[sonick]

Originally Posted by m4k4v4li

if the contestants ate 4k calories a day but did intermittent fasting i very much doubt they would still lose as much weight (or even any weight for that matter)

One of the recent Joe Rogan Experience podcasts with Rhonda Patrick mentioned Time Restricted Feeding, where in studies that had groups (cant rmb if on humans or mice or both) eating the same amount of calories and macros, except one restricted their timing to only a certain window of time (~10-12 hours) vs more.

The time-restricted group had significantly more muscle mass without doing any additional physical exercise than those who ate the same amount/macros but outside of the time restriction.

Rhonda Patrick said its because our bodies can metabolize at a much better rate during the 'daytime' for the body's circadian rhythm, so eating the calories during which the mitochondria are most efficient will impact muscle mass (and on the flip-side, fat, I presume) more positively than eating the same thing outside of this window.

4k calories is insane, but according to the studies of TIme Restricted Feeding, 4k within the window in which your body is most efficient at metabolizing food, is better than a portion of that 4k being eaten outside of this window.