16:8 Intermittent Fasting and Post Meal Crash

I have been on roughly a 16:8 or 17:7 fasting schedule for about 5 years now. One issue that I have been having recently is crashing after the first meal of the day. I normally have my first meal around 1pm. I have tried eating less and eating healthier meals but I always feel the need to nap after the meal that breaks my fast. It doesn't seem to matter what I eat; whether it is a salad and a cup of water, or a chicken sandwich I always crash. When I say crash I mean it, I have fallen asleep at work a few times. This is really causing issues for me in my daily life. Intermittent fasting has worked for me for years but only recently has this become an issue. Does anyone have any suggestions or tips?

Answer

Could it be due to high carb, high sugar or highly processed food ? Maybe try a meal with just protein, fat and veggies and see how you feel.

I used to feel the same way and when I cut out processed food. I had no crash

Answer

I had this same problem when I started fasting. It eventually got better after about a month of fasting daily. However, when I was feeling this, I found it helpful to take about a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar with water before eating that first meal. I also started to cut carbs out of my first meal entirely. The more carbs I ate during that first meal, the more drained I would feel right after! Everyone is different but you might give these ideas a try.

Answer

Crashing is because of blood sugar regulation issues, which comes from chronic poor food choices (usually)

Even if you eat food that doesn’t metabolically harm you anymore (that is, meat) there could still be some time needed for your body to heal