I eat what I like – but not every second of the day

Mum-of-two Julie Waddell chose fasting because it could fit her busy lifestyle. After losing two stones in six months by having a limited eating window each day, she says fasting is now her routine for life. Julie, 45, of Totnes, Devon, says: “I have way more energy, I don't get ill. I feel light – and I have clarity of mind.”

Julie is not only a big foodie, she also runs Moorish Humous, making dips. She says: “I like being able to eat what I want.”

In an average week Julie can range from fasting 22 hours, with only two hours to eat, to fasting 18 and eating for six.

She says: “It depends what I'm doing and how busy I am. It's totally flexible, which is brilliant.”

Julie says previously she was always hungry, and always seemed to be buying food or meal prepping.

She worried the regime might mean empty plates and a rumbling stomach – but found the opposite.

She said: “My diet looks like everybody else's but minus one or two meals. I cook for the family from scratch – chicken, lasagne, anything you want.

“Let's say my eating window is three hours. I might start from 3pm with a light snack – cheese and crackers, hummus and crisps. Then I'll have a full evening meal with the family, with a dessert and maybe cheese and biscuits.

“It takes a while for your body to adjust but eventually you become less hungry, and full more easily.

“It's not starvation, you eat loads of nutritious, delicious foods. You're just saying, I'm not going to eat from the minute I wake to the minute I go to bed.”