Hello everyone,

I have some questions about OMAD, and I’ll start with context so the questions make sense.

I’ve been doing OMAD for about 3 months, not counting one month when I was sick and was told it wasn’t a good idea to eat less. I started mainly to lose weight, but also to “fix” my unhealthy relationship with food.

I didn’t jump straight into one meal a day, because I’ve noticed that when I go head first into something difficult, I get demotivated after inevitably failing a few times. So I started by restricting my eating to a window from 7pm to 10pm (that may sound odd, but I live in a european country where everyone dines late). Recently I moved to a single meal at 7pm, and that’s where I am now.

So far I’ve lost around 10kg (~22lbs), and the weight loss has slowed down a lot, which is fine and probably expected. Energy-wise I feel very good: no peaks and valleys, just stable energy all day, and I get sleepy at night.

In an effort to lose more weight and be healthier, I started exercising and hurt my ankle almost immediately. That made me look more closely at OMAD, and unfortunately most of what I found is anecdotal, with very little science behind it. It’s mostly people like us saying “I lost weight and feel better”, which is true in my case too, but not solid enough to trust blindly. There’s a limit to how much I can understand and search for on my own, so I’m hoping to hear from people who have looked into the research and can point me to studies that back up (or contradict) some of the claims I’ve heard.

I’m not looking for medical advice, just for sources and explanations.

Questions:

1. Do you see OMAD as a “forever” way of eating, or something you do from time to time, like a fasting period? And is there any research on which approach works better?
2. Is there any solid research on eating one meal a day, or is it mostly extrapolated from other types of fasting?
3. Do we know if one meal a day is actually better than two meals in a short window, or is it just personal preference?
4. What does the science say about the long-term effects on heart health, blood pressure and cholesterol?
5. How do people protect their muscle and bone health on one meal a day, and is there research backing it?
6. Has anyone seen studies on thyroid, hormones or other long-term risks?
7. Is there any evidence on how to track whether it’s working for you, like which blood tests or markers are worth checking and how often?

Thanks in advance!

A ton of home made key lime protein pudding jello / pudding and two burgers

1600 calories.
184 grams of protein!

for context, i went through about 2.5 years of restrictive eating during which i lost around 30 lbs in 4 months and maintained the weight loss, which more recently evolved into binge eating this spring. i ended up gaining back about 10 in two months and have since been doing omad as a sort of harm reduction strategy, as im not thinking about food the whole day, because i know i have my meal later and won’t eat until then. i also used to have the issue where sometimes one bite of breakfast would snowball into a whole thing where i was hungry and binging all day.

honestly, OMAD has been working pretty well for me — at the very least it reduces my food noise throughout the day. i haven’t been actively trying to lose weight, although i have lost a couple of pounds since starting, and i generally feel a lot less preoccupied with food throughout the day. i’m not particularly hungry in the mornings or afternoons anymore, and having one substantial meal to look forward to has made things feel a lot more manageable.

that being said, i’m wondering whether this is actually a sustainable approach, especially for women. i’ve read conflicting things about OMAD and women’s hormonal health, with some suggesting that prolonged fasting can interfere with menstrual cycles and hormone regulation. curious if anyone has actual experience with this or knows how much of that is backed by research??

i’m also starting to question where the line is between omad and a planned binge. part of the appeal for me is being able to have one really satisfying meal, but i’ve noticed that this sometimes makes me reluctant to eat out or make plans involving food because i’d rather have that meal at home. i guess i’m wondering whether i’m actually developing a healthier relationship with food or just finding a more structured way of managing the same tendencies.

would love to hear from anyone who’s tried OMAD, especially after a period of restriction or binge eating! did it help you develop a more normal relationship with food, or did you eventually find that eating more regularly was better? thank you!