Intermittent Fasting (IF) could help out to maintain physical fitness. In as much as it is a Christian spiritual exercise though people are using it to lose weight in order to improve their health.
This has a powerful effect on your body and brain as recommended by so many studies.
Intermittent Fasting (IF) – Meaning
Intermittent fasting is an eating habit that cuts across periods of fasting and eating. Though this does not specifically select foods you should eat but it concerns more on when you should eat them.
The common methods are 16-hours fast and 24 hours fast for at least twice per week.
Before time, Intermittent Fasting had been a practice over the evolution of humans. It all began with hunters. It could have turned out to be that they could not find something to eat. They were able to function without food for some periods of time.
How Intermittent Fasting Can Help You Lose Weight – Healthline
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › intermittent-fas…
Fasting plans — The 16/8 intermittent fasting plan is one of the most popular styles of fasting for weight loss. The plan restricts food consumption
6 Popular Ways to Do Intermittent Fasting – Healthline
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › 6-ways-to-do-i…
Intermittent fasting is an effective way to lose weight and improve health. This article lists the 6 most popular intermittent fasting methods.
Intermittent Fasting 101 — The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › intermittent-fas…
Weight Loss — Weight loss is the most common reason for people to try intermittent fasting ( 13Trusted Source ). By making you eat fewer meals, intermittent …
16/8 Intermittent Fasting: Meal Plan, Benefits, and More
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › 16-8-intermitte…
The practice of 16/8 intermittent fasting involves eating only during an 8-hour daily window and fasting for the remaining 16 hours. It may boost weight loss, …
Intermittent Fasting Plan – Intermittent Fasting Methods
There are several ways of observing intermittent fasting that could involve either splitting the day or the week into eating and fasting periods. It takes either eating little or not at all.
Here are the methods
- The 16/8 method: this is also called the Leangains protocol. It fascinates skipping breakfast and extending your daily eating periods to 8 hours, like 1-9p.m. and then you see you fast like 16 hours between them.
- Eat-Stop-Eat: it is fasting of 24 hours, for about once or twice a week. For instance, avoid eating launch until the next day’s launch period.
- The 5:2 diets: this really regulates the calories you consume to only 500-600 calories for two non-consecutive days of the week, but then you can eat normally on other days.
How Intermittent Fasting Can Help You Lose Weight – Healthline
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › intermittent-fas…
Fasting plans — The 16/8 intermittent fasting plan is one of the most popular styles of fasting for weight loss. The plan restricts food consumption and …
Fasting plans · Hormonal effects · Weight loss · Preserving muscle
6 Popular Ways to Do Intermittent Fasting – Healthline
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › 6-ways-to-do-i…
Intermittent fasting is an effective way to lose weight and improve health. This article lists the 6 most popular intermittent fasting methods.
What it is · Sources · Functions · Benefits
Intermittent Fasting 101 — The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › intermittent-fas…
Weight Loss — Weight loss is the most common reason for people to try intermittent fasting ( 13Trusted Source ). By making you eat fewer meals, intermittent …
16/8 Intermittent Fasting: Meal Plan, Benefits, and More
https://www.healthline.com › nutrition › 16-8-intermitte…
The practice of 16/8 intermittent fasting involves eating only during an 8-hour daily window and fasting for the remaining 16 hours. It may boost weight loss, …
Effects
Several times when you fast, your body also undergoes several cellular and molecular changes. Your body hormone level may have to under-store body fat more accessible.
Here are some effects of intermittent fasting
- Human Growth Hormone (HGH): the human growth hormone is affected as it is increased to as much as 5-fold. With it, you will lose fats and gain muscle.
- Insulin: it tends to increase the sensitivity of insulin to a drastically moderate level. With lower insulin levels, the stored fat is more accessible.
- Cellular repair: under the pace of fasting, your cells initiate cellular repair processes such as autophagy. This is a situation where cells digest and remove old and dysfunctional proteins that build up inside cells.
- Gene expression: it builds up your gene functionality to longevity and as well as protection against disease.
Intermittent Fasting Benefits – Health Benefits
Here are the main health benefits of intermittent fasting: though many studies have been done both in animals and humans. It shows that it has great benefits for weight control and a healthy brain and body.
- Weight loss: the number one benefit is weight loss. Intermittent fasting helps a lot to fight fat and cause weight loss without just restricting calories consciously.
- Reduces Insulin resistance: Intermittent fasting goes a long way to reduce insulin resistance, thereby lowering blood sugar by 3–6% and the fasting insulin levels by 20–31%. Thus, it should protect you against type 2 diabetes.
- Inflammation: with Intermittent fasting, it reduces the production of inflammation according to scientific studies. It is a key driver of so many chronic diseases.
- Reduces Heart health risks: Intermittent fasting could help reduce “bad” LDL cholesterol, blood triglycerides, inflammatory markers, blood sugar, and insulin resistance. Thus, it fights all risk factors for heart disease.
- Cancer: from the periodic studies on animals, we prove that intermittent fasting prevents cancer.
- Develops ad build the Brain health: while intermittent fasting increases the brain hormone BDNF and may aid the growth of new nerve cells, it also protects it against Alzheimer’s disease.
- Prolonged health: Intermittent fasting can extend lifespan in rats. Studies showed that fasted rats lived 36–83% longer.
Who it may concern (for safety)
If you have a medical condition, you should consult with your doctor before trying intermittent fasting.
This is particularly important if you:
- Have diabetes.
- Have problems with blood sugar regulation.
- Have low blood pressure.
- Take medications.
- Are underweight.
- Have a history of eating disorders.
- Are you a woman who is trying to conceive?
- Are you a woman with a history of amenorrhea?
- Are pregnant or breastfeeding.
