Guys, it's working!

[maize]

I listened in with interest on the limited eating window for weight loss thread; I had actually recently hit upon that idea myself hoping it might be a plan I could stick to, and the thread gave me a lot of motivation.

 

I've lost several pounds in just the past week :)

 

I'm so happy, I've really felt weighed down by the extra lbs I have never been able to lose from my last two pregnancies, but I had zero spare mental energy to devote to counting calories or planning special menus. I'm a graze-all-day kind of eater and being home surrounded by food I tend to grab things without even noticing. 

 

I needed something really, really simple if I was going to stick with it, and this seems do to the trick. For now I'm limiting myself to eating between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM, and basically eating whatever I want in between. I do aim for nutrient-dense foods, just like I always do. And I try to get some physical activity and ideally a bit of strength training in. I feel great most of the time. I do get hungry enough in the morning to be a bit shaky but I'm a morning person by nature so I just keep busy for a couple of hours until I can have breakfast. I'm hoping I can keep this up until I am at a weight I can be content with, then just increase the eating window until I find the balance point for maintenance and stay there.

 

Has anyone else started a limited eating window plan? Want to post about progress here?

[journey00]

I tried doing that a few year ago but I didn't have enough strong will but I recently started Medifast to get this weight off.  I just wanted to post & tell u CONGRATS!!  Losing weight is sooooooo stinkin' hard.  Keep it up.   :)

 

Edited March 11, 2016 by journey00

[PineFarmMom]

Congrats!!!

 

I am limiting to 11-8 every day. I was planning to make it noon to 8 but find I need food earlier than that. I like it so far. It is getting me out of that issue thinking of breakfast foods!! I'm doing whole30 right now and am finding whole30 easier by limiting my time frame.

Edited March 11, 2016 by Texas T

[hjffkj]

My eating window is 11:30 to 7:30. So far, it has been easy and I haven't felt shakey at all. Although I'm down 3 lbs since starting a few days ago I don't get excited about my weight loss until I've consistently lost for a few weeks in a row. Then I know I'm making real progress. I do feel more energized though but that is another thing I wait a few weeks to be excited about.

 

Congrats to you. Keep it up and keep us updated.

[umsami]

I tried this and it helped a little (I lost maybe 7 pounds), but then the weight loss stopped.  Still, it was pretty effortless, and most importantly, got me out of the nighttime eating habit. :)

[maize]

I am worried a bit over whether it will work long term. I'm hoping that increasing physical activity will help.

[speedmom4]

I have followed the No S Diet for approximately 3 years. I have lost 22 pounds and am a size 4. The diet is super simple and requires no special foods. The principles are No Sweets, No Snacks, and No Seconds except on days that start with "S", Saturdays, Sundays, and Special occasions. My weight loss has been slow but steady. I eat three times a day and nothing else. It was hard at the beginning but now it's normal.

 

There is a book you can purchase but it's not necessary. The website is very helpful with a forum. Plus it's FREE!

 

Sorry if this sounds like an infomercial!

 

http://nosdiet.com

Edited March 11, 2016 by speedmom4

[maize]

I have followed the No S Diet for approximately 3 years. I have lost 22 pounds and am a size 4. The diet is super simple and requires no special foods. The principles are No Sweets, No Snacks, and No Seconds except on days that start with "S", Saturdays, Sundays, and Special occasions. My weight loss has been slow but steady. I eat three times a day and nothing else. It was hard at the beginning but now it's normal.

 

There is a book you can purchase but it's not necessary. The website is very helpful with a forum. Plus it's FREE!

 

Sorry if this sounds like an infomercial!

 

http://nosdiet.com

I think we each have to figure out what works for us individually.

 

Don't think I personally could manage no snacks :)

[mommybee]

Years ago I only ate between 12pm and 6pm and I lost about 20lbs in four months. I wish I could get back to it again cause it was easy for me. I just ate whatever I wanted and as much as I wanted in that time frame.

 

Oh and congrats!

Edited March 11, 2016 by mommybee

[SparklyUnicorn]

I wonder how this would work shifting it a bit.  Five is an early cut off for someone who tends to go to bed late.  But then I don't eat by 9 most days.

 

 

[mathnerd]

I wonder how this would work shifting it a bit.  Five is an early cut off for someone who tends to go to bed late.  But then I don't eat by 9 most days.

You can shift it to any part of the day to suit your schedule. Just limit your food intake to a 11-12 hour window (make it a shorter window if you can tolerate it). I am sticking to 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM this week.

[hjffkj]

I am worried a bit over whether it will work long term. I'm hoping that increasing physical activity will help.

Well if you view it as a way of life, in theory, it should work. You can't just do it until the weight is off and then stop. Doing that is bound to have the weight come right back on, that is how so many people yo-yo with their weight so much. They don't realize that the changes you make need to be real changes for a lifetime not just until the weight or other health ailment is gone.

[Guest]

So, I'm curious:  Has anyone done this with two shorter windows?  Like 10-2 and 5-7, something like that?  Or is that basically turning it into a No Snacks kind of thing?  The reason I ask is related to keep constant blood-sugar levels.  

[Saddlemomma]

That's great!

 

Where is this "limited eating window" thread info?  I did a specific search and couldn't find it.  I ask because I may be interested in trying it.

[ktgrok]

I wonder how this would work shifting it a bit.  Five is an early cut off for someone who tends to go to bed late.  But then I don't eat by 9 most days.

 

I'm doing 10:30 - 10:30 and it seems to be helping. At least, it was until I hit PMS weight gain,but I got my period yesterday and today I lost those couple pounds. We'll see what happens in the next few days. 

[ktgrok]

That's great!

 

Where is this "limited eating window" thread info?  I did a specific search and couldn't find it.  I ask because I may be interested in trying it.

 

http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/588891-weight-lossobesity-restricting-eating-to-a-certain-window/

[38carrots]

Congratulations!!!

 

I too was inspired by that thread and lost 5lb in the last 11 days (and probably a bit more, judging by my clothes, in the 3 weeks that I started, but I only started tracking my weight 11 days ago.)

 

I'm doing  a combination of 4:3 intermittent fasting and the eating window concept (and the 30 Day Shred almost every day).

 

My eating window is mostly 12pm to 6pm. It works well for me. I feel a little bit hungry in the evenings, but never the following morning. I feel great in the mornings, actually. Not shaky, not hungry, just full of energy.

[Denisemomof4]

I have never heard of this! I fear my blood sugar dropping if my night time window is too early.

 

And sometimes, although not often, I like to go to bed with a glass of red wine. I could easily limit that to S days. ;)

 

Can someone tell me if the NO S diet allows fruit? I don't eatuch of it at all, only in a morning smoothie which has mostly veggies.

[Tsuga]

I listened in with interest on the limited eating window for weight loss thread; I had actually recently hit upon that idea myself hoping it might be a plan I could stick to, and the thread gave me a lot of motivation.

 

I've lost several pounds in just the past week :)

 

I'm so happy, I've really felt weighed down by the extra lbs I have never been able to lose from my last two pregnancies, but I had zero spare mental energy to devote to counting calories or planning special menus. I'm a graze-all-day kind of eater and being home surrounded by food I tend to grab things without even noticing. 

 

I needed something really, really simple if I was going to stick with it, and this seems do to the trick. For now I'm limiting myself to eating between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM, and basically eating whatever I want in between. I do aim for nutrient-dense foods, just like I always do. And I try to get some physical activity and ideally a bit of strength training in. I feel great most of the time. I do get hungry enough in the morning to be a bit shaky but I'm a morning person by nature so I just keep busy for a couple of hours until I can have breakfast. I'm hoping I can keep this up until I am at a weight I can be content with, then just increase the eating window until I find the balance point for maintenance and stay there.

 

Has anyone else started a limited eating window plan? Want to post about progress here?

 

I'm very happy for you.

 

I normally eat after 10 and before 8, but not trying to lose weight. It seems reasonable to me to give the stomach a rest. I'm big on "time and a place for everything" so I tend to eat two larger meals and then just have coffee in the morning and wine for dessert, maybe more, but usually not. So happy you are finding something that works. Anything that allows you to keep a normal schedule and remain flexible with what you eat I think is a great plan.

[Ali in OR]

You know, I don't typically eat after dinner, so I think my eating is always within a 12-hour window, maybe 10 or 11 hours. Yet last year I gained 6 pounds from basically just eating too much. I don't think the magic is in the window, the magic is in eating less. If the window helps manage that, great. But it is possible to eat over 2000 calories in 10 hours without even thinking about it. And for me, it's the "without even thinking about it" that's the problem. 2016 is going a lot better--mostly tracking everything on MFP keeps me honest and keeps me eating an appropriate amount.

[hollyhock]

You know, I don't typically eat after dinner, so I think my eating is always within a 12-hour window, maybe 10 or 11 hours. Yet last year I gained 6 pounds from basically just eating too much. I don't think the magic is in the window, the magic is in eating less. If the window helps manage that, great. But it is possible to eat over 2000 calories in 10 hours without even thinking about it. And for me, it's the "without even thinking about it" that's the problem. 2016 is going a lot better--mostly tracking everything on MFP keeps me honest and keeps me eating an appropriate amount.

 

This is true for me, which is why I start by using a window, and then after I'm comfortable with that, I start looking at other changes I can make during my window. I lost 11 lbs. this way 4 years ago, which is all I wanted to lose, and it really was pretty effortless once I got used to it. I'm trying to get back into it now, so this thread is timely.

[Soror]

maize- that is sooo very fabulous for you!

 

 

You know, I don't typically eat after dinner, so I think my eating is always within a 12-hour window, maybe 10 or 11 hours. Yet last year I gained 6 pounds from basically just eating too much. I don't think the magic is in the window, the magic is in eating less. If the window helps manage that, great. But it is possible to eat over 2000 calories in 10 hours without even thinking about it. And for me, it's the "without even thinking about it" that's the problem. 2016 is going a lot better--mostly tracking everything on MFP keeps me honest and keeps me eating an appropriate amount.

I nearly always eat within a 12 hr or less window too and haven't seen any corelation with weight. I think it probably really helps those that snack at night b/c you either cut out eating at night or the morning to make up for the snacks. I'm not a night time snacker. I might eat a morning snack and I nearly always have an afternoon snack- or small meal really. These days I've been eating more like 5x a day- a snack 2-3 hrs after I wake, a meal around an hr later, 2 hrs later is lunch, 2 hrs after that is an evening snack(usually a smoothie), then it is supper time- 3 or so hrs later. 

[ktgrok]

You know, I don't typically eat after dinner, so I think my eating is always within a 12-hour window, maybe 10 or 11 hours. Yet last year I gained 6 pounds from basically just eating too much. I don't think the magic is in the window, the magic is in eating less. If the window helps manage that, great. But it is possible to eat over 2000 calories in 10 hours without even thinking about it. And for me, it's the "without even thinking about it" that's the problem. 2016 is going a lot better--mostly tracking everything on MFP keeps me honest and keeps me eating an appropriate amount.

 

Except the studies show that subjects eating exactly the same amount of calories lost weight when they were restricted to an eating window versus eating those same calories spread out over time. 

 

Are there other factors? Of course! But maybe you would have gained 15 lbs instead of 6, had you eaten those same calories over a larger window, you know?

 

I still track my calories on MFP, and watch carbs, etc. it's just one tool, not a magic bullet :)

[VaKim]

I have never heard of this! I fear my blood sugar dropping if my night time window is too early.

 

And sometimes, although not often, I like to go to bed with a glass of red wine. I could easily limit that to S days. ;)

 

Can someone tell me if the NO S diet allows fruit? I don't eatuch of it at all, only in a morning smoothie which has mostly veggies.

Yes, it does allow fruit. By no sugar, he means no added sugar. He even says it is fine to put a bit of sugar in your coffee or oatmeal, if that is how you like it. Just no cookies, cakes, other sweets like that. 

[speedmom4]

I have never heard of this! I fear my blood sugar dropping if my night time window is too early.

 

And sometimes, although not often, I like to go to bed with a glass of red wine. I could easily limit that to S days. ;)

 

Can someone tell me if the NO S diet allows fruit? I don't eatuch of it at all, only in a morning smoothie which has mostly veggies.

The No S diet doesn't ban any types of food, as long as they aren't desserts on week days. Adding sweeteners is also discouraged but I add a little to my hot tea each morning. So fruit is great but ice cream is a no-no.

[OneStepAtATime]

Hmmmm...I need to lose weight for various health reasons, but I am hypoglycemic.  I have to eat a little protein before I go to bed or I am in terrible shape by morning, but I need to eat right after I get up.  Still, this idea sounds intriguing.  I think I will try to start this after we get back from our trip.  11-12 hour window seems doable to me.  

[Pegasus]

For anyone who wants to understand WHY a narrower feeding window works, I highly recommend reading/watching Dr. Jason Fung.

 

https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/

 

Edited to add: Oops, I didn't realize this was already shared in the previous thread. Sorry!

Edited March 13, 2016 by Pegasus

[maize]

I'm not sure a twelve hour window would help me lose, I'm doing an eight hour window and that is working well.

 

I'm not regulating my eating within that window. I probably am getting somewhere around 2000 calories but that is definitely less than I was eating before. I'm tandem nursing my 1 and 3 year olds; the three of us go through a lot of calories.

 

I'm particularly pleased because losing weight while breastfeeding has been exceedingly hard in the past. I tend to feel hungry all the time, which is why I snack throughout the day. With this system, there are only a couple of hours in the morning (when my will power and energy are high) when I have to push through the hunger without eating, then I have most of the day to eat what and when I want. I haven't been that hungry in the evenings.

 

Still seeing steady progress.