Hey guys, I’m a 18 year old, 6’0 (183cm), 175 lb (79 kg) dude. Maintenance cal: 2800/day. My goal weight is 165 +/- 3lbs.
When I wrestled at that weight in high school I felt I was at my peak performance and felt really good. When I cut to 150 from about 210lbs I was feeling tired and sluggish, so the target weight seems ok.
I was looking though the beginner page and looked at different strategies. I thought it was best to start out at 16:8 so I could gauge where I’m at. I have been doing this for about a week and decided today I’d test myself with a 24 hours fast and may even extend it to see how far I can go.
My food situation can range from healthy to unhealthy. I really have no say in what I eat, I try to eat the most healthy foods available such as, chicken breast and wings, potatoes, white rice, three bean salad, ice berg salad with egg, lima bean with corn, carrots, fruits and I drink coffee, water and green tea. The coffee is instant I usually drink two a day, one at 07:30 before I run, and at 12:30. I drink water all day, I’d wager to say about 128+ ounces of water a day.
My exercise at the moment is limited to running and calisthenics. I run 4 miles (6.5 km) every other day, and calisthenics the days in between. As soon as I am allowed to go to the gym I plan to switch from calisthenics to weight lifting.
I am a soldier, but I’m not doing infantry stuff and I am posted in a warehouse from 09:00 to 17:00. I get up at 05:00 on weekdays and Physically Train (PT) with my squad at 06:00. The PT is not very challenging since we are non combat jobs, hence why I started working out on my own. I walk pretty much every where, so it isn’t uncommon to get over 15,000 steps in a day. When I get home I usually hop on my PC and go to sleep at 23:00.
Plan is to exercise 6-7 days a week. 18:6, and two 24 hour fasts mixed in. OMAD.
Now that the details are out there, I got some questions I need to ask.
Do you guys think I’m going a little over board going from 16:8 to 24+ in a short amount of time?
For an optimal and sustainable strategy I was thinking 20:4 or 18:6 with two 24 hour fasts mixed in throughout the week. Your thoughts?
The coffee I sometimes have is 50 calories and is a mocha. Should I throw this out since it may break my fast or is it alright?
Do you have any drink suggestions? I don’t really crave anything so far, but I think it would be nice to have variation while fasting.
Should I replace, get rid of, or add to what I eat or drink?
Answer
Try it for a a week and see what you think. One of the things I love about IF is that it’s scalable to your personal situation. If you feel bad doing it the way you’ve planned then go back to the drawing board and try something else. I started IF at 20:4 from the beginning because it’s what works best for me so I don’t think you’re pushing too hard to go longer. Maybe try a week of longer days then add in 24 hours if you feel good?
Sounds like your exercise regimen is pretty solid. I’d make sure you’re eating the amount of food you need to and not under eating. Then just give it time.