How often is it safe for OMAD?

(Laura) #1

I have been IF and have been slowly been able to extended my 1rst meal later and later.
I have been doing 2 meals a day, but I have found the last 2 days that I’m just not hungry and I’ve gone 20 and 22 hours and have been doing OMAD.
Is this something that can be done daily or should I be moving to doing this 3 times a week?
I am fairly new, 4 weeks in and feeling really good. I feel like I am moving toward being fat adapted. :grin:

(Robert C) #2

I have never seen the issue of safety pulled into OMAD debates.
In fact, it seems usually to be pushed as always beneficial (because of long low periods of insulin).

But, it might be better to think of it as whether it is beneficial to you.

If skipping breakfast and lunch just feels like a cooking hassle reduction - might be better for you - one large satiating meal and one cleanup.

If saying “no” to lunch with workmates makes you feel bad and dinner is a family commitment - maybe 16:8 fasting is better - two smaller meals (maybe lunch is usually more like a salad, carbs kept to near zero) but still, lots of low insulin time.

I tend to go with Dr. Jason Fung’s thinking on this subject - work it around your lifestyle. If it feels forced, you probably won’t stick with it anyway.

BTW - for me, skipping entire days of eating is the better bet. 16:8 or 20:4 or OMAD are still always putting lots of food into your system that, for many hours, will be digesting and providing your system with no reason to burn fat from your hips, gut, etc. Megan Ramos has expressed many times that OMAD tends to plateau people - probably for that reason - they can take in enough food at one meal to keep themselves essentially in a “fed” state for nearly 24 hours.

(mole person) #3

It’s perfectly safe however it’s generally believed that while actively losing weight it’s best to keep your metabolism guessing by changing things up a bit. Do two meals some days, one meal some days, maybe throw in a 36-48 hour fast on occasion as well. Meghan Ramos at the IDM clinic claims that strict OMAD is best for people in maintenance.

(Carl Keller) #4

This is exactly what I do. When I have patterns to when I eat, I typically get “clock hunger”. My body anticipates that I will be eating at certain times and it’s sometimes hard to decide if it’s real hunger or psychological hunger. By switching things up, my body doesn’t get into patterns of expecting food (as much).

Like you, I wasn’t really hungry in the first and second month but the more weight I lost, the more hunger hormones (totally natural response by the body) my body was putting out. This is when the clock hunger started annoying me the most.