So, it is been eight weeks now that I have been trying intermittent fasting and just wanted to share my thoughts on it. I set out to try a 16/8 schedule and adjust from there as I needed. That is where you fast for 16 hours and can eat in that remaining 8-hour window of the day. I have been trying to keep my food choices as clean as possible for a while now it was more of just changing when I ate versus what I ate. My goal with trying intermittent fasting was not for weight loss but for the health benefits to sleep quality, clarity of mind, and digestive health.
For the most part I had no issues keeping up with the 16/8 schedule and even played around with expanding it to a 20/4 window for a couple of days each week to extend the fasting window. I did have some hunger feelings in the first couple weeks but I noticed as time went on that even when I did, they were not as strong of a sensation as I would have before when I was eating all day. Now since I am not trying to lose weight, I made sure that my food intake during my feeding window was enough but not to the point that I felt like I overate. I think another thing that made this type of lifestyle easier was that I was willing to be flexible with my window to allow for things in life like working late or other things that tend to pop up from time to time.
During the last two months while trying intermittent fasting I was also working out on my normal schedule. This includes running Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday and then going to the gym to lift from Monday to Friday. My run distances very from four miles to ten miles and I alternate between light and heavy weeks in the gym. I did take one week off from training which is typically after six weeks of working out. I just found that doing this seven-week cycle works for me and prevents me from over training. I still go for a run or two during that week just to keep some movement in there.
I am not completely sure just how much intermittent fasting has improved those individual areas of health that I mentioned earlier but overall, I feel really good and training during the fasted state is so much better than before. I have had no issues with blood sugar crashes or energy dips like I did before when I ate a standard American diet. I have lost a couple pounds but I am really trying to not judge the effectiveness of this type of lifestyle off any metric but more on how I feel. At this point in my life I just realize that if I can improve the quality of my life by improving my health and fitness than that is an investment worth my time and effort. A wise man once told me that anything worth having is worth fighting for. Most people relate that to jobs, relationships, or freedom but what if that also meant our health and well-being? I know that I will deal with the effects of choosing the military as my first career and everything that comes with that but I refuse to let the abuse to my body from the last twenty-four years define however many remaining years I have left on this world. Do not give up on yourself!!!