Should I Start Fasting?

First, talk to your doctor before doing longer fasts and any exercise or weight program. An intermittent fast is simply not eating after dinner and waiting until breakfast to eat again. You could start with simply doing that, not eating after dinner. Usually eating after dinner is done because we are bored, tired, getting confused by food ads on tv, or just have a habit of doing it. (Unless you really aren’t eating enough during the day.)

An intermittent fast can be a great way to stop eating second dinner, if that is an issue. It can also be something you incorporate once you have cleaned up your diet a bit. Considering a longer fast when you have just begun, might not be your best opportunity, but isn’t wrong. A longer fast is a lot easier when you have been eating better already for some time.

Considering a longer fast when you have just begun, might not be your best opportunity.

Think about it. If you are skipping meals, overeating, eating when you are not hungry, having a second dinner, not eating any vegetables, eating desserts every day, not eating balanced meals, not drinking enough water, not exercising regularly, those habits have a bigger potential over time to change your lifestyle and your weight. I would encourage starting with one of those at a time, then once you have set a routine, move to the next one.

I think the intermittent fast can be a great tool to bring in when you have hit a plateau or feel you have exhausted what you can do to eat healthy.

Doing a longer fast before you have started some of those things is fine but you will have to address those basic things after the fast anyway. Plus, addressing the issues that caused the weight, will help you build trust with yourself, your hunger and fullness levels and help mentally prepare you for the future, or a longer fast.

It is a good thing to be asking this question. You can decide what feels right to you as a starting point. Even comparing your current nutrition to fasting will help you see opportunities and what might feel more vital. It is the comparison that can help you realize for example, that not eating that snack after dinner is actually possible.

Whether you start with incorporating some type of fasting right away or not, even the idea can help you see how your opportunities are possible.