Hey y'all! Anyone and everyone is welcome to jump in and join us.

This is the Intermittent Fasting DAily Menu/Results/Accountability Thread. It's where a few of us (or many) are going to log in and encourage each other while we experiment with our own IF plans. You can list or talk about anything--not just your food. I look forward to adding in HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) and core exercises to my walking plan while practicing IF. So expect to hear about that too. hehe I expect some of us will talk about the known IF side-effects like insomnia, circadian rhythm disturbance, etc. It's all good! Let's hack this IF mofo! mkay?

There is not any 1 specific IF plan--there are so many to choose from, so this is a BYOIFP (bring-your-own-IF-plan) and join the fun! This is the thread where we'll post our daily menus and maybe some piccys at times! We can discuss progress, issues we might notice, look at how we may want to refine our own personal plans. I do think you should be healed from surgery and have your doctor's and RD's blessings to try something like this and you should do a ton of research and reading about Intermittent Fasting.

IF isn't only about weight loss, it's about taking specific measures to limit either quantities, calories, macros, or sometimes only consciously altering eating windows/schedules in order to effect metabolic change and reduce inflammation and improve health markers.

Ok, let's do this thang!!!

I'm back from vacay! (Well sorta, I'm on another work trip, wasn't home for long!)

So much to catch up on here!

@redhead_che Welcome! I have long admired your amazing bikini pic, seriously green with envy! Glad you are finding IF easy and effective. I also find fasting in the morning to be far easier than at night!

@Sosewsue61 ... your food looks delish! Hope you feel better soon!

@Matt Z ... Ugh, so sorry you're dealing with all that. I think it's really good you acknowledge the 200 lb goal is arbitrary and doesn't lessen the incredible success you have had. Doesn't make it feel better though! I also admire you for going to the gym while dealing with shingles. The mountain climbing is awesome, and would scare the sh*t out of me!

@FluffyChix Yay on hitting the 150 goal!!! And a 39 hr fast, yowza! Your lunch doesn't look bad to me at all. I'm sure with the salami and pimento cheese it was higher fat than your norm, but not like it was potato chips!

@GreenTealael ... look at you wearing your 12 year old's clothes looking all lean with those cheekbones! You look fantastic! You always look so much taller than you really are! I'm with Fluffy, I'm loving wearing tight fitting clothes. I also see it as only a limited amount of time before I look like a ridiculous granny wearing clothes from Forever21

36 minutes ago, Orchids&Dragons said:

We all know that kitties prefer milk!

This kitty prefers wine!

Update from me ... vacay was amazing! Had wine, gelato, pasta, salami, and then some every day. I enjoyed every minute of it!

Drumroll .... down 1.2 lbs since my pre-vacation weigh in!

I'm a little surprised. Although I did more walking than I do on the regular. The weather was crap, so didn't walk nearly as much as I would have otherwise. Took a lot of taxi's and ducked into to a lot more enotecas than planned, to get out of the rain.

Other than being asked after every meal if there was something wrong with it, I'm loving vacationing post WLS.

- I don't feel like the fat American, especially when ordering gelato

- My feet didn't hurt! Even on days I walked 5 plus miles! I was able to wear boots, vs. sneakers some day which were cuter and better suited for the weather.

- Shopping! I was able to go into regular shops and find clothes. I bought some over the knee boots, a dress, a T-shirts, and 3 jackets (2 of them leather, so gorgeous!). Of course in the biker style leather jacket I was the largest size they had, but whatever! The downside is, this was an expensive trip!

So now, I have to find a way to get back on the wagon. I definitely find that IF keeps my hunger at bay. The more I eat, the more hungry I am. So coming back from vacay is a b*tch from that perspective. I was able to have a moderately long IF window between lunch/dinner last night and breakfast this morning. Crap choices, but at least a decent fasting window. I'm back traveling this week, which makes IF difficult or impossible most days. But we'll see if I can start IF, and make wise choices again when I return home at the end of this week.

9 hours ago, FluffyChix said:

Yum! That burger with the egg and cheese looks phenomenal!!!! Was that Breakfast, lunch or dins?

@GreenTealael What does "those were the days" mean? Can you eat "way" more now, do you struggle with hunger? Or you don't eat turkey burgers any longer? Inquiring minds and all!

Wow! im not seeing any notifications today!

I don't eat turkey burgers often anymore, and it was just the novelty of eating as much protein a possible that I was being nostalgic about. Y'all know these days I don't worry that much about protein. I'm in no danger of getting too little lol.

26 minutes ago, sillykitty said:

Update from me ... vacay was amazing! Had wine, gelato, Pasta, salami, and then some every day. I enjoyed every minute of it!

Drumroll .... down 1.2 lbs since my pre-vacation weigh in!

I'm a little surprised. Although I did more walking than I do on the regular. The weather was crap, so didn't walk nearly as much as I would have otherwise. Took a lot of taxi's and ducked into to a lot more enotecas than planned, to get out of the rain.

Other than being asked after every meal if there was something wrong with it, I'm loving vacationing post WLS.

- I don't feel like the fat American, especially when ordering gelato

- My feet didn't hurt! Even on days I walked 5 plus miles! I was able to wear boots, vs. sneakers some day which were cuter and better suited for the weather.

- Shopping! I was able to go into regular shops and find clothes. I bought some over the knee boots, a dress, a T-shirts, and 3 jackets (2 of them leather, so gorgeous!). Of course in the biker style leather jacket I was the largest size they had, but whatever! The downside is, this was an expensive trip!

So now, I have to find a way to get back on the wagon. I definitely find that IF keeps my hunger at bay. The more I eat, the more hungry I am. So coming back from vacay is a b*tch from that perspective. I was able to have a moderately long IF window between lunch/dinner last night and Breakfast this morning. Crap choices, but at least a decent fasting window. I'm back traveling this week, which makes IF difficult or impossible most days. But we'll see if I can start IF, and make wise choices again when I return home at the end of this week.

Can't wait to share all the clothes when I move in!

Welcome home

1 hour ago, sillykitty said:

I hate water

Water loves you

I'm moving in

We're going to fix this

1 hour ago, GreenTealael said:

Water loves you

I'm moving in

We're going to fix this

I'm picturing the recyclables overflowing with empty Voss bottles

6 hours ago, MargoCL said:

Random question to you all first, I may post this in an open thread, but wanted your thoughts and opinions first....

Has anyone noticed a change in weight loss based on total sleep hours?

Personally I’m experiencing a pattern, less than 7.5 hours of sleep, I will lose .1 - .2 pounds.... 8 hrs of sleep .5 - 1 lb weight loss

My Water consumption and food intake remain the same on both days. 800 - 900 kcal between 70 - 100 + oz water.

Thanks for your thoughts

I have found very little rhyme or reason for my loss in general. So no help on this, sorry!

2 hours ago, sillykitty said:

I'm picturing the recyclables overflowing with empty Voss bottles

It's gonna get crazy ?

5 hours ago, sillykitty said:

I'm back from vacay! (Well sorta, I'm on another work trip, wasn't home for long!)

So much to catch up on here!

@redhead_che Welcome! I have long admired your amazing bikini pic, seriously green with envy! Glad you are finding IF easy and effective. I also find fasting in the morning to be far easier than at night!

@Sosewsue61 ... your food looks delish! Hope you feel better soon!

@Matt Z ... Ugh, so sorry you're dealing with all that. I think it's really good you acknowledge the 200 lb goal is arbitrary and doesn't lessen the incredible success you have had. Doesn't make it feel better though! I also admire you for going to the gym while dealing with shingles. The mountain climbing is awesome, and would scare the sh*t out of me!

@FluffyChix Yay on hitting the 150 goal!!! And a 39 hr fast, yowza! Your lunch doesn't look bad to me at all. I'm sure with the salami and pimento cheese it was higher fat than your norm, but not like it was potato chips!

@GreenTealael ... look at you wearing your 12 year old's clothes looking all lean with those cheekbones! You look fantastic! You always look so much taller than you really are! I'm with Fluffy, I'm loving wearing tight fitting clothes. I also see it as only a limited amount of time before I look like a ridiculous granny wearing clothes from Forever21

Im going to need a Forever35 store to pop up soon LOL before I start shopping at The Children's Place ???

9 hours ago, Matt Z said:

Thanks. Dealing with a lot personally too. If anyone of you want to see what a post looks like when I'm pissed... go read that last one I posted to that thread, that was me like shaking mad. In this day and age, to tell someone they don't understand something because they are one gender or another (or one sex or another, your pick) just really set me off. I'm never anything but honest and factual. I go out of my way to be helpful and understanding. That post... concerns me more than anything because this woman is using her 4 kids as the reason she won't go to the ER because she's unable to consume water... yet, me alerting her to the fact that, she could die if she doesn't... is me being harsh. I can't wait to see someone twist my last post into some "mansplaining" bs.

I'm dealing with a bout of shingles w/o a rash. So I've got no treatment options other than dealing with the pain, can't take any NSAIDs or pain meds that actually work thanks to the bypass... I still am greatful for the bypass, but this kinda sucks. I'm not going to make 200 before my 20th anniversary or birthday, and that is depressing, even if I fully understand that it's just some arbitrary goal that does nothing to negate my progress, it still sucks. Haven't been sleeping well because of the pain... BUT I am back to the gym most days now... working towards being able to climb a mountain. Need to be able to climb 500 flights of stairs carrying about 30 lbs of gear. The actual climb is going to be about 5000 feet in 5 miles. 10 miles round trip, 5000 feet up, 5000 feet back down.

CBD oil?

Get well soon and you're still Sexy AF on any side of 200 lbs...

9 hours ago, MargoCL said:

Random question to you all first, I may post this in an open thread, but wanted your thoughts and opinions first....

Has anyone noticed a change in weight loss based on total sleep hours?

Personally I’m experiencing a pattern, less than 7.5 hours of sleep, I will lose .1 - .2 pounds.... 8 hrs of sleep .5 - 1 lb weight loss

My Water consumption and food intake remain the same on both days. 800 - 900 kcal between 70 - 100 + oz water.

Thanks for your thoughts

No clue about this as I'm often on Planet Insomnia due to other issues

I feel like the scientific method needs to be employed. Let us know if the trend continues to hold.

15 hours ago, FluffyChix said:

Holy fu*k man!!!! Where to start on this???!!! My mother hubbard feathers are all fluffed out and I'm flouncing around wanting to comfort you in many areas...and yet I know, you don't want that, because you are a strong and capable person used to dealing! I'm still sorry you are going through this and wish my magic wand did something more than play bippity boppity boo.

I totally get your position on that thread. And agree. And no, I do not think things need to be sugar coated. I'm very sick of that anyway. Why does it ALL involve sugar. Right? She's in a world of hurt right now. And her dehydration is making her irrational and also further complicating the metallic taste from ketosis and maybe from anesthesia hangover and from dehydration.

And the poster that said you couldn't understand cuz you're not a mom, made me see red! Holy moly! What a tool/douc*e!

Now about the shingles. DAYUM!!!!! You never said a word hon! So very sorry you are going through this!!! There is no anti-viral that will help at all? And neurontin doesn't work for the burning fire? (no idea) Can you see if they will allow you to get some lidocaine cream for the pain? There is one that is a special order that does have some NSAID but my surgeon allowed it in limited use on the skin. Also Emla cream is pretty amazing (prescription lidocaine)--used it to numb my port for chemo.

I'm sorry you won't make goal by your time frame. It's a gut buster to have to deal with that on top of your shingles. But I think now we know why you didn't make it!!!! It's a perfect storm designed to keep the homey down. ((hugs))

1. Shingles

2. Lack of sleep

3. Cortisol out the wazoo cuz of all of that!

I am really proud you are at the gym despite the pain. You surely have reason not to go!!!! And the mountain climb puts fear in my heart. LOL. Holy fu*k! 5000ft/5 miles/30lbs of gear. Can you get a mule? (or a small mountain pony?)

Thank you, seriously and honestly. Thank you. I've tried what I can get for pain meds... no joy. The 4% lidocaine patches don't do squat and my doc is telling me it's too late for anti-virals, so... I have to just wait out the pain. Actually home today because the stabby stabby burny burny is just too much to deal with wearing a shirt... Can't use capzasin either I have an "intolerance" to it when applied externally (or I used too much) the one time I used it on my knees, left me crying and shaking in pain for 6-8 hours, to the point where I soaked in milk to try to get it to stop... *almost* went to the ER for it.

The Hike, that amount of gear is mostly water, I'll need like 2-3 gallons of water with how much work and how long it's going to be.

13 hours ago, GreenTealael said:

Why does no one want to drink water? I don't get it...

I can't fathom how in this day and age of information that people don't "get" that water is a critical requirement.

12 hours ago, sillykitty said:

@redhead_che Welcome! I have long admired your amazing bikini pic, seriously green with envy! Glad you are finding IF easy and effective. I also find fasting in the morning to be far easier than at night!

@Matt Z ... Ugh, so sorry you're dealing with all that. I think it's really good you acknowledge the 200 lb goal is arbitrary and doesn't lessen the incredible success you have had. Doesn't make it feel better though! I also admire you for going to the gym while dealing with shingles. The mountain climbing is awesome, and would scare the sh*t out of me!

Thank you!
(I've also admired her bikini pic, she looks fan-fukin-tastic,I'd love to see before and after photos from her, I'm sure the transition was impressive!)