Intermittent Fasting Results: 3 Real Before-and-After Stories (Daily Fasting, OMAD, and 5:2)

Intermittent fasting isn't one diet. It's a family of schedules, and people get results with very different ones. Below are three real intermittent fasting success stories using three different approaches, with the starting point, the schedule, and the result over time.

Daily fasting window: 42 pounds in 14 months

Kay adopted a 19-hour daily fast with a 5-hour eating window — a longer fast than the popular 16:8 schedule — after watching a video course on the subject. She kept the same schedule for 14 months rather than cycling on and off, and lost 42 pounds and 8.5 inches from her waist.

OMAD results: 80 pounds in a year

Martine Etienne-Mesubi, a public health epidemiologist, started with an 18-hour fast and a 6-hour eating window. She'd lost 30 pounds by month four, then moved to one meal a day (OMAD). About a year in, she had gone from 225 to 145 pounds — an 80-pound loss.

5:2 diet results: 50 pounds in six months

Dave Wentworth joined a weight-loss competition at work in 2011 and tried the 5:2 approach: normal eating five days a week, and only dinner on the other two — roughly a 20% overall cut in calories. He lost 50 pounds in six months.

Intermittent fasting weight loss per week

Averaged out, these results range from under a pound a week (Kay, over 14 months) to around two pounds a week (Dave, over six months). The first weeks are often faster than the rest. What the three have in common is consistency: each stuck with one schedule for months rather than switching.

These are individual results, not medical advice. Fasting isn't suitable for everyone — including people who are pregnant, have diabetes, or have a history of disordered eating — so check with a doctor before starting.