While things at fitness and nutrition have changed, there’re new ways to lose some weight. As consequence, the intermittent fasting method was born. In this guide, you’ll find everything you need to know about it.

 

What Does Intermittent Fasting Mean?

Firstly, it’s a lifestyle more than a theory diet, which works for many people. It consists to remain on fasting for a period of 12 to 16 hours.  In this period, you don’t eat anything, except for drinking water, coffee, or some teas. Therefore, you limit your food intake to a period of 7 to 8 hours.

It may sound difficult but you maybe have already done it without noticing it. For example, if you eat dinner at 8 pm, and you don’t eat anything until the next day at 10 am, well you are fasting!

However, many people who are used to eat 5 or 6 times per day to maintain a fast metabolism, when talking about this they can find it confused or contradictory. Nevertheless, science supports this practice and sometimes it works better than eating 6 times a day or eating 3 full meals.

But, it will all depend on the bio-individuality. This means that what can works for some people, for others don’t. And this applies to everything in life, you are not the same size as others, or some shoes don’t look the same as to your sister or brother, and so on. This is because every human being is a whole world, completely different, with different needs.

The key is to understand how the intermittent fasting is and find what’s better for you and your body.

 

Why Intermittent Fasting?

Because it has a lot of benefits, like losing fat! In fact, our ancestors didn’t eat 5 times a day; they didn’t have access to the food 24/7. We know that glycogen reserves are the first energy sources, however, when those reserves are over, the stocked fat in cells is used as energy.

 

What Do You Have to Eat While Intermittent Fasting?

At this point, you have to be clear! Not because you’re doing fasting means that:

• You’re going to eat anything you want. That doesn’t have logic to be healthy and neither losing fat. You must be conscious that anything you eat brings a hormonal change for good or bad.
• You have a green light to eat plentifully. No way! That won’t let you enhance digestion nor detox (which is some of the benefits of fasting).

While fasting hours you just can:

• Drink water
• Drink black coffee, without any sugar nor sweetens, and well measured.
• Drink teas, especially when warm.

 

What Are the Benefits of Intermittent Fasting?

• You lose weight, due to in glucose absence; you start to burn fat as an energy source instead.
• Arterial pressure and lipid profile get better. As consequence, your cardiovascular system improves.
• Anxiety setting; however, you’ll start to notice it after some weeks of practicing it and doing it correctly.
• Improves brain function; decreasing insanity risks.
• Reduces inflammation
• Improves glucose levels in blood and balances insulin, leptin, and ghrelin levels (appetite and fat gather controlling hormones). Also, it increases growth hormones levels, involved in the fat loss.
• Improves immune system
• Betters intestinal macrobiotic
• Betters detox process
• Reduces free radicals action; consequently, reduces stress and avoid premature aging.

 

What is The Schedule to Do Intermittent Fasting?

The most ideal schedule to do intermittent fasting is this:

• Dinner ideally at 7 pm
• Then, you shouldn’t eat anything and go to sleep.
• Let’s suppose you wake u at 7 am, well you don’t have to eat anything. Instead, you could only drink water, some tea, or black coffee (1 cup), unsweetened; because once you sweetened if you break the fasting. On the other hand, if you want to exercise when fasting, you must do it just before your first meal. As a result, you’ll break glycogen effectively.
• After 10 am will be your first meal, you’ll have a time-lapse to eat until 7 pm.

 

Golden Rules for Women Who Want To Do Intermittent Fasting

These rules are safe to avoid some hormonal misbalances that can present in some women. These hormonal misbalances are not presented in everyone; however, following the scheduling step by step, you’ll avoid these risks.

Some people haven’t experienced any hormonal misbalance. On the contrary, they have improved their hormones. However, this is not a method to follow on long-term but when you feel your body needs it.

It’s very important to always listen to the sings your body sends, to learn to know what works and what doesn’t to each one and take action according to it.

If you suffer from one of these conditions, it’s not recommendable you practice the intermittent fasting:

• Fasting produces an impact on blood glucose. For this reason, if you suffer from hypoglycemia you shouldn’t do it. It’s a good option, except for those who are insulin resistant or with type 2 diabetes.
• Fasting can increase adrenalin and cortisol levels. For this reason, if you suffer from anxiety, is not recommendable an extra increase of these hormones. In addition, it’s not recommended to those women who want to get pregnant, because if this misbalance occurs they won’t be fertile.
• In men is different, the process is safer. However, this doesn’t happen to all of them, again, it depends on the bio-individuality. In fact, there’s a safe way to do the intermittent fasting on women without the misbalances.
• As there are studies that show in some women, the fast develop food anxiety. Consequently, it’s not recommended for women with alimentary disorders.
• If you’re nursing, you must be well fed. So, forget about fast till later.
• If you don’t have any of these conditions, you can try fasting. However, if you experience some fatigue, weakness, or anxiety, well you better listen to your body and eat some food or reduce the fasting period, and increase foods schedule. Also, start little by little.

 

 

Important to Know

• This is not an activity you can do for a long period of time.
• Know your body and learn how it reacts to different situations and doesn’t force it.
• When it comes to your body and health, you must read and study all the information you can about anything you want to do with it.
• Consult your nutrition expert before making any decision.

 

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