Intermittent Fasting Journal – Week 21

In this broadcast, Donna Reish (IF blogger, curriculum author, and course creator) gives her and her husband’s seven month IF update (70 pounds between the two of them and many sizes!). She describes their OMAD/3 (One Meal a Day divided into three parts—SED—Snack/Entrée/Dessert) as well as how they open their eating window. Donna then briefly reviews last week’s info on 7 Ways to Lose Weight Faster With Intermittent Fasting (fasting longer, OMAD/3, Fasting Spectrum, reducing carbs somewhat, keto diet, exercise, and counting calories). She moves into more weight loss helps and tips and describes the effect of each one on the Intermittent Faster: drinking coffee, sleeping longer/better, consuming water, keeping truly busy, taking 5 HTP, and filling the stomach with fiber! Donna’s sponsor today is her beloved Accelerator—with caffeine, 5HTP, yerbe mate (appetite suppressant), and more!

A. Our Experience

Just hit the seven month mark (little more for me; little less for him)
Ray continues to lose 8 pounds a month; I continue to lose 2-3 pounds a month
Smaller clothes at least every two weeks
Averaging 20 hours of fasting a day
Strictly OMAD/3—dividing eating window into One meal/three parts: snack, entrée, dessert if desired
I call this SED for easy affirmations—Snack/Entrée/Dessert: SED, Size 8 for me!
Usually open with low carb snack

B. Last week: 7 Ways to Lose Weight Faster With IF

Fast longer
OMAD/3
Beginning of Fasting Spectrum: Water, Coffee, Tea Only (“clean” fasting)
Reduce carbs a little
Keto diet
Exercise
Count calories or points (MFP, WW, etc.)

C. Other Weight Loss Helps and Tips

Drink Coffee

a. Mobilizes fat with caffeine

b. Great for detoxing and body recompositioning

c. 11% increase in metabolism with caffeine

d. Brain signaling—chemical peptide called YY signals the brain not to eat

Sleep

a. Need to sleep well the night before a fast (so every night!)

b. Sleep deprived means more cortisol—cortisol is a hormone that increases blood sugar

c. When cortisol is high, we have more insulin; more insulin equals more hunger

d. Less sleep means more hunger!

e. Research has shown that 1-2 hours less sleep results in 24-30% more increase in hunger

f. Research has shown that people who regularly sleep fewer than seven hours have 26% more hunger than people who sleep closer to eight hours per night!

g. Research has found that shorter sleep periods (6 hours or fewer) lower overall daily leptin levels, cause an increase in appetite, and make people crave carbs and other “fattening” foods.

h. Falling asleep and staying asleep is crucial for keeping cortisol levels low/less insulin release/less hunger—use these tips

i. Eating carbs at the end of your eating window/closer to bedtime can help because of the satisfaction/lack of hunger when you’re trying to fall asleep

j. Omegas taken up to an hour before bed have been showed to help with sleep as the fat from them is released slowly—that fat release helps with sleep and helps with hunger the next day (though some divide their omegas up before bed and mid morning for hunger help)

Water

a. An increase in water is associated with 44% more weight loss!

b. Helps satiate you so not as hungry

c. Detoxing is aided through water drinking—fat is released through water!

d. Study of American Academy of Dieticians found that people who drank 1-2 glasses of water before eating ate 75-100 fewer calories

e. When liver is dehydrated, it doesn’t help with fat loss like it does when it is hydrated

Busy-ness

a. Not just passive busy-ness, but conscious busyness

b. When the pre-frontal cortex is occupied by consciously doing thing the perceived time is faster—this helps people with longer fasts/not focusing on food as much

c. Why I recommend Time Blocking during long fasts.

5 HTP –Hydroxytriptophan

a. Precursor to hormones

b. Helps us create serotonin=feels good

c. Also helps you feel satiated

d. A study of 20 obese people had half of them taking 900 mg of 5 HTP and half not; the half with 5 HTP had less hunger and consumed fewer calories

e. 5 HTP is available as a stand alone supplement or in Plexus Accelerator (along with caffeine—my “caffeine pills” since I don’t drink tea or coffee)

Fiber
1. Can take at end of meal or before eating or during fast—for feeling of fullness in the stomach
2. 6 grams of soluble fiber (totaling 24 calories) has been shown to have the satiating effect of 260 calories as far as hormone signaling goes!
3. Can take fiber supplements, fiber in water, or Hunger Control Slim

Word From Our Sponsor: Plexus Accelerator! (All Plexus is plant-based!)

Benefits
1. Helps body burn fat more efficiently
2. Helps boost the body’s metabolic rate
3. Active ingredients (yerba mate, green tea extract, higenamine) work together to kick your metabolism into high gear.
Who benefits from this product
1. Someone who wants an increase in metabolic rate
2. Someone who wants to burn fat more efficiently
3. Someone who wants an increase in physical exertion performance
Dose
1. 2 capsules per day (together or separate)
2. Each capsule has the equivalent of one cup of coffee in terms of natural caffeine
3. If caffeine is a problem for you (sleeping at night), do not take after certain time of day
Ingredients

a. B Vitamins

i. Niacine, B6, B 12

ii. Helps with nerves and emotions

b. Calcium—2 percent of % DV

c. Chromium—as chromium picolinate (125% DV)

d. Yerba Mate

i. One of my favorite ingredients

ii. Used by tribal hunters to chew on throughout the hunt so they didn’t get hungry!

iii. Curbs appetite

e. Green Tea Leaf extract

i. Antioxidant

ii. Contains natural caffeine

f. 5HTP—hydroxitryptophane

i. Helps create serotonin—great for depression (people on ant-depressants shouldn’t also take 5 HTP)

ii. Helps you feel satiated

iii. Research shows people who take 5 HTP have less hunger and consume fewer calories

Some links for you!

Broadcast #20 with outline, video, and audio!
New Upcoming IF Course! (Sign up for wait list to get discount!)
Our Plexus store
Donna Reish.com
Free Intermittent Fasting Start Up Charts!
Call or text for help with Plexus products or Intermittent Fasting: 260-433-4365

Below are a couple of links to books I use and love. I am an affiliate for Amazon.com. If you click on the links below I will earn a small commission. Thank you for your support of this blog!