Quote: (01-30-2018 02:12 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:
Quote: (01-03-2018 01:01 PM)Dulceácido Wrote:
Sucks no morning coffee before going on a run (unless you wanna eat dinner at 3 pm)... And no herbal teas at night (unless you don't want to eat breakfast for 15 hours).
Military people could never pull this off--at work by 7 am and don't get off work until 4 pm or later--There's 9 hours right there. You figure, your morning routine, commute both ways, depending on where you live, and this would be impossible unless your first meal was at lunch time, but damn that'd be hard after morning PT when you're starving to death.
Not trying to attack you here, but I just couldn't let this slip by. I think it's important to point out that there's always a "reason" why fasting is "too hard." Same goes for other things that seem difficult at the surface level. Military guys are not so different as other people in their ability to generate said excuses if it regards a practice not already ingrained in their unique culture.
General Stanley McChrystal, in contrast, is well-known for eating one meal a day over years and years and years to maintain his energy levels and a physique that his men will respect (see interviews of him by Ferriss). He's inspired other men in his ranks to do the same, and I'm sure plenty other military men at all levels and vocations have engaged in intermittent fasting, long fasts, and other generally difficult things regardless of their schedules. Many elite soldiers throughout history have pushed the boundaries of human performance and set the bar for the rest of us, as I'm sure doesn't need much saying.
Also, there are plenty of non-military guys who work all day, have morning routines and commutes and rigid schedules, etc, and do "PT" in the morning fasted and still don't eat until noon or later. I've been one of them. Hell, before I left the states this winter, I was essentially doing PT twice before eating my first meal around noon (though at the time time I knew nothing about coffee starting the digestive processes). It really wasn't that tough once I got in the swing, as with most things.
One thing that did really prove to be a bit too much for me was doing a 10-day full-on fast while continuing to hit the gym and also practicing with (helping coach) the local high school wrestling team. That sapped the energy more than I wanted and made it tough to be there a hundred percent in practice for the kids. In the end, I decided against my original goal of 20 days and cut it in half. But your body will adjust to IF (and likely time restricted eating) quick and a morning workout won't mess with you much - because you are still taking in plenty of energy to carry you through.
Sometimes certain ideas are just not up our alley, and there's nothing wrong with that. Sometimes we just aren't interested.
But you have to be careful of the rationalizations you make to yourself about why you can't do things - or, more accurately, why you choose to not do things. I believe when you justify with reasons why you "can't" that don't really hold up to close scrutiny, you train your brain to more readily look for the easy passes in all areas of life when you come across challenging practices that could really benefit you. If there are others out there doing it under similar circumstances, chances are that with a little acclimation, so could you.
Man.... You stewed on that one for a long time before replying. I had forgotten about this thread.
No worries. I don't take any insult from that at all. I respect constructive criticism. All good, Brother.
All I would say is, regarding the military, there is no "lunch hour" and there is no, "when I get off." You're there and you are running drills/exercises until the work is done. Some days you don't get lunch. You're working. Some days you don't go home at the end of the day; you stay and work through the night, and that's just when you are "in town." When you are "out of town," it's even worse.
I guess I should've been more specific about to what I was inferring.
I agree that there are a million excuses why you can't do something. No doubt about it. I'm totally with you there.
But, when you don't have solid control on your schedule, you eat when they say eat. You don't have to, but you're to blame if this thing (whatever it is) goes on for another 48 hours and you don't eat.
That's all...