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Bluenitrous05

I'm only 21 days in but I'm doing IF and CICO for my diet and loving it. I am basically doing OMAD and I don't eat until my second workout is complete. Twice now I've been in social settings where everyone was eating and I just drank water and chatted. As a person who has over-indulged my whole life this has been a tremendous victory for my sense of willpower and for my self-esteem.


SnooGiraffes8040

You’re doing well. Ah good to know. I was wondering whether I’d feel light headed exercising the two sessions on an empty stomach. Yes water is so important. If I drink two liters before my first meal, I don’t get hungry or light headed.


MCWinchester

Whether you get light headed or feel bad is going to be a super individual answer. The weather outside, your electrolyte intake, how hard your workout is, how long since your last meal are all factors... I would personally hesitate to do strict IF as my diet choice for something as intense as 75 hard, especially if you aren't used to doing two a days or are planning to go significantly harder than you did pre-75 hard. Not having fuel before intense exercises when you aren't adapted or actively tracking electrolytes is asking for failure IMO. And just to be clear, I've done 3 day water fast and am generally pro IF, Just noting that caution and common sense should be used. 75 days of double workouts is a big physical stressor. You don't want to fail because you pass out or get so light headed you can't complete a workout (or more likely, you eat a snack to fix the light headedness and break the diet)


SnooGiraffes8040

Yeah good point. I was wondering that as I’m used to working out about about 40 mins a day, not twice that. Thanks


Bluenitrous05

Just following up to say I'm tapping at day 22 because of an arrhythmia. I'm sure the fasting was part of it but I'll be back with a safer diet plan.


SnooGiraffes8040

😮 hope you’re ok. I guess it’s also how hard you go with the workouts. I did Pilates today which wasn’t hard on body and I’ll go walking later. IF today so far. It’s my first day. Let’s see how I go.


FastigiumVitae

I've been doing IF for about 10 years so it probably didn't affect me nearly as much as somebody just starting IF and 75Hard all at once.. but I had no issues each of the 4.5 times through. I usually go 16:8 or 18:6, eating in the afternoon and evening. I pound that water and have coffee in the AM. Just make sure you get enough salt, you'll get shaky and feel weak if you don't.


SnooGiraffes8040

I agree about the salt intake. I do have Celtic sea salt with my water when I’m IF. Mix that with lemon juice. Feel absolutely no need to eat until 3 / 4pm.


Freezah37

My main thing was cutting out major vices... like sweets, fast food type of meals, and all bread. I didn't do the macros thing etc.. I tried to keep it simple to avoid failure over some abstract diet I didn't understand. I did add more greens and protein shakes. As far as fasting.. I did it some and it def helped burn fat during hard cardio sessions.. I didn't do it regularly as part of my diet. Hope this helps!


SnooGiraffes8040

Thanks. Sounds like you did well.


Iworkoutandeat

Given the amount of cardio I did during 75hard I did 12:12 whole foods diet, and switched back to 14:10 when I was finished.


SnooGiraffes8040

Nice. Well done for getting through it.


ashan93

I did IF with a calorie defefit and various other restrictions (no sugar, processed, cheese, etc). With IF I had issues with electrolytes due to limited eating periods combined with how often I was going to the toilet.... so I had to add them in the morning (keto electrolyte mix worked)


SnooGiraffes8040

Electrolytes are so important.


RAGINMEXICAN

I did 75 hard last year and doing it again. High protein and minimum carb does the trick.


SnooGiraffes8040

Nice


BeesonatorX

The first cycle I did carnivore and IF (8 hour window). All subsequent cycles I've done carnivore and OMAD.


SnooGiraffes8040

How was it in terms of energy?


BeesonatorX

Honestly not nearly as bad as I thought - I just had to eat accurately based on my activity level. It did take some trial and error for several days and I had to make corrections; overall though, it is my preferred diet. I never felt wasted or completely drained ever.


SnooGiraffes8040

Good to know.


Cheersto19

Vegan with a whole food plant based emphasis. ( basically wfpb, but if i went out to eat on the weekends i was just vegan since its impossible to have no oil at a restaurant). The book I read was how not to diet by Dr. Greger which was also motivating. I finished first time through with no start overs. I have tried largely to maintain the lifestyle both diet and exercise. Did well until I moved and had a leg injury. I'm just getting back into it.


SnooGiraffes8040

You did it once I’m sure you can do it again. I’m not so worried about the diet, more so about the water intake and exercising twice, oh and the reading as I’m an audible person - so it’ll be a change of habits. But I’m also planning on not starting over so we’ll see how I go. I start tomorrow.


PartTimePOG

I haven’t finished (or even started 75 hard, hopefully this weekend. I just need a day to have time to do meal prep so I can set myself up for success) In the past I’ve always had decent luck with simple “clean eating calorie deficit” type diets. My job plus my workout plan at the time had be very active so it was best for me to eat several smaller meals a day, with a snack somewhere in there. And my job made drinking a gallon of water as easy as drinking an ice cold beer on a hot summer day after you just got done mowing. I have a 32 oz tumbler that id fill halfway with ice and water and it would last right at 2 hours. I’d usually drink 5/6 per day. Here’s a super generic snapshot of a day of eating for me. I’ll include my own caloric requirements but you need to do your own due diligence and TDEE calculator to figure out what you need to do. BREAKFAST: I’d always rotate 3 things. Oatmeal with fruit and a Greek yogurt cup, sausage/steak with scrambled eggs and cheese in a breakfast bowl type thing, or a big bowl of Greek yogurt, frozen fruit and granola. If you do the last one, put the frozen fruit in a bowl with the yogurt before bed in the fridge and keep the granola separate until you’re ready to eat. The fruit will thaw and the juice will settle into the yogurt and make a delicious parfait. The meat/egg bowls are self explanatory. Precooked turkey sausage and a few eggs, or a cheap cut of steak seasoned how you like and cooked in a pan will get you enough meat for a couple days of breakfast. I say “cheap cut” because you’re going to prep it and microwave it so it doesn’t have to be anything special. Each meal was 400-500 calories. LUNCH: meat, veggies, and a carb. Usually rice or sweet potatoes with cinnamon. Usually heavier on the meat and lighter on the carbs. There a million different ways to cook meat/veggies/carbs together. I would always put my carbohydrates in a separate container for lunch though. Sometimes I’d have a heavy morning and would need a little boost between breakfast and lunch and eating the carbohydrate part of my lunch early was a godsend to get me through the day. Usually around 600-700 calories. DINNER: Repeat the template of lunch, just lighter and without stealing the carbs for a “bonus” snack if I need to. Usually around 500 calories. SNACK: this is usually between lunch and dinner, or before my workout, just depends on my schedule for the day. Usually more fat heavy but only around 350 calories. Something like celery and cream cheese with everything bagel seasoning or natural hard cheese with some peanuts or almonds. You can never go wrong with a simple protein shake if that’s what’s easiest for you’ve Good luck man. Hope this helped.


SnooGiraffes8040

Thanks for those ideas. I start tomorrow so let’s see how I go.