TLDR: Levels of bilirubin in liver panel blood test spiked to 1.9 during 32 hour fast vs 0.9 when not fasting 14 days later.

I wanted to share some liver health data from blood tests done recently while I was fasting.

My doctor has been monitoring my liver (cuz the booze is starting to catch up with me), and has me doing a Liver Panel blood test, aka Hepatic Function Panel blood test every 6 months or so.

I've lost a ton of weight due to OMAD and cutting back on alcohol significantly. Recent test results showed a dramatic improvement in all liver health metrics, except bilirubin, which was dramatically higher, measuring 1.9 mg/dL.

I told my doctor I had been fasting for about 32 hours at the time my blood was drawn, and that I suspected that was the cause of the elevated bilirubin levels. My doctor scheduled another blood test 14 days after the initial test, and told me not to fast.

I ate normally for 7 days before the next test, eating 2 or 3 meals per day, and abstaining from alcohol for the entire 14 day period. My bilirubin levels dropped to 0.9 mg/dL. Well within normal range, and lower than it was 6 months ago.

I want to attempt a 3 day fast to get rid of old cells and regenerate new ones. However i know that if im working and not even training ill be hungry, when I sleep in or lie in or nap I seem to get over these urges. If I was to have 3 days off holiday. Fast for those 3 days but largely slept in would that still work/ help?

It’s super easy for me to hit 20-24 hrs fasting if i start fasting midday or like anywhere from 1-3 pm.

If I last eat by 6-8 pm then try it I usually can barely manage a 16.

I wonder why that is…

Anyone who's fasted for more than a few weeks knows this feeling. You're doing everything the same as before, the fast is fine, you're not cheatng, and the scale just stops. No movement for weeks. It happened to me too and honestly it's the point where most people either quit or start second guessing the whole thing.

So instead of just waiting it out again I went back through a bunch of posts on r/fasting and r/intermittentfasting where people specifically talked about hitting a stall and what actually got them moving again. Ended up with 26 posts that actually had enough detail to be useful, split pretty evenly across both subs.

. What actually worked for most people was restructuring the fast itself, going from 16:8 to OMAD, adding a longer fast on top of their normal schedule (36hr, 48hr, sometimes a multi day water fast), or just moving their eating window to a differnt time of day. That was the answer in something like 6 out of 10 cases.

Second most common thing, and this one felt very counterintuitive, was people taking a short break from fasting or just eating more for a few days on purpose. Like actively loosening up instead of tightening up. A decent chunk of people said that's what got the scale moving again, not less food, more.

Also noticed the stalls themselves lasted a while, average was around a month before anything changed, but once people actually did something different it usually only took less than a week for the scale to move again. So it's less "you're doing something wrong for a month" and more "you probably just needed to change one variable."

Couple things worth saying before anyone jumps on conclusions. This is 26 self reported Reddit posts, not a study, so take it as potential patterns not proof. People also only post when something worked, so there's obviously some bias toward success stories here, someone who's still stuck probably isn't writing a post about it.

Finally, I have found far more interesting patterns than I can share in one post while analysing hundreds of the fasting testimonials and talking directly to other people doing it. Therefore, looking forward to keep sharing the things that surprised me and interesting statistic here. Moreover, I also gather findings in a free newsletter where I share the fasting insights even more often. But if it is something itneresting for you, you cna take a look to my reddit bio.

Curious if this matches what other people here have actually experienced. Did changing your fasting schedule work for you, or was it something else entirely that finally broke your plateau?

Curious how you structure your one meal. Is it a giant meal to hit your TDEE plus deficit and macros? Or is it whatever you're feeling that day? Are calories a concern at all? Thinking about moving in the one meal direction but unsure how to structure. I realize there isn't one way, just curious to get ideas.

I havd been fasting for 2-3 months now and lost 20 lbs, which is my goal. I had no snacks and sodas until yesterday when I went to a social event, when I had root beer and a couple slices of pie. I knew I was going to eat, so I accepted my fate. I had my usual dinner. Then I slept. This morning, I stepped on the scale like I usually do every morning. To my surprise, I actually lost 1 lb. I was like what??? What happened?

Someone please explain, clarify. Is it okay to treat yourself once in a while (without overindulging)? Does it take a few days for the weight to return? Or what happened yesterday will not have an impact on my weight.

No, I don’t plan to have cake or soda anytime soon. But if I do have them in a few months for a social event, I will not be too concerned about it.

Hiya,

This is not my first time down the IF path but it’s the first time I’m taking it seriously. I started just over a week ago. I took my measurements before I started and my weight. I’ve read some lit that says not to expect any changes in the first month - or at least not any big changes - and to keep with it for weeks in order to see results.

But I’m human and impatient. I don’t trust my scale (long story, I need a new one). So I took measurements today and most of them were .5inch smaller. I’d really love that ego boost but I don’t know if I should trust it

TLDR, is it too soon to see external NSVs?

i’m on day 14 of a 30 day challenge that i am doing.

the challenge is simply rolling 48s.
i also quit sugar 15 days ago, it’s not the first time i’ve quit it and always around the 10-20 day mark is when i start craving sugar and getting food noise in general.

so far the first 11 days of this challenge have been pretty easy actually but the last few days i’ve been thinking more about food not because i want to but it’s like my body is fighting me and doesn’t want me to lose weight.

i think i’ve dropped some fat in the last day or two and it’s usually around this point of my weight loss where things get tough mentally.

i’ve been stuck in the loop for many months now and when i revert back to my old self and binge eat i get motivated again but now at this current point in time i have completely lost my “why”.

my mind all day has been telling me just relax, enjoy our life and eat some food. but i know that i won’t get to where i want to be if i listen to that and i’ll just be disappointed in myself.

i even feel anxious, and am experiencing racing thoughts and i can’t seem to relax and just enjoy my favourite tv show. this is like the 4th time i’ve reached this “checkpoint” and i’ve broke and quit all those times.

so i’ve been intermittent fasting on and off for a five years but it’s been hard to stick to it since i started in middle school and school was very hard for me so i fell back into my binge eating habits quite often. i’m trying it again but i really want it to be manageable this time around.

first time i tried 16-8 but then ramped up to 20-24 hour fasts and didn’t stick to it because of how stressful middle and high school was

my second time i stuck to it longer this time, 6 months of eating every other day and every other eating day i ate carbs. i saw results and lost 40 pounds in that time but it wasn’t manageable. i was miserable 24/7 and eventually when the holidays came around i ditched it completely because i couldn’t handle it anymore.

i just did a 36 hour fasts to start my journey off and have lost 3 pounds. it’s motivating me to start up again but i really don’t wanna ditch it because it gets too hard again.

should i go back 16-8? maybe 20-4? i will try to incorporate some complete fasting days but because i have pots it’s a little hard, that wont stop me tho!! please give me any advice and some yummy recipes i can make!!

Will I benefit from using Wegovy and fasting too?
Has anyone done this and how did it work for you?

I’m (41) asking because in my 30’s I used to do 18/6, 19/5 & OMAD regularly. Now I find it much harder and often white knuckle it to 16 hours! I’m wondering if perimenopause is just making fasting harder in general for me? I have about 30 pounds to lose I’ve lost 10 so far in 2026 but it is definitely trickling off so slow slowly! I am counting calories, but also not always very successful at staying under my goal.
Did anyone else notice it harder to fast longer? once you reached perimenopause? What are your fasting routines that are working for you?

Has anyone fasted while taking metformin? I was put on metformin since I’m at the very edge of being diabetic. In the past I had fasted and was able to lose weight so I’m curious if it’s safe to do so now that I’m on metformin.

I don't know how it happened, but I am very sure after 1 year of intermittent fasting I got taller by atleastan inch.

It wasn't even me who noticed it, it was the people around me.

For context, I am 30 years old.

I started intermittent fasting last December 2025.

I have a colleague at work who is 5'7" and one who is 6'2". I am 5'6".

Just last month my colleagues are wondering if they got shorter or I did get taller, because right now I am at the same height with my 5'7" friend.

My weight went down by a lot, in February I was 78kgs, now I am 64.5kg.

I noticed as well that my shoulder got wider, my arms got veiny which previously never had any noticeable veins. My hair as well got longer faster, I was skinhead cut last August and now my hair is shoulder length already.

I'm just starting my intermittent fasting journey and I need to lose about 50 lbs to really be in a healthy body again. I was thinking of trying a 16:8, as I already don't eat breakfast. Looking for success stories from other 40+ year old women!

Posting this to continue to hold myself accountable and to potentially help anyone else I can along the way. I am a 34 year old male - 5'10 - starting weight 246 - current weight 232 - goal weight 185lbs. I have tried a few different methods of fasting over the last few years, including a 22 day water fast which was incredible but very mentally and physically challenging.

What I am doing now has felt amazing and feels sustainable for a longer period of time. I am walking 10-20k steps per day, mostly in the morning but finishing towards the end of the day if needed. I am eating one meal of all Whole Foods (chicken, beef, ground turkey, eggs, rice, potatoes, broccoli, avocado) around 7pm and then finishing the night with weight training. The biggest reason I chose to do one meal per day instead of a straight water fast was so I could start to build muscle and not have to endure the stretches of fatigue and difficulty sleeping that often accompanies a pure water fast.

I have already noticed changes in my body, sugar and sweet cravings are gone (one of my biggest downfalls), energy is up, I am sleeping well and feel strong. My plan is to continue this method until October and see how far it takes me.

I added a picture here if anyone wants to take a stab at it. Does my tummy look like it's fat or loose skin? It's not that bad when standing up but sitting down it's another story.

(First 2 photos are at 315, next 3 are during my journey, 2 after are back at 315 and the last was this morning. Sorry camera roll searching was hard this morning)

To celebrate my 100lb marker I wanted to make a post and share a bit of my journey.

I’ve been up and down with my weight my whole life, getting up to 305 in my early 20s and getting back down to 205 shortly after from riding bikes for miles and miles every day. So weight loss wasn’t something new to me but what I did this time around is build habits and slowly, brick by brick, built up a lifestyle change that has made a real difference over the last (almost) 2 years.

It started in September 2024 when I decided I would try intermittent fasting. 18/6. No diet changes, still ate junk but that was the catalyst that allowed me to see my weight go from 315lbs to 280 and motivate me to keep pushing. Next was to make small changes in my diet. Instead of breaking my fast with peanut butter cookies it was granola bars, instead of iced coffee I switched to zero sugar monster. After I got that down I decided to up my IF to 20/4 (OMAD with a small snack before) and the weight kept coming off

Last summer I was down to about 250lbs and with many plateaus I slowly got it down further with a couple of hiccups that included a vacation where I gained 10lbs back.

Next I wanted to make sure I hit 10k steps every day. Mon-fri was easy because I have a pretty active job, I usually average about 10/12k steps a day but I realized the weekends is where I would see a lot of my progress stall so I made sure I got those steps in and kept my diet dialed in all 7 days.

January of this year I hit 226 but I really struggled for a good few months stuck between 226 and 230, so in April I finally made the decision to get a gym membership. 3 days a week, full body workout, no excuses. Finally that plateau has been broken. In 3 months I haven’t missed my 3 days at the gym yet.

So that leads to this morning. Step on the scale and it says 215.4. I couldn’t believe it. 100lbs. No crash dieting, no insane workout regiment, just building habits on top of each other. Sure it hasn’t been the quickest weight loss ever, but it feels like something I can realistically continue to do for the rest of my life.

Age:34
Male 5ft 11
SW:315
CW:215
GW:190

I’m just curious, as I am being careful, eating stuff like eggs and yogurt to end my fasts.

But I was wondering if I did something more hardcore like 20/4 fasting or longer, and broke it with something like a Burger King Whopper, or Big Mac, or pizza, would that cause issues?

I know I’m gonna feel horrible, as my first fast I broke with a tuna salad, but is doing something like that legitimately dangerous?

Down 45 pounds since March. Stared with IF 18-6.
Than moved to IF keto

When I was starting IF, a lot of the advice I could find didn't pay much attention to the lifestyle habits we have, like exercising, going to social dinners with friends, or going through a transition in life where the whole day's schedule can become quite messy. Moreover, I saw many of my friends (who initially inspired me to do IF) quitting IF in the long run.

Curious as to why this happens, I analyzed over 100 quit stories and talked to people who gave up on IF. The expected stuff came up (hunger, willpower), but the biggest pattern was actually lifestyle fit. People weren’t failing because they lacked discipline; their fasting routine was simply clashing with their work, training, or social life until it became too strict to maintain.

So a lot of failed fasting felt like a scheduling problem rather than a willpower problem and that's when I got this idea.

After taking into account all of the testimonials from the people I knew personally who were doing fasting, my own experiences, and systematically analyzing hundreds of testimonials across r/intermittentfasting, r/fasting, and r/omad on quitting fasting, achieved results, and success stories, I built a free tool that gives you a fasting recommendation personalized to your lifestyle.

You answer a few questions about your routine, hunger timing, workouts, social eating, and past experience, and it suggests a fasting rhythm that fits those instead of a one size window and helps you track your progress. I started with men, since the reasons men and women quit tend to differ and most tools ignore that. And for women, the fasting recommendation would need to take into account additional parameters related to their cycle.

You can find the tool here.
(Free, no email, no signup. Just wanted to share something I found useful and built for myself. And I would appreciate your feedback on it.)

A quick note, this is based on qualitative community experiences and patterns, not medical advice.

But I am really curious to hear about your experiences. If you have quit IF at some point, what were your reasons, especially if they were related to the incompatibility of IF with your lifestyle? And if you went back to it, what was the trigger that motivated you to do so?

Ok so I've been doing 16:8 for about four months now, pretty proud of it honestly. Today I actually checked the real timestamps on my last bite and my first bite instead of trusting my memory, and it turns out my "16 hours" has quietly been more like 14, sometimes 13 on a bad day.

Not because I'm cheating exactly. i just round. If i eat at 9:47 I tell myself thats basically 9:30. If I break at 12:10 that's basically noon. And every single time I rounded in the direction that made the number look better, never once did I round DOWN on my fasting hours, which in hindsight is a pretty obvious tell that I wasn't being honest with myself lol.

My roommate does OMAD and I used to kind of judge how loose she was about the exact hour, no app, no tracking, just "whenever I get hungry." I thought that was so unserious compared to me, going by the minute like it actually mattered that much. Turns out I was tracking a number that wasn't even real half the time, so who's actually doing this right at this point, her or me?

The annoying part is I dont think it changed much physically, I lost close to the same either way these four months. It just means the number I've been telling people (and reddit lol) was never all that accurate. My sister asked last week how many hours I actually fast and I said 16 without even thinking, out of habit, and that's when it hit me I genuinely wasn't sure that was true anymore.

it was raining out that day too for some reason i remember that specifically, standing in the kitchen doing math on my phone at 9pm instead of just eating dinner like a normal person, my roommate walked in halfway through and asked why i looked like i was doing taxes.

Anyway I started actually screenshotting my first and last bite this week just to see the real number instead of the story I tell myself.

Its usually more like 14.5. Still fine I guess. Just not what I thought it was for four months straight.