I'm trying intermittent fasting. Some benefits are amazing.

During lockdown due to covid, I noticed that I started to slip into the habit of eating anything at any time. It was hard to control by just using the will power. "A donut in the refrigerator isn't healthy to eat" isn't a solid enough argument to prevent me from having it. But I know one thing very clearly that if I put some restrictions based on time then it simply works. So, on 2nd November 2020, I started intermittent fasting. I've decided to try it for 60 days. If my maths is correct then it'll go on till 31st December.

Is that the only reason to do intermittent fasting?

Well, that's the reason for me to get started. Just like "need to get out of the office chair" for the reason for me to get started with strength training, but now there are many different reasons for which I go to the gym. So, yeah, I don't know what all benefits I'm going to feel over the course of 60 days.

What is the day like?

Generally, people do 16-8 split, which means 16 hours of fasting and then 8 hours of feeding window. But I'm taking it to the extreme, I'm doing 20-4 split. It was daunting initially and I skeptical about it. The first day, I was worried that after the morning workout, I'm going to feel nauseating or just won't be able to do it. But to my surprise the only thing I felt was a bit of hunger, considering the fact that on day 0, I didn't consume a lot of food. On the first day, till about 3 pm hunger was manageable but the next two hours were tough. At 5 pm, I started cooking 6 eggs and some veggies, and when I started eating, my hands were trembling and I ate like an animal. Those 6 large eggs felt like starters. And there began my feeding time, I kept eating till 9:00 pm. Surprisingly the next day, I felt "full" till 1-2 pm, and only after that, I started feeling a little bit hungry. It's funny how fast our bodies adapt if we are ready to take the initial pain.

Benefits I felt in last 13 days

One interesting benefit that I felt on the first day itself was the fact that stacking all the meals in one window and that too in the latter part of the day, helps me prioritize all the mentally taxing activities like work, personal projects, and learning to play guitar without breaking a flow. I know food is really important but hey, food doesn't require too much of my brain to eat. And it also makes you feel connected to your hunter-gatherer ancestors who didn't eat for a lot of hours until they found their next dinner.

Even the boring homemade food tastes delicious, now. It's something about hunger that does this. And weirdly, being hungry feels better than being full.

And the reason why I started intermittent fasting in the first place, i.e., to stop munching all the time, well, it went away. I do get the temptation to eat snacks but then I realize that I can have them if I want but during 5-9pm.

And the reason because which I started intermittent fasting in the first place, i.e., to stop munching all the time, well, it went away. I do get the temptation to eat snacks but then I realize that I can have them if I want but during 5-9 pm.

That's it for this blog post and if you feel that you've something to add to this or you have a different perspective then share it and discuss it on r/StoicHuman or go to the Reddit discussion post for this blog post linked down below.

Stay healthy, Stay safe!

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[Discussion Post] I'm trying intermittent fasting. Some benefits are amazing. from r/StoicHuman