Intermittent fasting has been all the rage in recent months and years, and for good reason. It’s one of the fastest, easiest ways to lose weight, feel great and still get to eat most of the foods you love!
But while intermittent fasting really does work for weight loss, that doesn’t mean it’s sunshine and roses all the time.
Sometimes intermittent fasting sucks!
In this post, I’m going to tell you all about why intermittent fasting sucks and also what you can do to make it suck a little less.
1- Intermittent Fasting Is Hard At First
I’m going to tell you the honest truth about intermittent fasting.
While it does get better over time, intermittent fasting sucks because at first it’s really friggin’ hard!
When you’re used to eating and snacking whenever you feel like it, your body gets really mad at you and doesn’t understand what the heck is going on.
It’s like “wtf”!
If you’re new to intermittent fasting, know that it’s going to take some time for you to get used to the feeling of hunger in the beginning.
But the good news is if you can make it past the first few days, you’re more or less in the clear. At least for a little while.
The best thing you can do is have a plan!
Click here for 6 ways to curb hunger while fasting (opens in a new window so you won’t lose your place)!
2- It’s Easy To Fall Off Intermittent Fasting
The second thing that really sucks about intermittent fasting is that it’s so easy to fall off – and hard as heck to get back on track!
Even if you do it perfectly and start to see the weight melt off, if you’re not careful all it takes is one weekend or vacation to slip up and then boom – you’re back where you started.
Take it from me – it’s not fun at ALL.
What do you do about this?
Well, plan for that in advance, too!
If you know you’re going to go off your intermittent fasting plan for a special occasion or vacation, give yourself some measure of consistency and don’t fall off ALL the way.
I know this doesn’t sound like your idea of fun, but you should try to avoid throwing in the towel completely.
You might relax your fasting window instead of giving up on it.
12 hours of fasting is better than eating all day long.
Some haters will say 12 hours fasting isn’t enough – but in my experience, it helps!
So, commit to 12 hours even if you’re in lazy fasting mode.
That way, when you return to normal you’ll still have some consistency under your belt to lean on.
3- You May Not See Results Right Away
A third thing that really sucks about intermittent fasting is that results vary widely.
I get it – you see some people’s intermittent fasting before and after weight loss pics, and it looks exciting, right?
Tired of yo-yo dieting and feeling miserable, you starve your body into submission, hoping for the same epic 10 pounds in a week weight loss results you’ve seen from other intermittent fasting success stories. But what happens?
Nothing!
I know it hurts and it’s frustrating.
And that’s why intermittent fasting sucks!
But the thing is, you have to understand that there are SO many reasons why you may not be losing weight on intermittent fasting.
One of the most common is that you’re just not giving it enough time!
I know we humans want all our results lightning fast and lickety-split. But unfortunately, life doesn’t always work that way.
When we take years and years to pack on all this excess weight, a few days of fasting just isn’t enough to melt it all off.
Don’t quit before you give your body the chance to respond! You might give up fasting just before your body gets the picture and starts to melt the fat the way you want it to.
Time isn’t the only reason things may not be moving the way you’d like, however.
Click here for 10 reasons you’re not losing weight while fasting. The post opens in a new window, so you won’t lose your place.
4- You Still Have To Exercise While Fasting
Another reason why intermittent fasting sucks a little bit is that you still probably have to do at least some exercise.
Now, it doesn’t have to be a super hard, totally unpleasant exercise. But you will see much better results (and have improved health) if you move your body at least a little bit.
This probably isn’t a devastating reason for intermittent fasting to suck. But if you’ve fallen for some of the hype out there that says, “I lost 50 pounds in 3 months intermittent fasting without exercise” and go in thinking that’ll happen to you?
You’ll think intermittent fasting sucks.
The best thing to do in this case is to temper your expectations.
It’s a tool to help you lose weight – not a magic pill or miracle.
Click here for an easy workout that anybody can try!
5- You’ll Gain The Weight Back If You Quit
Finally, intermittent fasting sucks because even if you are one of the lucky people who loses all this weight rapidly with intermittent fasting, if you quit fasting cold turkey you WILL gain the weight back. And probably more!
The most important thing you can do while getting a boost from fasting is to work on changing your dietary lifestyle overall.
You don’t need to dramatically change your entire way of eating overnight (or even at all) – but if you make slow, gradual changes you will find sustainable success.
Make Long-Lasting Changes While Intermittent Fasting
You don’t have to eat clean 100% of the time, because let’s face it – if that was all that easy, we wouldn’t be overweight in the first place.
But use fasting as a tool to help you gradually make substitutions and small choices to your lifestyle that you can sustain even if you fall off or wind up choosing a different way of eating.
Grow accustomed to adding veggies to your meals and snacking less even during your fasting window.
Learn to cook more and enjoy the flexibility that offers.
Try sneaking low or zero-calorie foods into your diet.
One substitution that I’ve stuck with is sometimes when I’m not fasting if I want pizza or a burger or fries, I’ll allow myself to have it but only if I make it myself.
Little substitutions like this have allowed me to lose over 40 pounds and keep it off – even when I’ve totally fallen off of fasting.
The same can hold true for you too if you’re willing to make the little necessary tweaks.
Intermittent Fasting Can Suck A LOT Less
As someone who has had a complicated relationship with bodyweight for as long as I can remember, I still say intermittent fasting is one of the best things that has ever happened to me and my body.
While it does suck at times, it still beats many of the other wacky diet plans out there that are way worse and leave you feeling miserable.
I hope I’ve been able to shed some light on how you can make intermittent fasting work better for you.
Good luck in reaching your weight loss goals.
Oh and by the way…
If you’d like to get started with intermittent fasting or you want to take your intermittent fasting weight loss to the next level, what you really need is my Intermittent Fasting Weight Loss Planner!
It literally has everything you need to track fasting, strength & cardio training, pounds/inches lost, space for notes, slots for before & after pics, and three 30-day fitness challenge charts!
***CLICK HERE TO GRAB IT ON AMAZON***
Happy fasting! 🙂
