Why I stopped intermittent fasting

I increasingly felt hungry in the mornings, and when I finally ate, I often ate more than I actually wanted. Especially since I wake up early and usually exercise or do strength training in the morning, I started to wonder: why am I trying not to eat for as long as possible when my body clearly indicates something else?

Women are not small men

One of the people who changed my perspective on this is exercise physiologist Dr. Stacy Sims. Her famous statement “Women are not small men” summarizes it beautifully. Much research on nutrition, fasting, and exercise has historically been done on men, while female physiology and hormonal changes throughout life matter.

Especially during peri- and menopause, my focus therefore shifts. Not: how long can I fast? But: how do I ensure I get enough energy and nutrients to stay strong? As we age, maintaining muscle mass becomes increasingly important. Strength training and sufficient protein are two important pillars in this regard.[1]

This does not mean, by the way, that intermittent fasting is bad for women. There is insufficient evidence for that. It can work perfectly well for some women. But there is also no reason to think that longer fasting is automatically better.

Why I do eat in the morning now

I wake up early and often train in the morning. Therefore, nowadays I give my body some fuel quite quickly: kefir, a scoop of whey protein, and blueberries. With this, I get high-quality protein and essential amino acids, among other things.

Whey protein is rich in leucine, an essential amino acid that plays an important role in stimulating muscle protein synthesis. Precisely the combination of sufficient protein and strength training is interesting for maintaining and building muscle mass. Research also shows that protein supplementation is particularly interesting for postmenopausal women in combination with strength training.[2]

For me, healthy aging is therefore much less about being able to go without food for as long as possible and much more about the question: what does my body need to stay strong, energetic, and fit?

For my weight, this actually works better

And perhaps the most striking thing: I haven't gained weight by starting to eat breakfast. For my own weight management, it actually works better.

I no longer try to ignore my hunger all morning, which means I have less desire to eat a lot later and can more easily distribute my proteins throughout the day. Moreover, I have energy for my strength training. My focus is not only on the number on the scale but especially on my body composition: maintaining muscle mass and staying strong.

This is relevant around and after menopause. A large meta-analysis of 101 studies involving nearly 5,700 postmenopausal women shows that exercise can improve body composition. Strength training, in particular, is important for muscle mass, while exercise can also have beneficial effects on fat mass and waist circumference.[3]

More fasting is not automatically healthier

For active women,  energy availability also plays an important role. Simply put, this is the amount of energy still available for all other processes in your body after exercise. When you consistently consume too little energy in relation to what you expend, it can affect recovery, bone health, hormone function, and performance, among other things.[4]

This does not mean that intermittent fasting automatically leads to an energy deficit. But for me, it is a good reminder that less and longer are not always better. Especially when you exercise regularly, you also want to give your body what it needs to recover from it.

You don't have to stick with intermittent fasting

This is perhaps the most important thing I want to convey. If intermittent fasting works well for you, you get enough nutrients, and you feel good about it, there's no reason to stop.

But what if it doesn't work for you? Then you absolutely don't have to feel bad about it. You haven't failed because you're hungry in the morning or because an eight-hour eating window doesn't suit you.

For me, eating early works better at the moment. I have more energy, can distribute my proteins better throughout the day, have less strong cravings later in the day, and it supports what is becoming increasingly important to me: strength training and maintaining muscle mass.

That is healthy aging for me. Not sticking to one dietary rule for years because it once worked well, but continuing to look at science and how your own body reacts.

Sources

[1] Kerksick CM et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: nutritional concerns of the female athlete.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 2023.

[2] Kang L et al. Effect of Whey Protein Supplementation in Postmenopausal Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Nutrients, 2022;14(19):4210.

[3] Khalafi M et al. The effects of exercise training on body composition in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 2023.

[4] Stenqvist TB et al. Low energy availability in female athletes: From the lab to the field. European Journal of Sport Science, 2021.

This article is intended for informational purposes and does not replace personal medical or nutritional advice.