Energy balance
Time-restricted eating (TRE) significantly reduces body weight, fat mass, BMI, and waist circumference in adults, but does not significantly reduce fat mass percentage.
If you are an adult looking to lose weight and body fat, restricting your daily eating window to 12-20 hours (fasting for 4-12 hours) is an effective strategy. You can expect significant reductions in body weight, waist circumference, and fat mass. However, be aware that this method also leads to a loss of fat-free mass (muscle) and does not significantly change your body fat percentage. It is not necessarily superior to standard calorie restriction for weight loss, but may be easier to adhere to for some people.
Pooled results showed that TRE significantly decreased body weight, fat mass, fat-free mass, body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC)... Subgroup analyses revealed that TRE alone... considerably decreased body weight... and fat mass... but not fat mass percentage.
Why this rating
Based on a systematic review and meta-analysis of 20 RCTs with 1242 participants, though heterogeneity was high for some metrics.
Source
Efficiency of time-restricted eating and energy restriction on anthropometrics and body composition in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Yichao Sun et al. · International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity · 2025
DOI 10.1186/s12966-025-01812-w
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