The best advice I have is to be patient. Fasting is a muscle that has to be trained.
In terms of exercise, Some people feel great working out while fasted, and some feel like trash until they get used to it. You’ll have to play around with your eating window and exercise routines to find out what is the most sustainable for you.
Fasting really is a lifestyle change. If you use it as a “get skinny quick” plan, once you stop, you will gain every pound bag plus more. But in my opinion, if you lean into it and find a routine that works with your own body, you can find optimum personal wellness. :)
edit: my fingers don’t work sometimes.
It takes 3500 calories to lose a pound of body weight. You’ll be at about -1000 calorie deficit to start off and slightly less when you lose weight.
Your weight loss depends on how strictly you stick to that 1500 calories. For me, eating 2 meals per day I’d eat more than a days worth of calories and will gain weight.
I’d say let it take as long as it takes and monitor yourself to find what works best and is something you can live with. Once you find that you will eventually get to your goal weight and your chances of maintaining it are greatly improved.
I started in February this year and have lost about 40 pounds. In February and March, I used the old fashioned way of calorie counting and cutting way back on junk food and lost about 8 pounds. During that time I had increased fat and protein and noticed I stayed fuller longer, so in late March I started reading about fasting and decided to try it. I started with 16/8 fasting for two weeks, then did my first extended fast of 4 days, followed soon after by a 7 day fast. I had plateaued with calorie counting but now my weight was falling again, losing another 15 pounds by late April.
Since May I have lost another 15 pounds and reduced my BF to about 20%. My weight plateaued again in May and then in July but I was not fasting as much either. I do believe my body set weight was getting readjusted so I don’t look at it as wasted time. I still have another 8-10 pounds I would like to lose and then I’ll go to IF/shorter fasts for maintenance and health benefits. Best of all I’ve found a routine I can live with where I don’t feel like I’m starving myself or restricting myself in any way, I don’t count calories, and it feels very normal. That’s what I’m most excited about.
Happy Fasting and good luck!