Intermittent Fasting- no post workout meal

[AshBob87]

Sorry for what I'm sure is another of many thread's about intermittent fasting. I've had a look on here and online though and can't seem to find the answer to what I'm wondering about so hope somone can help out or advise.

I know a lot of people do follow the whole intermittent fasting approach and I've tried the small meals throughout (little and often) but I find this method better for me. I've done 24 hour fasting which is fine but now I've found that doing a daily 16 hour one fits much better. I eat from around 11am to 6-7pm.

But what Im wondering about is because of my timing- I workout at night and don't finish til usually around 9.30pm and therefore its back to fasting at that time so I don't have a post workout meal. A lot of people who do fast, workout in a fasted state then have their first meal afterwards. So will this hinder any progress and cause any difference for me? Or does it not make much difference. I know I don't get the benefit of working out in a fasted state but I'm just curious as to wether having nothing post workout is going to make a difference.

[thepowerwithin]

The protocol can be tweaked to fit your specific lifestyle. You can make your eating window fit your needs. An example would be 1 PM to 11 PM. Honestly, though, I don't think it would be a huge detriment if you didn't.

I have been doing a for quite a bit of time and typically fast for 14 hours. That's about all I can take, lol. I work out at 8 AM and don't break fast until noon-ish. This fits my lifestyle and compliance because I am hungrier at night.

You could also go on the Lean Gains site to get more feedback.

[catskills]

That is a tough one, I would say try it and see if it works for you. It may not and you might have to find another IF/workout schedule. As far as from stricky a nutrition point of view I don't think it matters.

[oregonchick76]

Personally I'd eat after lifting and fast after that. I think you may be hindering your progress by not eating. But then again, maybe it's all BS. See what happens.

[thepowerwithin]

Alan Aragon quote from another site:

Alright, I guess I'll open this by saying that the most important thing to nail is your macro targets for the day. The shuffling around of the macronutrients relative to the training bout pales in comparison to the importance of hitting your totals. In my observations, the body tends to be amazingly good at neutralizing differential placement effects of the macros within the day. Interestingly, the hope and promise of micromanaging your placement of nutrients relative to the training bout has not proven to be a reliable tactic in research examining longer-term effects (as opposed to acute research that looks at immediate effects). Now, for competitive endurance athletes, nutrient timing can be important if there's more than one glycogen-depleting training bout in a day. For other goals, it's all about nailing your total macros for the day. There are other details within this framework that we can discuss, but I figure I might as well set the stage with the important stuff.

[AshBob87]

Thanks everyone for your relies : ) And that quote from Alan was great!! I think maybes I should just see how I get on at the moment, as it hasn't been very long. And if I find any problems then I'll change it but the time frame that I eat within suits me best right now.

I also realised lastnight that there's a video I watched where they eat from 2pm-8pm but workout about 8am, so again I guess they aren't exactly having a post workout meal for quite a while.
I'll focus on hitting my macro's in that eating time and take it from there. Lastnight I had a good workout and feel amazing today and I'm just eating my first meal right now (from 6.30pm yesterday). So as long as I get good food throughout the day then I'm hoping it'll be fine.

[catskills]

Alan Aragon quote from another site:

Do you have the link for that site? I would like to check it out.

[thepowerwithin]

Do you have the link for that site? I would like to check it out.

No, I didn't write it down. It was on another forum and it was his response to someone. I was just cruising the internet, and I think I googled "Alan Aragon post workout nutrition."

I'm sure you can find it on his blog. http://www.alanaragonblog.com

[MakeFitnessEasy]

I do not think it will hinder your progress. I'm a female trying IF myself and eat postworkout, but that's only for the reason that it fits into my schedule much better. Many people say your preworkout nutrition is much more important than your post-workout nutrition, and that's for a very good reason! If your eating window is before your workout, you're going to be fueled and full of energy for your workout, and those nutrients are still going to be in your body for it to utilize hours after you're done eating. Another benefit to eating before your workout and not after is that not introducing insulin back into your system will increase the levels of growth hormone in your body which in turn would actually help you!

[AshBob87]

I do not think it will hinder your progress. I'm a female trying IF myself and eat postworkout, but that's only for the reason that it fits into my schedule much better. Many people say your preworkout nutrition is much more important than your post-workout nutrition, and that's for a very good reason! If your eating window is before your workout, you're going to be fueled and full of energy for your workout, and those nutrients are still going to be in your body for it to utilize hours after you're done eating. Another benefit to eating before your workout and not after is that not introducing insulin back into your system will increase the levels of growth hormone in your body which in turn would actually help you!

Yeah, and funnily enough since I posted this thread, I've adapted a lot more to morning fasted workouts and find them easier and then make sure I eat something decent after and then when it comes to dinner, i'm full and now often feel too full or kind of more 'sluggish' for longer to workout at night. So sometimes I like to make the most and get in a fasted workout or sometimes like today I'll do a full body workout in the am and do some treadmill intervals at night if my food has digested enough. I never thought i'd notice so much difference with energy for fasted workouts. It's been great!

[billymead2012]

i thought it was best to eat within the first hour u are awake to help boost metabolism

so did we all till a few months back lol

[cdr0]

The protocol can be tweaked to fit your specific lifestyle. You can make your eating window fit your needs. An example would be 1 PM to 11 PM. Honestly, though, I don't think it would be a huge detriment if you didn't.

I have been doing a for quite a bit of time and typically fast for 14 hours. That's about all I can take, lol. I work out at 8 AM and don't break fast until noon-ish. This fits my lifestyle and compliance because I am hungrier at night.

You could also go on the Lean Gains site to get more feedback.

How was your progress with that type of schedule? This is what I'm looking to start tomorrow and I didn't know if I was eating too late and if it would hinder fat loss.

[kimm4]

How was your progress with that type of schedule? This is what I'm looking to start tomorrow and I didn't know if I was eating too late and if it would hinder fat loss.

Fat loss will come down to sticking to your calorie deficit. The number of meals you choose to eat and times make difference in the end result. I've been using IF for years. My normal eating window is between 3 PM to 1 AM.

[sabbageee]

Currently on an 18h fast from 7pm until 1pm the next day. I go to the gym twice a day most days and i usually go for 40-60 minutes of cardio before i break my fast, and then ill go again to lift at around 10 or 11 pm. I usually will have a protein shake after my lifting session, i know technically im breaking my fast, but ive seen tremendous results. If i can avoid having a protein shake at night its usually because i had about 2-3 shakes during my eating window. By eating 2000 calories in a 6h window i rarely am hungry after my gym session.

[daviddiomede]

Currently on an 18h fast from 7pm until 1pm the next day. I go to the gym twice a day most days and i usually go for 40-60 minutes of cardio before i break my fast, and then ill go again to lift at around 10 or 11 pm. I usually will have a protein shake after my lifting session, i know technically im breaking my fast, but ive seen tremendous results. If i can avoid having a protein shake at night its usually because i had about 2-3 shakes during my eating window. By eating 2000 calories in a 6h window i rarely am hungry after my gym session.

So you break your fast post workout with a protein shake then don't eat again until you actually get into your eating window? I do 12-8pm but workout at 6am and have been doing aminos and bcaas post workout. Would you recommend a protein shake? But then still don't eat till noon?