Are you looking for a better and faster way to lose weight and get healthy?
Read this speedy checklist that will tell you everything about intermittent fasting and how it can help you achieve your goals.
What Is Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent fasting is a way of eating that focuses not on what you eat but when you eat it. Based on the ancient concept of fasting, this diet protocol can be done in several ways but with the same goals of improving overall well-being and health and achieving a healthy bodyweight.
People often like intermittent fasting more than other types of diet because it allows them to eat the foods that they enjoy without being restricted to fat-free or low calorie meals.
The Benefits Of Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting offers a host of health and wellness benefits including:
- Weight loss
- Fast cell repair
- Improved insulin sensitivity
- Better brain function
- Decreased inflammation in the body
How Can I Use Intermittent Fasting To Promote Weight Loss?
Most people who try intermittent fasting are doing it to lose weight. This way of eating can help you in several ways. If you’re planning to use intermittent fasting to promote weight loss, here are some tips:
- If you try intermittent fasting, you’ll reduce the length of time you can eat each day. This means you can reduce the number of meals you consume. If you follow the protocol properly, you can limit the number of calories you have every day. This helps you to lose weight quickly.
- Intermittent fasting promotes hormonal changes in your body. These, in turn, help to boost your metabolic rate so that you can burn more fat for fuel and energy and become slimmer more quickly.
- When you do intermittent fasting, your insulin levels will improve. When your blood sugar is better balanced, your body will become better adapted for fat burning. This will help you to lose more weight quickly too.
How To Do Intermittent Fasting Safely
Although intermittent fasting is an effective weight loss solution for many people, it’s important to do it safely. Here is some expert advice:
- Know who should take extra care with an intermittent fasting regime. If you’re pregnant, breastfeeding, diabetic or under 18 you should seek medical advice before trying IF.
- If you’re at risk of developing an eating disorder due to your genetics or if you’ve suffered from disordered eating patterns before, you may want to avoid IF as it could trigger unhealthy eating behaviors.
- Be aware of the different side-effects that could arise as a result of IF. Some people experience dizziness or light-headedness when intermittent fasting. Usually, the side effects are short-lived and mild, but for some people they can be more severe including extreme fatigue, mood swings or menstrual changes. It may be wise to seek medical advice if these happen to you.
- If you’re an athlete, you can do intermittent fasting safely although you’ll need to choose the right time to plan your eating windows around your exercise times. It makes sense to eat shortly after your workout to avoid extreme fatigue and hunger.
How To Do 16:8 Intermittent Fasting
One of the most popular intermittent fasting protocols is 16:8 fasting. This involves having a 16 hour fast followed by an 8 hour eating window. You can use this protocol by:
- Choosing the best 8 hour slot for your eating window to fit around your lifestyle
- Planning to eat healthy foods during your eating window such as wholegrains, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats and lean proteins
- Choosing calorie-free beverages to consume during your fasting window such as black coffee and tea and water
- Sticking to a weekly timetable with regular eating windows every day
How To Do 24 Hour Fasting
Another popular intermittent fasting protocol is the 24-hour fasting regime. This involves taking one or two days each week to fast then eating normally the rest of the week. You can use this protocol by:
- Choosing the best fasting days for you. Remember that you shouldn’t choose two consecutive days if you want to fast for two 24-hour periods each week
- Follow a weekly schedule where you eat something every calendar day while stick adhering to a 24-hour fast once or twice weekly
Other Types Of Intermittent Fasting
Although 16:8 and 24-hour fasting programs are two of the most popular, there are several other types of IF that many people use including:
- 5:2 fasting – eating normally for five days each week but restricting calorie intake on two non-consecutive days to 500 or 600 calories
- 20:4 fasting – this type of fasting is similar to 16:8 fasting but it involves shortening your eating window to just 4 hours and your fasting window to 20
- 36-hour fasting – this type of fasting simply extends the 24-hour fast so there are full day periods during which you won’t eat solid food
- Alternate day fasting – this type of fasting involves fasting every alternate day
- Extended fasts – some people choose to fast for 48 hours or longer occasionally. This type of fasting program is best for those who are experienced at fasting and may be best carried out under medical supervision
How To Maximize The Results Of Intermittent Fasting
If you want to experience maximum benefits of intermittent fasting there are several things you can do to experience the best possible advantage.
These include:
- Add exercise into your regime. Work out during your fasting periods to help boost your fat burning and achieve faster results
- Make sure you’ve choosent the best IF method to suit your lifestyle. If you choose too extreme a regime or one that doesn’t fit into your lifestyle you won’t be able to stick with it
- Add keto dieting into your regime to maximize your results. You can do this by only consuming a maximum of 25g of carbs each day.
How To Get Started With Intermittent Fasting
If you’re keen to try intermittent fasting you probably want to know how to get started. You need to:
- Start out with one of the less rigorous regimes such as 16:8 or 5:2 which let you eat some food every day and which are easy to fit around your existing lifestyle
- Stay well hydrated at all times by consuming plenty of calorie-free beverages and water during your fasting window as well as during your eating window
- Experiment with your eating patterns. If a certain eating window isn’t working well for you, feel free to move it around and see if you can find one that’s easier to stick with
If you use this information to get started with intermittent fasting, you’ll find that you can lose weight quickly and also experience a number of other health and wellness benefits that will make your life better!
