and I'll answer any questions. Meanwhile, post them up. There are lots of knowledgeable people on this thread and we have collectively lost a LOT of weight.

Dill-Ag13
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AG
Thanks for the reply. I'm going to start with 5:2 and then maybe shift to a 18:6 format for maintenance. I did my first 600-cal day yesterday, that suckkkkked
RustyBoltz
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AG
Dill-Ag13 said:

-Can I drink black coffee during a fast? Doesn't matter. Just no creamer
-On an 18:6 fast do you only eat twice or can you eat throughout the 6-hour window? Eat throughout or maintain structured meals.
-Does anyone here exercise heavily on fast days or the morning after a fast day? Exercise - yes, heavily - no. You won't have the energy for a HIIT workout and should stick with easy, elevated HR cardio workouts in the beginning.

An 18:6 model for me would look:
11:30am brunch: a couple eggs, <1c fruit, greek [reduced sugar (try Siggi's)] yogurt, leftovers --> targeting ~700 500 calories
5:30pm dinner: whatever the family is cooking up [just no] --> targeting ~1300 calories
I'm not sure how effective this would be, seems like I'd be eating the same amount of calories just without breakfast..


IMF doesn't work if you can still manage to eat all your normal food just within a smaller window. It's success is that if you're eating nutritional food, you can only intake so many calories during your feeding window.
You still need to make a conscious effort to reduce your caloric intake and choose better foods. I don't know what your family eats, but what our (older) kids eat or not on the color spectrum of what is considered healthy in any quantity. If I were to just eat whatever they are, it would be disastrous (and it was, for most of 2020).
Tailgate88
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AG
Dill-Ag13 said:

Thanks for the reply. I'm going to start with 5:2 and then maybe shift to a 18:6 format for maintenance. I did my first 600-cal day yesterday, that suckkkkked
What were your challenges with the 600 day? Hang in there - it gets better. Your body just isn't used to it yet but once it figures out that it isn't always getting food first thing in the morning, it will get easier.

A couple good tips - make sure you have a plan for the day.

Know everything you're going to eat the night before and stick to your plan. Decisions made in the moment are usually not good ones.

Pick a couple "Go to" meals for lo-cal days and stick with them. M/Thu I usually eat a big veggie salad with lots of colors (tomatoes and peppers and spinach/romaine) and I make a simple mustard vinaigrette (just a tiny bit of EVOO). You can eat all the salad you want and still not break 100 calories. Dinner is baked chicken or whitefish (not Salmon - too many calories) with Tony's on it, loads of steamed veggies and sometimes cauliflower rice.

Drink lots of water. 32 oz first thing in the AM after weighing. Then shoot for at least a total of a gallon throughout the day. It's a lot but you'll get used to it.

If you get hungry, take a quick walk outside. If you really need to eat something, go with sliced veggies. Have some celery and bell pepper chopped and ready to grab in the frig.

This all may seem strange but I promise it's just developing new habits.
Tailgate88
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AG
Quote:

IMF doesn't work if you can still manage to eat all your normal food just within a smaller window. It's success is that if you're eating nutritional food, you can only intake so many calories during your feeding window.

You still need to make a conscious effort to reduce your caloric intake and choose better foods. I don't know what your family eats, but what our (older) kids eat or not on the color spectrum of what is considered healthy in any quantity. If I were to just eat whatever they are, it would be disastrous (and it was, for most of 2020).
Right on!

Another thing is portion size. The example I always use is, As a 45 year old guy I still ordered the double-cheeseburger, because I had always ordered the double-cheeseburger. It was just a habit. But

1) My 45 year old metabolism didn't burn the calories of a double-cheeseburger the way my 25 year old metabolism is and

2) It turns out if I eat the Jr. burger, I'm still VERY full.

Try eating half your "usual" portion and waiting ten minutes, and I bet you'll find you are plenty satisfied.

If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got.

These changes are not difficult - it's just a little uncomfortable while you train your body to the new reality of how you eat. But our bodies are smart and resilient and very adaptable. Soon, this will just be "the way you eat" and it won't seem weird at all. And your friends will be asking you how you did it.
Dill-Ag13
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AG
600-cal day #2 is down and I feel really good surprisingly
permabull
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AG
I have been doing fasting with a low carb diet for a few months and I am seeing very impressive results. The major downside for me is when people ask about my weight loss and I mention that I am fasting, they are horrified. I honestly think if I just told them I was using meth they would be more accepting of that.
Tailgate88
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AG
hypeiv said:

I have been doing fasting with a low carb diet for a few months and I am seeing very impressive results. The major downside for me is when people ask about my weight loss and I mention that I am fasting, they are horrified. I honestly think if I just told them I was using meth they would be more accepting of that.
Yeah, they probably envision you on a 30 day juice fast or something. You might have better luck with saying "Time Restricted Eating" or "Meal Timing" or something along those lines.
Dill-Ag13
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AG
Two weeks down and I've lost 5 lbs. easy and I feel great
 
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