I identify with you,
John Locke.

Today I feel SO very tired of
the "well-meaning"
but personally-useless advice
from ALL of the so-called "Experts"
in the Diet World.

Here is a picture showing my current diet experiment.  I’m using my own Alternate Day Fasting (ADF) eating plan which is based on Dr. Johnson’s Up Day Down Day Diet (JUDDD); and Dr. Varady’s  Every Other Day (EOD) diet; and Dr. Daugirdas’ QOD diet.

Dr. Fung’s blog, (see DietHobby’s RESOURCES, Links for a link to his blog, Intensive Dietary Management) inspired me to do additional experimentation with Intermittent Fasting.

Previously, I’ve written several articles about Intermittent Fasting diet plans here at DietHobby.  You can do a search of DietHobby for them, or you can go to DietHobby’s BLOG CATEGORIES, Fasting to find them. (Look near the middle of the right hand side of this DietHobby page to find the heading: Blog Categories.)

Much of the fasting research that is quoted by Dr. Fung in his blog and new book, The Obesity Code is from Dr. Varady’s research and experimentation of her Every Other Day diet.

The plan alternates “fasting” days with “eating” days.  Dr. Johnson refers to “fasting” days as “Down” days, and “eating” days as “Up” days.  Dr. Varady refers to “fasting” days as “Fast” days, and “eating” days sometimes as “Fed” days and sometimes as “Feast” days.  Dr, Daygurdas refers to the fasting - eating days as “On” and “Off” days.

During UP or FEAST days, total calories are to be a “normal” amount … ideally they will be no more than 10% above an individual’s Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). 

During DOWN or FAST days, total calories are to be only about 25% of  an individual’s Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE).

For the mythical average woman whose TDEE is 2,000 calories, an UP day would be from 2,000 (up to 2,200) calories; and a DOWN day would be no higher than 500 calories.  Alternating Up days with Down days results in a 2 week pattern of rotation making a 14 day period in which the average calorie intake would be 1250 calories daily ….then repeat, indefinitely.

MY OWN PLAN:
My UP days are based on my own personal Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) which is close to 1,000 calories.  Adding 10% brings it up to a total of about 1,100.  My plan calls for 3 weekly UP days.

My DOWN days of about 300 calories are close to ¼ (25%) of my TDEE.  My plan calls for 3 weekly DOWN days.

1,100 plus 300 equals 1,400 divided by 2 equals 700 calories… Therefore a 2 week rotation of this pattern would result in a total Average calorie intake of 700 calories daily.

Each week I am including one MEDIUM day of about 700 calories in order to keep every week’s rotation of individual Up & Down days consistent.

My ADF Plan includes two alternatives to my “Basic” plan.  Alternative 1 has 2 consecutive UP days on Saturday & Sunday, and Alternative 2 is has 2 consecutive UP days on Friday and Saturday.  See picture above for details.

I am 71 years old, 5'0" tall, and an inactive, reduced obese female (high weight 271 lbs) who has been maintaining a normal BMI for 10+ years, and my individual TDEE of about 1,000 is low, but not “abnormally” low.

For ME, an average daily intake of 700 calories should create a daily deficit of about 300 calories, and … according to the 3,500 calorie rule… result in a weight-loss of about ½ pound per week.

FOR PERSPECTIVE:
To bring my calorie counts into proper perspective... note that the well-known and often-used  Mifflin formula gives an "AVERAGE" person of my age, size, and activity level, a (RMR) TDEE of 1150 calories, and a BMR of 985.  I've been keeping computer records of my calorie intake & weight every day now for about 12 years, and so I know that my own TDEE is about 100 calories or so below the "AVERAGE".  Women who are younger, taller, heavier, and more active often have very little understanding or knowledge of how low the TDEE is for a short, light, inactive elderly woman... and of course, it is even less for a "reduced obese" one. 

For those people who think my TDEE calculation is too low.... HERE's a little personal lesson. Follow this link to an online calculator that uses Mifflin to determine both BMR & RMR (TDEE).  If you are a female use it to run your own numbers. After you've done that .... try changing your own age to 71, and moving yourself to "Inactive"... Look at your numbers change.  Now, change your height to 5'0".... Quite a difference, right?...  Now give yourself ...as an elderly, short, inactive person... a BMI of around 22.5 (which is somewhere near the middle of a "normal"  BMI)  by setting your weight at 115 pounds.... Now, look at the resulting numbers.... which should be around 985 BMR, and 1150 RMR or TDEE.

My weight has yo-yoed all during my lifetime. I began dieting in puberty, for weight-loss and for maintenance, and I continued doing so during every year of the next 60+ years. 

During non-dieting months, my weight increased. At three separate times in my life, I successfully lost 100+ pounds, and a great many times, i lost 30 to 50 pounds.

The borderline between
a “normal” and an “overweight” BMI  is 25. 

The borderline between
an “overweight” and an “obese” BMI is 30.



As a child, my weight was normal. As a teenager-young adult my body fluctuated between a 21 & 24 BMI. 

At age 20, after the birth of my first child, my body had a 36 BMI. Several years later it dropped to a 23 BMI. 

My body rose to a 43 BMI. Several years later it dropped to a 26 BMI. 

About 24 years ago, at age 47,  My body reached a 52.9 BMI, and I had a RNY gastric bypass,
with no removal of any intestine, which means that all the food I eat is still digested. 

Since that time:

24 yrs ago  = 271 lbs = BMI 52.9 - weight-loss-surgery
21 yrs ago  = 160 lbs = BMI 31.2 - low weight without dieting AFTER weight-loss-surgery
12 yrs ago = 190 lbs  = BMI 37.1 - regained weight while dieting AFTER weight-loss-surgery
11 yrs ago = 115 lbs = BMI 22.5 - weight-loss after diet using computer food journal
Past 11 yrs = maintenance (115-130 lbs) BMI 20.3 at my lowest; BMI 27.3, at my highest

The chart below is a helpful way to visualize my Maintenance Weight Range.


 

Here are a few of my AFTER pictures.



45 years ago, age 26, BMI 23.6

27 years ago, age 44, BMI 27.4



11 years ago, age 60, BMI 22.5

10 years ago, age 61, BMI 20.5

There are over 300 videos of ME-in-my-maintenance-weight-range doing what I do,  at my website,  DietHobby.  More detailed information can be found in the ABOUT ME section of DietHobby.


There are no BEFORE pictures of me online.

I don’t share BEFORE pictures.
If I wanted people to see me fat, I would have stayed fat.

However, those curious can get a fairly accurate idea of how I looked during the fat stages in my life by visualizing a fat version of my face on Mama Cass's body. To help do that, here's a music video of California Dreamin', with Mama Cass.