Index
- Know More About the Intermittent Fasting
- Intermittent Fasting: Different Methods
- The Effects: On Your Cells and Hormones
- Intermittent as a Weight Loss Tool
- The Health Benefits
- Make your Lifestyle Simpler with Intermittent Fasting
- When Do You need to be careful with Intermittent Fasting?
- What are the Possible Side-effects?
- Is it The Right Method for You?
Know More About the Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting (1) or IF is an eating pattern a person follows between periods of eating and fasting. It is about when you should eat instead of what. Hence, it is more like an eating pattern rather than a conventional diet.
Intermittent Fasting: Different Methods
There are several different methods for Intermittent Fasting (2). All of them involve splitting the eating and fasting period.
During the fasting, you eat little to nothing.
Below are some popular IF methods:
- The 16/8 Method
- Eat-Stop-Eat
- The 5:2 Diet
The 16/8 Method
People also call the 16/8 method as the Leangains protocol. It involves skipping breakfast, along with restricting your eating period to 8 hours. For example, during this fasting method, you could eat between 1 pm to 9m, and then you fast for in-between 16 hours.
Eat-Stop-Eat
This intermittent fasting style involves fasting for 24 hours once or twice a week. For example, during the IF, you won’t eat anything after dinner one day until the supper of the next day.
The 5:2 Diet
People consume only 500 to 600 calories for two days a week and eat regularly on the other five days in this method.
All of the above methods could help you lose extra weight if you reduce your calorie intake. However, make sure you don’t overeat during the eating period.
The 16/8 IF is one of the most popular Intermittent Fasting methods because it is simple, sustainable, and easy to stick.
The Effects: On Your Cells and Hormones
Several things happen with our bodies when we fast, especially on the cellular and molecular level. For example, our bodies make adjustments on our hormonal levels to make stored fat more accessible.
Below are specific changes that occur in our body during an Intermittent Fasting (3):
- 5-fold increase in Human Growth Hormone (HGH). It promotes fat loss and muscle gain.
- Insulin level drops, and Insulin Sensitivity goes up. It makes the stored body fat more accessible.
- Cellular Repair
- Gene Expression. Functions of genes that are related to longevity and protection against diseases.
Intermittent Fasting as a Weight Loss Tool
Intermittent Fasting is most commonly uptake by people who aim for weight loss. Since it allows you only to eat fewer meals, it could lead to an overall reduction in your calorie intake (4). Because of several changes happens in our body, as mentioned in the above section, IF may also increase your metabolic rate by specific percentages. However, our readers must know that if they overeat during the eating periods, they may not achieve any weight loss.
The Health Benefits
Keep reading below to find more health benefits of intermittent fasting (5):
- Weight Loss
- Insulin Resistance
- Inflammation
- Improves Heart Health
- Improves Brain Health
- May Prevent Certain Types of Cancer
- Anti-aging/Extend Lifespan
Make your Lifestyle Simpler with Intermittent Fasting
We know that eating healthy is simple, but the habit is tough to maintain. The main obstacle people face is planning and cooking healthy meals daily. However, IF it makes things more comfortable in this matter since you don’t need to prepare, cook, and clean up after each meal. It improves your health at the same time also makes your life simple.
When Do You need to be careful with Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent Fasting is not for everyone. One should not fast without consulting with their physician if they are underweight or have a history of eating disorders.
According to some studies, IF is not as beneficial to women as men. Women should be more careful with fasting, especially if you have fertility issues or trying to conceive. You could also consider holding off the fast, and it is also a bad idea if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
What are the Possible Side-effects?
Hunger is one of the primary side effects of intermittent fasting. People may also feel weak, and your brain may not give their optimum performance. Some of the side-effects are only temporary while your body adapts to a new eating schedule (6). Consult with your physician before initiating IF if you have a medical condition. Especially if you:
- Have diabetes
- Have problems with blood sugar regulation
- Have low blood pressure
- Take medications
- Are underweight
- Have a history of an eating disorder
- A woman who is trying to conceive
- A woman with a history of amenorrhea
- Are pregnant or breastfeeding
The safety profile for IF is outstanding. Furthermore, if you are healthy and well-nourished, there is no harm in not eating for a while.
Is it The Right Method for You?
Intermittent fasting is not something required by everyone (7). You could improve your overall health by taking several simple lifestyle measures. It includes eating healthy food, exercising, getting enough sleep as the main factors. For those who don’t like the idea of staying hungry for several hours, safely ignore the article, and continue with a method that works best for you. When it comes to nutrition, you can’t find no one size fits all solutions. Hence, the best diet for you is the one you can stick with over the long term. Try it out to see if it belongs to you or not for losing extra weight and improving your overall health!
