IF and Macros

(Marianne) #1

If you’re doing 16:8, 18:6, or full day fasting, are you still meeting your macros? Do you need to? I am thinking about trying IF (16:8) for the first time but am not sure if you are supposed to eat around the same amounts.

#2

You still need to keep carbs under 20g and get adequate protein, otherwise don’t trace arbitrary numbers.

(Carl Keller) #3

Some people seem to be able to eat an entire day’s worth of food in one meal but I can’t do it and I don’t feel it’s necessary. Just let your hunger decide how much food you need. For me, it seemed like I was eating 300-400 calories less on OMAD.

My concern with OMAD was meeting my requirements for vitamins and minerals. But switching things up and not doing OMAD every single day was reassuring to my nutritional profile and metabolism.

(Robert C) #4

Hi @gingersmommy,

There are two different answers for these questions.

  1. If you are doing 16:8 or 18:6 daily then the answer is “sometimes”. In other words (if you are fat adapted) you keep carbs under 20, eat the same amount of protein and drop fat down so that you are encouraging your body fat to get used instead of dietary fat. But, you can’t keep that up continuously or it will just appear to the body as calorie restriction and it will slow down metabolism to match the lowered calorie intake. A couple of days of regular intake (or 10% extra) followed by a day of a 50% drop in intake would be one suggestion.
  2. If you are doing full day fasting (i.e. eat dinner on Monday and breakfast on Wednesday with no food between those meals) then the answer is no, you do not want to add much to either meal (again, 10% or so but, avoid large "last meal"s and avoid large breaking fast meals - they just backtrack your progress). In this case you are shooting for true fat loss and ensuring that fasting adaptations start happening (rising HGH, extended low insulin, deep ketosis etc.).

All of the above is assuming you are looking for fat loss, if you are at goal and are seeking mental clarity benefits - these do not apply.

(Marianne) #5

Thank you, I’m following you. I do want to encourage fat loss and for the added health benefits. Just like with starting keto, I am somewhat afraid about trying IF (but then I ask myself “why” because if I find I can’t get through it, I can always eat a meal). Been reading my Obesity Code book and watching Dr. Fung videos. The the science of it.