Brain Fog After Eating?

It seems to be the opposite issue that most people post about and I'm not sure what to do. I've been following 16:8 for about 6 weeks now and the fasting is going great. I drink a black coffee an hour after waking but I carry my fast 3-5 hours before I eat. I have plenty of energy, mental clarity and no real hunger at this point and most days I could fast longer if I wanted. Once I eat though, it flips and I end up feeling rough throughout the afternoon, especially mentally with significant brain fog and some lethargy. I am also mildly restricting my calories in my window but my meals are typically clean with 700 calories of a lean protein, a carb and a veggie and I typically end up eating 2.5-3 of those meals a day. I'm just trying to understand why the fasting is the easy part but the eating seems to be the part that my body doesn't agree with.

Answer

I can empathize, and I have one thing for you to consider trying, and I’ll give you a bad analogy to try and make you explain why it might help.

Imagine you’re running a factory and you tried to streamline the work so that the factory could be closed for most of the time, to optimize your production and cut costs. But you scheduled a huge delivery for the exact minute you open up, and then you end up bogged down at the loading dock trying to sift through things before you can get production moving.

So maybe turn the lights for 30 minutes, power up the machines and give them only a little do to, and then have the big delivery. Ease into eating. Break your fast with a small thing (like an ounce of cheese and a protein drink, for instance) so that your body can get started processing without the potential fog.

It’s hard because once you start eating and validate the hunger, it’s a beast. And the deal you made was to satisfy yourself, so you’re going to be renegotiating the deal you made 6 weeks ago. But that’s something to try. Easing into eating.

Answer

If you have flexibility I’d consider flipping your schedule to break the fast when you get up. We all have natural rhythms and sometimes the window we choose isn’t optimal for our body. Small breakfast, bigger lunch, snack if you need it and close your window.

Best of luck finding a solution that leaves you more comfortable!