Should We Break From Fasting?

(Central Florida Bob ) #1

I’m in my 9th week of alternate day fasting, and while I’m making progress toward my goals, it also seems to be slowing a bit. My goals are to get down about another 10 pounds, and to try lower my blood sugar. On mornings after I eat (12 to 14 hour fast) it runs closer to 100 or 110; on mornings after a fast (say 36 hour fast) it will be 20 points lower.

First of all, last Christmas I would have said I had been stalled at that weight for a long time, but by this June I had to admit my weight was drifting up, and I had gained about 7 pounds since January. So I started ADF in late June and now I’m down 15 pounds to a weight I haven’t seen since about 2000. I think I was at that weight from last winter for over a year, so a long stall. Success so far.

I’m not at my goal weight (which I think is realistic - it would be about 20% body fat) and figure I need to keep doing this.

I’m just wondering if the saying about “mix things up” we all get from Megan Ramos includes not fasting for a while. I’d like to get opinions on whether or not I should break for a week or two and go back to normal eating.

#2

I think taking a week off is ok ( i do it frequently). I never have a set schedule for fasting. Sometimes it’s three days, sometimes one day. I also do 16 hour fasts most days. Then there are days where I eat from dawn until dusk. My progress has been slow but I feel amazing and I know my metabolism has been maintained. What works for me is never having or sticking to a schedule. If I can’t predict when I will fast or feast, neither can my body.

(Central Florida Bob ) #3

Thanks for your reply. What you said has been popping into my mind lately - almost word for word.

My wife says, “how can you call it intermittent fasting if you do it on the same schedule every day?” Maybe it’s too much wrangling over the definition of words, but it makes me think.