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The 101 Guide to Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is becoming an extremely popular health trend worldwide. Though people use this for different reasons, many are using it to lose weight, improve overall health and add simplicity to their lifestyle. Though some may be wary about intermittent fasting, many studies show the powerful effects of intermittent fasting on both your brain and body.

Interested in giving it a try? Here’s your complete beginner’s guide to intermittent fasting.

What is intermittent fasting (IF)?

Intermittent fasting is when you follow the cycle of eating and fasting. It’s not focused on what you eat, but rather, intermittent fasting is based on when you eat. This isn’t a diet as no foods are restricted, it is simply an eating pattern that you follow.

Typically, intermittent fasting involved a daily 16 hour fast or fasting for 24 hours, twice a week.

You may be thinking that this is strange, however, humans have been fasting throughout our history. It’s been used in many religions such as Buddhism, Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Prior to that, our first ancestors fasted due to a lack of food. Of course, back in the day, there were no supermarkets with endless supplies of food to our availability. Fasting is quite natural and is even more natural than eating 6 meals a day.

How to intermittent fast

Intermittent fasting involves splitting the day or week into an eating period and fasting period. Of course, you’ll have a blend of these periods where you’ll either be eating very little or nothing.

These are some of the most popular methods:

The 16/8 method: It’s also called the Leangains protocol which involves skipping breakfast and then restricting your eating period to 8 hours. For example, you’ll be eating from 10 am to 8 pm and then allowing a 16 hour fast in between then and your next meal.
The eat-stop-eat method: This method involves you fasting for an entire 24 hours period, at least once or twice a week. For example, you’ll eat on Monday and then the entire Tuesday you will fast.
The 5:2 Diet: On two days in the week, non-consecutive days, you only eat between 500-600 calories. Then on the other days, you eat completely normal.

If you’re interested in losing weight, then with any of these methods you’ll want to reduce your caloric intake. All of these methods should aid in weight loss as long as you don’t binge eat during your eating periods. Many people find that the 16/8 method is the easiest to stick to and is the most popular for that reason.

Intermittent fasting affects your cells and hormones

There are several things which occur in your body when you’re fasting and the benefits reach all the way down on a molecular and cellular level. Many of these changes which occur are most likely changes you weren’t aware of until now. Though, these are some of the changes which happen while fasting:

Insulin levels: while fasting, the levels of insulin in your blood drop significantly which aids in fat burning.
Gene expression: during the fasting period, genes and molecules change in relation to longevity and protection against diseases.
HGH: the Human Growth Hormone is greatly affected by fasting. By fasting you are able to increase your GH levels as much as 5-fold. The higher the levels of HGH are in the body, the easier it is to gain muscle and burn body fat.
Cell repair: during the fasting period, the body is able to initiate cell repair. For example, it removes waste materials from the cells.

Intermittent fasting aids greatly in weight loss

Intermittent fasting is most commonly used with those looking to lose weight. It’s successful because those fasting are reducing their caloric intake due to eating fewer meals. In addition, intermittent fasting raises the levels of HGH which aids in weight loss.

In addition to the hormonal activation and caloric intake reduction, it also reduces insulin levels, increases HGH and norepinephrine which all aids in breaking down fat molecules, transferring the fat into an energy source.

Overall, short-term fasting actually increases your metabolic rate by up to 14%. By increasing your metabolic rate and reducing your caloric intake, this is a simple equation for healthy and effective weight loss.

Other studies show that intermittent fasting is can be extremely powerful for weight loss. In 2014, a study showed that intermittent fasting causes weight loss of 3-8% over a 3-24 week period.

The main reason why intermittent fasting works is because you’re reducing your caloric intake. If you binge eat during your eating periods, you won’t lose much or any weight.

Health Benefits Of Intermittent Fasting

There have been various studies on intermittent fasting with studies performed on both animals and humans. Through these studies, it’s shown that intermittent fasting has powerful effects on your health.

The main health benefits of intermittent fasting are:

Inflammation: Studies have shown that intermittent fasting has reduced the triggers of inflammation which is a key source of many chronic diseases such as Arthritis.
Weight loss: Intermittent fasting can aid you with weight loss, specifically in the stomach area. Intermittent fasting works because you’re not consciously restricting calories.
Insulin resistance: Intermittent fasting has various studies with regards to diabetes and has been shown to provide amazing health benefits for insulin resistance and reduced blood sugar levels. In one study, intermittent fasting proved to reduce blood sugar levels by 3-6% and reduce insulin levels by 20-31%.
Heart health: Intermittent fasting shows evidence of improving various risk factors associated with heart disease such as high blood pressure, inflammation, high blood sugar levels and high cholesterol.
Anti-aging: In numerous rats studies, it shows that intermittent fasting can extend lifespan similarly to calorie restriction. Some of the studies showed dramatic effects with one rat which fasted every other day, living 83% longer than the other.
Brain health: Intermittent fasting increases the levels of brain hormone which is called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), low levels of this hormone have been linked to depression and other brain problems.
Cancer: Fasting has many benefits on the metabolism which may be able to reduce the risk of cancer and the spreading of cancer. There has been evidence of human cancer patients which have had reduced chemotherapy symptoms during the fasting period.

Naturally, much of the research regarding intermittent fasting is still in the early stages. There have been numerous studies done on animals, however, human testing is still in the process.

Intermittent Fasting and a Healthy Lifestyle Simpler

Sticking to a healthy lifestyle can be a challenge, especially when we’re surrounded by various temptations of unhealthy foods. One of the main problems with eating healthy revolves around planning and cooking meals as many people don’t have the time.

However, intermittent fasting is easier because you don’t need to plan special meals, you simply eat what you usually eat, but only in specified time periods. Intermittent fasting is a great way to improve your health without making your life more complicated.

Some people should be careful when Intermittent Fasting

Of course, intermittent fasting isn’t ideal for everyone. If you have a history of eating disorders or are underweight, then intermittent fasting is something should you do only after consulting your physician.

Should women fast?

There has been some evidence in which it’s shown that intermittent fasting isn’t as beneficial as it is for men. There has been one study which showed that though fasting improved insulin resistance for men, it negatively affected blood sugar control for in women.

Though, these studies were not done humans, so, we still don’t have a solid idea of the effects it has on men and women. In rat studies, it showed that female rats have become masculinized, infertile and even missed cycles.

For these reasons, it’s important that women are very cautious when intermittent fasting. If you notice any problems or changes in your body which don’t make you feel good, then you should stop immediately. If you also have previous issues with fertility, then intermittent fasting isn’t something you should do.

Safety and side effects Of Intermittent Fasting

The main side effect of intermittent fasting is the feeling of hunger. In addition, you may also feel weak or foggy minded during fasting. However, this is usually temporary as it takes time for your body to adjust to its new eating cycle. Of course, if you have any medical conditions, talk to your doctor prior to fasting.

Talking to your doctor is especially important if you have:

Diabetes
Low blood pressure
Take medications
Are trying to conceive
Have a history of eating disorders
Are underweight
Have issues with blood sugar levels
Are pregnant or breastfeeding
Have a history of amenorrhea

FAQ about Intermittent Fasting

Naturally, you probably still have some questions about intermittent fasting. Well, here are the answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about intermittent fasting.

Can I drink liquids during the fast?

Yes. You are allowed to drink water, coffee, tea and any non-caloric beverages. This means, no soda. You cannot add any sugar to your coffee or tea, everything must be drunk straight.

Will fasting cause me to lose muscle?

Most weight loss methods will cause you to lose muscle which is why you need to exercise. Lifting weights and eating protein is essential to retain your muscle.

Can I work out during the fast?

Yes, you can workout while fasting. We recommend you take a branched-chain amino acid (BCAAs) prior to working out.

Can I take supplements during the fast?

Yes, but you’ll want to be aware that some supplements work better when taken with food.

Is it unhealthy to skip breakfast?

No. If you eat healthy food throughout the day, then you’re fine. Typically, people who skip breakfasts have poor diets in general.

Should kids fast?

No.

Will fasting slow my metabolism down?

No. short-term fasts can actually work to boost your metabolism. But fasting over 3 days can suppress it.

How to start intermittent fasting

In reality, you’ve probably done intermittent fasting a couple times in your life. Perhaps you slept in or were too busy to grab dinner, thus, you went without eating for over 12 hours.

The easiest method to start with is the 16/8 method, which we recommend you try out first. Then, once you’re in the routine you can switch your method to the eat-stop-eat method or 5:2 diet, whichever suits you best. There’s no strict formula for this, you can play around with it and see which one suits you the best.

Should you try intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting isn’t something that you need to do, rather it’s one of the methods that can improve your health and add years to your life. Prior to intermittent fasting, you want to make sure that you have a healthy eating regime, exercise regularly and have an adequate amount of sleep.

Then, if these factors are stable, intermittent fasting will be a great addition, however, at the end of the day, you decide what type of lifestyle is the best for you.

For some people, intermittent fasting works wonders while for others it doesn’t work well. But, the only way to know is to give it a try.

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