The Big IF

Since I started learning about the primal lifestyle, I've heard about this IF thing. Intermitent fasting is just what it sounds like - occasional fasting. I understand that there's a strategy to IF that atheletes use and that's used to propel weight loss, but I'm not IF savvy enough to know all that at this point.

I'm also sure that there's plenty of science out there that is pro-IF and con-IF. Really, it goes against everything I've read and been told thus far about weight loss, specifically that rule that you should NEVER miss a meal. Missing a meal will slow down your metabolism and it'll be sluggish to get revved up again. OK. I accepted that as the truth - I mean, if you think about a furnace, the fire goes out if you don't make sure it's got coal. I accepted the analogy as the truth. However, after all the CW that we're just dismissing as myths as part of the primal lifestyle, I was, rather easily, ready to let that myth go. Overall, I just can't believe that my body is built to crash if I don't get a caloric jumpstart every 6 or so hours.

Anyway, I inadvertanty do IF from time to time. If I don't make the effort to fix some hard-boiled eggs and cooked bacon, I skip breakfast. I'm just not going to get up earlier than I have to just to fix breakfast and I'm definitely not going to stop and pick up something, so I go without. There are also times that I'm at work and get too busy to eat or just plain forget to eat my BAS because I'm not hungry.

Today, I decided to consciously do a 12 hour IF. I don't think I can go 24 hours at this point without being ravenous in the morning... at which point I would gorge on something from Dunkin Donuts, which totally defeats the point... so I'll stick with 12 hours for now. Right now, I'm at the tail end of that 12 hours. I had some Herbasious Grape Chicken Salad on lettuce leaves this morning right before I started and nothing but water since.

I'm so proud of myself for not cheating. Honestly, it wasn't that difficult really. The key was keeping busy. I am an emotional eater, so when I get bored on the weekends, I eat. I did pretty well this weekend and so I was a little bit less worried about cheating on the IF than if I'd done it a week ago. I didn't start getting hungry until after my activity died down. I was pretty impressed with it overall. I don't know that I feel any different - I don't even know that I'm *supposed* to feel different after the first one.

When the IF is over, what do you eat to break the fast - breakfast of course! I love breakfast for dinner, so I'm going to enjoy some bacon and eggs... maybe even some primal pancakes. Mmmmmm!

Confession 5: After 12 hours, there's been no crash and I don't really feel like I've been deprived for 12 hours either. I'm pretty curious about this IF thing. Quite often, I feel like my stomach is Audrey II: you know, FEED ME SEYMORE! Today I didn't feel that and, as my goal in all this is a great weight loss, I want to see if this is a tool that I can use to get Audrey under control.