Alternate day fasting

[Jekyll]

Hi, I was interested in other peoples thoughts on alternate day fasting? I have never tried any kind of fasting, but it is something that has become increasingly interesting to me recently. Yesterday I watched The Horizon documentary “Live Fast and Live Longer” which was about calorie restrictive diets and fasting, and how it can improve health. You can watch it here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pfna7nV7WaM, *Warning contains lab mice*The alternate day fasting he ended up doing looks appealing. Has anyone tried this, and what are your thoughts? I think I am going to try alternate day fasting, but my main concerns are nutrition and exercise, which the show didn’t really seem to address. I exercise every day, I ran a marathon this year, and plan to do the same next year, so usually try to ensure I eat enough to fuel my body. Won’t fasting have a negative effect on my performance? Likewise I’m always concerned if I am getting the right nutrients. If you restrict your diet, even if it’s only a couple of days a week, won’t you miss out on vital nutrients?I welcome your thoughts!

[Blueberries]

Hi, I was interested in other peoples thoughts on alternate day fasting? I have never tried any kind of fasting, but it is something that has become increasingly interesting to me recently. Yesterday I watched The Horizon documentary “Live Fast and Live Longer” which was about calorie restrictive diets and fasting, and how it can improve health. You can watch it here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pfna7nV7WaM, *Warning contains lab mice*The alternate day fasting he ended up doing looks appealing. Has anyone tried this, and what are your thoughts? I think I am going to try alternate day fasting, but my main concerns are nutrition and exercise, which the show didn’t really seem to address. I exercise every day, I ran a marathon this year, and plan to do the same next year, so usually try to ensure I eat enough to fuel my body. Won’t fasting have a negative effect on my performance? Likewise I’m always concerned if I am getting the right nutrients. If you restrict your diet, even if it’s only a couple of days a week, won’t you miss out on vital nutrients?I welcome your thoughts!

Heya Jekyll, I know absolutely nothing about alternative day fasting but I'm guessing that its aimed at obese people who are aiming to lose large amounts of weight to improve their health rather than at people like yourself who are already fit and healthy.

[Jekyll]

Hi Blueberries!

I don't know much about it myself, only having just started to look into it. But it's not really about losing weight, it's more about reducing health risks and prolonging lifespan. I won't even attempt to explain the science behind it, as google can do that far better! lol. Basically reducing your calorie intake encourages your body to repair cells instead of replacing them, which slows down the aging process and reduces risk of deceases like cancer and diabetes.

[Lentils]

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/30/science/low-calorie-diet-doesnt-prolong-life-study-of-monkeys-finds.html?_r=0

Poor monkeys :(

[Jekyll]

Oh dear, that Horizon programme had me convinced!

[Nikorusama]

Aww can you believe that?! Poor monkeys starved for their whole lives and they didn't get any benefits at all for it! I don't see why this kind of study could not be done in humans, I'm surprised the ethical comity even allowed this study to be done! Outraged!

[Jekyll]

Well, I decided to give it a go anyway... Fasting 2 days a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays. This will be my 4th non consecutive day fasting, and it's not as hard as I thought it'd be! In fact I feel quite good on it. I have lost a little weight, nothing major. It certainly is an enlighten experience, and has made me think more about the food I do eat...

[Robinwomb]

How do you handle exercise on fasting days? And doesn't the lack of calories have a cumulative effect, so even when you go back to eating you would have less energy and strength to exercise?

Although I have suffered with anorexia nervosa for many years, ironically I rarely ever fasted completely (maybe a handful of times over five years and fasting usually led to a binge starve cycle but strangely if it was for a medical reason I handled it well). I love exercise (running, cycling, dancing, hiking, canoe camping, rowing, yoga etc) as a form of expression, release, and addiction to the endorphins and I do it daily so I can not imagine how I would be able to exercise and fast. I used to exercise on 800 calories per day but I shutter now when I think of those days and the damage I was doing to my body. But I guess that was daily for a long period. At any rate do you exercise on fasting days? Do you find you have the same energy, more, or less? Do you tend to eat more or the same on nonfasting days? Just curious about how this is working for you.

[Jekyll]

I'm fasting on Tuesdays and Thursday, and on those days I do a spin/RPM class before work. I finish the classes about an hour before I would normally have breakfast at work, so I don't notice any difference at the moment. Sometimes I excersise after work on those days as well, but haven't been able to for a while due to work, so not sure how I'd do with that. I don't feel weak or tired after a day of fasting so I think I'd be alright to do a light workout. I do have a home made energy drink during the classes (Fresh juice, water + Hemp protein powder), and Miso soup around lunch time, which perks me up a bit. On the non fasting days, if anything I think I'm eating less! Either I just don't get as hungry, or more likely, I am used to the hunger feeling. I'm going through a really stressful time lately, and this seems to be something I can control, so not sure I am doing it for the right reasons. I do fee good for doing it though, and am intrested to see the results after a few weeks.

[gmc]

Are you still doing this Jekyll? I've just started fasting two days a week. I would be interested in how you are getting on.

[Lilystein]

I'm going to start next month (Tomorrow), I'm fasting Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. I've fasted in the past but been binging on junk non stop recently and need to get in under control.