Just about everybody has heard about intermittent fasting these days, and many plans are out there claiming to promote weight loss and better health overall.
But with so many claims about health and diet floating about, how can we separate fact from fiction and know what truly is good for us?
Let’s take a closer look at intermittent fasting to see for ourselves.
What Is Intermittent Fasting?
While most diets focus on what to eat, intermittent fasting focuses on when you eat. The focus is on switching between eating and fasting on a regular basis.
Research shows that intermittent fasting can help manage weight and even prevent and reverse some forms of disease.
Intermittent fasting is also known as “time-restricted eating,” and has been around in one form or another for a very long time.
If you are looking to get started, here’s a guide to Intermittent Fasting 101.
Restricting Your Eating Times Can Benefit Your Health.
Fasting for a certain number of hours each day, or for a few days of each week by just eating one meal per day can improve your metabolic health, help you lose weight, and prevent numerous health problems.
There are many ways to reap the benefits of intermittent fasting. The 16-8 method means fasting for 16 hours and eating all your food in an eight-hour window.
This can be as simple as skipping breakfast and not eating anything at all after dinner. By eating your last meal at 8 p.m. and not eating until 12 p.m the next day, you’re fasting for 16 hours.
The 5-2 method involves eating normally for five days and limiting your calorie consumption to one 500-600 calorie meal for the other 2 days.
Dry fasting is an extreme version of fasting which involves restricting food as well as water intake for a certain period you choose intermittent fasting. Learn more about this type before you decide to try.
Our Bodies Are Designed To Go Without Food For Extended Periods
The human body is designed to go without food for several hours, days, or even longer.
In prehistoric times, before our early ancestors learned to farm and relied on hunting and gathering, humans survived and thrived going long stretches without food.
They had to because foraging and hunting are processes that can’t be rushed.
Surplus calories and less physical exertion means an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other preventable ailments.
These can largely be reversed by monitoring the timing of when we eat.
Intermittent Fasting Benefits
Benefits of intermittent fasting include;
- Helping verbal and working memory
- Helps regulate resting heart rate and lower blood pressure
- Physical performance: young men who fasted for 16 hours a day have shown increased fat loss while maintaining muscle mass.
Is It For Everyone?
You should steer clear of intermittent fasting if you’re under 18 years of age, are pregnant or breastfeeding, have diabetes or blood sugar problems, or have a history of eating disorders.
If in doubt, it’s always prudent to check with your doctor before starting.
The Bottom Line
Intermittent fasting has been around for a long time. It mimics the eating patterns of our early hunter-gatherer ancestors.
With many fad diets around nowadays, it’s hard to know what’s best for our health.
Intermittent fasting focuses on restricting your eating to specific regular windows of time.
The 16-8 and 5-2 methods are two popular ways of achieving the numerous health benefits of fasting, which include increased weight loss and benefits for your heart health and blood pressure.