Getting Started With Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent Fasting has been quickly gaining popularity as a method of losing weight and obtaining various health benefits. One of the most common rookie mistakes we see done by those who first embark on a weight loss journey is losing not jut fat but muscle mass too when putting themselves in a caloric deficit without combining it with other muscle preserving means such as strength training, and getting enough protein in the diet. Intermittent fasting has been one of those methods shown to ease with weight loss, specifically fat loss while maintaining lean muscle mass. It also has been shown to reduce visceral fat and lower our risk of heart disease, and various types of cancers specifically colorectal cancer, and lower our risk of diabetes by controlling energy spikes.
Fasting gives us all of those benefits based on two main reasons. The first is giving our digestive system a break helping it repair itself. The gut microbes that aide us in digestion are able to regroup. When we aren’t constantly snacking we have a better sense of satiety. Another reason has to do with converting our body from a typical carbohydrate burner to a fat burner. Fats are a much slower source of energy that does not give us the dreaded sugar crashes that sweets and pastries do. When we fast our body burns through its reserve fuel and must start relying more on the stored fats.
So with all these benefits that intermittent fasting provides us, where do we begin? To start, try experimenting with 2 different fasting methods. The first being the 16/8 fasting method and the second being the 5/2 method. The 16/8 involves eating within an 8 hour window each day almost every day of the week. The 5/2 method means eating anything you want for 5 days a week but limiting calories on the other two days substantially (typically under 600). The 16/8 is usually the more practical option since it is much easier to track time than count every calorie. Given that it is easier to fast with no food than with a little food, we would typically only consume 2-3 meals during that eating window. That said if you find the 5/2 strategy more sustainable for your lifestyle it would be advised that you consume those 600 calories or so in no more than 1-2 meals since constant snacking will spike your insulin levels making you crave more food more often. This makes the fast much more difficult and thus more difficult to maintain in the long term.
As we discussed before, eating nothing is usually easier than eating a little so once you have a system like that down you can start incorporating longer fasts. This includes adding in a 20/4 eating window or a 23/1 one meal a day window into your routine. Fasting much longer than that especially on a consistent basis will have very diminishing if not negative returns especially when it comes to building muscle.
Now the next question you probably have in mind is, “Is this normal for us to do?” The answer to that is absolutely YES! Unlike our modern eating habits, early humans did not eat multiple meals a day and often had to spread out their meals, sometimes even for several days. Our body is naturally designed to store energy and control its release. We don’t need to constantly eat to keep our energy levels up. In fact doing so can have the opposite effect by preventing our body from performing its natural means of blood sugar control. This is what leads to diseases such as diabetes since our body loses its ability to properly use insulin and glucagon, the two hormones that control blood sugar levels.
The difficult part will almost always be the first few days or weeks of the routine. Those first few days we will have more hunger, lower energy levels, and perhaps even a crabby mood. Some might call it “Getting Hangry!” This is not a sign that the changes are bad, but rather the other way around. Your body is experiencing withdrawal symptoms after relying on constant snacking throughout the day to maintain your energy levels. Now it must relearn how to properly tap your reserve fuel and fat sources for energy. After those first few days though you will gradually begin to see your energy levels rise and your mood improve.
Worried about losing muscle? Worry not! When we fast our bodies do not revert to burning our muscle as a temporary fuel source. Rather, we go into a preservation and protection mode by conducting an increased amount of autophagy, the process in which old unusable cell parts are consumed and recycled by the body. When autophagy is inhibited due to high levels of insulin, muscle loss increases, but when autophagy is working in full swing, we maintain muscle mass. So by missing out on intermittent fasting, you are missing out on promoting one of your body’s natural forms of repairing itself.
Getting started can be difficult. However, but once you develop a consistent routine, fasting becomes a lifestyle of more time, more energy, and more fat loss. That said intermittent fasting has been shown to have potential adverse effects on some parts of the population including youth, pregnant or breastfeeding women, and individuals with eating disorders. If you fall into one of those categories or have another medical condition that could make fasting harder, proceed with caution and perhaps work with a nutritionist. For the vast majority of us though, we will solve a lot more health problems than we will create by fasting. Not to mention have more time and less stress having to plan fewer meals. So if you want to lose some fat, or just feel better and have more energy try intermittent fasting! You will be happy you did!
Leo Gabriel, Revivalize Inc.
Sources:
[1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21410865/
[2] https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/intermittent-fasting-what-is-it-and-how-does-it-work
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7603932/
[4] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19945408/#:~:text=Thus%2C%20autophagy%20flux%20is%20important, of%20abnormal%20mitochondria%20and%20inclusions.
Go Back Fasting gives us all of those benefits based on two main reasons. The first is giving our digestive system a break helping it repair itself. The gut microbes that aide us in digestion are able to regroup. When we aren’t constantly snacking we have a better sense of satiety. Another reason has to do with converting our body from a typical carbohydrate burner to a fat burner. Fats are a much slower source of energy that does not give us the dreaded sugar crashes that sweets and pastries do. When we fast our body burns through its reserve fuel and must start relying more on the stored fats.
So with all these benefits that intermittent fasting provides us, where do we begin? To start, try experimenting with 2 different fasting methods. The first being the 16/8 fasting method and the second being the 5/2 method. The 16/8 involves eating within an 8 hour window each day almost every day of the week. The 5/2 method means eating anything you want for 5 days a week but limiting calories on the other two days substantially (typically under 600). The 16/8 is usually the more practical option since it is much easier to track time than count every calorie. Given that it is easier to fast with no food than with a little food, we would typically only consume 2-3 meals during that eating window. That said if you find the 5/2 strategy more sustainable for your lifestyle it would be advised that you consume those 600 calories or so in no more than 1-2 meals since constant snacking will spike your insulin levels making you crave more food more often. This makes the fast much more difficult and thus more difficult to maintain in the long term.
As we discussed before, eating nothing is usually easier than eating a little so once you have a system like that down you can start incorporating longer fasts. This includes adding in a 20/4 eating window or a 23/1 one meal a day window into your routine. Fasting much longer than that especially on a consistent basis will have very diminishing if not negative returns especially when it comes to building muscle.
Now the next question you probably have in mind is, “Is this normal for us to do?” The answer to that is absolutely YES! Unlike our modern eating habits, early humans did not eat multiple meals a day and often had to spread out their meals, sometimes even for several days. Our body is naturally designed to store energy and control its release. We don’t need to constantly eat to keep our energy levels up. In fact doing so can have the opposite effect by preventing our body from performing its natural means of blood sugar control. This is what leads to diseases such as diabetes since our body loses its ability to properly use insulin and glucagon, the two hormones that control blood sugar levels.
The difficult part will almost always be the first few days or weeks of the routine. Those first few days we will have more hunger, lower energy levels, and perhaps even a crabby mood. Some might call it “Getting Hangry!” This is not a sign that the changes are bad, but rather the other way around. Your body is experiencing withdrawal symptoms after relying on constant snacking throughout the day to maintain your energy levels. Now it must relearn how to properly tap your reserve fuel and fat sources for energy. After those first few days though you will gradually begin to see your energy levels rise and your mood improve.
Worried about losing muscle? Worry not! When we fast our bodies do not revert to burning our muscle as a temporary fuel source. Rather, we go into a preservation and protection mode by conducting an increased amount of autophagy, the process in which old unusable cell parts are consumed and recycled by the body. When autophagy is inhibited due to high levels of insulin, muscle loss increases, but when autophagy is working in full swing, we maintain muscle mass. So by missing out on intermittent fasting, you are missing out on promoting one of your body’s natural forms of repairing itself.
Getting started can be difficult. However, but once you develop a consistent routine, fasting becomes a lifestyle of more time, more energy, and more fat loss. That said intermittent fasting has been shown to have potential adverse effects on some parts of the population including youth, pregnant or breastfeeding women, and individuals with eating disorders. If you fall into one of those categories or have another medical condition that could make fasting harder, proceed with caution and perhaps work with a nutritionist. For the vast majority of us though, we will solve a lot more health problems than we will create by fasting. Not to mention have more time and less stress having to plan fewer meals. So if you want to lose some fat, or just feel better and have more energy try intermittent fasting! You will be happy you did!
Leo Gabriel, Revivalize Inc.
Sources:
[1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21410865/
[2] https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/intermittent-fasting-what-is-it-and-how-does-it-work
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7603932/
[4] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19945408/#:~:text=Thus%2C%20autophagy%20flux%20is%20important, of%20abnormal%20mitochondria%20and%20inclusions.