OMAD, one meal a day
OMAD is the simplest schedule to describe and, without a timer, one of the easiest to lose track of. Here's what it actually involves.
What OMAD means
OMAD stands for "one meal a day." Instead of splitting the day into a fixed ratio like 16:8 or 18:6, the whole day outside of a single meal is a fast, and the eating window is however long that one meal takes, typically somewhere around an hour. In terms of hours, it usually lands close to a 23:1 split, though the exact number isn't the point, the single meal is.
How the timer helps
Because OMAD doesn't have a fixed clock-based window the way 16:8 does, it's easy to let the day slide, especially if there's no set point that marks when the fast started. WhenCanIEat treats OMAD as a preset the same as the others: you mark when your last meal ended, and the countdown to your next one runs from there. Streaks work the same way too, one clean day at a time.
An example day
Here's an OMAD day built around a single evening meal from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM:
| Time | What's happening |
|---|---|
| 7:00 PM (previous day) | Meal ends, fast begins |
| Overnight and next day | Fast continues |
| 4:00 PM | Timer shows the countdown to your window opening |
| 6:00 PM | Fast complete, eating window opens |
| 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM | Meal happens |
| 7:00 PM | Window closes, next fast begins, streak updates |
The meal can land at whatever time suits the day, a midday version might run from noon to 1:00 PM instead.
Setting your own window length
Since OMAD is really just a short, once-a-day window, the App lets you treat it as a custom schedule if a strict one hour block doesn't match your day, some people prefer a two hour window for the same idea. Either way, the timer's job stays the same: tell you when the window opens and how long is left once it does.
Getting started
Open WhenCanIEat, choose the OMAD preset, mark when your meal ends, and let the countdown to tomorrow's window run. Free to try, no account needed.
Start your OMAD timer
All presets are included in your free trial, first 2 fasts on us. Subscribe only if you want to keep going after that.