The science of intermittent fasting

[Afro_Vacancy]

I think the reason so many people fail with traditional diets, i.e. trying to eat a bunch of small, healthy meals, is because they essentially are trying to give up one of life's great pleasures, a good meal.

They might have their cheat day once a week or whatever, but is that really going to be enough to tide them over? Like, "well, I'm not going to eat that, but at least 5 days from now I can enjoy eating what I want." That's a difficult thing to stick to. With the one meal a day thing I do, it's much easier for me to resist cravings throughout the day, as I know I will enjoy the satisfaction of a good meal that very night.

I get to stay lean without giving up one of the things that makes daily life bearable.

Yes, I agree, that's the strength of intermittent fasting: you can look forward to glorious meals. I think the two meals I had today are pretty nice though?

Jason Fung, a nephrologist in Toronto, points out the same thing. A diet that says you can't have cake on your birthday is a bad diet.

Moreover in the real world "dinner" has social significance. People go out for dinner. You should go out too.

Martin Berkhan is a legendary advocate of intermittent fasting who pushed for it in the early 2000s, back when the standard advice was six tiny meals a day. He is incredibly fit. And he brags that fasting allows him to eat ... if you look him up on google images, there's a lot of images of him eating junk:

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

May 21st, 2016, 88.3 Kg, 194.7 lbs
May 28th 2016, 88.6 Kg, 195.3 lbs
June 4th, 2016, 87.2 Kg,192.2 lbs
June 11th, 2016, 87.3 Kg, 192.5 lbs
June 20th, 2016, 87.1 Kg, 192.1 lbs
June 25th, 2016, 85.6 Kg, 188.7 lbs
July 2nd, 2016, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs

6.6 lbs lost in 6 weeks with this protocol. Progress is a little slow to my taste, but genuine.

 

[WangMQ]

David, I was wondering if water fasting might help those with AR upregulation/hyperandrogenecity.(maybe by rebooting your endocrine system?)

I think it wouldn't hurt me to try fasting since my body in general is under poor health. But the problem is that I have very low body fat to start with (used to hit gym often to maintain my body build, but lost quite some muscle recently due to my hair depression)

I've become convinced that finasteride did upregulate my AR. I can't describe the level of sebum production and inflammation I'm undergoing (even when I'm still on around 0.1 mg finasteride)

I'll go check my hormone soon though. I don't think AR regulation is something a hormone panel would show but getting some record at this turning point is always necessary. I'll keep taking 0.1 mg finasteride ED or EOD till then, just to make sure my body is in the same status.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

David, I was wondering if water fasting might help those with AR upregulation/hyperandrogenecity.(maybe by rebooting your endocrine system?)

I think it wouldn't hurt me to try fasting since my body in general is under poor health. But the problem is that I have very low body fat to start with (used to hit gym often to maintain my body build, but lost quite some muscle recently due to my hair depression)

I've become convinced that finasteride did upregulate my AR. I can't describe the level of sebum production and inflammation I'm undergoing (even when I'm still on around 0.1 mg finasteride)

I'll go check my hormone soon though. I don't think AR regulation is something a hormone panel would show but getting some record at this turning point is always necessary. I'll keep taking 0.1 mg finasteride ED or EOD till then, just to make sure my body is in the same status.

I don't know.

There are anecdotal case studies of success treating PFS on propeciahelp with fasting, long-term fasting not intermittent fasting. There are anecdotal case studies of fasting treating illness for a lot of illness. Very few rigorous studies, because it isn't mainstream medicine. It's very hard to get funding for a study if you're not selling a patented pharmaceutical.

Some hormones do go wild during long-term fasting. Insulin crashes. HGH increases by ~2000%. Those I'm sure of. The others, I don't know.

How much body fat do you have? If you have more than 15 lbs or 20 lbs, I would recommend trying a long-term water-fast, say 14-21 days. You can find a lot of links on this issue on my thread including one for propecia help. Remember that the first few days are the hardest.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

May 21st, 2016, 88.3 Kg, 194.7 lbs
May 28th 2016, 88.6 Kg, 195.3 lbs
June 4th, 2016, 87.2 Kg,192.2 lbs
June 11th, 2016, 87.3 Kg, 192.5 lbs
June 20th, 2016, 87.1 Kg, 192.1 lbs
June 25th, 2016, 85.6 Kg, 188.7 lbs
July 2nd, 2016, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs
July 9th, 2016, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs

No weight lost this weekend, but I did do all my exercises, and also I didn't drink as many diuretics (tea,coffee) during this fast due to being busy. So probably a statistical fluctuation.

 

[WangMQ]

I don't know.

There are anecdotal case studies of success treating PFS on propeciahelp with fasting, long-term fasting not intermittent fasting. There are anecdotal case studies of fasting treating illness for a lot of illness. Very few rigorous studies, because it isn't mainstream medicine. It's very hard to get funding for a study if you're not selling a patented pharmaceutical.

Some hormones do go wild during long-term fasting. Insulin crashes. HGH increases by ~2000%. Those I'm sure of. The others, I don't know.

How much body fat do you have? If you have more than 15 lbs or 20 lbs, I would recommend trying a long-term water-fast, say 14-21 days. You can find a lot of links on this issue on my thread including one for propecia help. Remember that the first few days are the hardest.

Thanks David! Last time I checked I had less than 10% body fat, which is 14 lbs considering my current weight (65 kgs). But it might have become even lower since I was doing a low carb diet throughout June (in the hope that it helps with inflammation). I'm 180cm / 5'11. So you can see how badly I need to put up some weight now... I always had very low body fat. When I was doing a lot of strength training I could keep quite fit but whenever I pause my weight drops back quickly.

I guess I need to start hitting the gym often again this month and gain some solid kgs. For a good 2 months all I did was occasional cardio. I need to gain control over my body again. Being bald + skinny sucks. Then I might be able to start from intermittent fasting and see how I feel.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

I'm the same height as you, what's your weight? I'm about ~86 Kg.

Anyway, there is not enough fat on you for a long-term fast, you could try a sequence of short-term fasts and hope that the autophagy fand human growth hormone fixes you after six months but no guarantees -- you would be the experiment, since no one else has tried it.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

@WangMQ ,

I forgot to say, but one way to find out (if only the information were available), would be to learn if Muslims get a lot of post-finasteride syndrome. That's a large pool of human males who do 30 days of intermittent fasting every year, for Ramadan.

The information is not available though, which is too bad. However, in principle someone with resources and an academic/research position could figure it out.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

Not to be skeptical, but everybody used to think red wine would stop aging. That was until they found
out it causes cancer in some individuals.

I don't see the relevance at all, particularly as all the evidence with respect to red wine is flawed.

 

[Alk]

Ive done up to nine days pure water fasting, i think its benificial but expect muscle loss and do not over work yourself.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

Ive done up to nine days pure water fasting, i think its benificial but expect muscle loss and do not over work yourself.

Tell us more.

 

[Alk]

I was using fasting as a way to balance the bacteria in my gut as its literally a second brain down there and i now fast sometimes before i change my diet after a very unhealthy streak. I did a lot of research before hand and its a good idea to look onto ketosis which takes about three days of pure water fasting before it kicks in. By the third day your no longer "hungry" and its much easier from that point on. Many people do it as a spiritiual experience but i researched many doing it to heal themselves, going as long as 30 days for health purposes. You must first practice intermidiate fasting before trying and honestly i wouldnt recomend a long fast (extending more than 5-9 days) for hairloss sufferes as Telogen Effluvium could hit 3 months later. But even so i use a good seven day fast sometimes to clear my system. Evertime you eat your body has to use energy to digest and the theory is when entering ketosis your body not only burns fat but toxins along with muscle inevitably. Most people stop a very long fast when true hunger hits which is a feeling almost none of us know. I wish i had some studys to share but theres not alot, its all about the money.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

What do you mean about the money part?

How many 7-day fasts have you done? What physiological effects have you noticed?

 

[Alk]

At least four, and none really accept a clear mind. You could feel as if you have an increase in energy at any point after the third day but Do Not over due it or you could pass out, you need a lot of rest, your body is running of stored energy. And there's no money in alternative medicine or at least that is the consensus so there's no real research. So some cases may be placebo or actual improvement but i felt better during and after the fast. Fasting can be dangerous if you dont listen to your body and extend a fast to long as organ tissue can be broken down after fat and muscle.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

May 21st, 2016, 88.3 Kg, 194.7 lbs
May 28th 2016, 88.6 Kg, 195.3 lbs
June 4th, 2016, 87.2 Kg,192.2 lbs
June 11th, 2016, 87.3 Kg, 192.5 lbs
June 20th, 2016, 87.1 Kg, 192.1 lbs
June 25th, 2016, 85.6 Kg, 188.7 lbs
July 2nd, 2016, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs
July 9th, 2016, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs
July 17th, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs

Still on a plateau, with some bad news: I can't weight train anymore. Not for a while. I have a small para-umbilical hernia, so it's dangerous for me to weight train until after surgery which I won't be able to schedule for a few months.

I will henceforth have to rely on diet alone, which means I'll have to be extra cautious. I'm thinking of limiting myself to 7 meals a week -- very aggressive intermittent fasting. I am moving in ~six weeks, I want to do better with women where I go and I've lost the exercise option, I want to also buy an entire new wardrobe with peace of mind, and not need to exercise as much anymore, so I have limited choices.

I will make the most of it with limited intermittent fasting, and seeing this lack of exercise as giving my body rest. My joints, etc should repair themselves quite well after six weeks or eight weeks, and I'll be able to go on a good bulk when I'm done.

Incidentally, this was a very easy fast.

I'm breaking it now with a glass of warm milk + honey, a recommendation a Muslim guy gave me. It tastes great.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

I'm fasting today.

Yesterday I had two meals, one around 1030am, and the other from 7pm to 9 pm. I will be breaking the fast tomorrow morning around 900m, so it's a standard 36-hour fast for me.

It's amazing how the difficulty is dominated by psychological hunger. Not physiological hunger, which I've largely eradicated from my life, but physiological hunger. I miss food as one of life's pleasures. I like the fun of a great, sweet and savoury meal. It's like I need one every day ... I had two good meals yesterday, and am getting a great meal on Saturday morning and another great meal on Sunday afternoon.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

I look quite good in the mirror (face with NW0-1 would be 7/10 in mirror it is like Zayn Malik's but less angular) but on photos is just...

You need to loose weight as I recall your photos, it will help you really.

I know it is not a polite question but your ED is like permanent? You told that at 23yo you got this, since then it wasn't working at all or sometimes it is OK? Like v**** or so...

I don't know why, I also look better in the mirror than in photos. I think it's some sot of distortion. Did you see the thread I posted about how face changes depending on zoom, distance, etc? Apparently if someone from far away zooms in on your face, you get a different, broader face. I'm going to try that soon to see if I get better pictures.

If you can be a ~7 with a NW1 then there is decent hope for you in the next few years as other treatments come on line.

I'm working on losing weight. It's very hard. I just got an injury which means I can't lift for a few months. So I'll have to fast more aggressively. It sucks. Fasting is very efficient, since insulin crashes and thus metabolism goes and human growth hormone goes (all of which is measured), but it's boring and anti-social. I don't even feel physiological hunger anymore, just psychological hunger.

I don't know if the ED is permanent, sometimes it gets better and everything works great. When I managed to do 30+ days of nofap it felt great, that's hard to maintain though. I think that weight loss, increased muscle (which boosts testosterone), and less fap are good prospects for me.

There are three known ingredients to erections: testosterone, dopamine, and nitric oxide. Drugs like v****, cialis, levitra, l-arginine, etc all operate via the nitric oxide pathway. That's not my issue. I tried the drugs and the change was very small.

 

[CopeForLife]

I don't know why, I also look better in the mirror than in photos. I think it's some sot of distortion. Did you see the thread I posted about how face changes depending on zoom, distance, etc? Apparently if someone from far away zooms in on your face, you get a different, broader face. I'm going to try that soon to see if I get better pictures.

If you can be a ~7 with a NW1 then there is decent hope for you in the next few years as other treatments come on line.

I'm working on losing weight. It's very hard. I just got an injury which means I can't lift for a few months. So I'll have to fast more aggressively. It sucks. Fasting is very efficient, since insulin crashes and thus metabolism goes and human growth hormone goes (all of which is measured), but it's boring and anti-social. I don't even feel physiological hunger anymore, just psychological hunger.

I don't know if the ED is permanent, sometimes it gets better and everything works great. When I managed to do 30+ days of nofap it felt great, that's hard to maintain though. I think that weight loss, increased muscle (which boosts testosterone), and less fap are good prospects for me.

There are three known ingredients to erections: testosterone, dopamine, and nitric oxide. Drugs like v****, cialis, levitra, l-arginine, etc all operate via the nitric oxide pathway. That's not my issue. I tried the drugs and the change was very small.

You look better in mirror because your brain aligns all of your asymmetry + lightning.

In photo + video it is 2D plus usually the image you get is reversed against Y-axis so it is unusual and you cringe when see all of your asymmetry (my case).

Also yes, zoom and etc.

Regarding ED it is nice that sometimes it gets better, leaves hope, I thought it is like impotence which is hell.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

You look better in mirror because your brain aligns all of your asymmetry + lightning.

In photo + video it is 2D plus usually the image you get is reversed against Y-axis so it is unusual and you cringe when see all of your asymmetry (my case).

Also yes, zoom and etc.

Regarding ED it is nice that sometimes it gets better, leaves hope, I thought it is like impotence which is hell.

If it was just the reversal, you could test that easily in photoshopping by just flipping the image. I don't think it's the reversal.
It might be that when we look in the mirror we successfully manage to pick the best angle, by instinct, through years of practice.

The ED is of mediocre erections that don't last and take a while to get up.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

May 21st, 2016, 88.3 Kg, 194.7 lbs
May 28th 2016, 88.6 Kg, 195.3 lbs
June 4th, 2016, 87.2 Kg,192.2 lbs
June 11th, 2016, 87.3 Kg, 192.5 lbs
June 20th, 2016, 87.1 Kg, 192.1 lbs
June 25th, 2016, 85.6 Kg, 188.7 lbs
July 2nd, 2016, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs
July 9th, 2016, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs
July 17th, 85.3 Kg, 188.1 lbs
July 30th, 84.3 kg, 185.8 lbs