Bernardo Faria recently shared how he’s used intermittent fasting to manage his weight since retiring from competitive Jiu-Jitsu in 2017.

He shared how he managed to gain weight to begin with:

I stopped competing in Jiu-Jitsu in 2017, and right after I stopped, I started gaining a lot of weight.

The problem was simple. I was used to training 2 or 3 times per day, so I was also used to eating A LOT.
Then all of a sudden, I became a Jiu-Jitsu hobbyist training 2 or 3 times per week, but my eating habits didn’t change.

He explained what eventually solved the problem, and how long he’s stuck with it:

The solution that worked best for me was intermittent fasting.
I’ve been doing it for almost 9 years now, and it has helped me maintain my weight.

I don’t follow super strict rules.
I just try to go as many hours as I comfortably can without eating.

Beyond weight management, Faria pointed to a mental benefit he’s noticed in his day-to-day work:

Another thing I really like about intermittent fasting is how focused I feel during the day.

I work a lot on the computer nowadays, and when I don’t stop for lunch, I don’t get that tired feeling afterward where you just want to take a nap.

He was careful to frame the approach as personal, rather than universal:

I’m definitely not a doctor or scientist, and I’m not saying this is the right diet for everyone.

But for me, as someone who went from being a professional Jiu-Jitsu athlete to a hobbyist, it has worked incredibly well.
Especially as I get older, it has been one of the easiest ways for me to control my weight while still enjoying food.

I stopped competing in Jiu-Jitsu in 2017, and right after I stopped, I started gaining a lot of weight.

The problem was simple.

I was used to training 2 or 3 times per day, so I was also used to eating A LOT.

Then all of a sudden, I became a Jiu-Jitsu hobbyist training 2 or 3…

— Bernardo Faria (@BernardoFariaJJ) August 17, 2026

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