OMAD (One Meal A Day)

[MikePollard]

Outside of low carb, my focus for a while has been fasting.

There is of course Michael Mosley and his '5:2 diet' and latterly his 'Fast 800' which are essentially fasting diets.

This chimes with me for a couple of reasons.

Firstly. My boys are 15 and 18. They are sick to the back teeth of me and my LCHF thing and essentially eat whatever I would frown at. Their breakfast is, and just about always has been, peanut butter toast with jam or honey. They will cheerfully consume whatever carbs are going when it comes to their evening meal, and indeed will grab a bag of crisps or sweets despite my frown.

And yet, they are perfect specimens of young manhood. The youngest is whip-thin, like lightning and very strong, the other muscular with a physique David Gandy would envy. Both have six packs I have never enjoyed.

You could look at them with envy (I do) and wonder at life's unfairness, until you dig a little deeper.

What's their secret?

They instinctively fast.

They eat their breakfast then typically come home with a lunchbox uneaten. One is a trainee arboriculturist, the other still at school.

When they do eat, typically they leave something on the plate. They are natural fasters, just like our ancestors were.

Secondly. Jason Fung is a HUGE proponent of fasting. His videos are inspiring, but there's another kid on the block whom I find very interesting.

It's OMAD.

Before I came across OMAD I tried an N=1 experiment. I ate a Wetherspoons traditional breakfast for 3 weeks. I ate it at 11.45am, then nothing else until the next day. Lost 7lb with no hunger. That was fasting, and OMAD may be a nuance, but the results are spectacular whatever way you choose to fast.

[S11m]

I fast 20/24 most days, but I did OMAD for days running before Christmas - when I had "festive meals" four days in a row.

Have you seen the new "Fasting and Furious" forum?:

healthunlocked.com/fasting-...

[Megbird]

Hi Mike I too I am trying a 12hours fasting. I accomplished few just about. Bust still drinking plenty of water throughout. I am not sure if ypu can call this fasting still.Whenever I can. Thank you for the tips. I envy your boys too. Who wouldn't.

[S11m]

Hi, Kevin, Welcome.

You do not have to be too masochistic about it… allow yourself a few weeks to transit into “fat burning mode”.

Eat sustaining fat, e.g. the Low-Carbohydrate, High-Fat (LCHF) diet, see the forum here on Health Unlocked.

[S11m]

Since Ancel Keys' ¿1970s? biased study, the Standard American Diet, the UK NHS guidelines, and it seems, the Canada Food Guide have caused the obesity epidemic.

Grains are a cheap source of energy, and a good source of fibre... but we have zero requirements for carbohydrates.

You might be getting too much sodium if you eat a lot of processed or fast food, but many health-conscious people, especially those who exercise, are salt deficient. I take half a level spoonful of Pink Himalayan Salt in my Green Tea every morning.

Averaging 1,983 calories out of a requirement of 2,506 should give you half a pound a week weight loss, particularly in conjunction with Intermittent Fasting (IF).

Gluten gives me Atrial Fibrillation, and I try to avoid grains altogether, apart from a little rice or maize occasionally. I eat buckwheat muesli, fruit and full-fat live yoghurt for breakfast.

Years ago, if I had a light lunch because I knew I was going to be eating a large dinner, I got so hungry I did not appreciate the dinner. Now I am in "Fat Burning Mode", and, before Christmas, I had Festive meals four days running... so I ate One Meal A Day (OMAD)... I did not feel hungry and I lost a pound that week as usual.

I, too, "has been" an author - I was employed as a Technical Author for a few years.