Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

Intermittent fasting is one of the latest diet crazes. I have been doing it again - not because of the diet craze - for a few years. I always used to wait until at least lunch to eat - I just wasn't hungry in the morning. I eventually started eating breakfast - they tell you it's so good for you - but never liked it. There is enough evidence that it isn't necessary that I went back to my personal preferences.

At any rate, it works well for me and over the last two years, I've lost 1-2 pounds a month, for a total of 35 pounds lost. Given I put on about 50 pounds my first foray with pramipexole and before that had put on 30 pounds when I quit smoking, this has been a good thing.

Today, though, I saw an article that claims a 16:8 fasting diet (fasting 16 hours, eating in an 8 hour window - which is usually about what I do naturally) actually reduces inflammation.

Since some people find that reducing inflammation can reduce RLS, seems that this could be a good option for some people.

Of course, to my knowledge, my RLS has not decreased, but I've long decided that inflammation is not the reason I have had RLS and PLMS since I was a child.

Oh - the article. I didn't read it in detail or look for citations - I was reading it on my phone simply because it showed up on my feed, lol.

https://www.t-nation.com/diet-fat-loss/ ... sting-diet

Ann, after you mentioned it on the discussion board last year in July, I looked up Dr Fung and read some articles. It made sense. Weight has been creeping up on me for decades. A slow transformation into the Michelin Man (the pudgy guy composed of rows of tires), no matter what, or how little, I ate. I started right away and have been skipping breakfast and eating lunch around 1:00. I’ve lost 15 pounds (thanks Ann!). I was concerned that hunger pangs would overwhelm me, or I’d feel weak but that hasn’t been a problem. There are waves of hunger but they’re mild and they pass. I just sip on a warm beverage like lemon water, or just plain water. I have acid reflux so I also start the day with some Thorne brand GI-encap capsules broken into warm water. It soothes my esophagus and stomach.

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/arti ... sting.aspx

I don’t tell people around me that I’m doing this (Dr Fung actually suggests this) because people have a strong reaction to fasting like it’s dangerous, or I’m doing something extreme. It’s not when done correctly. There’s a documentary on Amazon called “Science of Fasting” (Sylvie Gilman and Thierry de Lestrade, 2011). It’s fascinating. The Amazon reviews from people that watched it are interesting too.

https://www.amazon.com/Science-Fasting- ... B075848T5T

Ann and yawny - you have tried and test this intermittent fasting and it has worked for both of you. I've seen comments on this 16/8 but haven't before read any information.

I certainly need to knock off quite a few pounds. Over the last few years I also have gradually expanded and accepted it, to the stage of getting rid of all clothing that no longer fit properly and buying larger clothes. I feel that for me Insomnia plays such a part of this, the middle of the night is when I eat like there's no tomorrow... silly and horrible eating - a big bowl of cornflakes, and then another..... totally unnecessary. Chocolate biscuits. I would say that during the night it is out of control. Started really when I was on a very high dose 60 mg of steroid daily for a year and then weaning down for a further year, but the habit stuck.

I need to lose about 35lbs and I believe that my deteriorating health/well being is partly a result of this. At present I'm undergoing various tests hoping to get to the bottom of some symptoms and hopefully to attain a better life quality, As if the ripple effects of RLS weren't enough. And there is noone to blame for the weight gain but myself.

In the article it is discussed how it's possible to lose 8 - 12 of the 16 hours fast during sleep and of course, this time-span won't apply to most of us. But it is still a pattern/rule to observe and I do feel that knowing that when the 'big hand gets to xyz we can eat'' just might be feasible.

Glad to hear it helped, yawny. My nephew lost about 70 pounds and has kept it off for about two years now. He does a 20/5 - so his eating window is short!

PB - I totally eat more when I have insomnia, and even more when I have both insomnia and RLS. Eating distracts me from the RLS and the ennui that accompanies insomnia.

My husband was doing it - for the benefits specific to blood sugar. He hasn't been doing it that last couple months, but his A1C went from 6.5 last year to 5.5 this year. Prior to that, it has just been going up. He only lost ten pounds while doing it, but a lowered A1C for a diabetic is a VERY good thing.

I just thought this reference to inflammation was interesting. And, since I've recently opened a bin of clothes I haven't fit in since 2005 (13 years!), I am thrilled that I can lose some of this weight without feeling like I am dieting. The diet mentality is problematic for me - almost always makes me eat more as I think of how limited I will be. But, I don't feel limited this way. I just don't eat for a bit longer.

This is very interesting.

Nothing like a bad dose of influenza to lose weight. It’s almost two months on for me and most food makes me curl my nose up. However I don’t recommend it.

Yankiwi, that’s awful...hope you feel better soon. It’s been a really tough flu season.

Betty & Ann, you’re both making me regret all the skinnier clothes I’ve gotten rid of over the years as I thought there was no way I’d ever wear them again, LOL. Oh well, I guess I’ll just be forced to go shopping. An interesting thing happened while on this fasting...it’s recommended to eat healthy and not overeat when you do eat and I’ve done that mostly except during the recent winter holiday when I started consuming large amounts of ice cream because I was stressed while family visited for a month. If there’s ever a proper time to eat lots of ice cream, it’s visiting family during the holidays...and tonsillectomies. After they left, I hesitantly weighed myself and was a bit shocked to see I had lost a few more pounds. The ice cream was consumed only during lunch to dinner time (my 8 hour eating window). So flash forward to early February when I started a new supplement to support my thyroid which I had to take in the morning but still while fasting. The supplement caused me crazy hunger pangs which would transition to uncomfortable nausea. I had to eat, so I did, but very little, like one hard boiled egg or 5 cashews. I gained 3 pounds doing this over just 2 weeks. But turns out the supplement was causing fatigue so I moved it to bedtime, and I went back to real fasting. And now my weight is going down again. I think that’s remarkable.

BTW, if anyone is interested, I found the “Science of Fasting” documentary for free on YouTube...it really is educational and fascinating. Really opened my eyes to how fasting can help with weight but also chronic illness.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1b08X-GvRs

yawny - isn't it all such a roller coaster. Who'd have thought that a hard boiled egg in the morning could add 3 lbs in two weeks.
Never mind a supplement causing fatigue.

I'm so glad that your fasting is working for you. I also got rid of skinnier clothes as they annoyed me ... hanging there in the wardrobe..... taunting !!
I decided to only own clothes that fitted me and reckoned that if I needed skinnier clothes in the future I would buy them with pleasure
(funds permitting

Betty, it is a rollercoaster...the car slows down, more piles on, and the ride continues. Whoo hoo! Your taunting skinnier clothes comment made me laugh. I once heard someone suggest to throw out anything you haven’t worn in a year. So I got a large garbage bag and went for it. Except I couldn’t get rid of the bag so it sits on the floor of my closet, and my cats play in it, covering all the clothes with cat hair.

The getting rid of clothes not worn for a year wouldn't work for me. I have stuff older than my oldest grandchild who is 10.
A good dark grey wool andle length overcoat lasts for ever, doesn't date, and always comes out for funerals.

Polar Bear wrote:I certainly need to knock off quite a few pounds. Over the last few years I also have gradually expanded and accepted it, to the stage of getting rid of all clothing that no longer fit properly and buying larger clothes. I feel that for me Insomnia plays such a part of this, the middle of the night is when I eat like there's no tomorrow... silly and horrible eating - a big bowl of cornflakes, and then another..... totally unnecessary. Chocolate biscuits. I would say that during the night it is out of control.

Same here. I often get severe food cravings during the night or late in the evening if my RLS kicks in. Unfortunately, sometimes eating does help calm down the symptoms, so it's kind of a self medication. In other cases I get really hungry and it's almost impossible to sleep without eating something. I have been somewhat overweight for some time, and those nighttime eating sessions did their share to prevent a significant weight loss. I might give 16:8 eating a try. But the key to losing weight will be to control those food cravings.

BTW, yesterday I started a "traditional" fasting week , which I wanted to do for a long time but didn't dare doing while I was working. I'm not really aiming for weight loss (which I assume to be minimal as the human body is pretty efficient replacing lost fat after a diet) but because it's one of the few things I never tried before, and I'm curious if it does anything for my RLS and fatigue. I'll report on it here

yawny wrote:So flash forward to early February when I started a new supplement to support my thyroid which I had to take in the morning but still while fasting. The supplement caused me crazy hunger pangs which would transition to uncomfortable nausea. I had to eat, so I did, but very little, like one hard boiled egg or 5 cashews. I gained 3 pounds doing this over just 2 weeks. But turns out the supplement was causing fatigue so I moved it to bedtime, and I went back to real fasting. And now my weight is going down again. I think that’s remarkable.

Interesting. The theory is that the body switches from burning consumed food to burning stored fat at some point, and even very little food might prevent this switch. Still, 3 pounds in 2 weeks is a lot.

I will give it a try, adding it to what I'm already
doing.

I have now been doing this steadily for about a year. Before that is was occasionally. I keep losing weight at a regular rate - about 2-3 pounds a month. It's not fast, but it's regular and I've not gained, even when I've had a few days where I didn't fast.

I had my bloodwork done recently - my cholesterol was down by about 25 points and all other tests were in normal range. I still have issues with "good" vs "bad" cholesterol. Overall, though, everything is better than it was 2 years ago, the last time it was tested and when I weighed 30 or so pounds more.

I was able to put away all of my larger size clothes and am now wearing things that I'd packed away in 2007! While the workout wear and many tops are fine, it was funny to put on pants that were woefully out of style. Not that I am a fashion maven, but with some things it's quite noticeable, lol.

I have given away a few of the larger things - mostly to friends and family, but I donated some. I kept a few things just in case...but maybe I should just divest them all.