Male age 50+ 5'9"/175 cm SW: 244 lbs/110.6 kg CW: 230 lbs/104.3 kg GW: 160 lbs/72.5 kg
Started October 24th, 2022 with 16:8 but moved to 18:6 and 2MAD about a week later. I find 18:6/2MAD easier. But in either case, my big weakness was after dinner snacks which IF addresses. I was doing a little bit of exercise (not much in terms of calories) but I still like long walks (say 90 minutes) occasionally.
I like IF because it's easy to fit into my lifestyle, and I'd like to make it permanent. My challenge is keeping to the 18:6 window, I don't always manage it because I sometimes eat later but still keep it to 2MAD no snacks. Usually I'm still in a 16:8 pattern when that happens, so I don't worry about it.
Through the holidays I decided to abandon IF for the 24th, 25th and 29th (I snacked as much as I wanted whenever I wanted) and keep it up all other dates. I still lost weight as of the 28th and I expect I'll lose weight again 7 days after the 29th or sooner. I'm learning how to fit this IF into my lifestyle, so that I still have a life AND still see benefits from IF. It seems very easy to restart after a day, so I take that as good news. I'm optimistic. I think most of the gains come from addressing my bad behaviour, weakness of excessive evening snacks. Will I hit my GW? It may be too aggressive for my age (50+), but I'll see how far I get, then make a new plan. What I really want is just to fit into my clothes better, wear smaller size clothes.
Not sure why I want to share this, just felt like it. I really don't feel like posting photos of myself on social media.
Answer
You probably need support, motivation, exchanging of IF experience, and advice, and here is a good place to find it. I feel the same. If you don’t feel like sharing your pictures on the net, you don’t have to.I treat my eating window in a similar way. If I’m not hungry enough, not ready to eat, or simply not at home, I postpone my meal. IF flexibility is great! I love the two meals per day regiment, I do CICO and look closely into macros, and it’s important to me to eat healthy. My GW is undefined because I can’t imagine I could weigh the same as I was in my early twenties (46 yo now). I guess I will see how far I can go when my progress becomes substantial. Thank you for sharing your journey and progress. Keep going! Don’t give up and enjoy yourself! Eat tasty and healthy, and treat IF like a lifestyle. Good luck!