Intermittent Fasting 16/8: 3 Months Weight Loss Journey

This has nothing to do with motorcycle/travel but many of you have been asking me how I lost weight recently and I decided to compile all the information and share it with you.

Over the last 2 years, I’ve gained a lot of weight as I’ve stopped exercising (being lazy) and the Movement Control Order due to Covid-19 has also been one of the factors for my weight gain as I have been at home most of the time (being inactive) and my diet has been really poor.

It was May 2021, I decided to start keeping things in check and I did a full medical check-up. Everything was fine except uric acid (oh yes, the beers) and cholesterol was a little high.

It wasn’t that bad but if I keep going on like this for another few years, I can only think I would spend more time in Hospital than riding in the future.

Just before we dive in, please note that I am not a health guru or a fitness coach. This article is merely to share my weight loss journey. What worked for me may not work for you and before you try it out, please consult your Doctor to see if my weight loss plan is suitable for you.

(OK, that’s the disclaimer)

What You Did To Lose Weight?

First of all, I didn’t take any magic pills, or supplements (if that is what you wondering), I did it the natural way with dedication 🙂 oh yes, no shortcuts!

I did Intermittent Fasting (IF) to lose about 21 KG in 3 months and PLEASE, watch the video explanation below about IF;

Simple Explanation: When you consume food, it is turned into glucose which is used for energy. The extra energy from food is stored in the liver and fat. If you eat more than you should and don’t exercise to burn them off, you will gain weight.

If you fast long enough, the body will use the energy stored in the liver and when that runs out, your body will use body fat for energy which will make you lose weight over time.

Next, please read the article at the link below:

Intermittent Fasting Beginner’s Guide

Intermittent Fasting Methods

There are several different ways of doing intermittent fasting which you can read in the IF guide above. The one I am doing is the 16/8 method which involves skipping breakfast and restricting your daily eating period to 8 hours, such as 12–8 p.m. Then you fast for 16 hours in between.

Many people find the 16/8 method to be the simplest, most sustainable and easiest to stick to.

My Diet Meal

I followed the Suku-Suku Separuh diet where it consists of 25% Carb, 25% Protein and 50% Fibre in each meal.

I also limit my daily intake to between 1500-1800 calories per day. If you exercise more, you can eat a little more. Just monitor your calorie deficit accordingly.

Example of Suku-Suku Separuh meals can be found in the image below. You can always substitute rice with noodles, bread or any other type of carbohydrate.

My 3 Months IF Journey

As explained earlier, I followed the 16/8 IF method where I skip breakfast.

Below is the summary of my routine in the past 3 months.

Note: OMAD stands for One Meal a Day which means, I only eat once per day. As my body was already adapting well with 16 hours fast, I went on to try OMAD for a month.

However, I will be switching back to the 16/8 method once I reach my BMI target as that would be sustainable and easiest to stick to.

Below is my daily routine in detail;

First Month | 16/8 Method

8 AM-12 Noon: Skip breakfast & Finish up 1.5 Liter of water in 4 hours

12 Noon: Lunch (Diet Suku Suku Separuh)

4 PM: Black Coffee with no sugar

5 PM: Walk for 3-5 KM on Weekdays and Hiking on Weekends (Monday-rest day)

7 PM: Dinner (Something light: Fruits/Wraps/Salad)

Note: Between 12 noon – 8 PM I drink another 1 litre of water

Second Month | 16/8 Method

8 AM-12 Noon: Skip breakfast & Finish up 1.5 Liter of water in 4 hours

12 Noon: Lunch (Diet Suku Suku Separuh)

4 PM: Black Coffee with no sugar

5 PM: Jog 5 KM on alternate days and dumbbell (strength) workout at home.

7 PM: Dinner (Something light: Fruits/Wraps/Salad)

Note: Between 12 noon – 8 PM I drink another 1 litre of water

Third Month (OMAD with 20 Hours Fast)

8 AM-12 Noon: Skip breakfast & Finish up 1.5 Liter of water in 4 hours.

12 Noon: Lunch (Diet Suku Suku Separuh)

4 PM: Black Coffee with no sugar

5 PM: Jog 5 KM on alternate days and dumbbell (strength) workout at home.

8 PM: Green tea/ashwagandha tea/black coffee

Note: Between 12 noon – 8 PM I drink another 1 litre of water

1. Can I Eat Anything In The Eating Window?

Well, you can but you need to watch your total calorie intake per day. I usually have about 1500-1800 calories in total per day.

e:g: 1000 calories for lunch and 500-800 just for dinner. Stay away from sugar as much as possible as it has no benefits at all. (Natural sugar from fruits are fine)

2. Can I Drink Anything During Fasting?

No, you can’t. However, you can drink green tea, cinnamon tea, coffee without sugar as these are with almost no calories in them.

Black coffee can also help you to suppress your hunger. If you take anything with sugar/carbs/protein, it would spike your insulin and therefore, it will break your fast.

4. How Much Can Lose In 1 Week?

It depends! 1kg of fat is 7,700 calories. To lose 1kg of fat, you need to be in a calorie deficit of 7,700 calories.

If you eat 500 calories lesser per day or burn 500 calories by exercising, you will lose 0.5 KG per week. (These are just estimations as there are other factors contributing to the accuracy such as age, gender etc)

You can use a calorie calculator to estimate your goals.

5. Will Alchohol, Chocolates, Fries, Burgers etc Make Me Gain Weight?

Life is to be enjoyed and you can eat what you like. One meal doesn’t make you fat but anything excessive will make you gain weight so have them moderately 🙂

Mistakes To Avoid

• Eating less calories – Diet doesn’t mean you will need to starve. Eating less than 1500 calories (Men) / 1200 calories (Women) can impact your health.

• Eating less or no protein type of foods – Protein can fuel weight loss and it can also keep you feel full for a longer time.

• Consuming refined sugar – Sugar has no benefits and therefore, try to stay away from it if possible. You should limit your sugar intake of not more than 10 grams per day. (about 2 tea spoon)

• Cheat Day – When you talk about cheat day, you might be thinking of you can eat anything you want once per week. Remember, 1KG is equivalent to 7700 calories, if you went way above your mark, you will lose all the hard work you put on in that week.

Instead of having a cheat day, have a cheat meal instead. This way, you still keep your daily calories in check but eat what you have been craving for.

TIPS

• Break the fast with something that won’t spike insulin. (Vegetables/fruits)

• If possible, increase the fasted time

• Exercise while fasted as you will burn more fat

• Do strength training so you can gain more muscle mass which will burn more fat overtime.

• Have enough rest/sleep

• If you see no weight loss progress after a few weeks/months despite doing the same routine, your body has adapted to your program very well. In this situation, just have a cheat meal(s) so your system changes again.

• If you still see no improvements, you’ll need to either increase your physical activity or decrease the calories you eat.

• Weigh yourself first thing in the morning after you finish your business in the toilet so you can get an accurate reading.

Honestly, don’t worry much about how much you weigh on a scale. If you have more muscle mass, it is good. Bodybuilders weigh more than 100KG because most of their weights are muscles.

You should check if you can still fit in your old clothes after months of IF. My shirt size was 3XL and now I am on XL. This was an achievement for me and it keeps me motivated to drop another shirt size.

Things To Avoid (Or Limit)

1. Processed Food
2. White bread, Pasta, Candy, Cookies, Cakes
3. Highly sweetened coffee and tea.
4. Fruit drinks
5. Sugar (Anything with sugar, cereals, Granola, etc)
6. Alcohol (beer is the worse – stick to Gin/Whiskey with no added mixer)

Foods To Eat

1. Proteins: Chicken, Turkey, Yogurt, Beans, Legumes, Fish, Tofu etc
2. Cruciferous vegetables: Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage, Bok Choy, Arugula, Brussels Sprouts, Collads, Watercress and radishses.
3. Fats: Avocados, Cheese, Dark Chocolate, Eggs, Fatty Fish, Almond Nuts, Chia seeds, Extra Virgin Olive oil, full fatt Yogurts etc.

Conclusion

You should not aim to lose weight for just a short period of time and give up. The 16/8 method of Intermittent fasting should be a lifestyle in a long run.

I would recommend that you have atleast 2 meals in a day an NO snacking in between as you don’t want to spike your insulin levels in between. You can either have breakfast and early dinner or skip breakfast, have lunch and early dinner. (whatever suits you)

However, Intermittent fasting is not something that anyone needs to do. If the idea of fasting is no good for you, don’t try it and continue to do what works for you.

Intermittent fasting is great for some people, not others. The only way to find out is to try it out.

If you feel good when fasting and find it to be a sustainable way of eating, it can be a very powerful tool to lose weight and improve your health.

For me, the biggest challenge is not to lose weight but to maintain it. I might not be on IF for a long time but it was a good challenge I took.

If you find me gained weight again, you can assume I am no longer following IF. hahaha!

If you have any questions, drop your comments below! Till then take care and stay safe!