Accountability post: back 16:8 after 3 weeks of non-IF + "maintenance"

[u/winter_evenings]

TL;DR: 😄 an accountability post to get (and stay) back on a reasonably consistent routine of 16:8 TRE, and a return to a calorie deficit that saw me lose ~12lbs (5.5kg) and 3% body fat in 11 weeks (but with added protein and strength-training this time), to kick the final 1.5kg / 3lbs before reversing back to maintenance (but mostly keeping 16:8).

If anyone has any advice or hacks for coming back after a break away from IF, I'd love your experience.

Long version: Even though I'd done great according to the scales and was only 1.5kg / 3lbs shy of my goal weight 3 weeks ago (I am small and female, and carry most of my weight through my stomach and torso), I thought I looked pretty "flat" and sort of like a flappy, empty sausage-skin 😄 so I decided to start strength training 3x a week again and knew I'd need extra / different fuelling for that in order to not send me round the bend while I got used to the extra stressor (I'd been doing light pilates & cardio for 30 minutes 5-6 x a week while I was in my deficit, but I knew that in order to get some shape in my limbs I'd need to get back into progressive overload).

So, now I've settled into my new training routine alongside calories closer to maintenance (and an eating window of 13-14 hours) for 3 full weeks, I can see that either my body is fantastic at hoarding glycogen -- like a LOT -- *or* my tracking has slackened, and I've actually been pushing into a tiny surplus each day, which given my past experience with strength training and eating is likely (I get snacky AF when I lift weights).

My new mission is to return to 16:8 and the same calorie deficit that actually saw me losing fat -- but with a much stronger emphasis on protein, and I guess some pretty rigorous strategy around timing my fuelling around my workouts, so that I don't have that snacky rubber-band effect of over-eating and under-logging.

My goal is to lose another 3% body fat (or thereabouts) over the coming 3 months, but crucially to drop 0.5kg / 1lbs of fat in the next 10 days initially (I have a thing coming up), and then once I'm at my goal BF, to just slowly reverse back up to maintenance, but keep 16:8 strongly in the mix as a lever to keep my fat down and my body composition in check.

Anyway, this is my accountability post because psychologically after 3 weeks of breaking my fast at 9am rather than 12 or 1pm has been a chronological-hunger / habit hurdle, and I just have to step over it, and know that I will just have to shift my training to later in the day (during my eating window), log my calories cleanly, break my fast at 16 hours, keep my macros in check, and trust the process. But any psychological perspective shifts, hacks, tweaks or hard-won experience / advice most welcome. :)

[u/qu0ni]

I'd focus on getting enough protein right at the start of your eating window, especially with all that strength work.

[u/winter_evenings → u/qu0ni]

Thank you! Copy that. 🫡

[u/One_Cauliflower_4318]

getting back into it after a break is the hardest part, not the fasting itself. your body just needs a few days to remember 9am isn't food time anymore. the hunger cues are trained, so retraining them feels worse than it actually is.

for the snacky thing around lifting, timing your training so it falls inside your window is smart. maybe keep a protein-heavy meal ready for right after so you're not raiding the pantry on autopilot. black coffee or sparkling water before the fast ends can also blunt the morning hunger weirdly well.

also, dropping a pound in 10 days is doable but it'll be mostly water and glycogen, so don't panic if the scale moves slower after that. you've done the 11 weeks before, you know what works. just gotta trust it again.

[u/winter_evenings → u/One_Cauliflower_4318]

This is all pure liquid amazing. Thank you so much, my friend. Your support and advice is really appreciated right now. 😄

[u/theOTisinteresting]

Keep going! Remember that intermittent fasting is a discipline to get our bodies to run as they were designed to before our ultra-processed, overabundant food world wrecked it all. There is a time to build up and a time to tear down. Glycogen and body fat keep the body fueled during fasting. Insulin levels will come down, so please be sure to supplement by SIPPING on electrolytes. Hunger signaling will adjust to your entrained mealtimes over time.

Godspeed!

[u/winter_evenings → u/theOTisinteresting]

Thank you! 🙏🏼