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> cravings are real, abstinence doesn’t work, and there are always new foods and new temptations If IF worked for you that's great, but you shouldn't imply eve

> cravings are real, abstinence doesn’t work, and there are always new foods and new temptations If IF worked for you that's great, but you shouldn't imply every other diet doesn't work. In my case all I did was track calories of everything I ate (Lose It app, highly recommended) while maintaining a normal eating schedule. Down 105lbs so far. For me I feel like if I just ate whatever I wanted in specific timeframes it'd still be too easy to eat 3000-4000 calories.

claaams 5y ago
I was like that too but eventually after doing one meal a day Ive been feeling full on anywhere from 1200-2200 calories. Really depends on the food where I'm at and what's around. But you're absolutely right, there's not one BEST method for everyone. I personally cannot stand the minutiae of calorie counting and measuring portions so it's not good for me. I will measure portions to learn to eyeball things but yeah, can't do it every time I put food on a plate.
- jimmaswell 5y ago
  For me it feels uncomfortable eating something I can't track accurately, like it's going to actually have 5 times the calories I think it would, since that's the story for so much food. Like once I was hungry after a dinner and there was stuffing left, so I had some assuming it was a lighter food, then I looked it up and it's actually extremely calorie dense.
freediver 5y ago
I think what the OP meant is that IF has all the benefits in one, simple to use format. You do not need any apps, you do not need to count calories and you do not need remove food you love from the menu. And while it may sound that you would try to overcompensate for not eating during specific timeframes, what happens in reality is that your body responds by wanting less food, not more.
encoderer 5y ago
That’s fair, in my head I was singling out food-restrictive options like no-carb fad diets. Navigating this world of abundance with our ancient brains is hard so however you do it, congratulations
hn_throwaway_99 5y ago
I think what the comment you are replying to is saying, and which I agree with after trying IF, is that IF works simply by making it easier to restrict calories for the average person, not that other methods are impossible or can't work. I mean, just take your example. Counting calories for everything you eat is a significant amount of work, and it's really easy to cheat if you're feeling hungry ("Oh, look, my app says that an 'average' blueberry muffin is only 250 cals, so that's what I'll put in, despite this muffin being the size of my head"). With IF, all you have to think about is whether you're in your feeding window. You can still cheat, but there is no ambiguity about it, so for many people (or, fine, at least for me) it's easier to keep with it. I found myself getting super hungry during my fasting period, but I knew I just had to wait until my feeding period, and I actually found it difficult to overeat during my feeding period because I would just eat until I was full and then would "run out of time" to overeat.
- jimmaswell 5y ago
  It doesn't feel like work to me after I'm used to it, just a part of life. I'd only be cheating myself if I cheated on it, so I always err on overestimating. I also track protein to make sure I get at least 170g, so that's an additional benefit.
  - aksss 5y ago
    170g of protein?? Are you also doing a carnivore diet or keto?
    - hn_throwaway_99 5y ago
      "gram of protein per pound of bodyweight" is a fairly standard macro ratio in the fitness community. 170g of protein is only 680 cals, so plenty of room left over for carbs and fat.
      - jimmaswell 5y ago
        Right, and in my case I was only going for .8 grams per pound. It's hard to do without going over on calories without a lot of meals being skinless chicken breast.
rootusrootus 5y ago
> Lose It app, highly recommended It has become such an annoying nag though. If they offered a reasonable one-time payment -- not even for premium features, just to make it stop nagging -- I'd pay it. But no, they want me to subscribe. No thanks.
- jswzz 5y ago
  my folks lost a ton of weight using Noom. I'd try that if Lose It annoys you.
  - rootusrootus 5y ago
    I'll take a look at that. I have occasionally considered writing my own simple logger that fit my needs (I don't need a really fancy database of nutrients, my diet is somewhat repetitive, so the basic FDA stuff would be fine) and then releasing it for free. That's a lot more work than just paying Lose It, but I really don't care much for software subscriptions for every little app.
    - logosmonkey 5y ago
      I used to use lose it but swapped to fat secret. Its database isn't as good as lose it but it's getting better and it doesn't nag. I found Noom infuriatingly naggy and when I went to cancel there were multiple guilt trip prompts I had to OK through before they would cancel my free trial which turned me 100% against them.
- aksss 5y ago
  I have same reaction to payment plans. I fully understand the business goal of recurring revenue, but several times in last few months I’ve opted for workarounds/alternates rather than paying a subscription for a product where I would have just paid a flat fee if available.

claaams 5y ago

I was like that too but eventually after doing one meal a day Ive been feeling full on anywhere from 1200-2200 calories. Really depends on the food where I'm at and what's around. But you're absolutely right, there's not one BEST method for everyone. I personally cannot stand the minutiae of calorie counting and measuring portions so it's not good for me. I will measure portions to learn to eyeball things but yeah, can't do it every time I put food on a plate.

jimmaswell 5y ago
For me it feels uncomfortable eating something I can't track accurately, like it's going to actually have 5 times the calories I think it would, since that's the story for so much food. Like once I was hungry after a dinner and there was stuffing left, so I had some assuming it was a lighter food, then I looked it up and it's actually extremely calorie dense.

freediver 5y ago

I think what the OP meant is that IF has all the benefits in one, simple to use format. You do not need any apps, you do not need to count calories and you do not need remove food you love from the menu. And while it may sound that you would try to overcompensate for not eating during specific timeframes, what happens in reality is that your body responds by wanting less food, not more.

encoderer 5y ago

That’s fair, in my head I was singling out food-restrictive options like no-carb fad diets. Navigating this world of abundance with our ancient brains is hard so however you do it, congratulations

hn_throwaway_99 5y ago

I think what the comment you are replying to is saying, and which I agree with after trying IF, is that IF works simply by making it easier to restrict calories for the average person, not that other methods are impossible or can't work. I mean, just take your example. Counting calories for everything you eat is a significant amount of work, and it's really easy to cheat if you're feeling hungry ("Oh, look, my app says that an 'average' blueberry muffin is only 250 cals, so that's what I'll put in, despite this muffin being the size of my head"). With IF, all you have to think about is whether you're in your feeding window. You can still cheat, but there is no ambiguity about it, so for many people (or, fine, at least for me) it's easier to keep with it. I found myself getting super hungry during my fasting period, but I knew I just had to wait until my feeding period, and I actually found it difficult to overeat during my feeding period because I would just eat until I was full and then would "run out of time" to overeat.

jimmaswell 5y ago
It doesn't feel like work to me after I'm used to it, just a part of life. I'd only be cheating myself if I cheated on it, so I always err on overestimating. I also track protein to make sure I get at least 170g, so that's an additional benefit.
- aksss 5y ago
  170g of protein?? Are you also doing a carnivore diet or keto?
  - hn_throwaway_99 5y ago
    "gram of protein per pound of bodyweight" is a fairly standard macro ratio in the fitness community. 170g of protein is only 680 cals, so plenty of room left over for carbs and fat.
    - jimmaswell 5y ago
      Right, and in my case I was only going for .8 grams per pound. It's hard to do without going over on calories without a lot of meals being skinless chicken breast.

rootusrootus 5y ago

> Lose It app, highly recommended It has become such an annoying nag though. If they offered a reasonable one-time payment -- not even for premium features, just to make it stop nagging -- I'd pay it. But no, they want me to subscribe. No thanks.

jswzz 5y ago
my folks lost a ton of weight using Noom. I'd try that if Lose It annoys you.
- rootusrootus 5y ago
  I'll take a look at that. I have occasionally considered writing my own simple logger that fit my needs (I don't need a really fancy database of nutrients, my diet is somewhat repetitive, so the basic FDA stuff would be fine) and then releasing it for free. That's a lot more work than just paying Lose It, but I really don't care much for software subscriptions for every little app.
  - logosmonkey 5y ago
    I used to use lose it but swapped to fat secret. Its database isn't as good as lose it but it's getting better and it doesn't nag. I found Noom infuriatingly naggy and when I went to cancel there were multiple guilt trip prompts I had to OK through before they would cancel my free trial which turned me 100% against them.
aksss 5y ago
I have same reaction to payment plans. I fully understand the business goal of recurring revenue, but several times in last few months I’ve opted for workarounds/alternates rather than paying a subscription for a product where I would have just paid a flat fee if available.